The 2014/2015 basketball regular season was a solid one for the Red Deer College Kings with a narrow first place finish in what head Coach Clayton Pottinger called a “loaded” south division.
“Then we went to the playoffs and got shocked in the first round by Keyano,” he said about last year’s host team for provincials. “The first round we kind of laid an egg and they were on a high and they beat us. So for the first time that I’ve been coaching here we never went to the national championships.”
Pottinger says it was a sore spot for the players and served as a source of motivation for him when it came to recruiting for this season.
“It is also motivation for the guys that are returning because they’re not used to that. They’re used to more,” he said. “So there is a level of resolve amongst the group and recruiting wise we went after some guys that would share that level of resolve.”
The first look at the group he hopes will correct the situation was the recent summer basketball camp at RDC where a dozen players hit the floor for some skills testing.
“One of the things we’ll get is some baseline data in terms of their fitness and athleticism. It also gives these guys a chance to meet some of their new team mates as we’ve got guys from across the country and from the U.S. in the gym.”
Pottinger says the camp also gives the coaching staff a chance at reassess and make sure they’ve addressed the pieces needed for the upcoming season.
The four stations the players were being run through included a vertical jump test for leg power, a 20 metre sprint gauging flat out speed, a series of lights which would flash randomly, testing a players reaction time and then three cones spread out where a player needed to touch them in a test of agility.
Not only does this testing reveal something about the player’s physical makeup but also where they might stand mentally in battling through fatigue to get to where they need to be during a game, said Pottinger.
Beyond this testing the Kings held several identification camps which looked at the players on the court but also drilled a little deeper.
“We talked to their coaches, their parents, their teachers. We wanted to get a full character assessment on these guys before we decided to recruit them,” he said. “So I think we did the best job that I’ve ever done in terms of finding the right guys and vetting them.”
One of the surprise additions to the camp was Anthony Ottley from Pickering, Ontario.
“He’s fresh off of a pro tryout and I’ve been talking to him for about three years trying to get him to come here,” said Pottinger.” Finally between me, his agent and his mom he decided to come get his education and then pursue a pro career afterwards.”
Another player which caught his eye was Rodney Teal, an Oklahoma City resident they found at an ID camp down in Arizona.
“He’s a little bit older guy and I think he’s going to be a fantastic addition to our team. Defensively he’s great. Offensively he runs the floor and he’s got a motor and he can really score.”
Another gem Pottinger is anxious to see play in the ACAC is Ian Tevis from Seattle who was a standout at the camp down in his home state of Washington.
Pottinger is looking to blend in the new recruits with the players returning from last year including guard JP Leblanc who is entering his second full year with the Kings after red-shirting in his first year.
“He did fantastic for us last year. He exceeded expectations and we expect him to step into more of a leadership role this year,” he said.
Also on the floor was Lindsay Thurber grad Spencer Klassen whom Pottinger says was a real surprise. Klassen has been training with the Kings all summer and appears to be ready to take the next step in cracking the Kings roster.
The chess pieces are on the board and the coach now has to make some decisions as to what direction to move but he likes his weapons.
“We’ve got depth, we’ve got athleticism, we’ve got experience and most importantly I think we’ve got guys that are just hungry and understand what happened last year and they understand we’ve got great opportunities here to do something a little bit more,” he said.” Unfinished business. That’s the theme of the season.”
