Basketball season for 2014/2015 should provide another exciting year. What should we expect from Tates Creek Remember, please be constructive.

It will be interesting to see if this program takes a step forward this coming year. They have had two really bad seasons in a row but I think the young players who had to play the past couple seasons are experienced now and should show significant improvement. As long as the losing of the past two seasons has not taken their confidence.

Great coach with Breeden, easily one of the best in the State. For those that don't know, he was a graduate assistant for Joe B. Hall at UK and has had his share of success with a few schools in the State Tournament, most recently Owensboro.

 

He hasn't been able to push Tates Creek over the hump and get them back, though his best chance in ~2010 was thwarted when he had Marcellus Barkesdale, Ryan Fucci, Braxton McFarland (only a soph. then), and Todd Bradley. Unfortunately, Bradley, who wasn't a big time scorer or the kind of kid who was knocking on the door for All State teams, but was a big part of what they did and some of their only size on the interior for a team who didn't go very deep, ended up in a walking book shortly before district and the 'Dores bowed out to Madison Central.

 

This year, Breeden will return All-Region performer Jordan Fucci, a big forward who is the younger brother of Ryan (mentioned with the 2010 squad). A great baseball player who is still finishing his high school season, it remains to be seen if Fucci will get much work in on the hardwood this summer (and with the rides he's likely to get on the diamond, you can't really blame him). Regardless, he'll be ready for action and can anchor the middle next season.

 

They'll also have Desmond Duke back. While he's a solid wing he's going to have to improve over tremendously over the summer if he's going to be the type that you can expect to carry the load against Lexington's best on a nightly basis as the #2 man in the scoring column. Duke is the grandson of former Lexington area legend Bobby Washington, who once played in the NBA, so he has the bloodlines, but he's more of a complementary player who stuffed the stat sheet for an undermanned team last season.

 

Creek loses Ian Davis, Tanner Hart, and Alex Polus from last year's 8-18 team, so guys like junior guard Darius Barksdale and senior wing Trey Sturdivant will need to step up and fill the void.

 

Breakout candidate will be sophomore center Isaiah Patterson. You hear a lot of good things about Patterson, but one wonders if he'll be able to truly make the most of his abilities as a sophomore while still playing in the shadow of Jordan Fucci. Regardless, Patterson has been tagged as one of the best players in the Lexington area in his class, and if he adds to the 6'4, 225 lbs. that he was listed at last year, he and Fucci could end up as one of the top big man tandems in the 11th.

It will be interesting to see if this program takes a step forward this coming year. They have had two really bad seasons in a row but I think the young players who had to play the past couple seasons are experienced now and should show significant improvement. As long as the losing of the past two seasons has not taken their confidence.

 

Thanks Magic, and welcome to BGP.

 

What more can you tell us about some of the younger kids who played last year?

 

Even kids who played in JV but might have a role in the top 8 or so this season would be appreciated.

The thing I don't understand is why don't they do anything in the summer? Programs fall way behind when there is no summer basketball. That is a free month of hoops...

Hickory, I agree. The summer can be an important part of a successful program. In my opinion the top notch players will find a way to play. The summer can be important to developing depth within the program and keeping the other players involved with the program. I think most successful programs will have a lot of kids playing (and working) during the summer.

I think that baseball probably hurts their numbers as far as the summer goes. Fucci is probably a baseball player at the next level, so it's not really fair to expect him to focus on basketball where he doesn't have as many opportunities. Guys like Duke will play AAU with teams like Charlotte Court. Their kids are playing, just not as a part of the school team, which is probably a product of their having so many kids out in other sports.