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Greenville graduate Braden Latimer (20) dribbles the ball inside against Cedar Springs at Muskegon during a Division 1 district game in February.
Latimer, alongside teammates Kyle Graber and Lucas Lisagor, will continue his academic and athletic career at North Central Michigan College next fall.
DN file photo GREENVILLE The foundation of Greenville boys basketballs recent success wasnt built by one player.
It was built by a core that grew together, won together and now, will take the next step together.
After helping lead the Yellow Jackets to back-to-back River Cities Alliance (RCA) conference championships and two of the winningest seasons in program history, Braden Latimer, Lucas Lisagor and Kyle Graber will all continue their basketball careers at North Central Michigan College this fall.
[maxgallery id=383069] For three players who spent the past few seasons building chemistry, celebrating championships and helping restore the Jackets place among the areas top programs, the opportunity to continue sharing the court was one they couldnt pass up.
While each players recruiting journey looked a little different, all three ultimately arrived at the same destination in that NCMC checked the boxes academically and athletically, allowing them to continue competing together while pursuing their education.
I was originally big on going to college for baseball, Lisagor said.
By the time I changed my mind, it was kind of hard to get scouted for basketball.
I reached out to my AAU coach, Zach Ingles, if he had any suggestions.
He sent me a list of eight and seven of them reached back out.
I went to visits for a couple of them, but North Central, I developed a good connection with their coach and the visit went really well while I was there.
I loved the coach when I went up there and I loved the campus, Latimer said.
Being in Petoskey, its a great area.
I also felt like there were opportunities for me to play there.
Their coach reached out to me to tell me he was coming to watch our game because Lucas and I were both reaching out to him, Graber concluded.
I had a really good game against Cadillac and we went and visited the next week.
Once I went up to the campus, I knew that it was going to be a good spot for me and it would give me a chance to play.
Although they reached the same destination, the decision to pursue college basketball developed at different points in their lives.
Years of offseason workouts, practices and varsity competition eventually convinced them they had the opportunity to play beyond high school.
My whole life I wanted to play college sports, Graber said.
When I was really young, at first, it was football, but I think after COVID, when I started training in basketball, I decided thats what I really wanted to do.
My sophomore year I realized that it could be a reality for me and I knew that I could get that done.
College athletics was something I wanted to do from a young age, Latimer added.
It was probably sometime in the sixth grade when I decided it was something I seriously wanted to do.
College athletics, as a whole, I think I knew I wanted to continue on past high school in the seventh and eighth grades, Lisagor said.
Perhaps one of the biggest draws wasnt just the opportunity to play college basketball it was the chance to keep doing it alongside familiar faces.
After spending years developing chemistry within the Jackets program, the trio wont have to start completely from scratch when they arrive on campus this fall.
Its really cool, Lisagor said.
I went on a visit with Kyle and then found out Braden was in the same boat.
Its really cool to be able to keep going with a bunch of people that I know.
Its exciting, Latimer said.
College is a new and nerve-wracking step, but having some of your friends and teammates from high school basketball definitely makes the transition to it a lot easier.
Their friendship isnt the only thing making the transition easier.
Because of their undeniable chemistry on the court, the three already understand each others strengths, tendencies and style of play something they believe will be a valuable advantage as they adjust to the faster pace and increased competition of college basketball.
I think its going to help a lot, Graber said.
Its going to help bring the culture that we had in Greenville to North Central.
Were going to help grow a winning culture, hopefully and just try to do what we know how.
I feel like we know that we can push each other and we know what our limits are, Latimer added.
Playing together, we know where were going to be and all of that fun stuff, so its going to be good.
When it comes to the new challenges that come with college basketball, each player is excited to see what the next few seasons have in store.
Im looking forward to the speed of it, Latimer said.
Im excited to be able to go out there and compete with some of the guys from my old school, but then form some new relationships with guys from other schools as well.
This is going to be my first year just focusing on basketball, so Im excited to really put my full time and effort into basketball and see where I come out, Lisagor said.
Im looking forward to getting a chance to compete at a high level and just a new experience altogether, Graber said.
Im excited to give myself new opportunities to just keep on playing.
Latimer, Lisagor and Graber leave Greenville after helping author one of the most successful stretches the program has ever seen, setting a foundation for the future of Jacket basketball.
They believe their success is also a reflection of the program that helped shape them.
Years spent competing in the Jackets system gave them confidence theyll be ready for the demands of college basketball.
The program itself, with Coach (Rick) Court and Coach (Joel) Visser, just helped us learn at an early stage what its going to take at that level, Graber said.
Weve played a lot of big games against D1 guys and bigger schools and that helps you, Lisagor said.
Playing tough competition like we did, its not going to be a total shock at the college level.
While theyre eager to begin the next chapter, leaving Greenville wont be easy.
The practices and packed gyms that theyve come to know within their community the last few years created memories that will stay with them for years to come.
Im going to miss doing all of these fun things with kids that you grew up with, Latimer said.
Being able to have the teams we did that are really good with all the people that youve seen work hard since they were in the fifth or sixth grade, is something really special.
Im going to miss having the full senior class that Ive been with forever, Lisagor added.
Im bringing Kyle and Braden with me, but were still losing a lot of people that were with me for my whole high school career.
For me, its the community, Graber said.
When we were going out on good stretches, the crowd and the community were behind us and they had all of our backs.
It was really fun playing for a community that always showed up.
The post Together again first appeared on The Daily News .