Scoring points off the court
More stories from Jackson Dunbar
Courtesy Ricardo Hill
Team manager SENIOR David Akanbi is seen surrounded by his teammates after being presented with his gift from the team. Max Poynter, ‘22, had the idea to raise money for the new shoes.
Both the Women’s and Men’s Varsity Basketball Teams are extremely unique. It’s not common where you have a team with as tight a bond like these two. Both teams even have a member on their team that aren’t players but contribute a lot to the team as a whole.
SENIOR David Akanbi is the Team Manager for the Boys’ Varsity Eagles. He has been a part of the WHHS basketball program since seventh grade. He’s incredibly passionate about the team and loves basketball dearly.
Max Poynter, ‘22, recognized Akanbi’s incredible work ethic at practices. He took it upon himself to create a group chat with his teammates, excluding Akanbi, proposing that they should do something special for him. They decided to all pitch in around ten dollars each and buy Akanbi a pair of Kyrie 2 Lows from Footlocker.
Poynter said, “David is a great dude and he puts a bunch of effort into our team and our practices, so the team and I felt that we should repay him for all the time and energy he put into our team.”
Not only did the boys string together a perfect plan, they did it without the help or guidance of any of their coaches. Akanbi wasn’t the only one stunned by the shoe gift–Coach Ricardo Hill was also in shock.
Hill tweeted, “How do you know your team is Special? When all of them chip in and buy a teammate some new kicks without the coaches knowing… #GreatTeammates #WalnutFamily #MoreThanAGame.”
“They’re cool people, everyone has each others’ backs. No matter what’s going on, we will still fight for the team,” Akanbi said.
The boys did a fantastic job showing their appreciation for one of their brothers. Aside from doing a good deed, the boys have once again made their tight bond tighter.
SENIOR Kameron Smith is the Team Manager for the Lady Varsity Eagles. Since Smith is very close with the players on the team and Coach Lazar, he decided he wanted to be a part of the team officially this year.
Myles said, “He helps us with drills at practice and supports us. We love his positive attitude.”
Come out to the games to support our WHHS basketball teams and be a part of the family, too.
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