Young Boys Hoops Team Embracing Fresh Start
David Creed •
Willis Ferreira has been a mainstay in Nantucket Athletics for over three decades as a varsity basketball head coach, but he isn’t a stranger to change. He understands the turnover from year to year that high school teams will experience, and he is excited to see what this new wave of Whaler boys basketball players can bring to the table as they prepare to kick off their season against Barnstable on the road Thursday afternoon.
"This group has been phenomenal," Ferreira, who is entering his 32nd season as a high school basketball coach on the island, said. "From day one, they just work. There's no drama. I don't know what that's going to equate to, but I'd rather give it a shot this way. Some of those guys (in the past) were just with me too long, you know? I had a lot of four-year guys. You get in your ways. But this is a good group. I got some young guys too. I got a lot of inexperienced guys. The only one really with a lot of experience is Amare (Bramwell), then he got hurt and didn't play that much early or as much as he would have liked. Then the rest of the guys really got a few minutes here and there, played some JV stuff, then I got three freshmen that come from middle school and a sophomore that's coming from the freshman team.”
Along with Bramwell, the Whalers will welcome back junior big man Ethan Genter, who figures to play a key role in replacing Jack Halik, a senior captain and Nantucket’s leading scorer last season.
"I think talent wise and overall basketball knowledge, you know, we haven't always had a lot of basketball players,” Ferreira said. “We've always had really good athletes. So we may not be as athletic as we have been in the past, but I still think we're pretty athletic. I think our basketball minds are probably a little bit better though. At least I think it'll be better. There's a lot of guys that are basketball players who play a lot of AAU and play basketball all the time. They're in that setting a lot so they understand some of the game. I'm really excited to see where this goes. I don't have any expectations with this group. I just know that they're going to give me everything they have, whatever that is. I think they'll play hard. I couldn't give you a starting five. I couldn't give you 10 guys that are even going to play, never mind 15 guys. I think that's what practice is for.”
Senior guards Donte Brimm and Jake Haigh are two other players who earned some minutes for Nantucket last year and are expected to play a key role for the team this winter.
Ferreira said he has been impressed with freshman Joao Silva and that Silva could end up moving up the depth chart quickly thanks to his ability on the defensive end of the court.
"Joao is just a sponge," Ferreira said. "That kid is, I can't explain it. You'd have to see it man because he was not on the radar before this started. I knew he was a good athlete and that he was a JV player. Definitely not a freshman team player. He's better than that. But he's come in here and he's been the best defensive player on the floor.”
Freshman guard Burke Lombardi should also see some minutes and be one of Nantucket’s more dependable shooters when he is on the court.
"Burke gives you the ability to shoot it," Ferreira said. "I coached his mother, and she was so smart. He understands the game. He may not be the fastest guy out there, but you know, those guys remind me of like a Larry Bird type where they don't look like much, they just kill you, right? I'm hoping he can make that jump. It's going to be hard, but in football he made that jump. He's not going to hurt you."
Liam Bruno is joining the staff as an assistant coach and Ferreira said he loves Bruno’s basketball mind as he helps the Whalers change up their defensive scheme.
"Liam's done a really good job on the defensive end," Ferreira said after calling Bruno his defensive assistant. "We're going to take a defensive approach. If you can play defense, then you can play. Until you can master that, you're probably not going to play much. We can all defend, and we can all give 100 percent effort. That part of it is exciting as we try to develop a lot of these young guys.”
The Whalers will travel to Barnstable to play the Red Hawks on Thursday, December 19th at 3:30 p.m. and then on Saturday, December 21st, they will host Martha’s Vineyard at 12:30 p.m.
You can view their full season schedule here.