STEENS — Finding your voice sometimes can be difficult.
Now imagine you’re an underclassman trying to figure out your place among the upperclassmen.
Who speaks up in huddles? How do you set the tone in practice? What do you do to earn the respect of our teammates so they see you as a leader?
RJ DeLoach already knew many of his teammates after splitting time between the junior varsity and varsity teams for two seasons in the Columbus Christian Academy boys basketball program.
But coach Greg Watkins hoped DeLoach was going to take a big step as a sophomore on the 2015-16 varsity squad. DeLoach had played key roles in helping the Rams win North State titles the previous two seasons, so Watkins felt confident DeLoach could do more.
All it took was a text message to show DeLoach that his teammates wanted him to take on that responsibility.
Following an overtime loss to Caledonia High School early in November, senior Aaron Meek sent a text to DeLoach encouraging him to speak up and to set the example for the Rams.
DeLoach said he and the rest of the Rams were accustomed to receiving texts from Meek, who used the messages to keep his teammates focused and positive. When DeLoach noticed this text was directed at him, he realized he needed to change to help his team.
DeLoach’s emergence as an impact player paid dividends for the Columbus Christian boys basketball team, which made history by beating Canton Academy 40-31 to win the Mississippi Association of Independent Schools Class AA state championship.
For his accomplishments, DeLoach is The Dispatch’s Small Schools All-Area Boys Basketball Player of the Year.
“The biggest adjustment was being the youngest on the team but also being the leader,” DeLoach said. “The biggest adjustment was trying to be a leader to people who were older than me.”
DeLoach admitted the transition was tough at first. He said he wasn’t sure anyone was going to listen to him, especially the older players, but he said he calmed down and was able to embrace his leadership role once he found his voice.
DeLoach said the text message he received from Meek helped him realize a sophomore would be heard because his teammates knew what he could do and that they respected his abilities.
“I didn’t want to let him down,” DeLoach said. “I think I made him proud.”
Columbus Christian coach Greg Watkins said DeLoach showed he was comfortable as a leader in the postseason when he elevated his game in the second half to trigger a comeback from a 19-point deficit to beat Sylva-Bay Academy. Columbus Christian then outlasted West Memphis Christian 57-55 in overtime and beat Canton Academy at Canton Academy for the program’s first MAIS boys basketball state crown.
Columbus Christian’s season ended in a 56-32 loss to Jackson Prep in the MAIS Overall State tournament at Mississippi College’s A.E. Wood Coliseum.
Watkins said the 5-foot-11, 185-pound DeLoach, who was named MVP in Class AA, found a bigger voice by playing multiple roles. Even though DeLoach averaged a team-high 16 points per game, Watkins said he involved his teammates and gave them confidence they could contribute. Watkins said DeLoach’s willingness to share the basketball helped the team in tighter games when the Rams needed other players to contribute.
Watkins said he didn’t know about Meek’s text message, but he said he had talked to DeLoach about what he needed to do to become a leader.
“Leaders have to lead by example before they can be vocal,” Watkins said. “That is one thing he did. He worked hard.”
Watkins said DeLoach took time to learn how to handle the responsibility. He said DeLoach is reserved in part because of his youth, but he admitted DeLoach is mature for his age, athletically and mentally, so he was able to understand how he needed to find his voice so the team could realize its potential.
“One of the speakers at our sports banquet talked about Michael Jordan and how he made everybody around him better,” Watkins said. “That is what RJ does. RJ makes his teammates around him a whole lot better, and they look up to him for that. That is big for a senior to call and ask him and to tell him we’re depending on you to lead this team.”
Watkins said he gained confidence as the season progressed and he learned how to speak up and how to say things to his teammates. He is confident DeLoach learned from this season and knows moving forward he will have to set the example from the beginning of the season. While that might increase the expectations on DeLoach, Watkins believes his rising junior is ready to take on that load in part because he has remained humble and he respects his teammates.
“(Against Sylva Bay), he elevated his game so high that everybody else did, too,” Watkins said. “They feed off him.”
With a new voice and another state championship to win next season, DeLoach hopes he can make a bigger difference in 2016-17. He said he knows he will have “to lead from the beginning” after what he learned as a sophomore to make his junior year even more special. It’s a challenge he is ready to accept.
“I have to be that leader from the beginning, not halfway through the season,” DeLoach said.
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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