After the Greenwood Leflore Consolidated School District voted last Monday to reinstate winter sports, three local basketball teams are set to return to practice this week pending COVID-19 test results from last Thursday.
Instead of a full offseason filled with summer workouts, Amanda Elzy High, Leflore High and defending state champion Greenwood High will have just over a week to prepare for their Oct. 29 openers. What’s more, with rims cut down around Greenwood, coaches are concerned some of their players haven’t shot a basketball in months.
“They’ve been on their own since COVID-19 so I’m not quite sure what they’ve been doing,” Greenwood High coach Fred Ford said. “So we’ve got to put this process in fast forward when we get back into the gym practicing.”
A critical question is whether those who transferred to play football at private schools will return once the season ends in November or December.
DeAndre Smith, the Bulldogs’ State 4A Tournament MVP, is still undecided about transferring back to Greenwood from Greenville Christian, where the two-sport star has led the Saints’ football team to seven wins in a row. Greenville St. Joe transfer Omar Emmons is also unsure whether he'll return to Greenwood after football season.
At Leflore, the Tigers are missing Kerrick Ross and Dekari Johnson, who transferred to Greenville Christian and Delta Streets Academy, respectively. Amanda Elzy is down just one player who opted out because his mother has an underlying health condition.
Whether they come back or not, the 2020-21 season will look very different for the district's schools. No fans will be allowed at home games, which will be live-streamed online.
“Our guys definitely feed off the home crowd energy so that’s going to be different for them,” Amanda Elzy coach Jamond Klines said.
Javardrick Jackson, who almost transferred to Delta Streets before he found out winter sports were back at Greenwood, has high hopes despite all the uncertainties.
“I’m feeling like we can repeat,” Jackson said. “We can go back and get another ring.”
• Contact Riley Overend at 581-7237 or roverend@gwcommonwealth.com. Follow @OverendOut on Twitter.
