By: Edward Kiesendahl
At the end of last basketball season, James McGinnis stepped down from his head coaching position for boys’ basketball after a successful tenure, including bringing a district championship to the lake. Kevin Miller is stepping up and taking over as the head coach this season. Miller has been around the program for the last few years in multiple roles including assistant girls’ varsity basketball coach, junior high boys’ coach, and junior varsity boys’ coach. Combine this varied coaching experience with his terrific playing career, and you can understand why he was chosen for the job.
Miller had been an athlete from day one as a multi-sport athlete in school, but basketball was the one he found himself playing the most. He produced an excellent high school career helping to lead Honesdale to a division championship, as well as becoming a 1,000-point scorer for the team. This success gave him the opportunity to play college basketball at Muhlenberg, where he had a very different experience than in high school. Coach Miller said, “I dealt with a lot of struggles in the game of basketball, lost confidence, and kind of lost my way to the things that had made me more successful growing up.” This caused him to lose love for the game for a period of time. However, after some time off, he wanted to find his way back to basketball, which is what led him to coaching. “It’s what I’ve always done, growing up in the gym,” said Miller about choosing to coach. It also runs in his family with both his father and mother coaching basketball. His mother coached the girls’ varsity team only a few years ago.
As a coach, Miller wants to grow his players into confident, hardworking, disciplined young adults, and inspire them to be great not only while on the court now but also off it in their futures.
The Buckhorns basketball team has a tough schedule this season with many solid non-conference games against teams like Nazareth and Stroudsburg along with playing in division one of the Lackawanna League which is comprised of great competition like Abington, Scranton and Scranton Prep. When asked about goals for the season Coach Miller answered by saying, “My goals for this season are to establish our identity as a team, build strong fundamentals, and develop confidence and leadership within the program.”
As a new head coach with such a difficult schedule, it is pertinent to build your identity for the team and figure out how you will find ways to win games you may not be projected to beat. Leadership is something the team must also find not only from the coaching staff but its players. The team will need people to step up with the loss of a great senior class lead by Justin Blanding. Although, a team’s success is not just measured upon wins and losses. Sports are more than just what skills you learn for the next game, but also the skills you are learning for the rest of your life. Coach Miller understands this as he stated, “I want our athletes to grow not only in terms of basketball skills, but also maturity, communication, and school pride.”
This focus should see players steadily improving, constantly competing, and showing support to each other and is what Coach Miller believes is needed this year to have a successful season. “If we compete with purpose, stay coachable, and focus on the little things – rebounding, defending, sharing the ball – the big results will come,” he said along with, “One thing that is our ultimate goal every year, is a district championship.”
Yet, this season can have a lasting impact far beyond just this year by creating the foundation for the program Coach Miller envisions. “Fundamentals, discipline, and consistent effort will be our foundation,” said Miller about this season, which will set the precedent for seasons to come.
When asked about the bigger picture for the team’s culture in the future he respond with, “I want to build a culture centered on effort, accountability, and belief in one another.” Working hard and holding yourself and others to the same high standards will build everybody into the best player they can be while each player finds their specific role. The best teams that you see are always tightly knit and take pride in where they are from, and this is exactly what Miller wants to create a greater sense of at Wallenpaupack. Coach Miller hopes to have the team seen as a united group that is competitive and respectful both on and off the court.
There is little doubt about what Coach Miller can do for the Wallenpaupack basketball program with his impressive resume, clear goals for the present and future, and his competitive, championship, mindset. With him at the helm, the Buckhorns are sure to make some noise this year and surprise a lot of people. The boys’ season kicks off on December second in a non-conference matchup at Lakeland. Their first home game is December tenth against Nazareth. Make sure to come out this season to show your support for Coach Miller and the Buckhorns.
