Stephen King has always known his role.
Now in his final year with the Bobcats, King has yet to make a start, and, barring an injury to one of the team's starters, will most likely graduate with that distinction. The fifth-year senior has spent most of his career at Ohio on the bench, cheering on his teammates.
At any time over the past five years, King could have been selfish and quit the team.
When the Bobcats made the NCAA Tournament two years ago, King played a total of 15 minutes that season. How could he possibly take pride in Ohio's dream season when he played less than a half of one basketball game all year?
Easy. It was his role.
It's always about the team
King said. I don't care if I have to sit at the end of the bench. If that's what it takes for our team to win I'll do it.
This season, King's role has gone from sitting at the end of the bench to sitting a few seats away from coach Tim O'Shea. Now averaging around 15 minutes a game, King has seen his role change from benchwarmer to a spark off the bench.
He's really seized the opportunity O'Shea said. He's really been able to contribute this year. I'm really happy for him with the way it worked out.
High school hot-shot
Biding time on the bench was never an issue for King before he came to Ohio.
At Academy of Holy Angels High School in Richfield, Minn., King was a star. He emerged as one of Minnesota's best high school players during his junior year when he averaged 18 points and five rebounds per game.
After that season and before choosing Ohio, King received a number of offers from Division I schools, which included Marquette, Fordham and Yale. He said picking Ohio early led to a more relaxed and enjoyable senior season.
King did more than just relax and enjoy his senior season; he dominated it. He averaged 25 points, six rebounds and four assists per game as he led his team to its first-ever state championship appearance. To top it off, he was named Minnesota's Mr. Basketball.
It looked as if O'Shea had hit the jackpot in recruiting King early. He did, but not in the way he had imagined.
Bad luck
It always bothered me that I wasn't able to find him more playing time
O'Shea said. It always came down to a numbers thing.
The numbers that hurt King's playing time the most were those worn by star players ahead of him on the depth chart. When he arrived his freshman season, he backed up Steve Esterkamp, Ohio's 10th highest all-time scorer. With the emergence of guard Jaivon Harris that same year, King saw little action just one year after his glory days in high school.
It was just a change of pace from going to high school to Division I
King said I don't think I was as aggressive as I should have been. That kind of hurt me.
With both Esterkamp and Harris returning for their senior seasons, O'Shea asked King to redshirt his second year ' the first of many tests to King's patience.
It's hard to sit out a whole year
King said. You really have to be self-motivated in that position.
Even though he was back with the team, King would have to keep that same level of self-motivation over the next two seasons.
Slotted behind recently graduated sharpshooter Mychal Green, King saw less action in his sophomore and junior seasons combined than he did as a freshman.
It looked as though King's patience would amount to nothing.
A fresh start
King wasted little time in showing O'Shea that this season would be nothing like the previous three.
King re-established his career high in points in back-to-back games, scoring eight and nine points respectively in the Bobcats' first two games of the season. He would later go on to rewrite the books two more times before settling on a career-high 19 points against Rhode Island on Dec. 27.
While his numbers still remain relatively unimpressive at 3.8 points and 0.8 rebounds per game, King has helped the Bobcats by simply being on the court. Even when he can't find any open looks from the perimeter, if nothing else, King helps the Bobcats' starters by giving them a chance to catch their breath.
I know that
coming off the bench
that's a guy that knows what he's doing
guard Whitney Davis said. I don't have to worry about a drop in energy or a drop in play out there.
And even though point production might drop when he takes the floor, the fact that King knows where he fits in is all that matters to his coach. He's really been able to contribute to the team in a big way
even though
statistically
