Shank On High Scool Tryouts

Around this time of year, we get a couple of columns from Shank that are designed to make him look like less of an asshole. Here is one of those columns.

There was no 3-point arc stenciled on the gleaming wood court when we showed up for high school basketball tryouts in late November of 1968. Nor were there potential “ones,” “twos,” “threes,” “fours,” or “fives.” We had guards, forwards, and centers. Our 6-foot-4-inch freshman pivot candidate was not “long.’’ Phil was merely tall. And he didn’t operate “in the paint.” He maneuvered in the key — ever-trying to avoid getting called for three seconds.

Nobody played for an AAU team outside of high school. Our parents would have scoffed at the notion of paying good money to drive all over Massachusetts so we could play on teams with kids we didn’t know.

No. We just showed up for tryouts because we wanted to make the high school varsity basketball squad, which was the most important team in town (parents and townsfolk actually went to the games) and the toughest roster to crack.