Currently fourth in the Metro League Sound standings, Lakeside Boys Basketball started the season on a 3-0 run averaging almost 60 points through that stretch. Unfortunately, the team would pick up some injuries and fall below .500 in the weeks after the hot start. As the team looks to regain their form in the coming weeks with many players on a ‘day-to-day’ injury status, they know they can count on one sophomore.
That sophomore is Grant M. ’27, team and social media manager. Going to every practice, game and team event, he works behind the scenes to make the process run smoothly for the coaches, athletes and fans. Spending around three hours every week on the various responsibilities he has, he says it feels like a weird combination of playing another sport or taking an extra class.
The most obvious impact he makes is through his work with Coach Broom. After every game and even for some practice drills, Grant compiles and organizes stats like points or shooting percentage for the coaching staff. The spreadsheet he has is incredibly complex, though easy to follow at the same time, allowing coaches to look at both individual metrics as well as team ones. Additionally, he travels to and films all the away games, giving the team an invaluable resource as well as support in the stands wherever they go.
One thing he does that many might not expect to be crucial is curate a team playlist. During some practices and before home games, the hype songs for the 12 members of the team are played from the playlist essential to the team’s atmosphere. This is also a surprisingly stressful job; many of the players’ song choices are explicit, creating an obvious problem for this on-campus activity. It is up to him to ensure the songs not only are marked as non-explicit on Spotify, but also don’t contain vulgar or crass lyrics. The punishment for a slip-up? No music for the rest of the season.
The final part of the job is running the team instagram account, @ lakesidebbasketball, keeping the fans who couldn’t make it to the game updated. Posting highlights and score updates as they happen, the hundreds that follow the account are able to keep track of the season even if they don’t make it to all of the 20 games.
Though he won’t get cheers for dunking, hitting a three pointer or even posting a game update, he certainly deserves it. For all the work he contributes to the culture of Lakeside Boys Basketball, his job receives little recognition. But, his favorite part about it is knowing he is contributing to the program, even if that is not on the court.
