ROCHESTER, N.Y. — This past weekend, the NBA finals ended with the first New York Knicks championship in 53 years. Now, game five took place in San Antonio and all the way here in Rochester–the Franklin Bulldogs are taking inspiration from the underdog Knicks—thanks to one coach.
“There you go, right here, we need one, just need one,” Franklin head coach Vaughn Boler barked at practice on Tuesday.
In 2012, he became a former All Greater Rochester selection at Pittsford Mendon, scoring over 1,000 points with the Vikings. Fourteen years later, he’s coaching girls hoops at Franklin, though he has his sights set on the pro’s.
“Ever since I started coaching, I always want to do something with the NBA, but I kind of have to pay my dues first,” Boler said.
One way to get his foot in that door? Jr. Knicks camp.
“Ended up just connecting with people and and ended up getting a summer spot on the Knicks staff and I think I got it at the right time,” Boler said.
That was last summer. This summer, the Knicks are champs and much like the orange and blue were doing last offseason, Boler became a student. Learning from some of the best basketball minds in the game at Jr. Knicks camp.
“You’d be a fool not to write down all the things that these legends are telling you,” Boler said.
Among those legends were Patrick Ewing, Stephon Marbury and John Starks, who might have made the biggest impact.
“John Starks actually gave me some great advice,” Boler said. “When you’re going through things in life and just how you react to that. He was undrafted and he had to face a lot of adversity in his life. So just hearing it from his perspective and applying it to my life is really special.”
It wasn’t just advice he took away–Boler picked up drills from New York City camp and brought them upstate with him to Franklin High. How often does he mention that NYK connection?
“A lot. He even made Instagram videos,” said Jimmary Martinez and Ah’nisty Porter, rising juniors for the Bulldogs.
“He’s a good coach, he really teaches us a lot. Especially since I was new to the sport. He taught me a lot,” Porter said.
Yeah, Martinez and Porter, along with plenty of other Bulldogs, are relatively new to basketball. After being a first round exit in Boler’s first year, so right now, the Bulldogs feel more like underdogs.
“That process that the Knicks went through, the lose-lose-lose-lose-and-then-win and they kept going and they stay relentless the whole time until they got a championship. We’re pretty much continuing the same thing. We’re piggy back on that energy,” said Dennis Thomas, assistant coach.
One way of doing that? Practicing in the summer.
“Today is the last day of school and you see these young ladies out here working on the very last day of school,” Thomas said. “Do you remember what you wold be doing on the last day at school? So [Boler’s] bringing that same intensity.”
So the Knicks have given Franklin some new drills and inspiration while making some new fans too.
“Ever since I started working with the organization and met some of the people within it, I couldn’t help but root for what they were doing this year,” Boler said.
Boler plans to attend this summer’s Jr. Knicks clinic as well. He even went down to New York City to watch game three of the NBA Finals.
BULLDOGS & KNICKS | Franklin girls basketball coach attends Jr. Knicks Clinic WHEC.com.
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