LYNN — After finally getting back in action early last week, the Classical boys basketball team is ready to start a new era on the court this season.
First-year Rams coach Marvin Avery is at the head of it, coming in with a new philosophy that Classical’s players have responded well to in the early going.
“It’s been very good,” Avery said of the opening days of practice. “We’re very excited to get the chance to get out there and it’s a great opportunity for the seniors to be able to play and to be coached.”
Avery has plenty of experience coaching in Lynn. He was at the helm of a Tech program that became a Div. 3 powerhouse in the early 2000s and won a state title in 2002. At Classical, Avery will bring a disciplined coaching style to a young Rams squad.
“It’s been a combination of both sides getting used to each other,” Avery said. “They got the message on day one of the discipline side of things. The way I run things is ‘it’s my way or the highway.’ They’re learning a new system and they’ve come out and done well so far.”
Classical had eight seniors graduate and three players transfer from last year’s squad. That means plenty of young players will have to step up.
That young core of players includes Avery’s son Marquese Avery and a new face on the outside in Tyler Wilson.
“We’re inexperienced, but there are some talented players on this team,” Marvin Avery said. “Marquese is a multi-talented guy. He’s a strong defensive player and he can score. Tyler is known for baseball. He’s a two-sport player and he can really shoot the three at the wing.”
The Rams will also look to Jaden Gonzalez and Nathaniel Reyes to contribute to that outside offense this year.
But it’s not all new faces for Classical. Senior Angel Garcia will bring size to the Rams at center, while guard Jayden Thornton will be an offensive spark plug.
“We have a phenomenal scorer in Jayden at guard,” Avery said. “Being a returner in a program where we lost a lot, most of the offense will run through him for sure.”
“Offensively, we’re going to have a lot of outside scoring too,” Avery said. “We want to compete every day, but obviously in a new system it can take some time to adjust to things. I think we’ll be okay.”
Classical starts the season on the road at Revere next Friday (6) and the Rams are looking forward to their first chance to put that new system to work.
“My goal for this season is to try to get the younger players into my system throughout the year,” Avery said. “And hopefully we can get the seniors a good opportunity to play one last time. My style of coaching, it’s fast paced. We’re going to be playing full-court press, man-to-man defense. In my system we force a lot of turnovers. It’s a work in progress but the kids have done well so far.”
