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Dual Sport Beast: Lemar Durant

Published by Tariq on June 8, 2009

Dual Sport Beast: Lemar Durant

When your last name is Durant, you have no choice but to fulfill it, despite no correlation to the 6’9 forward that plays for The Oklahoma City Thunder.

Lemar Durant has done just that. Flying under the radar, playing for Centennial High School in Coquitlam, British Columbia; Lemar is going to work on a daily basis as he averaged 32ppg, 8.3 Rpg and 7.3 assists this past season for Coach Alan Kaselj. He is a 6’2, 205 pound combo guard with the strength of a horse and the speed of a cheetah. Durant is the type of player that will attack at will, and still make a play, regardless if the opposing teams sees it coming or not. If you stand in his way, he will run you over and draw the foul. If you get out his way, (would be a good idea) he’ll glide to the basket and throw it down hard.

The open court is where Durant does most of his damage as he will dribble by both teams and take it to the hole. LD also has great court vision and is good at drawing attention, then finding the open man. “The most underrated part of his game is his passing. He knows how to set up his post players, better than anyone I have ever seen,” says Coach Kaselj.

Already receiving interest for basketball from a couple Div. 1 schools including University of California-Berkeley and University of Hawaii, Lemar also has the option to play football in the NCAA. Durant has several major schools on the prowl for his services. This list includes: Oregon, Washington, Hawaii, Idaho, Oregon State, USC and Washington State. Durant’s rare combination of speed and strength for the guard position is what has grabbed all this attention. Coach Kaselj easily attests to this, “Lemar brings a unique combination of speed, quickness and power. He can go full-speed, power his way to the basket, and then stop on dime to finish a play. Not too many players can do this.”

Lemar also explains the importance of his football experience when it comes to basketball. “My football skills help me with being really aggressive on the offensive and defensive side of the ball. I think I see the court in a different way from playing running back and wide Receiver for so many years. I can see the holes to get in and score or dish in a broader sense. I also played QB, so it also helps me with being a leader on the court.”

Analyzing his weaknesses, Durant is reluctant to shoot at times and will pass up an open shot for a drive to the lane. He can get away with that at the high school level, but he will need to improve his shooting for college/university. He has decent form and gets good air on his jump shot which will make it difficult for opposing guards to defend. However, needs to develop his consistency.

With one more year left in high school; Centennial has high aspirations for Durant and the team for the 09-10 season. “We are expecting big things from Lemar next season. He will be in his senior season, and we return many key players. We have some lofty goals we want to accomplish, and Lemar will play a key role in achieving those goals,” says Kaselj.

So which sport will he be playing in the NCAA?

“I like both sports the same, it’s whatever sport I get the better offer in.”

Must be nice.

2008-2009 stats:
Points Per Game – 32.0
Assists Per Game – 7.5
Rebounds Per Game – 8.3
Field Goal % – 55.7
Free-Throw % – 73.0
3-Point % – 41.5
Blocks – 1.3

–By Tariq Sbiet–

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