Post by wgt on Jul 23, 2014 13:46:42 GMT -5
DONNA DITOTA, Syracuse, NY - The city of Syracuse's most anonymous Division I basketball player stands nearly 6-foot-7. He possesses an alluring breed of athleticism that enticed St. Bonaventure coach Mark Schmidt to offer opportunity in the form of a basketball scholarship. He owns the kind of academic acumen that allowed him to skip third grade and finish his freshman year of college with a 3.1 GPA in finance.
Meet Denzel Gregg, a lifetime resident of Syracuse who will enter his sophomore year at St. Bonaventure. In a college basketball environment that annually lifts Syracuse University to the top of national attendance figures, Gregg has somehow slipped our scrutiny.
He played freshman and junior varsity basketball at Nottingham High School, then transitioned to Bishop Grimes, where Section III transfer rules kept him off the court. From there, he transferred to St. Thomas More, an all-boys private school in Connecticut.
Only 15 when he arrived on campus, he played in the prestigious New England Prep School Basketball league, where he slowly started to gain traction. Gregg said a typical St. Thomas More practice included visits from college coaches who spanned the spectrum of high Division I major programs to Division III. His experience with the AAU Albany City Rocks increased his exposure.
"We liked his athleticism and his length. His skill level needed to improve, but he had all the God-given abilities," Schmidt said. "He was young for his grade and he was smart and athletic. He was someone we thought would be a very good Atlantic 10 player."
Denzel Gregg head shot.JPGSt. Bonaventure sophomore Denzel Gregg poses in his Syracuse neighborhood near Le Moyne College. Donna Ditota | dditota@syracuse.com
Gregg grew up on Syracuse's east side near Le Moyne College. The youngest of four children by more than a decade, he was home-schooled, then sent to HW Smith, where administrators advanced him a grade. That shift made Gregg, who has a late October birthday, especially young for his new class and cast him into a sports arena of older, more mature athletes.
By the time he arrived at St. Thomas More, he was a full three years younger than some of the prep players he competed against. Several of Gregg's teammates landed DI scholarships. He played against Chris McCullough, T.J. Warren, Mitch McGary and JaKarr Sampson.
Because he would have graduated from prep school at age 16, Gregg decided to reclassify to allow himself another season of basketball experience.
"I think I established myself when I was younger," he said. "I was playing against guys who were 19 and I was 16. So I caught some eyes. I was real athletic. I kind of had St. Bonaventure, James Madison and Appalachian State on me early. After I took my Bonaventure visit, I committed. It was kind of like the bigger version of St. Thomas More. It was small. They call it the Bona Bubble, where everybody is real close."
He played sparingly last season, averaging about eight minutes per game. Schmidt said Gregg endured the usual "freshman growing pains." His ball-handling skills remained raw, making him reluctant to put the ball on the floor to get past defenders. He struggled to shoot the ball.
"It was tough," Gregg said. "Sometimes I'd play 20 minutes and some games I wouldn't get in. I just had to kind of find my place. I feel like I'm working on my handle, working on my jump shot. Right now it looks like I'll have a bigger role than last year."
He plays in the King of Kings Summer League in Utica and works out on his own. Gregg traveled to Olean last weekend to see friends and work the Bona basketball camp. Schmidt has been impressed with Gregg's off-season dedication.
"To be able to get Denzel with all that athletic ability and so young, we just thought that his upside was tremendous. And we were right," Schmidt said. "He's really worked hard over the summertime and his body's gotten stronger. We're really expecting big things out of him."
"It just clicked," said Gregg, who is still 18. "I'd always worked hard, but I was so much younger than everyone. Once my body caught up to everyone else, it kind of clicked for me."
Gregg (6-7, 218) is a natural wing forward, but Schmidt said he can play power forward if the Bonnies run and/or decide to deploy a smaller lineup. Gregg said the Bonnies staff will emphasize transition basketball this season, which delights a young man who banks on his speed, quickness and leaping ability.
"I love where I'm at right now," he said. "I can't wait to get back, can't wait for the season to start, to get back into the swing of things."
On his mom's dedication to Denzel Washington, his namesake - "Oh yeah, she's a Denzel fan. My real name is Walter Denzel Gregg. My close friends, they used to pick on me and call me Walter because they knew I liked Denzel. So now, that's kind of stuck with some of them. "
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Meet Denzel Gregg, a lifetime resident of Syracuse who will enter his sophomore year at St. Bonaventure. In a college basketball environment that annually lifts Syracuse University to the top of national attendance figures, Gregg has somehow slipped our scrutiny.
He played freshman and junior varsity basketball at Nottingham High School, then transitioned to Bishop Grimes, where Section III transfer rules kept him off the court. From there, he transferred to St. Thomas More, an all-boys private school in Connecticut.
Only 15 when he arrived on campus, he played in the prestigious New England Prep School Basketball league, where he slowly started to gain traction. Gregg said a typical St. Thomas More practice included visits from college coaches who spanned the spectrum of high Division I major programs to Division III. His experience with the AAU Albany City Rocks increased his exposure.
"We liked his athleticism and his length. His skill level needed to improve, but he had all the God-given abilities," Schmidt said. "He was young for his grade and he was smart and athletic. He was someone we thought would be a very good Atlantic 10 player."
Denzel Gregg head shot.JPGSt. Bonaventure sophomore Denzel Gregg poses in his Syracuse neighborhood near Le Moyne College. Donna Ditota | dditota@syracuse.com
Gregg grew up on Syracuse's east side near Le Moyne College. The youngest of four children by more than a decade, he was home-schooled, then sent to HW Smith, where administrators advanced him a grade. That shift made Gregg, who has a late October birthday, especially young for his new class and cast him into a sports arena of older, more mature athletes.
By the time he arrived at St. Thomas More, he was a full three years younger than some of the prep players he competed against. Several of Gregg's teammates landed DI scholarships. He played against Chris McCullough, T.J. Warren, Mitch McGary and JaKarr Sampson.
Because he would have graduated from prep school at age 16, Gregg decided to reclassify to allow himself another season of basketball experience.
"I think I established myself when I was younger," he said. "I was playing against guys who were 19 and I was 16. So I caught some eyes. I was real athletic. I kind of had St. Bonaventure, James Madison and Appalachian State on me early. After I took my Bonaventure visit, I committed. It was kind of like the bigger version of St. Thomas More. It was small. They call it the Bona Bubble, where everybody is real close."
He played sparingly last season, averaging about eight minutes per game. Schmidt said Gregg endured the usual "freshman growing pains." His ball-handling skills remained raw, making him reluctant to put the ball on the floor to get past defenders. He struggled to shoot the ball.
"It was tough," Gregg said. "Sometimes I'd play 20 minutes and some games I wouldn't get in. I just had to kind of find my place. I feel like I'm working on my handle, working on my jump shot. Right now it looks like I'll have a bigger role than last year."
He plays in the King of Kings Summer League in Utica and works out on his own. Gregg traveled to Olean last weekend to see friends and work the Bona basketball camp. Schmidt has been impressed with Gregg's off-season dedication.
"To be able to get Denzel with all that athletic ability and so young, we just thought that his upside was tremendous. And we were right," Schmidt said. "He's really worked hard over the summertime and his body's gotten stronger. We're really expecting big things out of him."
"It just clicked," said Gregg, who is still 18. "I'd always worked hard, but I was so much younger than everyone. Once my body caught up to everyone else, it kind of clicked for me."
Gregg (6-7, 218) is a natural wing forward, but Schmidt said he can play power forward if the Bonnies run and/or decide to deploy a smaller lineup. Gregg said the Bonnies staff will emphasize transition basketball this season, which delights a young man who banks on his speed, quickness and leaping ability.
"I love where I'm at right now," he said. "I can't wait to get back, can't wait for the season to start, to get back into the swing of things."
On his mom's dedication to Denzel Washington, his namesake - "Oh yeah, she's a Denzel fan. My real name is Walter Denzel Gregg. My close friends, they used to pick on me and call me Walter because they knew I liked Denzel. So now, that's kind of stuck with some of them. "
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