Lovin’ The Journey

Huey

By Mark Holloway

Some moments catch you off guard.

This happened to me the other evening while enjoying some state playoff basketball games on our home court at Rabun County High School. In round one, a particular player was so fascinating that I wanted the varsity boys to win for a selfish reason. If the Wildcats won, I’d get to watch this phenom play again. The home team would advance to the Sweet 16 by crushing Trion’s hopes 54-42.

My son-in-law Bret and I headed back to the gym for Round Two against the powerful and tall King’s Ridge Christian. Although the visiting team took down the Cats, that’s not the story. I compelled Bret to come and see what I’d discovered the week prior.

The first time I saw freshman Huey Blalock take the court, I was confused. I thought five-year varsity Head Coach David Adcock was starting a player too young and too small. As the game got underway, I was stunned. This young player was starting as point guard. That’s the same as a football quarterback.

Huey was calling the plays and directing his upperclassmen on the court. By halftime of the Trion game I was beyond curios. I asked my friend and courtside announcer, David Rogers, “Who is that kid?!” David said, “That’s Huey Blalock. He plays just like his dad Woody did.”

“He was so good in rec league, they changed the rules because he was so quick,” Katrina Blalock told me. “When he was only nine months old, he was already running and could throw a ball.” So it made sense he played up an age level, and even then his mom said he went first in the rec department draft.

Two years ago, a much larger opponent fell hard on Huey and broke his wrist. A bad diagnosis had Huey playing injured for two months until Dr. Scott Beck accurately discovered his bone was dying. Some metal screws and surgery would fix him but permanently limit his range of motion.

You would never know it.

Huey plays with more than heart. He doesn’t play as though he is compensating for being 5’7” and 122 pounds. He just simply plays and plays at a high level.

“None of my players play for me for any other reason, except they’re the best. I play my best players. It is that simple,” says Coach Adcock. Starting and leading the team as a freshman isn’t new at the high school. In fact Huey replaces another athlete, Guy Hood, who started as a freshman and played all four years. Bailey Fisher and Gunner Stockton did the same on the Wildcat football field. But none of them were the size of this stick of dynamite.

I got to visit with this amazing ninth grader and ask him about this skill he’s cultivated for years. “I was honored to be asked to coach him in middle school. But all I did was send in the other players. Huey ran the plays and coached the team,” his dad told me.

If you aren’t tall, there are other assets a player can develop. Huey can already touch the rim. And his ball handling skills are mind boggling. Since he was five, he’s been dribbling two basket balls through his legs while going down court. I got to watch a video of him setting a world record for spinning a basketball on his middle finger while bouncing on a pogo stick held only with his knees. I also got the watch him eat from a bowl of cereal with a spoon with a ball spinning on the handle’s end.

I don’t know if Pistol Pete Maravich invented the no-look pass, but Huey whips a ball behind his head moving down court at full speed, passing it to a fellow player with the accuracy of a heat seeking missile...just like Pete did.

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Imagine if the Bible’s David had played basketball against giants. That’s how it looks when Huey plays. I watched him drive the court, into a traffic jam of giants and score layups.

Coach Adcock says Huey and his best players practice five and six hours a day. Although I watched Huey drain shots from beyond the three-point line, his passes are what he prefers to do most. In basketball if you pass to a player who scores, it is recorded as an assist.

“I would rather assist than score. I like to be flashy, especially flashy passes,” Huey grins. His Coach interrupts and mildly rebukes his young gun and reminds him that good plays are expected, not flashy passes and plays.

I asked Huey where he wants his talent to take him. “My reward for my hard work will be getting to play at a high level at a Division I college.”

Katrina marvels at how Huey as grown through the trials of being small. “It’s impressive to see your kids find their voice.” Bigger players have attempted to bully Huey but, “...he’s clear what he will tolerate and what he won’t.”

‘Taking a charge’ in basketball is a big deal. You have to put yourself on a collision course with an oncoming player who has the ball. Often the defensive player takes a hit and goes down on the court. The referee blows his whistle and your team gets the ball back to shoot foul shots. In the past, Huey was reluctant to engage in head-on conflict with players a hundred pounds heavier.

“Huey is a different player now. He gets knocked down or thrown back, but he takes the charge. I try and make sure with Huey and all the players, I want them to all have confidence. But certain teams can humble us and bring us down. But that’s how you grow in sports and play teams which are bigger and better. I have my best guys playing travel ball at a high level. Once the season ended, we were right back in the gym trying to get better. You can’t make excuses. It’s all about heart, being willing to put in the work. It’s not about size. There’s only one person to blame if you’re not where you want to be,” Coach says.

It is tempting for me to say Huey Blalock is a player us sports fans need to keep an eye on. But that would be condescending, He’s not a player who has future potential and may merit our attention in the future. Instead, he’s already earned my respect and admiration in the present. I’ve seen him play.

Is Huey cocky? Maybe. Is he teeming with confidence? I’d say so. Am I looking forward to watching him play this coming season at Rabun County High school? Definitely. October can’t get here soon enough.

Steady forward, Huey.

See you on the trail.