Montgomery High boys basketball coach Kris Grundy
By Bob Nuse, Sports Editor
No matter what time of year, it’s tough to keep Kris Grundy away from the basketball court.
Grundy recently completed his 13th season as the head boys basketball coach and 16th season overall at Montgomery High School. In addition, he is about to begin his 13th summer of running basketball camps in Montgomery, where his Grundy Hoops Academy has laid the foundation for a successful high school basketball program.
“The first three years I helped run the camps,” Grundy said. “When I got the head coaching job, along with being the head coach you get the opportunity to run your own camps. We have blown it up to make it better than it had been. Now we have a website (grundyhoops.com) and a Facebook page. It has gotten pretty big.
“A lot of the people in community tell me going to a Grundy Hoops Academy camp is an experience unto itself. I hear about kids running around the Cherry Valley pool talking about going to camp and who won what game. We try to make it exciting to learn basketball.”
This summer Grundy will have three full weekly sessions of camp for boys in grades 3-9 beginning July 10. The camp runs from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. from Monday through Friday at Montgomery High School. There will also be a session for boys entering grades 1-3 that will be held Aug. 14-17 at the Otto Kaufman Center from 9-11:30 a.m.
“We run one week of that from Monday through Thursday and bring in small baskets for grades 1-3,” Grundy said of the session for younger players. “That is usually their first experience in a camp atmosphere. This past spring for the first time we ran a Sunday morning skills development clinic for grades K-2 so those kids got an opportunity to do drills and get better and that would lead to going to the camp.”
Going through the Grundy Hoop Academy is an experience nearly every Montgomery High player experiences on their way to playing at the high school level. It’s a chance to learn the game in a fun atmosphere.
“They want to be a part of Montgomery basketball and that is where it starts,” Grundy said. “I just got a great letter from a kid who is a rising freshman and talking about his experience growing up and going to the camps and the nicknames we would give the players. He and his friends would say they can’t wait until they get back for the next session.
“It’s not a selective process. It’s just the nature of the beast that those kids coming to camp are ones who will continue to play basketball for the high school team.”
Not everyone who attends the Grundy Hoops Academy will eventually play at the high school level. Some may not play beyond the camps themselves. In the end, all that matters of getting kids on the court and enjoying the sport.
“You don’t have to be an experienced player to come,” Grundy said. “We have had players that are brand new to basketball right up to the most experienced players. It doesn’t matter what your experience level is, you will have a good time. The kids learn fundamentals through skill work and we have competitions where they can win prizes. This year we have something new, Grundy Hoops Academy fidget spinners. Apparently they are all the rage this year.
For Grundy and his staff, teaching basketball is fun no matter what time of the year. They offer Friday Night Skills Development for eight weeks in the fall and the spring. There are opportunities for private lessons and group lessons, as well as an annual Spring Break Camp.
“The Friday Night Skills Development is 75 minutes of intense drill work,” Grundy said. “The whole thought is to just keep the kids dribbling a basketball. If a ball is in their hands they will just keep getting better.”
The Grundy Hoops Academy is open to residents and non-residents of Montgomery.
For more information on any of the programs, interested individuals can visit the website at www.grundyhoops.com.
