FIBA Basketball
Mr. Basketball: The coolest of Kool
DETROIT -- Candace Bonnema flipped open her cell phone, pointed at an entry listed under her contacts. Mr. Basketball, it said. "We put that in here last summer, for motivation," said Bonnema, South Christian's athletic trainer
From: www.mlive.com
View source article here
By Jane Bos
DETROIT -- Candace Bonnema flipped open her cell phone, pointed at an entry listed under her contacts.
Mr. Basketball, it said.
"We put that in here last summer, for motivation," said Bonnema, South Christian's athletic trainer, explaining that the number was for her younger brother, David Kool.
"Every time Dave got down during workouts, when things seemed too hard, like it would never be good, I would look at that and say, 'You know that award you want? You have to keep working.' "
Kool did. And he got it.
After suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee last May, Kool worked hard under his sister's rehabilitation. On Monday, the South Christian 6-foot-2 guard was named the top senior high school basketball player in the state, becoming the 26th winner of the coveted Mr. Basketball award.
His cell number moniker on his sister's phone is official.
He is Mr. Basketball.
Truly, Kool's name listed on the
SEE BOS, D7
large traveling trophy -- along with the area's other two honorees, South Christian's Matt Steigenga (1988) and Wyoming Park's Drew Neitzel (2004) -- is a testament to his talent. And to his tenacity.
Less than two months before the knee injury, he had wowed the state in leading the Sailors to the Class B state title, scoring an astonishing 80 points in the final two games.
His individual feat is arguably the most remarkable ever recorded at the finals. Everyone penciled him in for Mr. Basketball. Many NCAA Division I schools and most Big Ten schools, including Michigan and Michigan State, were recruiting him.
Then on June 1, 2005, he underwent knee surgery. Everyone wondered if he would be OK. The recruiting dropped off.
"It motivated me even more to work harder," said Kool, 18, who spent at least six hours every day working with Bonnema. "I just wondered if I would ever get back to where I was, but most importantly, just be healthy again. I never thought it would come to this, this award. All those hours, all that hard work, it paid off."
He's happier than ever to be headed to Western Michigan, too.
The Broncos and coach Steve Hawkins never gave up on him, even after the injury. Kool is the first player signing with a Mid-American Conference to be named Mr. Basketball.
He won the honor, voted on by the Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan, by a large margin, totaling 931 points. His nearest competitor, Flint Powers' 7-foot Tom Herzog, signed with Michigan State, had 360 points. DeShawn Sims of Detroit Pershing, who signed with Michigan, had 329.
Kool led the state in scoring, averaging more than 30 points per game this season. He set a school record by scoring 1,853 career points, eclipsing Steigenga's former mark.
"Dave deserves this," said South Christian coach Ken Hiskes. "It is pretty emotional right now. You get pretty attached to a kid that you spend four years with, especially when it's a special kid like Dave. For all the other accolades he's gotten, one of the best things about him is that he's just a great teammate."
His teammates, gathered for the award Monday, agreed.
"He's a great guy to be around," said Matt Bakker, a senior forward who is off to play football at Grand Valley in the fall. "He's a wonderful teammate to everybody."
He must be a pretty amazing younger brother, too.
A graduate of Kalamazoo Christian and Hope College, Bonnema, 26 -- who still lives in Kalamazoo with her husband, Brent, and is expecting their first child on July 30 -- gave up her summer and any summer job to help him rehab.
"She knew I was going to get back," said Kool, the youngest of Nick and Jan Kool's four children. "Candace never stopped believing in me."
He is worth believing in, obviously.
"I believe God puts things in your life for a reason, and I had gone to school for this reason, and what better way to give back than to do it for your own brother?" Bonnema said. "People don't understand that not only is he a good basketball player, but how hard he had to work to get there.
"Look what he's had to overcome. Nothing has been handed to him. To come back and to have a great senior season, to actually win this award, is awesome."
It is. Awesome.
View source article here
By Jane Bos
DETROIT -- Candace Bonnema flipped open her cell phone, pointed at an entry listed under her contacts.
Mr. Basketball, it said.
"We put that in here last summer, for motivation," said Bonnema, South Christian's athletic trainer, explaining that the number was for her younger brother, David Kool.
"Every time Dave got down during workouts, when things seemed too hard, like it would never be good, I would look at that and say, 'You know that award you want? You have to keep working.' "
Kool did. And he got it.
After suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee last May, Kool worked hard under his sister's rehabilitation. On Monday, the South Christian 6-foot-2 guard was named the top senior high school basketball player in the state, becoming the 26th winner of the coveted Mr. Basketball award.
His cell number moniker on his sister's phone is official.
He is Mr. Basketball.
Truly, Kool's name listed on the
SEE BOS, D7
large traveling trophy -- along with the area's other two honorees, South Christian's Matt Steigenga (1988) and Wyoming Park's Drew Neitzel (2004) -- is a testament to his talent. And to his tenacity.
Less than two months before the knee injury, he had wowed the state in leading the Sailors to the Class B state title, scoring an astonishing 80 points in the final two games.
His individual feat is arguably the most remarkable ever recorded at the finals. Everyone penciled him in for Mr. Basketball. Many NCAA Division I schools and most Big Ten schools, including Michigan and Michigan State, were recruiting him.
Then on June 1, 2005, he underwent knee surgery. Everyone wondered if he would be OK. The recruiting dropped off.
"It motivated me even more to work harder," said Kool, 18, who spent at least six hours every day working with Bonnema. "I just wondered if I would ever get back to where I was, but most importantly, just be healthy again. I never thought it would come to this, this award. All those hours, all that hard work, it paid off."
He's happier than ever to be headed to Western Michigan, too.
The Broncos and coach Steve Hawkins never gave up on him, even after the injury. Kool is the first player signing with a Mid-American Conference to be named Mr. Basketball.
He won the honor, voted on by the Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan, by a large margin, totaling 931 points. His nearest competitor, Flint Powers' 7-foot Tom Herzog, signed with Michigan State, had 360 points. DeShawn Sims of Detroit Pershing, who signed with Michigan, had 329.
Kool led the state in scoring, averaging more than 30 points per game this season. He set a school record by scoring 1,853 career points, eclipsing Steigenga's former mark.
"Dave deserves this," said South Christian coach Ken Hiskes. "It is pretty emotional right now. You get pretty attached to a kid that you spend four years with, especially when it's a special kid like Dave. For all the other accolades he's gotten, one of the best things about him is that he's just a great teammate."
His teammates, gathered for the award Monday, agreed.
"He's a great guy to be around," said Matt Bakker, a senior forward who is off to play football at Grand Valley in the fall. "He's a wonderful teammate to everybody."
He must be a pretty amazing younger brother, too.
A graduate of Kalamazoo Christian and Hope College, Bonnema, 26 -- who still lives in Kalamazoo with her husband, Brent, and is expecting their first child on July 30 -- gave up her summer and any summer job to help him rehab.
"She knew I was going to get back," said Kool, the youngest of Nick and Jan Kool's four children. "Candace never stopped believing in me."
He is worth believing in, obviously.
"I believe God puts things in your life for a reason, and I had gone to school for this reason, and what better way to give back than to do it for your own brother?" Bonnema said. "People don't understand that not only is he a good basketball player, but how hard he had to work to get there.
"Look what he's had to overcome. Nothing has been handed to him. To come back and to have a great senior season, to actually win this award, is awesome."
It is. Awesome.