Basketball player shares skills with younger kids

Eighteen-year-old Tony Locascio loves to hang out with his sixth-grade brother’s friends. In fact he makes a point of spending at least two nights a week with them and every Saturday. It’s not every high school senior who looks forward to spending so much time with a group of 11-year-old-kids, but then again he isn’t just any big brother.

A basketball enthusiast, Locascio has focused the last several months on forming and training young teams to compete in the Amateur Athletic Union competitive league. His efforts have resulted in two Sandpoint boys’ teams – his brother Daniel’s sixth-grade team and a younger fifth-grade team – competing this fall in the Post Falls AAU basketball league.

When Locascio first moved to Sandpoint five years ago, he quickly realized Coeur d’Alene and Post Falls teams were more advanced in their basketball skills. He attributed it to the fact that kids in Sandpoint are not provided the opportunity to compete at a higher level until they reach middle school or high school.

“The kids need to start earlier and develop their skills at a younger age,” said Locascio.

It was that realization that led Locascio to take over his mom Kelli’s job of coaching his little brother’s recreation league team.

“The second year I got a lot of the same kids on my team from the first year (I coached) and we went undefeated,” said Locascio.

Locascio is a member of the Sandpoint High School varsity basketball team and says it is important that the younger kids have someone who can train them and devote the necessary time they need to practice. And little brother Daniel thinks it is pretty special to have his big brother coach him and his friends.

“He’s not like the other coaches,” said Daniel. “Other coaches cannot do lay ups and play like Tony. He’s really committed.”

Daniel said his friends also like having a young coach like his brother. “He teaches us a bunch of plays,” said Daniel.

Locascio agrees that being closer in age to the kids has helped in his training.

“Kids tend to listen to teenagers more,” said Locascio.

With the help of an adult coach, Kurt Kennedy, Locascio began organizing the kids last spring and entered them into tournaments in the Spokane area. He said it was important to give them exposure to the higher level of play, and besides, it is a great opportunity for the kids to test their skills.

“It’s fun for us as a high school team to compete in Spokane, so I thought they would like it, too,” said Locascio.

Throughout the summer he made it a point to call the kids a couple of times a week so they could all meet at a park and play basketball.

“I really just wanted to give them more chances to play,” said Locascio. “They are too young to organize it themselves so they just need someone to say, ‘Let’s go play.’ ”

Not only does he teach basketball skills to the kids, he gives them the confidence they need to succeed.

One of the players on the team, Brett, said that Locascio told them if they keep it up they will be a better player than Locascio is when they are in high school. But as they watch Locascio at practice, the kids have a hard time believing that will happen.

“He (Tony) can do reverse layups, dunk and is really good at shooting,” said Brett.

Watching Locascio coach it is clear he has earned the respect of the kids. At a recent practice, one of the boys forgot his practice jersey and took it upon himself to immediately start running the laps he knew his coach would soon impose as a penalty.

Although Locascio has played football, baseball and soccer he said it is basketball that is his passion.

“I love the fast pace part of the game and enjoy being in control of the ball,” said Locascio.

Now that he has started his own practices with the varsity team, Locascio will have to enlist some of the parents to help out, but plans on coaching through the season. He also encourages the kids to come to his Sandpoint High School games to see him play.

“It’ll be good for them to see how the game is played and it’ll also be really fun for me to play in front of them,” said Locascio, who adds that this year’s Sandpoint varsity team is supposed to be the best they have had in the last several years. “We have 10 seniors and really good juniors on the team.”

An intelligent young man, Locascio loves to read and is also involved in competitions with the math club. He is also in Spanish and video game clubs at his school. He said he is fortunate that school comes easy to him.

“I would probably have straight As if I worked a little harder at it,” said Locascio, but that would ultimately mean less time for basketball.

His future plans are up in the air but he said he is seriously considering going to North Idaho College for a couple of years so he can stay close to home and continue coaching Daniel and his friends. His brother hopes for the same.

“I don’t want him to go away,” said Daniel. “I want him to stay and be our coach.”

Wherever the future takes him, Locascio said he would like the kids to learn not only basketball from him but also an important life lesson.

“Don’t ever quit. Most things in life take work, but in the end it’ll be worth it,” said Locascio.