Basketball provides stress relief for Titus Leger

With each shot for the net, Titus Leger makes his release from homework and school.

He follows through with team spirit and a positive attitude.

Bill Proser, varsity basketball coach for the Coeur d’Alene Charter Academy, said Leger brings a different perspective to each game. Other players on his team have been to several camps and have been shooting hoops from a young age, he said. With many of them, winning competitions is the main mind set.

“He still views it as a game – you play it for fun,” Proser said.

Leger was born in Ontario, Canada. He and his family moved and traveled as missionaries in Papua, New Guinea, for nine years. While living with a tribe in bamboo huts, he took to rugby and soccer.

He moved to Coeur d’Alene three years ago and is a sophomore at the Coeur d’Alene Charter Academy. He started playing basketball for the team last year, standing 5-foot-9 and having never touched a basketball before moving to the United States.

He said he’s not accustomed to American culture, and wonders why some of his friends spend Saturdays watching televison. He prefers to stay active through unicycling and often rides on Canfield Mountain.

As far as basketball goes, he’s just happy to be out of class.

“It’s not studying and it’s not homework and I don’t have to pick up a pen, so I’m fine,” he said.

Leger said he views basketball as an outlet for school stresses.

His school day starts at 6 a.m. for early concert band practice, and the rest of the day is spent sitting through class and homework, fitting meals somewhere in between.

“You lose your sanity,” he said. “It’s just no fun.”

Proser said his shot is far from the classic form, often coming from his side rather than overhead. He added Leger is fun to watch because he’s excited whenever he puts the ball in the net.

But he’s getting better, and scored 12 points in the last game, Proser said.

“It wasn’t luck and it wasn’t skill, but I enjoyed it,” Leger said.

He said Leger’s perspective is clear off the court, too. Leger is a student in Proser’s English class.

Proser noticed Leger’s keen eye on some conveniences other students take for granted, like when the class has pizza parties.

“Anytime anybody complains about the pizza, he kind of laughs it off,” said Proser.

Leger said he wouldn’t have chosen basketball after developing a taste for contact sports, but he jumped at a chance to start the sport last year. Now he likes to shoot hoops in any type of weather.

“I enjoy basketball now, I play out in the snow,” he said. “I just get out there and I like to shoot.”

Proser said Leger runs the court without getting winded and often encourages the guys on his team. He focuses his efforts on being part of the 12-member squad, rather than looking to score.

“He adds a little juice, a little spirit,” said Proser. “He’s real excited to play and happy to be out there competing.”

Leger said the team wins as a team and loses as a team, so he’s always doing his best to help out.

Proser said Leger’s strong team spirit comes through in each game. When the team is down, he does his best to encourage the team to the end.

“I don’t see the game over until the last bell rings in the last quarter,” he said. “Until then, they don’t beat me.”

He hopes to play through his senior year. After graduation, he hopes to attend Bible school or continue mission work.