Josh Suddath has been pouring in the points for McCallie. Click to enlarge.
photo by John Shearer
McCallie School basketball player Josh Suddath has been producing individual scores this season that might be envied by some entire teams.
During the Blue Tornado's impressive 8-2 start, the 6-foot-3-inch senior has had individual game scoring totals of 55, 44, 39, and 37 points.
According to his coach, Ken Henry, he has also measured high on the team player scale.
"He is a very unselfish player and is not really focused on his average," said Coach Henry, who won multiple state championships as the coach at Girls Preparatory School before coming to McCallie in 2000. "I can't say that about every kid I have coached."
He also said Suddath ranks high in leadership. On at least a couple of occasions this year, he has stepped forward during timeouts and told the team to step up its intensity level and focus, the coach said.
And, of course, he has provided plenty of scoring help. "He has been able to carry us not only when it doesn't matter but when it does matter," Coach Henry said.
Suddath, the son of local Presbyterian minister and former Duke player Jim Suddath, feels the team concept on which he tries to focus is true of all the McCallie players. "The thing I like most about the season so far is that everybody on the team likes each other," he said. "It is fun to win. We play nine or 10 guys and nobody has a bad attitude and that is what has helped us be successful."
He said he doesn't even feel pressured to score a lot of points. As an example, he was not shooting well one game, but teammate Kyle White stepped up and hit multiple three pointers.
When Suddath scored 55 against Rome High out of Georgia, he had no idea he had scored so many points or that he had actually broken a school scoring record held by standout 1970s' McCallie player Greg Keith, whose son, Graeme, now plays for McCallie.
"Coach took me out of the game with four minutes left and I knew I had the night in rhythm, but I had no idea I was close to the school record," he said.
For Suddath, this season has been much more enjoyable than last year, when he partially tore two ligaments in his foot and had trouble catching up both physically and mentally during the season. The most he scored in a game was 21 points.
But through a rigorous summer of lifting weights, going to some team camps, playing a little AAU basketball and - most importantly - spending two hours almost every free day shooting at the McCallie gym, he saw his skills improving. "Just shooting by myself was a confidence builder," he said. "That's the time when you can individually get a lot done and that really helped me."
Such work is not hard for Suddath because he has a deep love for basketball. He enjoys the physical aspects but particularly likes the camaraderie that develops, including the relationships with teammates and Coach Henry. "He is a guy I can go in an talk to and he's not afraid to tell me when I am doing something wrong," he said. "And he wants to have a relationship off the court."
A number of colleges would also like to know more about Suddath. Among those schools that have at least expressed some interest are West Point, Princeton, Wofford, Presbyterian, Berry, Bryan, Covenant and Tennessee Tech. UTC coach Jeff Lebo has also offered some personal guidance.
Suddath, who has a boyish and all-American smile similar to recent Heisman Trophy winner Carson Palmer of USC, said his dream is to play college basketball. In fact, he gave up baseball after the eighth grade to concentrate strictly on basketball.
As far as his plans after basketball, he hopes to find a vocation working with people. "I want to be somewhere where I am interacting with people," he said. "Whether that is coaching, who knows."
Although he has been active in Young Life and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, he does not at present feel a calling to follow in his father's footsteps as a minister. "I don't like public speaking," he said with a smile.
Suddath, who has a manner more mature than a typical high school senior in the thoughtful way he answers each question, has had to speak in front of others while serving as president of the school's Senate, the student-run body that handles school honor violations.
And he is certainly not afraid to speak out concerning his hopes for the McCallie team this year.
"I think we can get as far as our attitude will take us," he said.