One of the coaching legends in the RVL and RPAC will be back on the sidelines at the start of the 2024-2025 Basketball Season. Bob Braithwait will be at the helm of the Wallace Boys Basketball team beginning next year. This comes after their current coach and Athletic Director, Eric Miller accepted another position at Ravenna Public Schools.
Braithwait of course has a long history in coaching; three years at Crawford, two years at Lindsey Holy Family, and then 25 years at Arapahoe where he built an incredible program that was known for its toughness and fundamental play. His last season was in 2014 in Arapahoe, so it has been a decade since he coached.
This was an opportunity Braithwait wasn't looking for, but, he decided it was a good time to coach again. "I wasn't looking to coach again, but always had that burn to maybe try it again. When Coach Eric Miller decided to go to Ravenna, a few parents and community people asked me if I would consider coaching again, I told them I appreciated the interest but wasn't sure I was ready to make that type of commitment," said Braithwait.
Braithwait also said he wanted to make sure the parents and kids of Wallace were committed to him as a coach too. And they were. "The parents asking did get me thinking about how I would go about things if I did get back in. I started to look at the program as a whole, and wondered if I could be helpful. The turning point is when the kids started asking me if I would consider coaching again. I had a parent meeting, and I had a player meeting explaining how I do things. Both groups listened and said they were all in," added Braithwait.
Including his family in the decision was important for Braithwait too. "I now have grandchildren playing and enjoy watching them when I can, I was concerned about that. I checked with my own children, and most importantly, my wife, and they were in also, so here I am."
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One of the things Braithwait is excited about is preparing his team. "I love practicing and preparing for the games. Putting a game plan together and seeing if your kids can execute it, is the fun part for me. The team building and camaraderie is something that has been good for not only basketball but the school as a whole."
We asked Braithwait what changes in the game he has seen since his last year in Arapahoe. "The three-point shot was something that was significant when I was coaching, it has increased in importance. When I last coached you maybe had a player or two that would shoot the three, now it seems everyone shoots it. Another area is full-court pressure defense. The teams with the best players, or best athletes used to pressure full court, now very few teams aren't pressuring at some level."
Needless to say, the area should be excited, to see Braithwait on the sidelines again.