By GEORGE THWAITES
Bluefield Daily Telegraph
WELCH — All season long, Mount View's K.J. Brown has been one of several talented area basketball players Bluefield Daily Telegraph staffers have kept a close eye on.
He's been a regular fixture in the Pocahontas Coal Association/Bluefield Daily Telegraph Player of the Week Awards honorable mention list and has been in contention for selection at least twice.
Last week was a short week for basketball in Four Seasons Country, but it proved a golden opportunity for the Golden Knights' 6-foot-7 senior guard.
Last week he scored 17 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and distributed five assists in a 67-53 win over Man, a team that beat Mount View in a close game earlier in the season.
"I'm appreciative of this award. I'm glad that you guys have recognized that I've tried to play better this year," said Brown, who is the first Mount View player to win it since Antoine Calloway two years ago.
For the season he's been averaging 14 points, eight rebounds and three assists per game. His scoring and rebounding numbers would probably be higher if not for two things. First, he's a team player and inclined to be unselfish to a fault. Second, after a young lifetime of playing with his back to the bucket, this year he stepped out to play two-guard.
"We think K.J. is probably a late-bloomer. He's a young kid, still. By his age, he could still be a junior. His best basketball is probably in front of him," said Mount View head coach Gary Brown.
"This year we're playing him at a different position than he's accustomed to. We felt like that was the best opportunity to get him prepared for college because we felt like he probably wouldn't be playing in the post because of his body style and size. He's had to adapt to the change, but I think he's adapted well," coach Brown said.
The transition began in the summer, with K.J. spending extra time on ball-handling and shooting drills at college-sponsored camps and clinics. He's worked hard to develop the skills he needs to play facing the basket. It isn't always easy getting his mind to override years of training as a post player.
"The hardest thing is probably all the work I had to put in as far as the ball-handling goes, as opposed to my being used to playing with my back to the basket," said K.J., whose height got him assigned to the frontcourt at an early age. "It's different. I have a natural instinct to run to the post for offense during fast breaks and different stuff. But now I'm the one bringing it up the court, so it's definitely been an adjustment."
Coach Brown thinks the youngster has made great strides this season, but admits his senior season scoring average would probably be a lot more impressive if he hadn't made the position change so recently.
"It's probably been his most productive season overall, but I thought last year he was more comfortable scoring in and around the lane," Brown said. "Because he was out on the wing, he wasn't as aggressive early in the year as we thought he should be. But he's gained some confidence now and he's starting to trust his abilities a little bit more."
In a self-critique, K.J. admitted that in his new position he hasn't always played as aggressive or been as tenacious for four quarters as he might have otherwise. But he had a little Moment of Zen during the Chapmanville tournament that boosted his confidence.
"In the first game of that tournament I got my first dunk of the year off a drive from the perimeter. After that I felt more comfortable driving," said K.J., who as been invited to play in the North-South game in Charleston this upcoming June. "I do a lot more driving from the perimeter, now."
So far, K.J. has been getting recruited by Bluefield College, Bluefield State, Glenville State and Virginia Military Institute. Other inquiries are likely to follow.
"He's got very good athleticism and he jumps fairly well. But he's going to have to do some weight room work and get a little stronger. But I feel that at 6-7 if he can handle the ball and play guard, a lot of folks are going to look at that," coach Brown said.
K.J. also has the kind of character that's attractive to college coaches. He's a solid student with a 3.5 GPA and a team captain who leads by example both on and off the floor.
"He's kind of a quiet guy as far as the emotional part of it goes. He does a really good job of being a quality guy, being a guy who does the right thing when nobody's looking," said Coach Brown, who never hesitates to exhort his other players to emulate their team captain.
"He's a really great kid. I wouldn't take anything for him. We sometimes overlook the fact that basketball is secondary to teaching kids to be good citizens. He's going to be a great citizen. And in the long run, he's going to be a great basketball player," Coach Brown said.
Other than playing basketball, his favorite activity is playing video games, especially "Call of Duty." He attends church every Sunday at Apostolic Temple, were his father, Kenneth serves as pastor. He's interested in studying criminal justice and business administration. The only other interscholastic sport he's played other than basketball is golf, which he played one season for Mount View.
He really likes the links. He said he'll probably take up golf after his basketball playing days are over.
"It feels relaxing to me to play golf. Just hitting the ball and going to all the different holes. I just like being out there," he said.
In addition to being his pastor, his father is also an assistant coach at Mount View. He can count on his dad too keep him on the straight and narrow.
"I've kind of gotten used to it. He doesn't make it too hard on me during the game. He waits until I get home and then he nails me pretty good there," K.J. said.

Player of Week Honorable Mention

Boys, Week 10
Bland County: Jake Watters, 18 points in losses to Galax and George Wythe; Jacob Cross, 16 points; Jonathan Bright, 13 points.
Graham: Roman Workman, 25 points, 5 rebounds, 5 steals, 4 assists vs. Virginia High; Thomas Clarke, 11 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 assists; Garrett Dalton, 13 points.
Grundy: Christian Jackson, 17 points in loss to Honaker; Dylan Wolford, 16 points.
Honaker: Tanner Robinette, 48 points, 40 rebounds, 14 blocked shots in wins over Hurley and Grundy; Brett Boyd, 35 points; Blake Stinson, 23 assists; Hartley Hilton, 16 points, 10 rebounds vs. Hurley.
Hurley: Brady Justice, 26 points in losses to Honaker and Twin Valley.
Mercer Christian: Daniel Boothe, 18 points in 55-45 win over New Life Christian; Chandler Scott, 16 points.
Mount View: Joe Hayes, 12 points in win over Man; De’Moni Edwards, 14 points; Marquis Bonds, 11 points.
Richlands: Cody Fuller, 15 points in win over Abingdon; Grant Herndon, 13 points; Luke Phillips, 10 points, 1,000 of his career.
River View: Tyree Baker, 21 points, 15 assists, 10 rebounds in win over Jamie Darrin Christian; Brian Mitchell, 29 points; Jonathan Hatcher, 14 points, 13 rebounds; Jonah Baker, 13 rebounds.
Twin Valley: Tayten Sykes, 17 points, 7 assists in win over Hurley; Stephen Mullins, 14 points, 8 assists, 4 blocks; Tanner Wagner, 11 points.
• • •
2015-16 Boys Winners
Week 1: Daniel Boothe, Mercer Christian
Week 2: Hunter Hill, PikeView
Week 3: Jeremy Thompson, Bluefield
Week 4: Tanner Robinette, Honaker
Week 5: Roman Workman, Graham
Week 6: Luke Phillips, Richlands
Week 7: Tyree Baker, River View
Week 8: Seth Meadows, PikeView
Week 9: Chase Lawson, Narrows
Week 10: K.J. Brown, Mount View
Editor’s Note: One boys winner remaining this season.