Most people define the term leadership as the action of leading a group of people or an organization. Brendan Sullivan was chosen by the HR basketball coaches to be a team leader here at Ranch.
Sullivan is a senior small forward who has been on varsity all four years of his high school career. Last season, the six foot small forward averaged a double double with 16.6 points and 10 rebounds a game. This season, he’s taken his game to the next level. Sullivan is averaging a career high 22.5 points a game while grabbing 8.6 rebounds per game. When asked about his individual goals for this season, Sullivan said, “I would like to win the league player of the year, and also average a double double.” He is also leading the Continental League boy basketball statistics in scoring and rebounding.
Sullivan serves as the captain of the boys varsity team. Sullivan said, “My role is to lead the team on the court and also carry the scoring load.” His coach Michael Gibbs praises him heavily about his captain’s leadership on and off the court. When asked about Sullivan, he said, “His attitude and leadership qualities help keep his teammates accountable on and off the court.” Gibbs continued to praise Sullivan’s leadership to the underclassmen. He said, “He is modeling the Highlands Ranch way of doing things within our basketball program to the underclassmen.”
Jaxon Nebeker, sophomore, said Sullivan “pushes everyone to their full potential. He gets on people when they are not paying attention because he takes basketball very seriously.”
Ever since the second grade, Sullivan was inspired to play basketball from watching his brothers. He has a passion for the game and all the hard work he has put in over the past ten years has paid off.
He has signed a letter of intent to play Division 2 basketball at the Colorado School of Mines. Gibbs fondly remembers Brendan’s signing day and said, “When I first met him in the spring of 2015 he did not have a lot of confidence that he would play basketball beyond high school.” He went on to add, “I advised him with proper training, coaching, and hard work we will get it done together. We went to work and now he is excited for the opportunity to play college basketball.” This is a favorite memory for Coach Gibbs about Sullivan.
The Falcons boys team is off to a 13-4 start, and with about eight games left in the season, Sullivan looks to lead his team to a great season, hopefully winning the league and competing for the state championship.
Evan Naemura, Staff Reporter
