Bartlett boys basketball coach Dion Real remembers when R’Chaun King started working out with the team after transferring from national power Link Academy.
King didn’t come in with the attitude of a know-it-all transfer who played on a team that won a GEICO Nationals championship, a tournament that features some of the top high school basketball teams in the country.
The three-star prospect and Arkansas State basketball signee came in ready to work.
His first few months, Real said the 6-foot-8 forward didn’t say much.
“He is about his business,” Real said. “I feel like what he’s bringing to the table is straight business.”
Back home in Memphis at Bartlett feels like a fresh start for King.
"I’m still one of the top guys,” King said. “I still can do me.”
Playing last year at Link Academy, a boarding school in Branson, Missouri, was the first time King wasn’t one of the top players on a team. He said he averaged around four points per game.
His recruiting blew up at Memphis University School, and he picked up offers from Florida, Memphis, Alabama and Missouri in his freshman and sophom*ore seasons. He helped MUS reach the TSSAA Division II-AA quarterfinals in consecutive years and was named to the all-region team as a sophom*ore.
“I just wanted different competition,” King said of transferring to Link Academy for his junior season. “Just be around different people and see what my game is really like.”
Now he’sready to prove he’s still a talented basketball player; maybe even prove the prep school route isn't always the best option.
Recapturing his identity
At Link Academy, King learned for the first time in his basketball career what it was like being a good player among the best.
"It was real hard to watch my child on the bench and not play,” said Sherica Donelson, his mother.
That one season was a damper on his high school career, and it prompted him and his mom to take a step back and decide what the next step would be. While he was at Link Academy, the coaching staffs with the schools he was offered by his freshman and sophom*ore years didn't keep in contact.
Only Alabama State and Arkansas State continued to follow King.
"The Link (Academy) thing, I wasn’t the man out there so people started second guessing,” King said. “I just want to prove it my senior year.”
It's why the decision to choose between the two schools was tough. Ultimately, Arkansas State showing up to one of his practices at Bartlett led to him choosing the Wolves.
"They made it known that they were really interested in me and I took that into consideration," King said.
King could have gone to another prep school but coming back to Memphis was the better option.
"I missed it a lot,” King said of Memphis. “And I just want to actually do something for myself my senior year and prove that I can be a leader.”
Back where it all started
Most of the top area players in King's class have gone the prep school route and left Memphis just as he did.
"I really applaud them folks for doing what they need to do,” King said. “I love to see people doing their own thing and playing basketball.”
And while Bartlett is no prep school, Real likes to think there’s still a lot to offer with the Panthers and even Memphis.
“Everybody has a different path to success,” Real said. “I’m hoping this year he has an unbelievable season and people see you don’t have to go (the prep route).
“Here at Bartlett, we’re going to hopefully offer some of the things that they’ve done at the preps. But not just here at Bartlett, but throughout the city.”
King didn’t immediately become the guy on Bartlett’s team and may not be the guy just yet. But he’s doing all the right things. He’s become one of the leaders for the Panthers.
That’s one thing he wanted to do when he pursued a new team: Be a vocal presence.
"Coach Real trusts me,” King said. “He trusts me to be that leader and I feel like I have enough experience to do that. It just takes me to do it.”
And his experience being on a national championship team is an appreciated addition.
"We have guys that have a bad taste in their mouth and they understand, ‘We have to be about our business,’” Real said. “And you see somebody that’s won a national championship who’s about business. It’s been a perfect blend.”
Reach Wynston Wilcoxatwwilcox@gannett.comand on the X platform, formerly known as Twitter,@wynstonw__.
