LASA boys basketball’s new varsity coach John Nelson has his eyes set on making a successful playoff run for LASA’s team, with the help of new coaching and a team with more than 10 seniors. Nelson plans to create a culture and environment built to enhance team performance. Curtis Galvin, the returning JV coach, and freshman coach Breonn Watson will be accompanying him. Last year the team went 11-3 in the district, but they lost in the first round of playoffs.
Nelson is the former Navarro girls’ varsity basketball coach and is replacing the former coach Joseph Pendell. After playing football at Westlake High School, Nelson played basketball at Warren Wilson College. Despite originally going to Navarro only to teach, he realized from his love for playing that he wanted to be a coach and help players grow.
“The biggest thing in terms of values and traits that I emphasize with all my players is having a continual growth mindset,” Nelson said. “And I think oftentimes players, they get pretty good and then they can be pretty fixed in what they think they’re capable of doing in their sport. Keeping an open framework and an open idea of their skill set is really important to me.”
According to Nelson, even while coaching at other schools, it was evident to him that LASA basketball’s sportsmanship and maturity was beyond any other school he knew. He believes that these qualities are fundamental to the program’s success and foster a positive environment for both players and coaches alike.
“I’ve been coaching against LASA for the last five years and it just always stuck out to me,” Nelson said. “A lot of the players seem to have the social and emotional skills and prerequisites required to be engaged team members.”
Galvin highlighted team mindset and maturity as important parts of this team. According to him, the team’s unity and selflessness both on and off the court has been a key driver to their success.
“Everybody’s still friends off the court and leaves it on the court, and [they are] pretty unselfish overall,” Galvin said. “I don’t see a lot of negativity.”
Galvin also emphasized that another important aspect of LASA basketball is teamwork and being able to work together as one unit. He explained that effective communication on and off the court is crucial for building trust and enhancing player performance.
“Basketball is a cool sport where the whole is greater than the sum of the parts,” Galvin said. “So if guys are playing together and playing with chemistry, they’re capable of a lot more than five different guy’s stats on a piece of paper.”
Senior Vince Williams, who has been a varsity player for four years, values inspiring younger players who are yet to move up the ranks. Williams likes to lead by example through his hard work and dedication.
“You’re not going to get better without hard work,” Williams said. “It starts with the work you put in during the offseason and in practice.”
For a team that has only existed for five years, Williams sees this season as a chance to establish a strong program. He hopes to win more than 20 games as his time on LASA’s team comes to an end.
“My goal is to leave behind an image of what this class was and how we built something that’s a very good basketball program, not only in AISD but in Austin in general,” Williams said. “I plan on being a leader by leading by example for the kids not only on varsity, but on [the] JV and freshman teams.”
