The New Norcross Coach is just fine

If anyone thought that the Norcross Blue Devils boys basketball team would lose a step after Head Coach Eddie Martin left the program, that person vastly underestimated new coach Jesse McMillan. All the long-time assistant has done in his first year at the head of the bench is run his team out to a 13-1, (10-0 region) record and a No.3 ranking in the latest GACA Coaches Poll. When Martin stepped away from the program, having just won the last three state championships, the Norcross program could have gone to any number of coaches. According to reports, nearly two hundred resumes flooded the desk of Norcross administrators, but the school decided to promote the six-year assistant McMillan to the head coach position. “I am very lucky to have served under one of the best to ever be on the sideline in the state of Georgia,” McMillan says. “Serving and working side by side with Coach Martin for six years was an immeasurable experience.”
When McMillan was handed the keys to the Norcross kingdom, he hit the ground running, and he needed to: with this job come state championship expectations. “There is pressure, yes, but no more than any winning program faces. One of the best things about the new position was the fact that I already had a good relationship with the team.” And that relationship has enabled the team to jump out to a 13-1 record thus far this season. Coach McMillan is quick to credit his players though as this team seems off to another state championship-caliber start. “We have a great makeup of kids, good size and a nice, athletic group off the bench. Our senior guards have been the epitome of consistency, each one playing their role perfectly.” Coach McMillan has also been pleased with the rebounding and the team’s offensive balance. While Taariq Muhammad and Denzail Jones grab the headlines and wow the crowd, McMillan noted that a pair of Lambs has impressed the coaching staff. Senior Zach Lamb was called the glue that holds the team together by McMillan while junior Jeff adds scoring off the bench and has averaged 14ppg since the Christmas break. “The Lamb brothers are fantastic kids and instrumental in our success.”
As much as every coach wants a win and to bring titles to a school, McMillan may have learned very early in his coaching tenure that sometimes a lost battle can win a war. The team traveled to Charlotte for the Bojangle’s Shootout where it played three games in three days, a “playoff setting,” and had the No.18 ranked team in the country, Bishop McNamara, dead in the water. The team had free throws to ice the game with :06 left but would lose 59-56. McMillan though knows his team learned from that. “In a way the loss was good for us. Obviously we wanted to win desperately…but sometimes you have to look at the greater scheme of things. After the loss we were able to refocus and come back and play great basketball the following games.” McMillan credits that experience with how his team has responded now back in region play, where the Blue Devils are 10-0.
Will these Blue Devils go on to win another state title and send multiple players to Division I schools to seek college glory? Time will tell. But Coach McMillan will certainly be following all of his players’ future adventures. “I try to talk to our former players as much as I can. I know when they are struggling and when they are doing well and try to talk to them and offer encouragement or congratulations.” McMillan said that while he never expected Kentucky sensation Jodie Meeks to drop 54 in a recent game against Tennessee, he did expect him “to be a special player, without a doubt.” McMillan also noted that Al-Farouq Aminu is “another one that will not let individual success cloud his judgment. He remains grounded and humble.” Aminu’s Wake Forest Demon Deacons are the only undefeated team left in DI.
“We've been very lucky to have great kids come through our program.” This is true, but coaching certainly helps and Jesse McMillan is hoping to maintain the success and carve out his place in Norcross history. “No one is completely prepared for being a head coach. I have to keep a level head and be the calming force. Obviously, for us to continue being successful we need to keep our sense of community and family.” So far, so good.