‘WE US OUR:’ The slogan shaping boys’ basketball

Varsity Boys Basketball Team

(Pictured left to right) Senior athletes Dylan Potocnic, Saahas Talluri, Harlum Drake, Andreas Sassaris, Bradley Biedke, Nate Hahn, Kenny Karlapudy, and Rohan Patel gift their coach Gregory Grana (fourth from right) Conant Basketball-themed onesies, celebrating his milestone of becoming a father.

It is 5:30 a.m., and the sound of basketballs thudding and gym shoes squeaking against the wooden floor echo across the main gym. This is just a typical practice for the varsity boys’ basketball team. One might think it’s tough to wake up so early five days a week for practice, but these young men enjoy it. With the help of their friends on and off the court, their new head coach, and the traditions that ring true to this historic program, the team is bound to “have… [their] strongest season yet,” as expressed by power forward Bradley Biedke, ‘25.

This year, business education teacher Gregory Grana will take over as head coach of the varsity boys’ basketball team, marking his fourth year coaching at Conant.

“I am excited. [This] is such a fun and incredible opportunity. [This] is such a great school and an incredible program to be in,” Grana said.

Grana has been an integral part of the athletes’ high school experience, both on and off of the court.

“Grana [is] one of those guys I’ve connected with a lot compared to other coaches. Especially one-on-one, not as a player but as a person. He has helped me with a lot of things, whether it’s schoolwork or basketball or whatnot. He has just been very focal in my development as a person and a player. I appreciate him a lot,” shooting guard Harlum Drake, ‘25, explained.

“Just as a human being, [Grana] is really understanding of every individual on the team [and] knows how to work with each individual and what is best for them. He has been really supportive and knows how to get us to work hard,” guard Dylan Potocnic, ‘25, said.

Along with the new head coach comes new starters. Because of the previous starters graduating, only two from last year, shooting guard Nate Hahn, ‘25, and Biedke, will return to the court this season.

Disappointed with last year’s record, one of the team’s main goals this year is to win as much as possible. They especially take their 5:30 a.m. practices seriously.

“We hate each other at practices to be honest, ‘cause we try to keep it as intense as possible. We are going at each other, it doesn’t matter. When we are against each other, it doesn’t matter how long I’ve known you or…whatever connection we have, it doesn’t matter,” point guard Andreas Sassaris, ‘25, said.

Despite lacking in height compared to last year, the one thing that separates this team from others is their chemistry, stemming from their friendships that have lasted throughout high school and some even playing with each other since elementary school.

“What we lack in size, we make up for in heart,” forward Saahas Talluri, ‘25, said.

“We are friends on and off the court. We all have the same objective and the same goals…[I have known some of them] since 2nd or 4th grade, either playing with them or against them,” Hahn said.

“Other schools have transfers, or [athletes that] moved in, but all of us have stuck here all four years. We have [had] more time to build this chemistry,” Biedke explained.

Despite taking practice seriously, this team is “the most fun group of young men I have ever seen on the same team,” Grana said. “The laughs [are my favorite part about this team]. We have such a great time. We have guys on the team that can relax a tense situation with a funny comment.”

When asked about one of these funny moments, the team delivered.

“Basically [during freshman year], we had to shoot two free throws in a row. If we don’t make it, we have to run laps at the end of practice. So this guy, Harlum [Drake], had made his first free throw, and he was shooting his second. Before he shoots it, he said, ‘Coach, we out’ and he bricked [missed] it! And we are back on that line,” Talluri said, laughing.

“That was a bad showing,” Drake said.

“It was a good moment though!” Talluri responded.

Because of their chemistry and motivation to win, the team is confident in their performance this season.

“This year I feel like…we are going to out-hustle [the other teams] and out-play them with whoever five guys are on the court at the time… just trying to outwork them, I feel like that is going to be our biggest strength this year,”  Potocnic said.

The team’s saying, “WE US OUR,” embodies their tightly-knit culture.

“‘WE US OUR’ is the philosophy that no one on this team is better than anyone else. We try to stay away from the ‘I’ and the ‘me’. We kind of buy into the thing that we are a family, everything we do benefits us as a group. That’s the kind of mentality that we want to have on the basketball court, that we are together and in it together as a family,” small forward Rohan Patel, ‘25, said.

In order to see the basketball team’s bond in action, one doesn’t even have to go to a game. Look in the halls. The team can be seen laughing and talking together before class. This is a group of best friends, not just athletes. Their season starts November 11, and their first home game is on December 6 against Schaumburg.

“We are excited and ready to play this year, especially the seniors. We want to get a lot of wins and [are looking forward to] play[ing] together for the last time,” Hahn said.

Varsity Boys Basketball Team

The team seeing Conant Theatre’s musical “Mary Poppins”.

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