The Resume of a Champion

The home bedroom of every high school student will always have a unique flavor all to its own. So what is unique and special on the mantle of Hopkins point guard senior-to-be Siyani Chambers? Three state championship medals including two that saw him as the starting point. The senior year goal is of course a fourth straight state championship.

"Playing with Coach (Ken) Novak and playing with such great guys with such a great work ethic, they push my every day to get better," said Siyani. "I just feel that because of them I am where I am right now as a player."

As a junior Chambers put up 11.6 points a game shooting 52.3 percent from the floor, 40.2 percent behind the arc, and 77.2 percent at the foul line in a supporting scoring role. Siyani's most important job was leading the charge on both ends of the floor.

Siyani ran the offense with a 2.85 to one assist to turnover ratio while averaging almost five assists a game. He totaled 59 steals producing ball pressure as good as just about anybody in the state.

So much has been accomplished but yet there is more to be done.

"Right now I just want to work with all the young guys and get them up to speed because we are going to need them a lot to be able to fill the roles," Chambers explained.

"Right now it is my job to make them better along with making myself better at the same time.

"Next year I'm going to have to rebound more and continue to get everybody involved. With Marvin Singleton and Joe Coleman leaving we are going to lose a lot of rebounding. Everybody on our team, the guards included, we are going to have to team rebound."

Singleton is off to Northern Iowa while Coleman is headed to Minnesota and they take a combined 39 points and 16 rebounds a game with them.

Returning as seniors for Hopkins will be Chambers, Zach Stahl (12.1 ppg and 7.9 rpg), Demetrius Martin (7.1 ppg and 2.6 rpg), Nick Jorgensen (7.4 ppg and 3.0 rpg) and Andre McDonald (6.1ppg). The team also has quality youth in junior Jamal Davis, sophomore Jacob Wright, and others.

Stahl and Chambers are playing with the Howard Pulley Panthers this off-season competing in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League also known as the EYBL. The Panthers jumped off to a strong start bringing a 6-4 record into the final weekend of the league. The Panthers needed one win to qualify for the year end Peach Jam.

They lost their first four games in LA but came ahead in the clutch defeating Albany City Rocks to qualify. The EBYL stats showed Chambers was the team's most consistent performer in Los Angeles averaging 14.2 points, four rebounds, and almost five assists a game while hitting on 42 percent of his 19 three-point attempts.

"The EYBL is the best league you can be in during the off-season," said Chambers.

"Basically you are playing against guys that are going to be starting in college. You can't have an off day. You always have to bring your A game. And by playing in that league you know that you are going to get better.

"In Los Angeles I think we collectively got better and as an individual I got better too."

With a Hopkins and Howard Pulley resume as strong as his Siyani's it's a no brainer that college interest is coming his way.

"The teams showing me the most interest are Harvard, Boston College, Georgia Tech, Washington State, and the schools that have offered me already," listed Siyani. "The schools that have offered are Santa Clara, Central Michigan, UC Davis, Saint Louis, UC-Irvine, and Boston University."

Chambers has been going non-stop from November so there hasn't been much time to stop and think about college visits official or unofficial.

"Right now I don't know where I am going to visit," Siyani said. "Soon we have some breaks so my mom is trying to schedule some trips but at this time I don't know.

"I think after July, after the Peach Jam at that point I will start narrowing things down in terms of schools."

Chambers is the number one true point guard prospect in the state of Minnesota's 2012 class by far.