Jazmin Redmon
Joslyn Tinkle rises over two defenders at the Riverside TOC.
AUBURN, Wash. -- Let’s face it, our sport has a lot of egos throughout. Many of those egos are prevalent among club team coaches. It comes with the territory I guess. They have to coach games and sell their programs to kids in the area -- on both their ability to get a player seen by top colleges and win big events.
It is a rare occurrence that a coach would volunteer his best players to a rival. Bill Hill isn’t your ordinary coach.
Just three players returned from last season’s squad, so rather than fill the roster out with young players or try to raid the cupboards of rival teams, Hill dialed one of his longest running rivals, Steve Klees. Klees runs the Spokane Blazers program in eastern Washington.
Tinkle, Tori Hill and Jordan Sullivan from Big Sky Hoops joined the six returning players from the Spokane Blazers to form the Northwest Blazers. The team started this club season the same way Hill’s Big Sky team did last year, winning the elite division of the Arizona Elite Classic.
Tinkle and Sullivan give the Blazers size they otherwise lacked. With the 6-foot-4 Tinkle dominating the paint and Sullivan's great length on the wing, the returning group of solid guards from the Blazers was a perfect match. Hill also started a new Big Sky Hoops squad for the kids in his area but he put his returnees’ best interests before his ego.
Tinkle's advancement as a player is dependent upon challenging herself against the best. She is incredibly dominant against average high school competition and playing against the likes of Kelsey Bone, Brittany Griner, Monique Oliver, DeNesha Stallworth and the many top interior players from around the country is the challenge she needs. Those opportunities do not present themselves in Montana, but with the talent they’ve assembled, the Blazers hope to be playing the big dogs this July at the End of the Trail tournament in Beaverton, Ore. (July 6-9), to kick off the summer NCAA viewing period.
More intriguing perhaps is the make-up of the coaching staff with both Hill and Klees, rivals seemingly since the beginning of time though they say it was grade school. Initially rumors from that part of the country hinted that the Blazer’s may have “stolen” the players from Hill’s team.
“Steve and I have been rivals since the third grade and we have the utmost respect for each other,” Hill said in an e-mail. “We did what we thought was in the best interests of the kids. At no time did Steve ever try to steal any of my players.”
On the sideline the former rivals are opposites in many ways, making them an unlikely pair. Klees paces the sidelines and can be heard across the gym when the time calls for it. Hill is a little more reserved, staying seated for most of the game. Despite their differences, the two light up with compliments about the each other -- for what it's worth each also jokes about what a pain in the hind-quarters the other is whenever someone will listen.
Joslyn Tinkle starts the break off a rebound.
As a group, the team can truly hold its own. It has the components to compete with top teams, and if the two-headed coaching staff can make the most of its talents, people may take notice of what’s going in their region. Tinkle’s talent and notoriety is well documented but the rest of the team, mostly made up of 2010 prospects, can play at a high level.
Jazmin Redmon (Spokane, Wash./Mead) is one of the quickest guards in the area. At a young age, she is already a fantastic defender. She truly understands and excels at the concept of turning your man -- a defender beating your opposition to their next spot forcing them to crossover or change directions. When allowed to defend the opponent’s primary ball handler the length of the floor, the 5-8 Redmon often turns the defender three or more times, tormenting the ball handler with her quickness. She also shows signs of being a solid point guard offensively. She runs the break extremely well for the Blazers and gets the ball up the court quickly with the pass. She is also effective off the dribble.
Danielle Walter (Pasco, Wash.) adds another dimension to the team’s backcourt. Although she’s a point guard in high school, the 6-foot sophomore suits the scoring guard position well. As a whole, the team is pretty unselfish in finding the open player on the court, but every once in a while you need a shot created and that’s where Walter steps in. She has plenty of confidence to pull the trigger on a deep 3-point shot or zing a behind-the-back pass on the break. Her footwork coming off of screens is also impressive; the team likes to run her off staggered baseline screens for shots in the corner.
Tinkle isn’t the only player in the post, either. Hanna Potter (Edina, Minn./Hopkins) brings a strong solid presence to the paint to complement Tinkle. The 6-foot-2 center is a dependable rebounder, sets solid screens and showed very good vision in making post-to-post passes at the right time to Tinkle.
On their bench, the Blazers have a handful of guards who can all step in and play, and most of them are accomplished scorers on their high school teams.
Missoula and Spokane aren’t exactly known for producing tons of All-Americans. Still, with Angie Bjorklund in 2007 putting Spokane back on the basketball map, perhaps this is the year Tinkle puts Missoula and Spokane front and center.
