The high school boys basketball season can be arduous, even for the Class 4A state champion Stevenson Patriots.
There were many days during the 2014-15 season when the mood at Stevenson’s practices was as chilly as the winter air. But the daily presence of two injured players — seniors Cameron Green and Nick Dillon — often lifted low spirits.
“We had those practices in the middle of the year, when no one wanted to be there. They would try and cheer us up,” senior forward Parker Nichols said. “Nick [Dillon] and Cam [Green] are the two loudest talkers.”
Before the basketball season, Green, a 6-foot-3, 200-pound small forward, and Dillon, a 6-2, 285-pound power forward, were expected to be contributors in the Patriots’ rotation. Both were starters and all-North Suburban Conference players for the Stevenson football team, which won its first-ever Class 8A state championship in 2014.
But Green (shoulder) and Dillon (leg) both suffered significant injuries during the football season, and neither player was able to recover in time to participate on the court. The circumstance required a mental pivot for the ultra-competitive athletes.
“Cam and I are used to playing in high-octane games, so to see it from the sidelines was different,” Dillon said.
If they weren’t attending doctor appointments or physical therapy sessions, Dillon and Green were at basketball practices and games. Between drills or during time outs, they would talk to teammates about the principles that propelled the Stevenson football team to a championship.
“We talked about defense. We were on them every game about, ‘You have to be in your stance.’ That’s how you win a state championship,” said Dillon, an Eastern Michigan football recruit.
Nichols added: “They knew what it takes to win a state championship from football. For them to funnel that to us, it meant a lot.”
Dillon and Green found other resourceful ways to contribute. At the state tournament in Peoria, Green, a Northwestern football recruit, was spotted filling water cups for teammates.
“I gave myself the nickname, ‘El chico de agua’ — the water boy,” Green said “We all have our part on the team.”
The role of Dillon and Green was support. As the Patriots received their first-place medals on the floor of Peoria’s Carver Arena late Saturday night, there were Dillon and Green, in street clothes, receiving theirs.
Never before has a large Illinois school won football and basketball state titles in the same school year. After being vital on-field contributors during the football team’s championship run, Dillon and Green discovered that devotion comes in many forms.
“We were all in it together. It didn’t matter that we weren’t on the court. To cheer them on made it so much better than having to worry about us individually. We cared more about the team than ourselves,” Green said.
Dillon added: “You don’t bring the championships to college, you bring the experience. [This basketball season] is something I’ll hold onto forever.”
Jon Kerr is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
Twitter: @prepspioneer
