Benet senior Colin Stack enjoys the view from the top.
The 7-foot-1 center has been the tallest player on the court in every game he has played for the Redwings over the past two seasons, and he and his teammates reached the top of the mountain last season when they won the first state championship in program history.
Stack’s body and game continue to grow, and the North Dakota State recruit is far from reaching his ceiling, people around him say.
“He’ll definitely play professionally,” Benet coach Gene Heidkamp said. “It’s just a question of where.
“He has professional potential because he’s got the size, he’s got the skill, he’s going to get stronger physically. He’s going to look different at 22 or 23 than he looks at 18. He gets better all the time.”
Senior guard Jayden Wright, an Eastern Illinois recruit, has seen that improvement up close. He and Stack joined the varsity team together when they were sophomores.
“He definitely can (play professionally) if he wants to,” Wright said. “He’s gotten better every single year. Now he’s obviously the best he’s been.”
Stack, who averaged 12.2 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.8 blocks for the Redwings (33-5) to earn All-East Suburban Catholic Conference honors last season, has always been tall. But he figures to make an even bigger impact at both ends of the court.
“He’s a great rim protector,” Wright said. “When you have a 7-footer behind you, it really makes your job easier when you’re a guard.
“If you get blown by, he’s there to help you, so he changes things for the opposing team on the defensive end. And then on the offensive end, he’s a great rebounder. He’s really active, and then he can shoot it really well, not just for his size but in general. He’s definitely in for a big senior year.”
Stack’s future is bright, but he’s focused on the present and is relaxed now that his recruiting process has ended.
“It’s such a relief because now you don’t have to worry about overperforming or numbers or anything,” he said. “You just go out and play.
“Now I get to focus on my season and winning. Obviously, we want to go back to back.”
That’s not an unrealistic goal for the Redwings, who have one of the best guard-center combos in the state with Wright and Stack. But both will be taking on greater responsibilities.
“Obviously, it’s more of a leadership role,” Stack said. “You have to hold people accountable, and I feel like I have to do a little bit better of a job with that.
“There’s kids looking up to me and Jay. So it’s a lot more expectations in terms of figuring stuff out, doing things the right way, make sure the team acts the way they’re supposed to act.”
The leadership role is just the latest act in a play in which Stack seemed fated to star. More than a dozen of his relatives have played college sports, most at the Division I level in basketball or volleyball.
Stack’s father, David, played basketball at Purdue and won a Big Ten title, and his mother, Suzette, played basketball at Augustana. Stack’s older sisters Lauren, Erin and Katrina followed suit at American, Western Carolina and Quincy, respectively.
Several of Stack’s aunts, uncles and cousins were Division I players, most notably his cousin Frank Kaminsky, a retired NBA player who works as a broadcast analyst for the Phoenix Suns’ G League affiliate.
“That’s what I want to do,” Stack said of broadcasting. “I’m not great with numbers, but I know how to explain why they’re shooting that number.”
For Heidkamp, it’s not hard to explain why Stack’s numbers could be on the rise this season.
“He’s been through a lot in the last couple years,” Heidkamp said. “He’s played in every game you can play in, and he’s played at a high level.
“He was a huge part of the state championship team last year. So we expect big things from him this year, and we think he’s just going to get better and better and he’s going to have a big year. We need him to have a big year, and he’s certainly capable of that.”
But Stack knows there are no shortcuts.
“We have a lot to improve on, so it’s going to be a day-to-day kind of thing,” he said. “We have to grind every single day if we want to go where we want to be.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter.
