GOOD HOPE, Ala. — The Good Hope Raiders are coming off another fantastic season as they finished with a 21-9 record. Junior Weston Hancock talked about that season and what he learned, what it’s been like playing with this team so far, and what he has learned during his time on varsity.
“We had a great season that ended way too early for us, and I learned that we can be a dangerous team in Class 4A this coming year,” Hancock said. “It was great being able to play big roles and being a top-ranked 4A team the last two years. What I’ve learned during my time on varsity so far is that there’s going to be some kind of adversity every game.”
Weston has been blessed getting to play for some great coaches and he’s taken away so much from them so far.
“All three of our coaches are amazing at getting the best out of every single one of us,” Hancock said. “What I’ve learned from them is to always be confident in yourself and one of the most important things I’ve learned from them these past three years is putting God first and to always keep your head up.”
Weston got to play with three great seniors last season and soaked up as much as he could from all of them.
“Last year’s seniors were awesome. We all had great friendships on and off the court and all three of them contributed in their own way. Colton was a great leader on the court that helped us tremendously on both ends for us. Charlie showed every single one of us he can outwork anyone, no matter the situation. Jed was one of the most unselfish players. Despite not getting a lot of minutes, he showed up every day to practice and battled with every single one of us.”
Weston will be working on some things in the off-season to get ready for next season and has some goals set for himself and the team.
“One of the main things I’ll be working on is my shot and another thing is being able to play above the rim,” he said. “Our team goal is to play in Birmingham next year; that’s our main focus. Winning area and county would just be a bonus to that for us. An individual goal is to just be able to battle with anyone night in and night out.”
Weston talks about what will make this team special to watch next season, his role models growing up, some of the best advice he’s been given and what he’s learned from other varsity players so far.
“We’ve got guys putting in the work every day to get to that end goal next year and everyone was upset from the previous year. Everyone is competing every day, getting everyone’s max effort, and pushing us to our full potential for this upcoming season,” he said. “I’ve always looked up to the guys on varsity. The best advice that I’ve ever been given is from the coaches. We hear every day from them to never be satisfied and I feel like that’s the best advice you can hear as an athlete. I’ve learned a lot from the varsity players the last three years and one of the most valuable things I’ve learned is to always put the team first.”
Copyright 2023 Humble Roots, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
