Basketball is a game of on-court skill sets that, while infinitely varied, can determine how good or valuable a player is to their team. If a player doesn’t shoot, rebound or defend well enough, it can make or break their team’s season. However, for Ohio Bobcats assistant coach Lamar Thornton, the most valuable attribute is character.
Thornton didn’t play basketball in college. Instead, he went to Ohio Dominican to study Sports and Exercise, getting his first assistant coaching job 25 minutes away at Hilliard Davidson High School during his senior year. In the meantime, he started his own basketball training program, IBT Academy, which is now the BRICK League in Columbus.
Thornton’s big opportunity came a year after Ohio coach Jeff Boals got the head coaching job at Stony Brook, where Thornton was hired as an assistant in July 2017. Boals first connected with Thornton during his sole season at Hargrave Military Academy, after Thornton worked as a graduate assistant with Toledo, and the two stayed in touch ever since. Boals got offered the head coaching job at Ohio, his alma mater, he was quick to take Thornton with him.
Seven years later, Thornton is still on the sideline, cheering on his players as they enter the huddle and getting hit with warnings for stepping too far out onto the logo, shouting play calls and orchestrating his team.
“It’s been a different ride than most, but I’m happy about it and excited to still be able to do it,” Thornton said.
Boals’ single, nonnegotiable trait in any player on his team is character. What has kept Thornton on his staff for nearly a decade is his ability to embody that character, while seeking out players who match it, finding, evaluating and getting to know them before bringing them onto the team.
“(Boals) doesn’t want to be around low-energy guys,” Thornton said. “He doesn’t want to be around people that struggle to communicate and don’t take communication well. He’s big on body language … is he cheering for his teammates on the bench? Is he sprinting onto the court? Is he accepting coaching?”
Of course, what happens on the court still matters. When bringing in this year’s four-man transfer class, the shooting repertoire of Dior Conners and Carter Reese played a role, as did Javan Simmons’ and Jalen Breath’s size and rebounding, two areas Ohio had lost and had to make up for from last year’s roster. However, in the short window the portal allows, Thornton and the Ohio staff aren’t just watching games to see if a player can dribble, pass and shoot, but to observe body language.
Thornton also makes calls. A lot of them. In the trek to find a fit, he’s tracking down high school coaches, parents, teammates and anybody else who played a role in the development of the player he’s recruiting.
“If we can talk to someone at the high school, that’s huge,” Thornton said. “We want to know, ‘What type of kid was he?’ ‘What type of kid is he?’ ‘Is he growing?’ ‘Is he maturing?’ … It’s a partnership at that point, and we want to make sure everyone’s on the same page.”
Thornton’s biggest helper in building his team is his players. During his time in Athens, the Bobcats have had a strong connection to Ohio’s capital, Columbus. Thornton and Boals will both say it started with former four-year Bobcat Ben Roderick.
“He was the Ohio Gatorade Player of the Year, and he decided to go to Ohio University,” Thornton said. “He did it because his parents did it, and he felt at home. When we’re able to share that story, it becomes a domino effect.”
Now, half of Ohio’s roster is from the central Ohio area, spanning from Pickerington to Westerville to, of course, Columbus. Many grew up playing AAU basketball against each other and alongside each other.
“Being from Columbus, it’s beautiful,” Thornton said. “Being able to be around the families that are supporting Ohio and their kids … it’s huge.”
In building the seven seasons of teams he’s been a part of, Thornton has cast a wide net, one that’s constantly growing. Each knot in the net marks a player, a member of the coaching staff, or a member of the community Ohio has built, growing as new connections are made. The thread comprising the net itself is woven on the nonnegotiable, intangible characteristic of character itself; one Thornton embodies better than just about anyone.
Both in looking back and looking forward, Thornton’s goal is to stay where his feet are. He views the opportunity to coach, given to him by Boals back in 2017, as a chance to give back. The success that comes is a product of the young men he’s helped develop on and off the court, and a gift back to Boals for the chance to elevate his program.
“Me being with him so long, I take pride in seeing him have success,” Thornton said. “So, when I see him being successful, I feel good about that because I’m like, ‘I was a part of that.’ He took a chance on me, so I just want to continue to keep pushing him forward.”
For his players, Thornton knows basketball is an escape, bordering on sacred to each and every one of them. The Convocation Center, in that regard, is their sanctuary and practice is almost religious.
“The world is a tough place right now, and I just want them to be the toughest guy they can be today,” Thornton said. “Worry about tomorrow, on tomorrow … Whatever you got going on off the floor, in the classroom, at home, this is our time. This is our therapy.”
