This student athlete had plans for King/Drew before even enrolling at the school. After four years of competing on the Golden Eagles boys’ basketball team, senior guard and team captain Ethelbert Anum finally realized his dream.
“Me and my friend, we had talked about it in middle school that we wanted to change King/Drew sports,” he said. “To finally win that championship, it’s just amazing because it was something I wanted so bad in all four years at King/Drew.”
They bested the Van Nuys Wolves 62-60 to win the Division II City Section Championship. This is their first championship win since their two consecutive Invitational championships in 2003 and 2004. Anum was named a member of the CIF All-City Division II Team.
King/Drew made a strong effort in the second half to thwart Van Nuys, Anum mentioned how the competitive performance of his teammates Fidelis Okereke and Billy Clarke was a factor to their win.
“We stepped our defense up and then our offense started clicking and we started getting confident in each other and was able to pull out with a win,” Anum said. “It was a really close game, it was actually a buzzer beater at the end.”
Anum noted how the championship will be something he would never forget. Yet, he wanted more.
“Before the season ever started, I told my coach, coach (Lloyd) Webster, that I wanted to win a state championship,” Anum said. “After the championship game, I wasn’t too happy because I still want to win a state championship. I showed that with my demeanor with my teammates. I wasn’t satisfied.”
King/Drew went to the Division IV state tournament and upset the no. 2 seed St. Bonaventure and Carnegie Schools-Riverside. Their run ended in a 38-48 loss to the View Park Knights.
Anum noted that physics is his favorite class, it’s also the class that helps him the most with basketball.
“I struggle a lot, but at the end of the day, when I finally get the answer right or get a solution, it’s really something I look forward to,” he said. “For physics, when I struggle so much, I have to study and it’s the same way in basketball.”
Anum attributes his older brother and Lakers legend Kobe Bryant to launching his basketball career.
“My older brother, he played basketball and I always wanted to do what he did,” he said. “Watching Kobe really motivated me, I want to be like him, I [wanted] to be the best at anything I did.”
One of the most valuable lessons Anum learned was the importance of practice and having a strong work ethic. He once told his coach that he wanted to shoot the ball, a lot.
“He said he was not gonna let me shoot unless I put up the shots,” Anum said. “I’d come in every morning because he had opened up the gym for breakfast club before school. I come in put up shots, free throws, everything I need to do to be successful on the basketball court.”
