The Putnam County boys’ basketball team holds high expectations for its 2022-23 season.
The War Eagles enter ranked No. 6 overall in Class AA, per SandysSpiel.com.
Putnam head coach LaPatrick Marshall has set the bar high for his players, hoping they can take the proverbial “next step” during their 2022-23 campaign. After finishing with a 19-10 overall record and 8-6 in Region 4-AA play last year, the War Eagles entered the GHSA Class AA state playoffs as the No. 3-seed, but the season ended abruptly in the first round with a loss on the road against No. 2-seed Woodville-Tompkins of Savannah.
To compensate, Marshall and the team have been competing since last May in off-season summer and fall league tournaments.
“I feel good right now. We played in a fall league at Eagle’s Landing Christian and made it to the championship game,” Marshall said. “Then we have our scrimmage Tuesday night at Baldwin, so that will be telling in our first regulated game since last year and I think our guys will be ready to play. They are excited about it.”
Putnam returns a lot of talent from last year, including leading scorer Eren Banks, currently committed to play college ball at Georgia Southern.
He is one of the most prolific players in Class AA, averaging 22.1 points per game as a high-school junior.
Banks, a 6-foot-3, 170-pound combo guard, played only 18 games last year after missing time at the start of the 2021-22 season dealing with an ankle injury. He notched 4.9 rebounds and 2.6 assists per contest last season for the War Eagles. While Marshall is understandably excited about Banks’ return, he is equally thrilled to have Keyni Crawford coming back. The 6-foot-4, 160-pound guard averaged 13.9 points per game during his junior campaign. Crawford also was Region 4-AA’s fourth-leading scorer.
“SandySpiel voted him as one of the sleeper guards in Class AA,” Marshall said. “But (Crawford) has a lot to prove this year. I think he can play at the next level. He’s got the stats and the film, but he’s just got to prove it.”
Banks and Crawford were the team’s leading scorers last season, but Putnam will have to replace Malik Thornton, the War Eagles’ third-leading scorer in 2021-22. However, the addition of junior Landon Bonner is a huge plus for the team.
Bonner played at Jasper County during his freshman year in 2020-21, where he led the Hurricanes and Region 3-AA in scoring. Bonner transferred to Putnam last year, where he played on the junior varsity team as a sophomore due to transfer rules.
“I think both of those guys (Crawford and Bonner) will help out Eren in scoring,” Marshall said.
The War Eagles have a tough schedule ahead of them. They will play two in-season tournaments during the Thanksgiving and Christmas breaks against teams such as Northside (Columbus), Eastside, Westside (Macon) and Southeast Bulloch, among others.
Regardless, Putnam’s region schedule also remains rigorous. The War Eagles will run the gauntlet and compete in one of the state’s toughest basketball regions in any classification.
They play in Region 4, which returns two teams that made the Class AA state final last season: Westside and Butler. The Patriots and Bulldogs are ranked No. 1 and No. 10 in AA, respectively, with both expected to make deep playoff runs. Region 4-AA also has new additions in Thomson (No. 3) and Washington County.
“Our region may be the toughest in the state at any level. Thomson came into region but played in the Final Four last season in AAA. Washington County is also coming in and they went to the Sweet 16 in AA last year,” Marshall said. “So, you’ve got four teams that made good runs in the playoffs (last year). We’ve got six possible teams that can do that this season. So, our region is going to be tough, man. Westside won it all last year but played Butler for it. There are no nights off for us.”
Regardless of returning a few key starters or playing a tough schedule, Marshall just wants his team to improve overall this season. His vision requires two primary features: remaining healthy as a unit and playing disciplined.
“We can’t afford to lose our head, lose our cool, and do anything that’s going to jeopardize or hurt ourselves,” Marshall said. “If we do those two things, then I think we should be fine. I’ve got confidence in our ability to play well and in our coaching staff in order to succeed.”