BAY CITY, MI – Nick and Zack Kontes are always taking mental notes during practice for the Bay City All Saints varsity basketball team.
The senior and sophomore brothers want to be ready when it comes time for them to go from being players to being coaches -- which is 30 minutes from now.
As soon as the Kontes boys wrap up practice as players for the Cougars, they zip over to the next practice, where they serve as coaches for the All Saints Middle School seventh- and eighth-grade team.
“I’m sure at the first practice some of the parents were saying ‘Who are these kids walking in?’” said Nick Kontes. “But at All Saints, we’re such a small school that everybody knows each other. So the kids were saying ‘Nick? Zack? You’re coaching? Cool!’ They were excited when we walked in.”
While helping the All Saints varsity team in its quest for a North Central Thumb League championship, the teenagers are also guiding the way for the next generation of Cougars. They coach the middle school team in its season finale tonight, looking to wrap up the campaign with an 8-2 record.
The fact that they live with their parents, don’t yet have their high school diplomas and only one of them has a driver’s license hasn’t stopped them from taking on mentorship and role model responsibilities.
Coaches Zack Kontes, George Kontes and Nick Kontes chat with the All Saints Middle School players during a timeout at St. Johns gymnasium on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020.Kaytie Boomer | MLive.com
The sons of Annie and George Kontes, they both carry 4.0 grade point averages, are community volunteers and are active in three sports. So, for a 17-year-old and a 16-year-old, they’re not bad examples for a group of mostly 13-year-olds to look up to.
“The community has given to them and they’re giving back,” George Kontes said of his boys. “It’s not just basketball, they’re involved in a lot of things. It makes us proud as parents to see they don’t take things for granted. They know what they’ve been given and they’re giving back to other kids.”
George Kontes was the intended target when All Saints athletic director Greg Wagner called the Kontes home looking for a coach. He had coached middle school and elementary school teams when Nick and Zack were coming up through the system, but politely declined this time around because of an impending shoulder surgery.
Nick overheard the conversation and told his dad to call Wagner back. He had a three-Kontes coaching plan to pitch.
“Mr. Wagner said he had 100 percent confidence they could handle it, and I did too,” George said. “If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have put them in a position for failure.
“I told the boys they would be responsible for the practices and the games, and I would be like the general manager overseeing everything. After the games, we talk strategy and go over what went wrong and what went right and what needs to be implemented into the practices. The dynamics have really gone well.”
All Saints' sophomore Zack Kontes (5) dribbles the ball down the court during a game against Caseville in the All Saints gymnasium on Friday, Jan. 17, 2020.Kaytie Boomer | MLive.com
So Nick and Zack take mental notes at each varsity practice and bring many of the same drills and strategies to the middle school game. They hold practices two nights a week and coach games two nights, all while shuffling their schedules to work with their varsity duties – and the usual demands of high school life.
Only one thing could make the whole thing work, and that one thing has been a strength of the Kontes boys since they were old enough to roll a ball across the floor: Teamwork.
“They’re best friends, they’ve been inseparable,” George said. “If one needs help, they don’t hesitate to ask the other.
“They’ve gotten along since birth. I have a brother and we fought, and my wife (and her siblings) fought like cats and dogs. But Nick and Zack have gotten along like you wouldn’t believe.”
All Saints' senior Nick Kontes (14) looks for a teammate to pass to during a game against Caseville in the All Saints gymnasium on Friday, Jan. 17, 2020.Kaytie Boomer | MLive.com
That bond has paid off in the sports arena over the years, where they’ve been teammates on baseball, basketball and soccer teams, often with Zack getting brought up early to play alongside big brother. That was the case when Zack made the jump to varsity basketball in ninth grade, and they’ve formed a potent combo since.
Nick is the floor general of the All Saints varsity squad, running the point as a pass-first playmaker. Zack is one of the team’s top shooters, roaming the 3-point arc and lighting it up from long range. Together, they’ve helped the Cougars to a 5-0 start in North Central Thumb League play, good for first place in the Stripes Division at the midway point.
“I don’t even have to look, I know where he’s going to be all the time,” Nick said. “I can drive and dish it out to him, hit him in the shooting pocket and he’ll make the shot.”
As coaches, Nick also takes the point, normally handling in-game strategy, discussions during timeouts and stalking the sideline. Zack said he does pretty much whatever Nick asks him to do to help. Together, they’ve watched a team of mostly newcomers to organized basketball grow and learn and succeed.
“At halftime of one game, we decided we wanted to try to get everybody to score,” Nick said. “It went down to the final minute and we still needed two of them to score. The moment the last one scored, everybody on the bench jumped up going ‘Yeaaahhh!’ That was pretty cool to see as a coach.”
The young coaches said they haven’t had any issues all season, with no parent conflicts and no player dilemmas to speak of in a remarkably smooth sailing rookie campaign. Zack, who will likely be teammates with some of these players by his senior year on the All Saints varsity, said he’s only hit one snafu.
“We told the guys if they scored 100 points in a game, we’d have a pizza party,” he said. “They’re never going to score 100 points, so one time I told one of the guys I’d think about doing the pizza party if he hit a halfcourt shot – then he swishes it. Now they all think they’re getting pizza.”
Coach Nick Kontes high-fives an All Saints Middle School player after a play at St. Johns gymnasium on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020.Kaytie Boomer | MLive.com
A connection seems to have been made. The middle school players often attend varsity games to cheer on the players they call coaches, and the rest of the Cougars. And the young coaches have also gained a new perspective from their double duties.
“It makes you realize that coaching isn’t as easy as it seems,” Zack said. “The coaches just want you to be your best, so you need to listen. Even if what they’re saying sounds stupid to you at the time, it’s probably something that is going to help you.”
While Zack still has two-plus years of high school ahead of him, Nick is in the homestretch of his prep days. He said he plans to pursue a career in either teaching or law enforcement, with a side job of coaching. And he already has a resume item that even has him talking like a coach.
“It’s crazy how much better they know the game than when they first started,” he said of his middle school squad. “But as long as they give maximum effort, we’re happy.”
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