Many freshmen try out for a sports team in the hopes of one day making varsity. While many fail, some, like junior Tyler Geiman, achieved that goal right away.

Geiman said his basketball career started well before his freshman year.

“My dad and sisters always played basketball,” Geiman said. “I grew up watching it. They actually played [for Blue Valley].”

Head varsity coach Dwight Williams said it’s rare to put a freshman on a varsity team, but he knew it was the right decision.

“He was more mature [than the other freshmen],” Williams said. “He was way ahead of his years compared to the rest of his teammates at that time, and I knew he was going to be a special player.”

Although it was clear Geiman had the talent, he said he wasn’t as confident then as he is now.

“I was pretty nervous,” Geiman said. “I was pretty little back then, smaller than everyone else.”

Williams said he has had experience with skilled players in the past, and wanted to be able to coach someone with Geiman’s talent.

“No offense to any of the other coaches, but I just wanted him [practicing] with me every day,” Williams said. “I wanted him to get experience against varsity level kids. When he played against the varsity kids in tryouts, he held his own against the seniors and the guys ahead of him.”

Geiman said the commitment for varsity is much greater compared to the other teams.

“You’re expected to put in a lot of work in the summer,” Geiman said. “They expect that of all the teams, but there’s a higher expectation for varsity. I think I handled it all right. I just kind of went with it.”

Williams said he has high hopes for Geiman’s future basketball career.

“I know he’s going to be very successful wherever he goes to school,” Williams said. “He already has a couple Division-I schools that have contacted him and watched practices. I just know how hard he’s worked to get where he’s going to go, and this is just the tip of the iceberg on how good he’s going to be. It’s just amazing how far he’s come.”

Geiman said his goal is to finish his remaining years in high school with a winning varsity team and move on to more competitive basketball.

“I’m going to play next year,” Geiman said. “I hope to play college basketball at some point, so I’m looking forward to that.”