| 16 November 2009
Tanner Riley will be entering his final season of basketball at Mount Si. Next year, Riley will be playing basketball at the University of Portland. He was ranked number eight on our player rankings last week. We got a chance to talk to Riley about his basketball career so far, this upcoming season, and his future at Portland. Check out our interview with him after the jump!
What is your mindset like going into your final season of high school basketball?
I want to make the most of it, doing everything I can to go as far as I think the team can. I expect nothing less but to be in the state championship.
Besides yourself, who are some key returners on Mount Si that will help make this goal a possibility?
We have 8 seniors this season that all have varsity experience. I think our senior leadership and experience will be huge. Luke Zupan and Zander Nelson are the two other captians and will be a huge part of our success this year.
How was your off-season? Are you fully recovered from your ankle injury?
My off-season after my injury kinda sucked. However, it was good for me at the same time. I did a lot of rehabbing and lifting and really got the chance to sit back for a couple months and watch the game from the sideline. This really helped me understand the game even more. I would say my ankle is feeling a lot better but not quite a 100% probably like 90%, it is taking a lot longer than I expected, but I will be ready to go in our first game.
I understand you played for Friends of Hoop for the past couple of years, how was it playing with an AAU team with so much talent? What are you going to miss most about AAU basketball?
FOH was great for me, it is a lot more different playing with people just as good if not better than you. Practices were extremely competitve and you got a lot better going up against your teamates every practice. Our team was expecially cool because egos were put aside and we really played together and became really close as a team. We ended up beating some of the most talented teams in the country because of the way we played together. It really is a great program, just look at our starting five who are all playing D1 next year.What I will miss most about AAU and FOH are the trips we got to go on and the competition we got to play against. I became really close with all of those guys.
Who was the starting five for FOH? Who was the best player you've ever defended?
Our starting five was Aaron Bright, Joe Harris, Ryan Nicholas, John Gage, and Me. In Atlanta we played Team Elite and I matched up with Brandon Knight for half the game, I would say he is the hardest player I've ever had to defend.
What would you say is your biggest strength as a basketball player?
My biggest strength I would say is my stroke, all around shooting mid range and long range.
If you could compare yourself to a current college player or NBA player, who would it be?
I have always seen me as playing like OJ Mayo. He just can shoot it and is athletic enough that he can finish at the hole and create for himself.
We recently ranked the top players in the state, check it out. Are there any players we missed out on? Any underrated players that you think are going to have breakout seasons this year? How do you feel about where you're ranked?
Yes I've seen it. I think Isiah Umapig will have a break out year, he really impressed me this summer how poised he was. I think where I am ranked is right on. The players ahead of me all have been just as successful as me if not more and have got a bunch of credit for it. I think the top ten is pretty right on. The top eight could go any way.
Why did you choose Portland? Did you have any other offers on the table?
Yes I had offers from Portland, Eastern Washington, Portland State, Seattle U, and University of Montana. Three more schools were getting to the point to offering me. I chose Portland because they have great coaches. I think the WCC is a great conference with some great teams. The Portland program is on the uprise and it's a great school academically. It felt like a great fit for me.
Well, thanks for your time, and good luck this season!
Anytime Kevin
