Bolingbrook's Taylor is still a tall order

Bolingbrook guard's game compares favorably to Ohio State's sophomore sensation, 6-7 Evan Turner

The year of the sophomore in Big Ten Conference men's basketball featured one Evan Turner of Ohio State.

The Westchester St. Joseph High School graduate has grown to 6 feet 7 and features the type of game that works in today's world.

He runs the floor, has shooting range to complement a soft touch, and he can take it to the basket. Defensively, he is long, lean and quick.

Bolingbrook High School senior Diamond Taylor boasts similar attributes, the exception the last few inches. When you review their basketball talents, it's a peek in the mirror.

And that, in a nut shell, is a primary reason Taylor is cited today as the MVP of the Herald News Boys Basketball All-Area Team, edging Seneca all-stater and all-area selection Seth Evans for the honor.

"I've been compared to Evan (Turner), my game has been compared to his, but I'm not 6-7," said Taylor, who claims, "I'm almost 6-4, though."

"Evan's versatility is what really makes him the player he is," Taylor continued. "He can play any position on the floor."

Why the fascination with Turner? They are friends, but even more than that, Taylor said, "He is my mentor."

Taylor transferred to Bolingbrook for his senior season from -- you guessed it -- St. Joseph. He has signed a national letter of intent to attend Wisconsin on a basketball scholarship. This winter, he was in Madison for what in his mind was the ultimate, the Ohio State-Wisconsin game.

"I talked with Evan there, had a good time," said Taylor, who is hoping for similar results at his chosen campus.

"Evan had a skinny build like me at first. I'm about 170 now, and I feel like I'm finally getting some build on me."

Taylor averaged more than 17 points per game as a junior at St. Joe's. His arrival at Bolingbrook was accompanied by understandable hype.

When all was said and done, he led the Raiders to a very respectable 20-7 season and a berth in the sectional semifinals. Had Bolingbrook shot free throws decently well in several close losses, the record may have been even better.

Taylor, meanwhile, averaged 14.4 points, modest compared to what some outside the program might have expected.

But inside, from coach Rob Brost through the last man on the bench, the Raiders knew Taylor's value.

"Diamond's all-around play was the most important thing for us," Brost said. "We were a very talented team with talented individuals, and he was a great conveyor of all that. He scored, but he also got the others involved in what he did. I credit him with understanding how to play the game right regardless of the stats."

"Last year at St. Joe's, that was my coming-out year," Taylor said. "Here, I had to show that I had an all-around game.

"If all I wanted was points, no problem. But in the long run, it served Bolingbrook better for me to play the way I did. We were four-dimensional. If we were all about one player, they would lock down on me and we would get beat."

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Of course, there was that other aspect to the transfer. Taylor understood early on that he was joining a well-established program that featured a myriad of other talent.

For example, first-team all-area pick Troy Snyder will join Evans at Wisconsin-Green Bay. Second-team selection Antoine Cox will be one of the top college prospects in the area next season. Third-team choice Russell Burns will play in college somewhere.

"You wondered how everyone would take to Diamond when you have seniors already in place," said Taylor's dad Kimrossi, Brost's varsity assistant. "Getting the group to jell, I knew it would be tough in the beginning for anyone to do."

"We had our ups and downs," Diamond admitted. "We had to jell as a team, and when we did, it became a fun year for all of us.

"Looking back, we should have come together earlier, done more bonding outside the court early on. Maybe we could have gone further in the state tournament if we had bonded a little earlier."

From a personal standpoint, Taylor, an Illinois Basketball Coaches Association second-team 3A/4A all-stater, enjoyed the Bolingbrook experience.

"I got to meet new guys," he said. "It was good preparation for next year (at Wisconsin)."

The East Suburban Catholic Conference rightfully is proud of its basketball heritage, and no school has contributed more to that than St. Joe's. Likewise, the Southwest Suburban Blue, of which Bolingbrook is a member, feels the basketball played in its arenas is as good as any.

The styles, though, are different. Taylor comes away the winner in terms of the variety of experiences.

"Coming from the Catholic League (ESCC), that's a physical league with a lot of big bodies," he said. "This is a fast, up-and-down the floor league. The Catholic League is like a football league. It's like the Big Ten. This league (the SWS Blue) is about using your all-around talent. Both are good leagues. I just have to adjust my game to whatever style it is at a given time."

Not only is there a difference between leagues, but St. Joe's and Bolingbrook conduct business differently as well.

"At St. Joe's, I was used to the ball being in my hands 100 percent of the time," Taylor said. "Everyone had a role, and mine included having the ball. Here there wasn't as much structure, it was more get the ball and go. So it became a trust issue, learning to trust each other. Once we did that, we got to our winning ways."

Taylor complimented the competition he and his teammates faced this season. From the Decatur Thanksgiving Tournament, to the Big Dipper at Christmas, through the SWS wars, the Raiders were challenged.

Any opponent in particular catch his eye?

"Yeah," Taylor said. "Shoemaker (Joliet junior all-area pick Anthony Shoemaker) surprised me. Man, he can play. I'm going to like watching a player like that develop.

"He's playing this spring with my old AAU team, the Illinois Wolves. He's going to be a top-notch player next year. I'm going to get out to see the Wolves and talk to him. I hope we can exchange phone numbers and I can keep in touch."

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A "B" honor roll student at Bolingbrook, Taylor plans to major in business management/sports management at Wisconsin.

"A week after graduation here, I'll start my first two classes at Wisconsin," he said. "I'll be up there most of the summer. They'll put me on a new diet, have a meal plan in place for me, and I'll come back next fall looking like a different player."

The player Brost has had the privilege to coach in AAU ball and now in a full season high school season at Bolingbrook is not bad, mind you.

"Diamond makes quick decisions, he's smooth and very quick with the ball in his hands," Brost said. "He gets to the lane almost at will. And his intensity on the defensive end is something we are proud of."

All the compliments are nice, but Taylor is not satisfied.

"I have two big things to work on this summer, my permiter shot and my mid-range shot," he said. "I can get to the basket, but when 7-footers are there waiting, I may not be able to finish. I have to be able to hit the jump shot."

Taylor, whose slashing style contributed to him shooting 187 free throws this season, tops among large-school players in the area, is anxious to join talented Trevon Hughes in the Wisconsin backcourt.

"A 6-7 kid is coming in with me, too, and the year after that, we'll have more talent coming," he said. "We're going to be more athletic, definitely will be running more. We'll speed the game up a bit."

A new life is beginning.

"I'm looking forward to seeing him grow up and have a life on another level," Kimrossi Taylor said. "Everything that I've taught him as a dad and coach hopefully will help him mature at the next level."

What about the life Diamond -- whose family also includes mom Adrienne and sister Kymbriona, a freshman volleyball and basketball player at Bolingbrook -- will be leaving behind?

"I like hanging out, my friends and I always hang out," he said. "I've never been a big party-er, though. I'm kind of a quiet person, but I like to go out to eat, bowl, go to the movies. I guess you'd say I'm a pretty normal kid."

Pressed on whether there is someone special here, he said, "Not really. There's a time for the girls, and a time not to be involved with the girls. I don't have a girlfriend here. I'll be going to Wisconsin with a clear mind.

"College, that may be a different story."

If his story mirrors that of friend and mentor Evan Turner, they'll be telling stories all over Madison about what a gem they have in Diamond.