Recruiting report: Levi Stockard (2017)
Reaching the Final Four is becoming old hat for Vashon big man Levi Stockard. After helping lead Madison Prep to a pair of Class 3 Final Fours as a freshman and sophomore, Stockard was back this past season, this time…
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Continue ReadingReaching the Final Four is becoming old hat for Vashon big man Levi Stockard. After helping lead Madison Prep to a pair of Class 3 Final Fours as a freshman and sophomore, Stockard was back this past season, this time with Vashon and helped the Wolverines defeat St. Joseph Lafayette in the championship game.
A strong, 6-foot-8 post player who plays bigger than his listed height, Stockard averaged 9.1 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. But those numbers only tell part of the story, according to head coach Tony Irons. Vashon added several players from Madison Prep once the school closed its doors and the result was a deep and talented roster that featured numerous players getting significant playing time.
“He brings leadership and he is a talented kid,” Irons said. “The biggest thing is he sacrificed this year — a lot. He understood that his individual game had to take a back seat sometimes to make the team better.
“If you look statistically, it is probably the lowest he has averaged this year, but that also says the rest of our team took a big step forward and got better at a lot of spots. It is a testament to him, a really unselfish guy who is going to do whatever he can to make our team successful.”
Stockard is a skilled big man that can play with his back to the basket, or facing the goal. He is playing this summer with St. Louis Gateway, his second summer playing with the program.
“Competing in the offseason is always important it gives you a chance to see where you are and what else you’re being compared to … so it helps out,” he said. “Things I’m going to focus on this offseason is getting my body stronger and my agility up.”
Stockard holds several NCAA Division I offers, including Illinois State, IUPUI, Eastern Illinois and Jacksonville State and is drawing interest from a host of other programs.
“It is going to be pivotal summer for him and I know there are going to be some schools contact him even more and he just has to continue to get better,” Irons said.
Stockard said the most influential person on his basketball career has been his mother.
“Not because of anything she did with a basketball. Just because what she goes through and still has time to deal with me,” he said.
Stockard says he looks up to several NBA players, including Jabari Parker, Jahlil Okafor and Karl-Anthony Towns.
“I like to use a lot of footwork moves like Jahlil, and I like to face up like Jabari,” he said. “I like Karl plays with his back to the basket.”