Intro: Deondre Bourne (2018)
CGM Academy’s (AZ) Deondre Bourne brings an advanced scoring acumen, a high academic reputation, and coachable traits.
Working under former Marquette star and player development ace Tony Miller, Bourne’s additional year of development and the ramped up competition of the prep slate should make for an enticing finished product.
“I envision myself becoming better in every aspect of my life as far as my physicality, speed, and my education while being away from home on the West Coast at CGM Prep,” said Bourne, who has interest from Yale, Columbia, and Cornell.
“Mandatorily, this process is all about development. Back in high school, players only lifted weights and worked on their game because they had to. Post grad ball players, on the other hand, do this type of work because they need to in order to make it to the next level. Working with a group of guys who are all trying to earn a college scholarship brings the best out of me day in and day out, non-stop.”
During a four-year stay at Leman Prep in the Bronx, Bourne scored a program record 2,190 career points.
Because of the significantly lesser strength of schedule in such a conference, Bourne wasn’t routinely plying his trade against top-shelf New York talent such as Molloy’s Cole Anthony and Iona Prep’s Bryce Wills.
In his lone post-grad season at CGM Academy, he will have the opportunity to ultimately make up for lost time. The program competes against the likes of Hillcrest Prep (AZ), Prolific Prep (CA), and Bella Vista Prep (AZ) and several other heavy hitters this season.
Scoring was his primary focus in high school and he was relied upon to shoulder the offensive weight at Leman.
“Scoring so much was great, but it wasn’t my main goal. I grew up looking at stats, so I focused on trying to surpass (Lincoln High product) Lance Stephenson’s record for New York City’s most career points in high school. In order to do that, I needed to be mentally and physically prepared. This caused me to overly work on developing my game. I worked on my game at a high level to be ready for any task at hand, which is why I played with a national EYBL program in the PSA Cardinals.”
In adapting to the role of playmaker at the prep level, Bourne has a big target to worked with in skilled 6-foot-9 forward Amadou N’Diaye.
He’s also a familiar foe, as the two faced each other multiple times in high school.
“Abdou is an energetic and talented player who anybody would love on their team,” Bourne said. “He runs the floor. He’s great in transition. He plays well inside-outside basketball and he’s another big body for the program. We’re both players willing to do whatever it takes to win.”
Winning would be the first major step in gaining a national reputation for a program that’s casting a wide net. With a sprawling new campus having just been built near Arizona State, CGM will now increase its enrollment.