Green ends career with MVP award

Nick Green concluded his post-secondary basketball career in MVP fashion.

In an online ceremony recently, the 24-year-old Ridgeville resident, who grew up in St. Catharines, was named the MVP of the Redeemer Royals men’s basketball squad.

“It’s amazing and it is kind of like the icing on the cake for me,” the Ridley College graduate said. “Having a basketball career like this and being able to be recognized in my final season was truly incredible.”

The recognition was a long-time coming for the former St. Catharines Rebels travel player.

“It was my first and only award there but I have played with some really great players, Rayvon Higdon being one of them,” he said. “He was a great player and he helped changed the basketball program at Redeemer as well.”

Green started 19 of his team’s 20 regular-season games in 2019-20 and averaged 29.8 minutes of playing time, 1.9 rebounds and 10.7 points per game. He finished second on the Royals in assists (73) and third in steals (25).

“I played the most minutes on the team and the coaches recognized they couldn’t take me off the floor,” the 5-foot-11 guard said. “They liked my leadership.”

Green has made steady progress on his game during his time at Redeemer.

“I have definitely matured over the years and they slowly put me into a bigger role,” he said. “They helped me grow as a leader. Each year we have meetings before the season and during the season and they have really pushed me to be more of a leader and more vocal with everyone on the team whether it’s another senior or a new recruit coming in.”

Those leadership skills helped off the court as well.

“Whether it’s doing group projects or things like that, the leadership abilities they taught me really transferred into the non-basketball world as well.”

The business management student had many high points during his collegiate career.

“Changing  the program and making it to provincials for the first time was great and every year after that we made provincials,” he said. “We set new team records for most wins in a season when I was there and we had one season where we were 19-1.”

Green was proud how Redeemer responded once Higdon left the program.

“People weren’t expecting us to be as good as we were and we made provincials two years in a row without him. We also had the second best record in team history this year.

“Overall, it was how well we played together and how much fun it was making provincials. Obviously I would have liked a gold medal or silver medal at provincials and made it on to nationals but there were definitely some highlights.”

Just missing out on a provincial medal with a pair of fourth-place finishes was a bitter pill to swallow.

“When you are that close to a first medal in school history for basketball, it’s a bummer, for sure.”

Basketball will continue to be a part of Green’s life.

“Obviously I plan to keep playing and I will play in men’s leagues.”

Redeemer didn’t want to part ways with Green and it has asked him to stay on as a assistant coach.

“They said they can’t let my IQ go to waste,” he said, with a laugh. “I will be sticking with the team and coaching as well. I feel super fortunate.”

Green finished up his schooling last weekend with an online exam and will graduate with a business management degree at Redeemer. He’s hoping to get into the franchising business.

Green’s basketball career started with the Rebels and Ridley before spending one year with Gannon Baker’s Elevate Prep program in Florida. He ended up played four and a half seasons with Redeemer.

“I had another offer but I want to go somewhere where I could get a lot of playing time and start.”

Green had a lot of help along the way, starting with trainer Mihai Raducanu.

“He definitely deserves a shout-out as he played a major part in my growth and development for basketball,” Green said. “Also, my coaching staff and in particular Jamie Girolametto (head coach) had a lot of trust in me on the court.

“We have similar mindsets and he allowed me to grow as a leader and make in-game decisions on the court that I felt were best at the time.”