RABBITTOWN -- Ken Wise knows it's coming; Joe Dix knows it's coming; Probably all of Region 7-AAA knows it's coming. The only question is when.
When will Wise, a senior standout for the East Hall High boys basketball team, have that breakout game that shows everyone he's back to 100 percent after a spraining his knee in the preseason?
"We've seen glimpses," said Dix, the Vikings' head coach. "He stole the ball and dunked over a kid from Gilmer in our win on Tuesday, which tells me he's pretty much back.
"But he hasn't had that game where he's really exploded and put up like 35 points and had 15 rebounds. It's coming though."
When it does, you can be sure Wise, an All-State player last season, will enjoy every second of it. In the meantime, he's determined to do all he can to help his team and wait for the right opportunity to present itself.
"I'm not going to force it," said Wise, a forward who's currently averaging 14 points and nine rebounds per game for the Vikings (10-4, 1-0 Region 7A-AAA). "I'm not a person that's all about me. I'm thinking about the team."
And that's what the team expects from him.
"I do interviews with every player in the program in the spring and ask them certain questions," Dix said. "One of the questions I ask is, 'who's going to be our go-to guy next year?' After last season, it was unanimous; every player mentioned [Wise's] name."
Much of that was due to Wise's scoring output during his junior season, a year in which he helped lead the Vikings to the Class AAA state title game -- where East Hall fell to Jordan 65-53. But it also spoke volumes about Wise's ability to get his teammates involved in the game.
"He's a team kid; that's the great thing about him," Dix said. "He's had several games where he's had five or six assists. In fact, in our win over Gilmer on Tuesday I had to get on to him about passing up an open shot where he passed out to a teammate. He just looked at me and said, 'coach, I'm just trying to get my shooter going.' "
With a big body that's used to banging around underneath the basket, Wise first flashed big-time ability during his freshman campaign. That season -- 2004-05 -- East Hall, led by stars like Frank Davis and Marquez Jackson, overwhelmed most opponents en route to a 30-1 record and the Class AA championship. Due to several lopsided contests, Wise got plenty of playing time and actually lettered on one of the deepest teams in Hall County history.
It was a far cry from just a year before when Wise hadn't even started for the East Hall Middle School eighth-grade.
"His body really began to blossom after his eighth-grade year," Dix said. "By the midway point of his freshman season, I knew he'd be a stud."
In fact, by his sophomore season, Wise was a staple of the Vikings' post game -
Sunday
August 10th, 2025
2:53AM
