GAINESVILLE, Ga. — Gainesville boys basketball coach Chuck Graham almost took exception to the question, though he did it with a smile.
"Is Gainesville basketball back, coach?"
"Hey, we never left!"
After a nine-year playoff run, the Red Elephants found themselves on the outside looking in last season. It was just the second time this century and the first time since 2012 that the Red Elephants had failed to make the postseason.
Gainesville was just 5-18 in the 2021-22 campaign, a year after posting a 19-9 record, while in the highly-competitive Region 6-7A in the state’s largest classification. The five wins were among the fewest in a season ever for the storied program.
It was not something Graham wanted to live through again. But he also knew the current core group of players had to experience it.
“We were a young team. We had lost a lot of good seniors [from a group that went 19-9], so we knew we might be in for a kind of rebuilding or reloading season,” Graham said. “You never really want to go through that, but sometimes that’s what it is.
"We lost Lanierland last year by one point on a free throw. We lost two or three others by less than five points. We have always believed in this group."
Time was what Graham and his staff said they needed. He felt they had the talent. However, they lost 9 of their last 10 games to close out the year.
“These guys as a group just needed to learn how to compete and learn how to win together,” he said. “We had some moments last year where you could see it start to happen, but we lost some close games because the other team had that experience, and we didn’t. That was the main thing, just that experience.”
Depth was another issue, as was chemistry. Then-junior Charlie Reisman was the only real scoring threat, along with then-sophomore Ellis Pitts. Newcomer Dre Raven, a Cherokee Bluff transfer, was still integrating into the rotation.
“We just didn't have a long bench to go to (last year), and when you’re playing in (Class) 7A, you have to have depth,” Graham said.
This season, the Red Elephants returned senior starters Julius Jackson, Raven, and Reisman, juniors Pitts and Octavion Demory, and had experienced senior additions Cade Simmons (Cherokee Bluff) and Isaiah Rico (Lakeview Academy) move in to give Graham a much more versatile roster. Demory also began to emerge on the offensive end, and suddenly Graham said you could see things begin to take shape.
“We went to the Alabama Team Camp in Tuscaloosa in June. With everyone there, you could see flashes of how good we could be,” Graham said. “For me, the biggest change was just having enough quality depth to have competitive practices.
“Now we have 10, 11, 12 guys that we use to challenge each other on a daily basis. That will make everyone better quicker.”
Reisman said everyone has embraced the new additions. In a stunning 89-45 rout of Apalachee on Tuesday, the Red Elephants had 25 assists as a team.
“Last year was tough for all of us. We don’t want to go through that again,” Reisman said. “When Cade and Isaiah came in, we didn’t worry about who was going to play how many minutes or whatever. Cade has helped bring us together as a group.
“We’ve learned how to play together as a group much more, and that, to me, has been the key so far. We’re finding the open guy, and we have so many more options on offense now.”
Graham used the example of the Red Elephants’ thrilling 62-60 win over Flowery Branch in the first round of the Lanierland Tournament on Reisman’s 3-pointer just before the buzzer.
“Cade was driving, and it seemed he had a good look. But he passed to Charlie, who was wide-open, and he hit the shot,” Graham said. “The guys are playing very unselfish so far this season.”
Last year, it was rare when Reisman did not lead Gainesville in scoring. Simmons, Raven, Pitts and Demory have all had their moments this season. And Reisman just smiled when asked if that was okay with him.
“It’s great that we have a lot of guys now that can score. That just makes us better and more dangerous,” he said. “I just want to do whatever is needed to win. If it’s score, fine. If I need to make that extra pass, fine. I just want to win.”
It’s been four years since Gainesville last won a playoff game, their longest drought since not making the playoffs from 1992-95. They haven’t won a region title since 2018 (Region 8-6A).
Is the time for the reemergence of the Red Elephants now?
Graham’s prediction before the season of his team coming together has been proven right. The Red Elephants (8-5, 2-0 Region 8-6A) already have surpassed last year’s win total. They have a chance this weekend to show they are fully back.
Gainesville heads to North Forsyth (8-7, 2-1 Region 8-6A) on Friday and then to Class 6A third-ranked Lanier (11-4, 2-0 Region 8-6A) on Saturday with a chance to take early control of the region standings.
“First off, like I said, we never left,” he said about the program. “Last year was a hiccup in our minds. We were young, but now we have that experience, the depth, our composure is better.”
Region 8-6A has scheduled several back-to-back region games on Fridays and Saturdays throughout the season. Graham is hoping that could play to their advantage.
“Our expectations at Gainesville are always high, and these two games are huge. I think we’ll know even more about ourselves after Saturday,” he said. “We expect to be able to compete and win both games. Our depth, I think, will be a big factor. The back-to-back days could help because of that.”
However, Graham and Reisman felt the best was yet to come for the Red Elephants as they try to climb back into the state playoff picture.
“Like I told you after Lanierland, we’re close to getting to where I think we can be. We’re getting closer every game. But I don’t think we’re there yet,” Graham said. “This group has a chance to be special. Starting this weekend, they have a chance to show what they can do.”
“Both of these games (this weekend) are big for us,” Reisman said. “But really, we’re just focused on the first one, North Forsyth. After that, we’ll get ready for Lanier.
“But we’ve only seen glimpses of how good we can be so far. The Apalachee game, I think, was the closest we came to having that total game. We’re excited about where we are this season compared to last.
“But I think we can still get a lot better.”
