City of Basketball Love

Will Slover (@WillSlover31)
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When you have a name like Lynn Greer III, attention is going to follow.

Coming from a long line of basketball greats dating back to his grandfather, Lynn Greer, who was drafted by the Phoenix Suns in 1973, and then to his father, Lynn Greer Jr., who played professionally for 13 years following a career that saw him leave Temple second on the program’s all-time scoring list, it’s safe to say basketball is in the Greer blood.

Now, the youngest Greer, Greer III, is putting his talents on display all around the city of Philadelphia as a freshman at the prestigious Roman Catholic.

Although the last name of ‘Greer’ carries significant importance in the Philadelphia basketball world, the starting point guard job at the school coming off of back-to-back Philadelphia Catholic League and PIAA AAAA state championships is not going to be handed to anyone.

“He had to come in and earn it,” Roman Catholic coach Matt Griffin said. “His attitude has been great and his work ethic is improved and he just keeps getting better every day.”

Just a couple of months later, 13 games into the Roman Catholic season, the Cahillites boast an 11-2 record and Greer has been a huge part of that success as he has been their starting point guard in each of the 13 contests.

Taking over the reigns of a Roman Catholic team that lost six of its top seven players over the offseason due to both graduation and transfer would be no easy task for anyone, especially not for a freshman.

“Lynn is getting better every day,” Griffin said. “You don’t see a lot of freshmen starting at places like Roman Catholic so I think he’s done a pretty nice job so far in a tough spot.”

Although running the floor for a perennial state power as a freshman and leading your team to such a great record would be more than satisfying for most 15-year-olds, Greer still isn’t satisfied with where he is as a player.

“Before high school, I was just a shooter. My handle was okay but I worked on my handle over the summer and my passing got better,” Greer said. “I’m doing alright, I need to do better though.”

After averaging 8.9 points per contest in out-of-league play to start the season, and turning in three consecutive double-digit scoring performances to start Catholic League play, the 6-foot-1 Greer faced the toughest challenge of his high school career on Wednesday night in Neumann-Goretti.

Greer was up to the task, though, as the shifty freshman cashed in for 12 points and added four assists in a losing effort for his Cahillites as they fell by a score of 87-54 in front of a packed house at Holy Family University.

Neumann-Goretti head coach Carl Arrigale, who has seen his fair share of star guards in the Catholic League, was impressed with the youngster’s effort.

“This was the first time I actually saw him live,” Arrigale said. “To see him live and for him to play with that kind of confidence in the first half. To play with that kind of confidence, he’s got a bright future.”

Greer’s most impressive moment in Wednesday’s game was his drive past Neumann-Goretti’s Quade Green, a five-star recruit who is committed to the University of Kentucky.

Greer used his quickness to shed Green and leave him in the dust and went right to the hoop to finish the drive against the likes of 6-foot-8 Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree, a Villanova commit, and the 6-foot-9 Marcus Littles.

His success against Green didn’t end with the drive either, as Greer was a huge part of the Cahillite defensive front that held the top-20 player to just nine points over the first three quarters.

Although Greer might have gotten the best of Green on a couple occasions on Wednesday night, he still knows that he can learn a lot from the Kentucky-commit.

“I want to be at where he’s at right now when I get older,” said Greer. “So playing against him just makes me get better and shows me what I have to do better next time.”

While aspiring to play at the University of Kentucky or the likes thereof is a long shot for most players, it is certainly an attainable goal for Greer as he already holds an offer from Penn State and will be playing up an age group for Team Final this summer.

While having the name ‘Greer’ on his back and having Division I coaches already reaching out, it could be easy for a freshman to lose focus on what lies immediately ahead of him as point guard at Roman Catholic.

But not for Lynn Greer III.

“I’m not worried too much about next year and the year after that,” Greer said. “Right now, I’m trying to win a championship.”