City of Basketball Love

Ari Glazier (@AriGlazier)
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When Plymouth-Whitemarsh senior Ish Horn watches movies, he unashamedly roots for the villains.

“The villains are cooler,” he explained. “They’ve got the best superpowers.”

Horn’s love affair with the dark side was on full display on the afternoon of Saturday, Dec. 29, as he rocked socks featuring the Monstars from Space Jam in a high-profile game against Archbishop Wood.

Even though Horn has an affinity for villainy, he has a magnetic personality that shines through when he talks about his love for Space Jam and his desire to steal Russell Westbrook’s talent, as well as a story that would place him snugly in the role of protagonist in a Hollywood blockbuster.

Ish -- short for Ishum -- is a North Philly native who grew up with basketball. In ninth and 10th grade he attended a Philadelphia public school, Martin Luther King, though he struggled both academically and socially.

“You couldn’t let your guard down,” Horn said. “You can’t walk around smiling or people will think ‘Oh he’s soft, he’s this.’ So it’s like the tension throughout the classroom, outside of school if you see someone that goes to your school, there’s tension everywhere.”

Not only did Horn struggle with school, but he also had to contend with personal tragedy. In less than two years both his uncle and his sister were the victims of gun violence. His sister survived; his uncle did not.

During the summer after tenth grade, Horn went through a bout of depression. He seriously considered quitting basketball and school. He wasn’t working out or doing much of anything other than sitting around and thinking.

“I was thinking to go do all of this crazy stuff, and it’s not what I should’ve been thinking,” Horn said. “I literally looked at everything negatively, I didn’t  want friends, I didn’t want to talk to nobody or nothing.”

It was then that an uncle, whom Horn credits as being like a father to him, stepped in and offered that Ish live with him and attend Plymouth Whitemarsh High School. He jumped at the opportunity to escape his surroundings; basketball wasn’t even on his mind.

Once enrolled at PW, it was a period of transformation as Horn adjusted to his surroundings.

“I just brought that angry attitude out here,” Horn said. “And there’s no need for it, everybody was like ‘what are you mad for?’”.

In terms of basketball, it was apparent for Horn that the adjustment would be even more demanding than he anticipated. Before he could see significant minutes, he had to run through a crash course in head coach Jim Donofrio’s system. He also had to reprogram himself to break the habit of self-admittedly not playing any defense.

“It drove him crazy,” Donofrio said. “To sit there and say ‘you’re talented but you don’t know what you’re doing’. It takes a lot of mental strength and emotional strength to just hang in.”

Throughout the process of learning to play in that new system, Horn once again weighed the possibility of calling it quits. All the while the PW coaching staff was hard at work teaching him when to use his speed and athleticism as well as defensive fundamentals.

Horn ended up sticking it out, and it paid dividends as he carved out a regular spot in the Colonial’s rotation in time for the postseason. Meanwhile, he began to expand his social circle thanks to his teammates.

“We all literally just morphed into a family,” Horn said. “We would just end up talking and having hour long conversations. And I started just coming out, coming out of my shell.”

Horn came out of his shell not just socially, but academically and in his entire outlook on life.

“I hated school, literally I hated school,” Horn said. “Now, I can't wait to come to school everyday.”

Donofrio gushed over what a well-rounded and conscientious person Horn has shown himself to be in his time at PW. He remarked that they often find themselves in philosophical conversations in between practices.

Coming into his senior year, Horn is not just a member of the PW family, he’s a leader. He went on a diatribe about the team’s underclassmen getting into the gym and stated that he takes pride in being the type of teammate that “gets us all up”. This is a far cry from the kid that sat around in his house unable to muster up any kind of motivation just over a year ago.

Horn’s goals academically and athletically extend beyond high school. Several Division II and Division III programs are interested in the 6-0 guard, who’s averaging 12.5 ppg for an 8-0 Colonials squad that’s currently No. 1 in the PIAA Class 6A rankings.

“They’ve got me filling out college applications, before that no one’s ever talked to me about college,” Horn said. “It’s long and hard days, but it’s worth it just to get to college.”

Horn’s maturity is also shining on the basketball court. A year ago Horn was an unpolished player whose first instinct was to go as fast as possible and “run somebody over”. Now Donofrio’s point of emphasis is showing Horn when to stop overthinking and use his natural athleticism.

“He’s almost over thinking, it’s almost too much sophistication,” said Donofrio. “When he gets into thinking mode it kind of shuts down some of the turbojets... he’s trying to find that balance.”

While Horn is in a much better place now, he still has to reckon with the violence and pain that colored much of his upbringing.

“There’s a sadness there because he carries it with acceptance,” Donofrio said. “In Ish’s mind, this is what happens with people. People hurt people, and you roll with it.”

The credits are nowhere near rolling on Horn’s story; in fact, he’s just starting the second act. His success is a testament to the healing power of community, education, and basketball.

“So many people don’t realize what great stories these guys become all through athletics, all through basketball,” Donofrio said. “The game, if you’re willing to go at it, can change your life from nothing to something.”