Jovan Thomas has always been a builder, so this is nothing new.
The Shepard senior has made wooden cutting boards, box and bird houses.
And he wants to keep moving forward along that path, at Shepard and beyond.
“I got a new schedule. I like my construction class,” Thomas said. “When I go to college, I want to do engineering or something construction-related.”
For now, the 6-foot-9 center is working with first-year coach Corey Wolf to build a healthy culture on a team with just two seniors.
“We are just working, going to keep working,” Thomas said after scoring 19 points and grabbing nine rebounds in a 58-54 loss at Oak Forest on Jan. 10.
Before taking over the Astros, Wolf was an assistant at Richards, where he played for the 2008 Class 4A championship team.
“It’s been a smooth transition,” Wolf said. “Everyone has been so welcoming.”
Wolf took over for Tony Chuccariello, who led the Astros from 1999 to 2024. The two spoke often during the transition and Chuccariello told him to trust his gut.
“We talked a lot. He gave me a lot of advice,” Wolf said. “He told me, ‘It’s your baby. You have to take ownership. There will be a lot of outside voices and it’s good to listen … but you have to trust your instincts and take it by the horns.’”
Wolf used to prepare players to go up against Thomas, now he gets to coach him.
“Having him on our side has been tremendous,” Wolf said. “Having that type of size is now our advantage.”
Thomas likes this team’s chemistry.
“It feels like this year has been more of a family especially with our young group,” he said.
Wolf feels the same way about the program. He said since the day he met with the team and shared expectations, everyone bought in.
“I feel like we have a family vibe going on right now,” Wolf said.
An expectation that Thomas has for himself is to improve his conditioning, and he lost about 30 pounds during the offseason.
“It makes it easy on everyone else,” Wolf said of Thomas being able to play longer spurts.
“I just try to play hard, grab rebound and box out,” Thomas said. “Our team needs to focus on the defense side.
“For the younger guys, I try to make them tougher. I play hard on them, but they are getting way better.”
Wolf appreciates seeing Thomas and the others make strides during his first season as the head coach.
“The number-one thing is coming in and working hard everyday and just being consistent with it,” Wolf said. “Consistency is what we are trying to preach.”
Thomas is working toward rebounding records at Shepard. He set the program mark for rebounds in a game with 23 against Stagg on Dec. 4, but he wants more.
“I’m going to get a rebound. That’s my main thing,” Thomas said. “Before I graduate, I have to get the record (again).”
The post Jovan Thomas helps to build culture at Shepard appeared first on Southwest Regional Publishing.