SPEAKING UP Sheridan star comfortable with leadership role
It wasn’t that Diamond Morris couldn’t speak. She just didn’t want to. The rising sophomore star stood out on that Sheridan team in 2016 that reached the Class 6A state championship, but she didn’t feel comfortable taking a vocal lead with a team that included a core group of juniors and seniors. “I just didn’t feel like that was my role,” Morris said. “I didn’t talk at all. That’s their job.” Even when Sheridan coach Jamison Ingram prodded, Morris stood firm. “[Coach Ingram] wanted me to talk and correct other players’ mistakes, but I just wouldn’t do it,” Morris said. “I didn’t feel comfortable doing that, so I didn’t.” After averaging 17 points and 6 rebounds per game last season, Morris warmed up to the idea of being a leader. She is the Tri-Lakes Edition 2018 Girls Basketball Player to Watch. Ingram joked that she has had a hard time keeping her star quiet these days. “She didn’t like to talk very much or communicate about the game or her game her sophomore year,” Ingram said. “She’s always been a good teammate but was just not very vocal. She has really blossomed into a leader for this team. “She has also really grown in terms of being a complete player. She has really accepted that she needs to be dominant on the offensive end, both with her shot and getting to the lane.” Morris’ game has spoken loudly since she took to the court as a varsity player and landed in the starting lineup early in her sophomore season. At 5-11, Morris willingly played inside for Ingram, even though during summer basketball, Morris played on the perimeter. During her prep career, she has frustrated taller opponents that she takes off the dribble and smaller ones that she posts up. “We’ve played Diamond all over the court over the past few years,” Ingram said. “When we first got her as a sophomore, we were much bigger than we are now, and we had our guard positions set, so she played mostly as a [forward]. Last year, we would let her work down low some and still used her mostly as a [forward]. This year, we aren’t as set in the guard area, so we will play her mostly as a guard. The great thing is that we feel comfortable putting her anywhere in the court.” Ingram is hopeful that playing Morris on the perimeter will help her stock with college coaches. She is projected as a shooting guard at the college level. Several NCAA Division I programs have shown interest in her and Arkansas State invited her on a visit. “Sometimes I think about it,” Morris said. “I am just going to keep working hard and try to get some offers.” After seeing Morris make an instant impact on her program, Ingram is a believer that Morris is a Division I player. “I would tell the coaches that she’s got it all and that she is only going to get better,” Ingram said. “She’s a hard worker both on and off the court. She’s the kind of person that you want to be around and have on your team.” As the season begins, Morris is more worried about finishing her prep career on a high note than on getting a college scholarship. She got close to a state championship as a sophomore. After Sheridan was bounced in the quarterfinals of the state tournament last year, Morris has one more chance to get back to Hot Springs. “We have some young players who have never played in a varsity game,” Morris said. “If we can just keep
them from freaking out, then we will be OK. That’s where I can help. I have been there before, and I don’t mind having the ball late in games to take the pressure off.” And not only is Morris confident in taking the big shots; she is also more than happy to do the talking, too, so the sophomores can be quiet like she was. “I feel like if I didn’t [lead the team], no one would,” Morris said. “It would be everyone doing what they wanted. It’s my job to lead the team now. I am ready to do it.”