‘Unbelievable’ Burks
Former Merrillville starter embraces reserve role to help Lake Central win back-to-back regional titles
Lake Central senior guard Kennedie Burks has come full circle, at least from teammate Vanessa Wimberly’s perspective.
Burks, who attended Merrillville for two years, joined Wimberly and the Indians last season after her family moved.
The roles were somewhat reversed a decade ago, when Wimberly’s family moved across the state line from Illinois. She recalls trying out for an AAU team in second grade and meeting Burks there.
“I was this short little girl with baggy shorts on, and I see this other short little girl in the gym dribbling the ball,” Wimberly said. “We’re the shortest girls in the gym. It’s actually funny because she didn’t like me at first. She was in third grade and I was in second grade, and I was the new girl on the team, and she didn’t like me.
“It took us like two weeks, and after our first tournament, we were inseparable. Wherever you saw me, you saw KK. Our families are best friends. Our dads, our moms, we do family trips. She became more than a teammate. She became my best friend — my sister — really, really quick.”
Indeed, Burks grew up playing AAU ball with several current Lake Central teammates, which made her transition to the team easier. She has been a key contributor for the No. 15 Indians (24-4), who have won back-to-back regional titles and will play No. 10 Homestead (23-4) in the semifinals of the Class 4A LaPorte Semistate on Saturday.
“She became the new girl on our block, coming over from Merrillville,” Wimberly said. “But everybody knows and loves KK. It was easy accepting her with open arms.
“Every game I’m playing, we’re making promises, like, ‘This isn’t going to be our last high school game together.’ We’re making that pact with each other, and it makes us go a little harder, just knowing we don’t want it to end yet. We’ve been on the court for 10 years with each other, and we’re just not ready for that to go away.”
To be sure, the 5-foot-3 Burks isn’t ready either. She said she has particularly enjoyed every step along the way this season. She has decided to focus on academics in college, where she intends to study nursing, and knows any loss will mean the end of her playing career.
“From a coach’s aspect of it, the respect for her and what she will be in life, it’s just off the charts,” Lake Central coach Joe Huppenthal said. “She’s a great student. That kid is going to be successful in whatever she does.
“Words can’t explain what an unbelievable kid she really is, and I’m not just talking about basketball-wise. I’m talking about she’s the nicest kid. I have never heard anything but positive come out of the kid’s mouth. It’s always like with KK, she never has a bad day. Every day’s a great day with her. That’s just her personality. Only special people can do that.”
But make no mistake, Burks has been a factor on the court for Lake Central, which reached a semistate final last season and didn’t lose any players from that group.
Coming off the bench, Burks is averaging 5.2 points, 2.0 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 2.0 steals. She posted 4.7 points, 1.4 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.4 steals last season.
“I’ve just been trying to hustle, get on the floor,” she said. “I’ve been trying to hit my shots, just make the extra pass and the right passes.”
Burks’ teammates appreciate her efforts.
“She’s the sixth man, and a lot of times she could be overlooked, but best believe she can handle the ball extremely well,” Wimberly said. “If
I’m getting trapped, I know I have KK, who’s not leaving me in the backcourt. She knows how to knock down shots. She knows how to make the extra pass.
“She’s not the loudest, but if you need some motivation, she’ll definitely be there to lift you up when you need her.”
Burks started in each of her two seasons at Merrillville, averaging 8.2 points, 2.5 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.8 steals as a sophomore. When she was a freshman, Merrillville topped Lake Central in a sectional final. The Indians turned the tables against her former team this season.
Burks has had to come to grips with being a reserve — albeit it a top one — at Lake Central.
“It was a big adjustment I had to get used to,” she said. “I accepted it because I knew what I was coming into. I wasn’t complaining.”
Huppenthal wasn’t sure what to expect when Burks was added to a group that had already won a sectional title, but it didn’t take long for him to learn.
“In all honesty, I didn’t know how I was going to roll when she came,” Huppenthal said. “You’re like, ‘Hey, we’re pretty good right now. But does this upset the apple cart? Does it improve it?’ I didn’t know. But it’s been smooth sailing.
“Of our 12 kids, this kid came over here, she knew what she was getting into, has sacrificed for the betterment of the team. It’s just unbelievable what she’s done for us. You talk about role identification, and she’s embraced it. Most kids are like, ‘I should be starting’ or ‘I should be playing more.’ I haven’t heard that one time from that kid. Being able to accept her role, not many kids are able to do that. You see it in the college world, you see it in the NBA, so for a high school kid to come in here like she did, kudos to her, and kudos to her parents for raising her to be the kid she is today.”
With senior guard Riley Milausnic, Wimberly and Burks, the Indians have developed what Huppenthal described as “a threeheaded monster” in the backcourt. He said no one has to play the full 32 minutes.
Huppenthal also compared Burks to Essence Johnson, a forward who graduated in 2022, in terms of savvy.
“Essence was the other kid we could do this with,” Huppenthal said. “I could tell KK to run the 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5. Obviously we’re not going to do it, but she knows everything. That is such a tool to have. Her court awareness, her basketball IQ, she’s just really, really attuned to the game.
“KK’s been great for us, just a tremendous part of this run we’ve had the last two years. She hit a huge three in the game against South Bend Washington (in regionals). She’s had games where she has been just dynamite. I’m hoping, however many games we have, she’s going to be a big part of it. There’s really no doubt in my mind.”