By: Joanna Chadwick
Derby’s Brett Flory is VYPE’s coach of the month.
Flory is in his 12th season as the Derby Boy’s Basketball head coach and his 18th season overall as a head coach.
The Panthers have one of the best duos in the AVCTL and Class 6A in senior Kaeson Fisher-Brown and Dallas Metzger.
“We try to find ways for them to complement each other,” Flory said.
Flory admits to using the driving lanes that Metzger creates to help Fisher-Brown get downhill easier and notes that he has had other guys step up in their absence, like 6-foot-6 junior forward Kaden Franklin.
“Kaden Franklin has emerged as a force inside for us that we can go to when teams are trying to take Kaeson and Dallas away, along with opportunities opening up for our other guards,” Flory said.
Franklin was recently named to the Dodge City Tournament of Champions’ all-tournament team.
The accolades are great for the players, but Flory knows that those would be naught without the culture they refined.
“My No. 1 point of emphasis this year was making sure that our program’s culture was outstanding again, and thanks to our kids, that has already happened,” Flory said.
With the culture strong and the players talented, Derby, who has “underachieved” in years past, has found their swagger despite dropping three in a row.
“We focus on our next goal, which is to peak in March and make the deepest postseason run possible,” Flory said. “We have had some bumps in the road lately, losing a few close games to great teams like Maize South and Hutch, but if we continue to play tough and improve, we will be fine.”
Flory noted that the AVCTL is as tough a league as he has been in, stating that it is a “no nights off” league with the likes of Hutch, Maize South, and themselves.
The Panthers have the talent to make a run this year and are working to keep improving their gritty play style to embody their program’s culture of “Havoc.”