Small-school star is getting noticed by college coaches
Joshua Hall is too tall to miss in the halls of Hockinson High School.
He also is too good on the basketball court to miss.
A 6-foot, 7-inch junior with 3-point range, ball-handling skills and a low-post game, Hall is in the early stages of the college recruiting process.
And he is yet another example of an athlete who does not need to play at a big school to get some big-time looks.
College coaches are making contact with Hockinson coach Adam Horn. They have taken looks at Hall during open gym. Hall is known.
“I’ve heard from a lot of schools,” Hall said, noting the Northwest Pac-10 programs as well as some Big Sky schools. “Being at a small school doesn’t affect me (in recruiting). I love it here. I just need to go out there and put the orange ball through the hoop.”
But here is the thing that interests Hall even more than his personal goal of one day playing Division I basketball: When those coaches see video of Hall or when recruiting specialists attend the games, they will not only see Hall but a complete basketball team.
Class 2A Hockinson is one of the better teams in the region.
The Hawks are 6-4, and that’s after playing three games against 4A competition, one against a 3A team, and then finishing third place in a tournament in Gillette, Wyo., that included much larger schools.
“We’ve had a real tough preseason schedule,” Hall said. “We set it up that way to build us up as a team.”
A year ago, the Hawks reached the Class 2A state tournament. There, the Hawks went two-and-out and came home early.
Horn called it a “disappointing end” to a successful season. He wanted the Hawks to get accustomed to tough competition this December to ensure a better display in March.
“If we are fortunate enough to get back to state, hopefully we’ll perform a little bit better,” Horn said.
Hall has more specific goals for this season, goals that started as soon as last season ended.
“It was heart-breaking for us. We worked all the way, then played two games and it was over,” he said. “That’s been driving us this year.
“My goal is for the team to do real well in league, place at district, and play on Saturday at state.”
That would mean at least two wins in the state tournament, and it would mean bringing a trophy home to Hockinson.
Last week in Wyoming, Hall and point guard Mitch Tugaw were named to the all-tournament squad.
Tugaw averages about 10 points per game but Horn said Tugaw’s value to the team cannot be measured in statistics. Cole Larson, a 6-5 post, is shooting 68 percent from the field, anchoring the middle.
It would take all of the Hawks to succeed in order to reach their potential, but just about every solid basketball team needs a go-to player. Hockinson has Hall.
“I love the game altogether. I don’t know if I could pick just one part of the game,” he said. “I definitely love having the ball in my hands.”
He’s had a ball since he was 2 years old, born into a family of basketball players.
“There is video of me shooting hoops when I was starting to walk,” Hall said.
He said his parents, Whit and Laura Hall, are “the most supportive people,” who “follow me no matter what.”
And even though basketball is his favorite thing in the world to do, he understands that there are other endeavors in life.
“My goal is to play Division I basketball. Not just for the basketball, but for the education,” he said. “I’m using basketball as a tool.”
Hall said he appreciates his school’s emphasis on academics first. He enjoys the challenge of his calculus class as well as English.
“I’ve always been bad at writing, but I love the English language,” he said.
When pressed, he acknowledged that he is better at writing than he first professed. It just depends on the subject.
“Ask me to write about basketball, and I can do that all the time,” he said.
Of course, he’d rather play the game than write about it. He’d also rather let his game speak for his own abilities. Hall knows he is good at the sport, but he does not feel it necessary to tell everyone.
“He’s a great kid, he works his tail off, and he’s extremely humble,” Horn said.
Horn played at Prairie and was an assistant coach with that successful program before taking the Hockinson job last season. He ranked Hall right up there with the best of Prairie’s talented players the past decade.
Years ago, especially at a smaller school, a 6-foot-7 player might have been pigeon-holed into a post position only. When he was younger, Hall was told he should just work on his post moves.
Instead, Hall worked on all phases of the game. Today, he can go low to take advantage of shorter opponents, but he also can create from the outside and launch successfully from 3-point range.
A 6-7 basketball player might be a big man on a small campus, but in college basketball, that’s just another player.
“He’s more perimeter-oriented, which will serve him better as he moves on,” Horn said.
That is still a couple years away, though. Now, it’s all about Hockinson.
“I like being here, away from it all,” he said. “But 20 minutes, we’re in downtown Vancouver. In 40 minutes, we’re in Portland. I’ve grown to love this place.”
Joshua Hall has grown into a basketball player, a true talent who is not difficult to spot.
