Falcons seek flight to playoffs

With only five games last season and limited practices due to Covid protocols, Valley Stream South boys’ basketball head coach Mike O’Brien said he began the offseason program much earlier than usual.

“We played in some tournaments over the summer and had double-digit workouts where the turnout was solid,” he said. “One really nice thing so far is how competitive the kids have been against each other in practice. I think we’re going to go pretty deep into the bench.”

O’Brien feels the Falcons’ conference is “completely up for grabs” and said he’d be disappointed if they weren’t participating in the Nassau Class A playoffs come mid-February. They’ll tangle with Academy Charter, Bethpage, Floral Park, Mineola, Lynbrook and Plainedge twice apiece.

A starting backcourt of seniors Brady Manning and Ralston Campbell, and freshman Brady Delvalle at the point, will look to set the tone, O’Brien said. Manning and Campbell bring similar skills and both got a taste of what it takes to get the job done at the varsity level. “Brady [Manning] has a ton of skill and is probably our best shooter,” O’Brien said. The coach noted Campbell improved his game by leaps and bounds over the summer, especially his jumper to go with aggressive moves to the basket.

Delvalle is a standout two-way player who will lead the man-to-man defense and make smart decisions with the ball. “He’s young but he’s got tremendous basketball IQ and has a chance to be our top all-around player,” said O’Brien, who added junior Richard Irotugo provides depth.

Projected major contributors up front, senior Amir Green and junior Nicholas Parisi, are both around 6-foot-4. Green has guard-type skills and his jumping ability makes him tough on the boards, while Parisi is a typical power forward with strong rebounding and physicality. Senior Andrew Francis brings a combination of energy and toughness.