Muskegon senior guard DeShaun Thrower has everything going right for him right now. His Big Reds are currently 25-0 and in the state quarterfinals, Thrower committed to Stoney Brook University in the Fall on a full basketball scholarship, and now the latest accomplishment for DeShaun is the 2014 Mr. Basketball award voted by the Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan.
“It feels good” Thrower had to say about winning Mr. Basketball. “It’s a honor to be the first and to even get the award, there are a lot of good players that came out of Muskegon, and for me to be the first is just a big honor.”
The first winner in Muskegon Big Red basketball history, DeShaun has been averaging 18 points, six assists, and five rebound a game this season. Most Mr. Basketball award winners have a moment when they know it is only a matter of time before the prize is theirs. For DeShaun, he had three moments. On January 17th, 18th, and 21st vs. Zeeland East, Saginaw Arthur Hill, and Grand Rapids Christian respectively, Thrower tallied 30 plus points in each game, cementing himself as a Mr. Basketball candidate.
In the Summer after his sophomore year at Muskegon Heights, DeShaun decided to transfer and attend division two football powerhouse Muskegon, the last two state finalists. Not too many athletes in their high school career can say they had the opportunity to play both quarterback and point guard for winning programs on the field and on the court. At both positions, leadership is a necessary attribute coaches look for. Combined with his stellar play, Thrower’s quality of leadership is what he credits has made him achieve success in his high school career.
“Yes, I think leadership is one of my best qualities because at the positions I play I have to lead vocally and by example.”
Generally, the recipient of the Mr. Basketball award has a strong possibility of winning a state title. Individual awards are nice, however, DeShaun is not content with a single-person award. The award will only fuel and drive him to push harder in the last three games of the season to win a state title. He has come close the last two years in football, but he is a senior now, with only one more opportunity to cut down the nets at the Breslin Center.
“This is my last season,” Thrower had to say, “and this is my last chance to win state and I have been playing with a few players since AYBT ball and this is our last time that we will ever play together, so we want to go of on a good note and win our last high school games.”
He’s never been the most sought-after recruit or talked about much in the media. Thrower has had to work and perceiver through the adversity of being a one of Michigan’s best kept secrets for a long time. He is pleased to see all the hours he has spent in either a gym or field culminate in a state wide award, but what makes him smile even more is that he can say he is from Muskegon, and a Mr. Basketball award winner from the west side of the state.
“Because the east side of the state gets more attention than the west side of the state” DeShaun had to say, “and if I was to be playing for a school in Detroit or Saginaw a major division 1 college would have been more interested in me but they look at that side first and don’t see anything else after that, but it is what it is everything happens for a reason I’m happy with the choice of Stony Brook and I think there program will fit me well.”
The Prep Ball Report 
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