The Larry Bradley Jr. situation did not have a happy ending after all.
Many Wauwatosa East basketball fans are already familiar with the fiasco.
Bradley, a 6-foot-3-inch starting point guard at Milwaukee Vincent last year, left the Vikings' program following coach Tom Diener departure. Because of a difficult family situation, Bradley's uncle, Marshall Williams, became his legal guardian, and Bradley and Williams' younger brother Shaquille, moved into Tosa with the elder Williams.
When Bradley and Shaquille Williams enrolled at Tosa East, the WIAA did not approve the transfers and they were not eligible to play basketball. The decision was appealed and the WIAA Board of Control approved the appeal once Marshall Williams officially applied for legal guardianship.
The Red Raiders were the defending state champions (24-1) and had plenty of talent coming back. But the spotlight was on Bradley, from the suspense of the initial transfer through the weeks of waiting to see if Bradley's appeal would be approved. The Wisconsin Basketball Yearbook, after all, called him the top sophomore in the state.
The union of Bradley and the Red Raiders would certainly result in another run to the state title, or so thought the high school basketball masses.
The WIAA allowed Bradley to work out with the varsity and the younger Williams with the junior varsity and Arndorfer and the players said, at the time, Bradley fit in fine and was just anxious to play basketball. When the appeal was approved, everyone felt all was well.
But…
When Bradley was allowed to play in a varsity reserve game, his teammates showed up early and ran through pregame warm-ups. Bradley, however, showed up at the start of the second quarter.
As the season went on, there were some missed buses, tardiness and an unexcused practice. On the court, he became part of a large rotation, and at times showed flashes of brilliance. He came across as a team player, looking to pass first, but never really lived up to the expectations placed on him.
In the regional final win over Bay View this month, things came to a head. Bradley played a few minutes in the second quarter and sat for the rest of the game. He sat on the far side of the bench and never took part in any team huddles the rest of the game.
It was Bradley's last game with the Tosa East. He did not show up for another practice.
During the season's final weekend, the Red Raiders played as well as they had all season, whipping Marquette in the sectional semifinal before losing in overtime to highly ranked Milwaukee Washington in the sectional final.
Coincidence? You be the judge.
Tom "Sky" Skibosh can be reached at (262) 446-6620. Read Sky's blog at www.WauwatosaNOW.com.
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