Darius Banks
Photo by: GoMocs.com
A Man Who Lived His Vision
3/15/2022 6:55:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Darius Banks came to the Chattanooga Mocs in the summer of 2020 with a singular purpose.
Let's hop in the way-back machine to the summer of 2020. The Chattanooga Mocs were coming off a 20-win season that ended with heartbreak in the Southern Conference Tournament semifinals. The team was losing top scorer Matt Ryan and looking for a versatile, experienced wing player that could handle multiple responsibilities.
Coach Lamont Paris and staff went into the transfer market with an eye not only on 2021 but also 2022. At the time, transfers who were still underclassmen had to sit out a year. They focused on James Madison guard Darius Banks to fill the role mentioned above. The plan was for Banks to sit, develop and hit the ground running for the 2021-22 season.
Then COVID persisted, and the NCAA made a blanket waiver allowing Banks and fellow transfer KC Hankton to play right away. At first, Banks stuck to the original plan before joining an injury-depleted squad in January and never looked back. If not for quarantine for himself and roommate Malachi Smith, the 2022 Tourney Champs might be celebrating for the second straight year. Enough with that conjecture however.
Banks worked his plan to perfection.
"I'm grateful for the coaching staff," Banks shared. "Transferring during COVID was just a weird thing to do. I never got to visit Chatt and really just went out on a limb. Thank God it worked out for the best."
What went in to making this dream come true? What specifically did Banks and the coaching staff do for him to reach one of the biggest stages in sports?
"It was a lot of one-on-one stuff," he added. "Perfecting my craft, perfecting my shot and getting stronger. Working on my body which gets overlooked and my eating habits, which is way overlooked…I have less than five percent body fat now."
Coach Lamont Paris along with assistants Tanner Bronson, David McKinley and Eddie Shannon worked long and hard whenever Darius wanted some extra work or the long summer of drills, conditioning and specialized training. Shannon is a daily fixture rebounding and passing to Banks after practice as he works on that craft.
"It was about having a chance to come here, win games and have fun doing it," Shannon noted. "In recruiting, we talked about him being a critical piece to some of the things we need. He's bought in from day one. You see it in all the work he puts in. He's in the gym all the time working on things to make him a better player."
It's not just on the court work either. DB mentioned his attention to life details that included nutrition and conditioning as well as academics where he made the A.D. Honor Roll in the fall. He's also studious about the game.
"I send him film clips all the time," Shannon interjected. "He's always begging for that stuff so he can see areas he can improve on, and he's worked diligently at it."
It's a major accomplishment to do exactly what you set out to do when the goals are as lofty as DB's. He came to Chattanooga to get a ring, cut down nets and play in the NCAA Tournament. All are firsts in his career.
"Honestly, the ring is well overdue," he explained thinking back to his prep days. "We got to the state twice in high school and didn't get the ring. Cut down the nets to go to state, but never really won at JMU and got it done the second year here.
"Just checking off a lot of goals."
So we circled back. DB transferred during COVID sight unseen, teammates unmet. It was a big step of faith. What did he find at Chattanooga?
"I found brotherhood. I found family. I found people I could trust, and who will fight for me."
It's always great to see a student-athlete's story unfold before your eyes. DB told it on the court through his tenacious play on both ends of the floor. He also told it off the court with his steady nature and quick laugh.
That's a special guy that was added to the family.
Coach Lamont Paris and staff went into the transfer market with an eye not only on 2021 but also 2022. At the time, transfers who were still underclassmen had to sit out a year. They focused on James Madison guard Darius Banks to fill the role mentioned above. The plan was for Banks to sit, develop and hit the ground running for the 2021-22 season.
Then COVID persisted, and the NCAA made a blanket waiver allowing Banks and fellow transfer KC Hankton to play right away. At first, Banks stuck to the original plan before joining an injury-depleted squad in January and never looked back. If not for quarantine for himself and roommate Malachi Smith, the 2022 Tourney Champs might be celebrating for the second straight year. Enough with that conjecture however.
Banks worked his plan to perfection.
"I'm grateful for the coaching staff," Banks shared. "Transferring during COVID was just a weird thing to do. I never got to visit Chatt and really just went out on a limb. Thank God it worked out for the best."
What went in to making this dream come true? What specifically did Banks and the coaching staff do for him to reach one of the biggest stages in sports?
"It was a lot of one-on-one stuff," he added. "Perfecting my craft, perfecting my shot and getting stronger. Working on my body which gets overlooked and my eating habits, which is way overlooked…I have less than five percent body fat now."
Coach Lamont Paris along with assistants Tanner Bronson, David McKinley and Eddie Shannon worked long and hard whenever Darius wanted some extra work or the long summer of drills, conditioning and specialized training. Shannon is a daily fixture rebounding and passing to Banks after practice as he works on that craft.
"It was about having a chance to come here, win games and have fun doing it," Shannon noted. "In recruiting, we talked about him being a critical piece to some of the things we need. He's bought in from day one. You see it in all the work he puts in. He's in the gym all the time working on things to make him a better player."
It's not just on the court work either. DB mentioned his attention to life details that included nutrition and conditioning as well as academics where he made the A.D. Honor Roll in the fall. He's also studious about the game.
"I send him film clips all the time," Shannon interjected. "He's always begging for that stuff so he can see areas he can improve on, and he's worked diligently at it."
It's a major accomplishment to do exactly what you set out to do when the goals are as lofty as DB's. He came to Chattanooga to get a ring, cut down nets and play in the NCAA Tournament. All are firsts in his career.
"Honestly, the ring is well overdue," he explained thinking back to his prep days. "We got to the state twice in high school and didn't get the ring. Cut down the nets to go to state, but never really won at JMU and got it done the second year here.
"Just checking off a lot of goals."
So we circled back. DB transferred during COVID sight unseen, teammates unmet. It was a big step of faith. What did he find at Chattanooga?
"I found brotherhood. I found family. I found people I could trust, and who will fight for me."
It's always great to see a student-athlete's story unfold before your eyes. DB told it on the court through his tenacious play on both ends of the floor. He also told it off the court with his steady nature and quick laugh.
That's a special guy that was added to the family.
Players Mentioned
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