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Ben Bentil Looks Ahead

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Here’s a solid feature from cityofbasketball.com on incoming power forward Ben Bentil. The Ghana native talks about returning to Africa one day, the importance of academics, and the influence his mother and coach have had on him. From the article:

Yet basketball is not at the forefront of Bentil’s thoughts at the moment. Even in the summer and just a week after graduation, the 6-foot-8 forward is making sure that academics doesn’t take a backseat to his performance in the gym. “It’s a great opportunity,” Bentil said. “It’s not just for basketball, it’s about academics too. Going in, the basketball part will take care of itself and I’ll try to take care of the academic part first. With a month left before I go to school, I’m getting into the gym. I graduated so now the schoolwork is less now but, at the same time, I still have to stay on it. Read a book two or three times, do that kind of stuff.” That sort of mindset is credited to two people: Bentil’s AAU coach with WE R1 as well as at St. Andrew’s, Terrell Myers, and his mother. Bentil recognizes the two as people who have kept him motivated and grounded, an important aspect for a player as highly acclaimed as he is. “He’s been a key impact to all of us on his teams,” Bentil said of Myers. “He’s been a brother, a father and a coaching figure for us all. Same as my mom, she’s a person that’s always on my neck, try to tell me what to do and what not to do. She keeps me in check. I think those two parental figures have been major factors in my life and I feel really good going into college to make them proud. “I know they’re not proud of me yet because I’ve got more to accomplish.”

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