By Scott Nickerson
Elmore Autauga News
On Christmas Day 2021, Xavier Moon received a phone call from someone that asked him if he wanted a Christmas present. The present? His NBA debut for the Los Angeles Clippers on December 26, 2021. But that is just a small part of Moon’s story. His story is one of impressive perseverance and discipline that will hopefully impact the mindset of this year’s Mustang basketball team.
A graduate of Central Coosa High School in Alabama, Moon played for the same high school coach as Stanhope Elmore Principal Wes Dunseith and he also has connections with Stanhope Elmore Basketball Coach Austin Moncus. In an effort to raise money for the Mustangs’ basketball program, Coach Moncus asked Moon to speak to parents and players for a fundraising banquet. Prior to Moon speaking, Coach Moncus listed several expenses the program faces that most people might not know about, so that each member of the program understands the expenses the school pays for their children to play.
In Moncus’ first season as head coach, the Mustangs spent $8500 in travel. Every home game, that usually features 3-4 games between varsity boys, varsity girls, and JV teams, requires payment to officials between $800-1000. But this fundraiser was going towards something different.
“Every dollar raised tonight is going to go directly toward helping a kid pay for their spirit pack, so I really appreciate everyone that is here,” said Coach Moncus. The spirit pack includes an extensive combination of different clothing items that the players can wear, pre-game or post-game, to represent their school.
After a steak dinner catered by Front Porch Grill, Coach Moncus introduced the Moon as the featured speaker of the night.
Moon graduated from Central Coosa High School in 2013 where he led the state in scoring with 35 points per game and was named to the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star team. Lightly recruited out of high school, Moon went to Northwest Florida Community College for two seasons before transferring to Morehead State.
After a season in France and another in the National Basketball League in Canada, the Canadian Elite Basketball League was formed and Moon joined the Edmonton Stingers. He scored 36 points in his first game and went on to average more than 19 points per game and was named league MVP. Moon led the Stingers to the CEBL championship in 2020 and was named Finals MVP and League MVP. In August 2020, Moon played 31 games in the Israel National League, averaging 24.5 points per game. Following that season he returned to Edmonton for the 2020-2021 season where he won Finals MVP for the second time and League MVP for the third time. As a result, the CEBL named the MVP award in Moon’s honor.
Moon then played in the NBA for the Los Angeles Clippers for three seasons, playing with the likes of Russell Westbrook, James Harden, and Kawai Leonard. He explained some of the most important things that are often overlooked by young players.
“Right now you’re in school. You need to focus on grades, staying out of trouble, sleep, eat healthy, watching film, lifting weights, all of that goes into being a good basketball player. But you have to do that before you even get to where you’re trying to go,” said Moon. “It takes that
level of dedication. Your character off the court will take you farther than your talent on the court.”
The speech featured an 20 minute question and answer session with players and parents, with many of the students in awe of Moon’s connections with superstars such as Westbrook. Some of the questions and answers:
What impact did your high school coach have on your life: “He had a huge impact. He was the toughest coach I had before I got to the next level. He prepared me for that. Once I got there, it was a piece of cake.”
How important is being coachable? “Probably number 1. College coaches coming to recruit already know you can play. They’re coming to see your body language. Are you talking with your teammates? How are you acting with your teammates? Are you talking back to your coach? Do you get mad when the coach takes you out of the game?”
Favorite NBA teammate: “Russell Westbrook.”
Hardest team you ever played against: “Timberwolves when they had KAT and Rudy Gobert.”
Life lesson you live by: “Success never rewards the wrong person.”
