Athlete Spotlight: Austin Wiebe

For 19 year-old freshmen, Austin Wiebe, ever since he could remember, basketball has been a way of life for him and his family.

Growing up in a family like Wiebe had, it would’ve been difficult not to love basketball. With the torch being passed from his parents to him, basketball goes with the Wiebe’s like butter goes with toast, “My family always loved basketball.” Wiebe said, “My mom was a high school basketball coach and it was my dad’s favorite sport as well.” Being exposed to the sport as much as he did when he as younger, its no wonder Wiebe has a strong passion and love for the game.

Since he started playing, it’s been his drive to get better and develop his game that has kept Wiebe consistently coming back for more. Despite his unconditional love for basketball, he enjoys other things too. Some of his hobbies include hanging with his family and casually playing other sports like  swimming and playing football with friends.

As a business major, balancing the different aspects of life, like a social life with friends and family, personal relaxation time, and his career in basketball with his studies at Green River can be tough. When balancing those things, the main thing for Wiebe is understanding what his priorities are. “I would definitely say it’s difficult to balance my lifestyle,” Wiebe said. “I prioritize my studies first before my practices and games.”

Having a strong social life among all the chaos can be tough. Wiebe tends to not worry about that aspect of his life during the season, but still makes sure to set aside time to spend with his family and his close friends. After graduating from Green River, he plans to transfer to a four-year college to continue his educational and basketball careers.

When it comes down to his roots and remembering where he came from, Wiebe is a very humble guy. Coming from Tyee High School in Tukwila, he recognizes that his school has never gotten the same attention athletically as some other high schools in the area. Because of this, players typically don’t get recognized by colleges hoping to bring in good talent. Although, Wiebe doesn’t mind, because now he doesn’t have to look far for potential sources of motivation to perform at his best every day.

With the outright support of his friends and family, Wiebe hopes that by playing collegiate athletes, he can blaze a trail to the collegiate level for athletes like him, “Coming from a place where not many people have been successful coming out of.” Wiebe said, “I feel like if I can continue to move on to college basketball, it will create a path for a lot more athletes to play at the college level.”

Since joining the Green River Basketball team this year, Wiebe has noticed considerable strides in the mental and physical development of his game. As a six foot point guard who controls the ball the majority of the time, knowing when to attack the hoop himself and when to pass off to his teammates for better looks is key to, not only his personal success, but the entire team success as well and Wiebe acknowledges the development of his decision making ability and his overall basketball IQ.

Despite the improvements he has made this year, Wiebe knows that he is not where he ultimately wants to be at skillswise. This next season he hopes to become a better defender and he hopes to do so by increasing his general quickness, whether it be getting up the floor faster to give himself better defensive positioning or increasing his lateral quickness while guarding a ball handler.

One major facet of his game that he hopes to improve on is a very common one for guards in today’s game. Considering his favorite National Basketball Association player is Golden State Warriors sharpshooter, Stephen Curry, Wiebe wants to become more like him and start knocking down three-point shot attempts at a much more consistent rate, something that if done successfully will give his team a major upper hand when the clock is winding down and the game is on the line.

The final aspect of his game that Wiebe mentioned has improved but still needs work, is his leadership capability. At a position commonly known as “The Floor General”, communication with his coaches and teammates is key for him, not just on the court but off of it as well. “I love how close the team gets that it turns into a family,” Wiebe said. “I enjoy spending the countless hours with them and building lifelong relationships.” Although, he mentioned that the ultimate goal for next season would be hoisting the conference trophy, Wiebe understands that the path to a championship is a long process, so for now his main concern is just getting better everyday in order to put his team in a position to win.