Leroy (Truck) Fludd did the unthinkable three years ago. He left Coney Island, left the hoops hotbed nobody is supposed to leave. No, he wasn’t going to prep school as so many have, but leaving Grady after his freshman year when he was told the school was dropping the basketball program. He was going to Boys & Girls, Lincoln’s archrival, the school that was in the midst of a three decade-long title drought.
It took a lot of courage, going from Coney Island to Bedford Stuyvesant. He’s taken a lot of heat for the decision, been called a traitor.
Fludd doesn’t have to explain his decision anymore, hasn’t for a while. He’s won as a supporting player and as a centerpiece. Saturday afternoon at Madison Square Garden, he made it three titles in a row, scoring 17 points, grabbing 12 rebounds and playing phenomenal defense on Jefferson star Thaddeus Hall, holding him to 17 points on 7-of-14 shooting in the Kangaroos’ 71-67 win at Madison Square Garden.
The two uncommitted standouts both guaranteed victory in Wednesday’s press conference. Fludd was the prophetic one, just as he was when he predicted victory over Lincoln in the semifinals.
“I took it personal,” Fludd said. “He kept saying I couldn’t guard him.”
Make no mistake. This wasn’t his best game statistically. He made only 6-of-23 shots, missing attempts he usually makes in his sleep. But it was a complete performance, the kind he has turned in night in and night out for Boys High, a big reason the Kangaroos are now three-time champions.
“I can’t say enough about the PSAL Player of the Year,” Boys & Girls coach Ruth Lovelace said. “He’s every coach’s dream. … His game came full-circle. He’s an all-around player now.”
Fludd is a difficult player to judge for the next level. He’s only 6-foot-4, he doesn’t really have a position, though his improved jump shot and handle makes him a viable small forward. I’m often asked my thoughts on him and I haven’t really have an answer.
Until now. He can play at the high-major level, be a mid-major star. Anyone who is able to reinvent himself like Fludd has will be successful on the next stage, anybody willing to make a move like he has, going from Coney Island to Bed Stuy, has the toughness to handle tough times.
Instead of focusing on what he hasn’t done, we should talk about what he can do. He’s a leader, an animal inside, adept finisher above the rim and physical defender built like – what else? – a truck.
After Hall went off for 65 points combined in the two previous meetings, Fludd had no hesitation upon guarding Hall again. He made a concerted effort to take away the shots Hall wanted and held the highly recruited southpaw to his lowest scoring output since the Brooklyn borough semifinals.
Wherever he lands, will get a determined individual who can help their program. Now that’s a guarantee.
I remember three years ago to the day, when Mike Taylor lifted Boys & Girls to its first title in 31 years. I wrote that night Taylor shot his way into the school’s fabric, as the player who got it over the hump. Fludd cemented his legacy on Saturday at the Garden, just differently.
“He goes down as one of the greatest players ever,” Lovelace said.
She didn’t say if she was talking in New York City or Boys & Girls. It didn’t matter. His performance spoke volumes.
Many considered Boys & Girls a longshot to three-peat this year because it graduated four starters. I wasn’t sure it could happen. Little did yours truly, or many others out there, realize Fludd would reinvent himself, become a true wing who could also still excel inside. Boys High doesn’t get to this point if not for that dedication.
He may not have been responsible for starting this run – he was a role player on the Taylor-led team – but he’s certainly responsible for continuing it, the one player to be on all three title teams. He was the glue to last year’s champion and The Guy on this one.
Whatever happens from here on out, he’ll be remembered as the player who made the three-peat possible, carrying his team on his broad shoulders.