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Jonathan Givony
The legendary Kevin Boyle high school coach, winner of eight of the last 12 national championships, told ESPN to leave the Montverde Academy of Florida for Spire Academy in Ohio at the end of the season.
Boyle, four times Coach of the Year of Naismith High School and Future Hall of Famer, has trained three NBA number 1 draft selections and also recently trained Duke Star Cooper Flagg, the number 1 selection projected this year.
Boyle says that the movement was necessary in the light of the seismic changes in progress in the basketball worlds of the secondary and university school in recent years. Since 2021, players of all sport have been allowed to receive financial compensation by benefiting from their name, image and likeness (NIL), transforming the decision -making process of the players in the planning of their paths to the university, where they can expect significant profits.
“The whole landscape of high school basketball has changed,” Boyle said. “There are new platforms for players to show themselves. Interest is growing. Expectations have changed, with players who now have professional representation. The main perspectives are looking for ways to maximize their development and image.
“This new situation requires different strategies, and Jonathan Ehrenfeld, our managing partner at Spire Academy, has the vision and commitment to help us forge the way to follow. I want to thank Montverde for 14 great years and Jon Hopman and David Bernatavitz for all their support.”
Boyle arrived in Montverde in 2011 from St. Patrick High School in New Jersey, quickly building the rural and suburban preparatory school in Orlando in a national power. It trained numerous NBA draft teams, including Cade Cunningham, Joel Embiid, Kyrie Irving, Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett, Ben Simmons, D’Angelo Russell and Jalen Duran.
Flagg, who spent two years in Montverde and was part of a team that was perfect 33-0 last season, along with the projected first round Derik Queen (Maryland), Liam McNeeley (UConn) and Asa Newell (Georgia), called Boyle “the best coach of the high school of all time,” in a statement provided to ESPN.
Flagg added that “playing for coach Boyle was a big step on my basketball trip. His belief and confidence in me pushed me to grow and become the player I am today.”
McNeeley echoed those thoughts, saying that Boyle “is the best basketball coach of the high school of all time, and would like to play for him only once again.”
Montverde, currently 19-6, will try to extend its season this weekend in the Nike Eybl Scholastico opening tournament in Northern Augusta, South Carolina. The winner of the 10 team tournament will win an automatic position for the National Championship Tournament of Chipotle High School in Indianapolis, which begins on April 3.
