‘A Wildcat forever’: Mother’s lessons helped Desi Sills become a winner at K-State
His college basketball career had just come to an agonizing end, one game and one possession short of the Final Four, but there were no tears from Desi Sills.
He answered any and all questions following Kansas State’s 79-76 loss to Florida Atlantic in the East Regional Final of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden, proudly declaring his final — and lone — season with the Wildcats a success.
“My mom taught me to never give up on yourself,” Sills said. “There will be good times, but you still have to stay steady. Life is like riding a bicycle. You’re going to fall over one day, but you got to pick yourself back up and keep pedaling.”
Instead of wallowing in the misery of a heartbreaking defeat, Sills was reflective of his journey and how far he had come from Section 8 housing in Jonesboro, Arkansas.
He thought about his mother, Shawna, who raised him and his four siblings as a single mother and worked as many shifts as possible at the local Subway restaurant to provide for her family.
After seeing his mom deal with real adversity and real-life consequences, losing a basketball game didn’t seem as difficult.
“I’ve seen her struggle and my mom is the reason why I go so hard playing this game,” Sills said. “A woman shouldn’t have to raise a man, but she did a hell of a job with me and I’ve got to give a shoutout to her. I love her so much. That’s the love of my life.”
Growing up without much, Sills said he acted out as a child but felt empowered with a basketball in his hands. Instead of looking for trouble, he began looking for games at the Parker Park Community Center. He used to be the youngest kid in the gym, begging the older boys to let him run with them just one time.
When he stepped on the court, any worries and concerns from his life faded. The community center court was his sanctuary, where he could clear his head and just hoop.
“Basketball saved me,” Sills said. “I used to be a bad little boy, but I switched up my whole world and fell in love with the game of basketball. My ball has always been my safe place. I don’t know where I would be if I never picked up a basketball.”
Sills was gifted with the athleticism and worked relentlessly to develop the skills of a star player, but he never carried himself with entitlement. He credited his mother for teaching him the importance of working with a team and focusing on winning together, rather than excelling on his own.
In high school, Sills helped Jonesboro High School to an 82-8 record in three years, including back-to-back state championships and a perfect 32-0 season that was the first undefeated season in the Class 6A Arkansas ranks in 63 years.
In college, Sills scored more than 1,400 points, won 107 games and played in two different Elite Eight games in his five-year career, which began at Arkansas, shifted to Arkansas State and concluded at K-State.
“At the end of the day, whatever team I’m on, if I got a big role, a little role, I’m going to be the best player in that role that I can be,” Sills said. “Whether I’m a star player or not, I just want to win. When you’re a guy who just wants to have success, you’ll accept any role. It doesn’t matter the size, I just want to win.”
After averaging double-digit points at Arkansas and Arkansas State, Sills was willing to sacrifice his scoring at K-State to play alongside stars like Markquis Nowell and Keyontae Johnson and blossomed in a sixth-man and defensive stopper role off the bench for the majority of this season. K-State coach Jerome Tang has called him an “ultimate winner” throughout the season.
Although he stands just 6-foot-1, Sills played with a tenacity on the defensive end that allowed K-State to pull off its switch-everything scheme. Sills was always up for the challenge, whether it was shutting down the point of attack, chasing shooters through a forest of screens or battling for position down low with much bigger post players.
“Obviously we had Markquis and Keyontae, but Desi brought a different kind of energy and was the heart and soul of this team,” K-State senior Ish Massoud said. “He gave us everything he had with his energy and his leadership.”
Sills almost didn’t make it to Manhattan, even though he committed to the Wildcats in July.
He didn’t arrive on campus until less than two weeks before the start of the season in late October because he still needed to complete classwork to be eligible as a graduate transfer at K-State. As he was finishing up back home in Arkansas, Sills had to do multiple Zoom meetings throughout the day to stay in touch with the K-State coaching staff.
He had a Zoom meeting with strength and conditioning coach Phil Baier to discuss a weightlifting plan. He had a Zoom meeting with assistant coach Rodney Perry to walk through offensive sets and terminology. He had a Zoom meeting with assistant coach Ulric Maligi to discuss defensive schemes.
“We knew Desi has a tough background but comes from a very hard-working mom and a very proud, close-knit family,” Maligi said. “He wants to make life better for his mother and his siblings and you can see how hard he worked to show that you can make it out of Jonesboro and become anything, you can get a degree and go out in the world and become whatever you want to be. He’s got a bright future ahead of him and he really can do whatever he wants to do.”
What exactly comes next, Sills isn’t sure, but he knows he wants to continue his basketball career and help provide for his family back home in Jonesboro.
“Nobody ever thought I would be here, but I’m here,” Sills said. “Everybody counted me out and I continued to show them nonbelievers and turned them into believers.”
Sills took a chance on K-State, believing in a first-time head coach in Tang and a team that was predicted to finish last in the Big 12.
But the Wildcats achieved more than anyone from the outside could have imagined and Sills played his role in that. That belief they showed in Sills will always be appreciated, he said.
“I’m a Wildcat forever,” Sills said. “I’m blessed to put on this white and purple jersey.”
This story was originally published March 26, 2023 at 7:50 AM with the headline "‘A Wildcat forever’: Mother’s lessons helped Desi Sills become a winner at K-State."
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