By: D. Scott Fritchen
His first appearance came with 17 minutes and 29 seconds remaining in Kansas State's 76-49 win over Washburn in an exhibition game last Tuesday at Bramlage Coliseum. That's when Desi Sills tucked in his purple No. 13 jersey at the scorer's table and jogged onto the hardwood with a whole season — his last season — of college basketball in front of him.
In his first 97 seconds of action, Sills stole a pass, grabbed a defensive rebound, attempted his first shot, and dished out to point guard Markquis Nowell for a 3-pointer.
Yes. This was Sills' first appearance.
Sills' actual introduction to K-State officially arrived on June 14. That's when he announced his commitment to the Wildcats on Twitter. K-State head coach Jerome Tang officially announced Sills' addition to the team one day later.
"Stacked every chip on myself, until it's time to collect." #BETONYOU
That's so true for the 23-year-old native of Jonesboro, Arkansas, who arrived in Manhattan after three years at Arkansas, one year at Arkansas State, and is seeking to make a statement during his final year of eligibility. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound Sills has tools — we saw that he could control the court, facilitate plays, shoot outside and drive to the hoop, help teammates and can cast a wide net defensively — and he's stacking every chip on himself.
What's amazing: He's been at K-State for just nine days.
"He's been so impressive," K-State head coach Jerome Tang says. "He's just a winner, man."
There's a story that weaves in and out— a shoulder injury, a season cut short due to COVID, his mother's illness, so much that Sills has carried upon his broad shoulders over the years, yet his smile fills the team meeting room at the Ice Family Basketball Center last Friday.
He says the word "blessed" 11 times in 16 minutes.
"I'm blessed, and I keep saying I'm blessed," he says, "but it's for real."
And he smiles again.
The dream is free, the hustle & grind is sold separately.💯
— LIL DES 🚦 (@desisills3) October 27, 2022
Why does Sills believe that he's blessed? Because he found Tang — or Tang found him alongside associate head coach Ulric Maligi and assistant coach Jareem Dowling — with one year of eligibility remaining.
"Coach U and Coach 'Reem called me and gave me an offer and told me they wanted me to come to K-State," Sills says. "I said, 'I don't need to see Manhattan, I just want to come and help us win.' I committed right there. It took a long journey to get here, and I'm beyond blessed.
"Now I'm at K-State and very proud. I've come along really well."
Why K-State?
"You get a feeling in your heart that it's genuine and real," he says. "You talk to Coach Tang and see how real he is, and he doesn't sugarcoat it. He's real with God and preaches about positivity and I don't know how he touched me, but he touched me, and he was really genuine."
Sills was delayed getting to Manhattan. He graduated with a degree in recreation and sports management from Arkansas State. He is working toward a master's degree in conflict analysis and trauma studies.
"In order for me to be my best, I had to have stress in my life," he says. "That was stress. I was missing out with the guys and wasn't in the area and it really hurt me. But it made me re-evaluate and try to get 1% better each and every day. It paid off in the end."
If you're tired, do it tired. Can't grind only when you feel like it 💯
— LIL DES 🚦 (@desisills3) October 12, 2022
Understand it was a grind. While Sills was completing his coursework, he was entrenched in meetings and workouts with K-State coaching staff via Zoom.
"From 1-2 p.m., I was working out with a GA on a Zoom call, from 2-3 p.m. I was lifting weights with Coach Phil (Baier) on Zoom while I was working out," Sills says. "From 5-6 p.m. I was working with Coach (Rodney) Perry on the offensive scheme and learning all the plays. From 6-7 p.m. I was with Coach U(lric Maligi) working on the defensive schemes.
"It's like I wasn't here, but I was here. I came in and guys were like, 'Dang Des, it looks like you haven't missed a beat.'"
Here's a sampling of what Sills brings to K-State: A total of 1,100 points, 50 double-digit scoring games, eight 20-point games, 326 rebounds, 227 assists and 135 steals during 3,081 minutes of action over 126 games with 74 starts at the Division I level.
Last season at Arkansas State, he shot a career-high 44.6% from the floor. As a freshman at Arkansas, he shot a career-high 46% on 3-pointers. Last season, he had a career-high 3.6 rebounds, a career-high 2.8 assists, and a career-high 1.8 steals per game.
"I have the word 'HUNGRY' on my wall," he says. "I look at it each and every day. Stay hungry, don't ever get content, because when you're not working there's somebody else outworking you.
"Each and every day I try to come in with a positive mindset and be a leader I know I can be and the best teammate I can be. Whatever Coach Tang needs from me each night, I'm going to do it. If he needs me to score a bunch of points, I'm going to do it. If he needs me to lock on the best player, I'm going to do it. I just want to win.
"Go look at my resume. I've won at every stop. I'm just going to try to continue winning."
Sills was the No. 3 player in the state of Arkansas by ESPN while leading Jonesboro (Ark.) High School to an 82-8 record with back-to-back Class 6A State Championships. He was a part of the 2021 Arkansas Elite Eight team. He helped improve Arkansas State from 12-15 to 18-11 and its highest win total in five years.
As a sophomore at Arkansas, he averaged 10.6 points and 3.0 rebounds in 31.2 minutes with 24 starts in 32 games. He was named to the 2020-21 Preseason All-SEC Team before he suffered a shoulder injury that caused his numbers to drop. He rebounded remarkably with 12.6 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.8 assists last season.
"The coaching staff and I know what I can do," he says. "I produced at Arkansas. My sophomore year was one of my best years in college basketball besides last year and I did that at a Power 5 school. I'm just trying to bring the same energy here.
"This isn't a rebuild at K-State. We're going to come in and try to win right away and show why Coach Tang is a hell of a coach. We have a lot of new guys, and we truly believe in them and we're going to put it all together and rock out each and every night."
That officially begins when K-State opens its 2022-23 season against UTRGV in Monday's 8 p.m. tipoff at Bramlage Coliseum.
"The coaches have told me to be Des Sills and the Des Sills they know I can be, and I don't have to try to go outside the box — just be you," he says. "That's the best thing I'm going to do is be me because when a coach slaps 100% belief into you, you don't have to second guess your talent, and that's when you play your best.
"I'm a go-getter, a hard worker and a leader. Even though I've only been here a couple weeks, most of the guys told me I look like the leader of the team, and it isn't forced, it's very genuine. They come up and tell me how much they appreciate I'm here, and I appreciate that they say that to me, and I appreciate that they welcomed me with open arms."
There's no telling how the story will end, but Sills is eager to compose his own tale, one about making the most of a golden opportunity, and one that could lead to big wins for K-State this season, and later, who knows, potential tryouts with NBA teams.
"Bet on you and write your own story!"
Let the story begin.
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