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Love (hustle) & Basketball
Montoya transitions hard-working game from DHS to Otero JC
Herald Sports Editor
Photo by YODIT GIDEY/Herald
Richard Montoya, sporting his new team colors, is flanked by his parents Richard, seated at left, and Victoria, seated at right, Durango High School JV boys basketball coach Jerry Martinez, top left, and his sisters, from left to right, Alyssa and Brittany. Montoya, who played high school basketball at DHS, will attend Otero Junior College this fall on a basketball scholarship.
You didn't have to sell it defensively to Richard, you didn't even have to ask him. He just worked, worked, worked. You can't teach that kind of heart, and he's got a lot of it.
- Tom Dunne, DHS boys basketball coach
Not that his game is limited to that attribute, but arguably is defined by it more than anything else. After four years of refining his all-around game beneath head coaches Jerry Martinez, Tim Fitzpatrick and Tom Dunne at Durango High School, Montoya parlayed that effort into a college scholarship at Otero Junior College in La Junta.
"He worked extremely hard," said Fitzpatrick, who resigned from DHS after Montoya's junior season. "He loves basketball. He truly loves basketball. He's a gym rat. For him to have the opportunity to play basketball at the next level, I'm happy to see it."
Montoya, with some help from friends, was a late college recruit.
"I give a lot of credit to (DHS JV) coach Martinez," he said. "He knew I still wanted to play, so he went out and helped me find a college."
They found the two-year program in Otero JC, then Fort Lewis College men's basketball coach Bob Hofman sealed the deal with a personal phone call of recommendation.
Martinez, Hofman, Fitzpatrick, Dunne - Montoya has had a host of community coaches to lean on.
"Exactly," Montoya said.
"I learned the most about basketball my sophomore year from Fitz. He really drilled basketball into me. After practice, he'd work on individual things with me. Before practice, he'd shoot around with me and help me with my shot. He was always available."
Fitzpatrick, who graduated 10 players to the college ranks in less than a decade, resigned as varsity head coach after the 2007-08 prep season, but not before watching Montoya blossom from a middle school wrestling prodigy into a bona fide high school basketball player.
"He was a pleasure to coach," Fitzpatrick said. "He was such an enjoyable kid to coach.
"He improved more and more with playing time ... and he'll improve even more at the next level. He's a good outside shooter, and he'll loosen up a few defenses doing that. And his defense, he's everywhere."
Montoya said the Otero Rattlers return four players from last year's team, three of which are big men. He said the quickest way to playing time this season is honing his ballhandling skills.
"I need to work on my handle," he said. "That can get a lot better. I've been working on my shot, too, and that's getting better.
"I'm working every day. It'll all get better."
No one doubts that. Hard work always has been his trademark.
"He drew the No. 1 defensive assignment against the other team's top scorer every night," said Dunne, the current Demons varsity boys basketball coach.
"You didn't have to sell it defensively to Richard, you didn't even have to ask him. He just worked, worked, worked. You can't teach that kind of heart, and he's got a lot of it."
Dunne likes Montoya's game at the next level, too.
"He's a good 3-point shooter, he's quick, he's fast - he's going to be quite the contributor to that program," he said.
"I enjoyed playing basketball in high school," said Montoya, who was quick to get into the college mindset.
"In high school, though, you're not always committed; sometimes it's just something you do. In college, it's more of an identity; it's who you are.
"I'm definitely committed," he said.
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