Throughout the 2023-2024 season, Greg Kampe has raved about the experience of his team. With seniors up and down the roster, he knew there would be a good core of guys he could count on to perform. However experience is mostly just age, it’s the qualities that that experience brings out that makes for special seasons. Oakland has discovered its best quality.
Leadership.
“The reason I don’t worry about focus is because I have Blake Lampman,” Kampe said after a win vs IUPUI. “Blake Lampman is on a mission, and he’s not going to let anyone not be focused”
On Saturday, senior day, Lampman will play his 138th career game, setting a mark that no Golden Grizzly has reached before. Even with all those games logged in an Oakland uniform, to Lampman it feels like yesterday he walked in as an undersized walk-on, and he has a clear message for the guys on the team that have a little more time left than him.
“This moment comes and goes way too fast,” Lampman said. “Don’t take anything for granted and mentally be locked in over anything.”
Lampman’s play has elevated throughout his time at Oakland, with the biggest leap coming this year. But his biggest attribute may not be what he brings in basketball skill, it might be the quality leadership he provides. This is something Lampman takes pride in, and he feels he has always had an ability to be someone who others look to. has had a long road to get to this level of being able to command a team.
“I always felt that God had blessed me with a passion to lead others and my role before I got to Oakland was that vocal leadership role.”
He has had a long road to get to the level of being named a captain of a Division 1 basketball team. Lampman gives thanks to his previous experiences as things that rounded him into his present day form.
“Growing up playing QB on youth football teams I was always vocal and responded well to leadership,” Lampman said. “I was raised in a “yes-sir “”yes-ma’am” household and always respected authority. I knew if I worked extremely hard and earned the respect of my teammates and coaches I would be given the opportunity to not only lead by example but to have a “vocal” role and that I think should be expected from a senior, especially someone who’s been at the same school his whole career.”
Kampe has said that Lampman is on par with any leader he has ever had, but it has to take more than one guy to lead the charge towards competing for a league championship. One guy who has helped pull the team forward is Chris Conway.
Like Lampman, Conway has stuck through it all at Oakland, continuing to get better every year. He has broken out this year in more ways than one.
Conway was also named a captain before the season, a reward for sticking through some personal rough patches on the basketball court.
“He is a dying breed in college basketball,” said Kampe, referring to him working his way into a bigger role for four years. “He is an Oakland player.”
Conway is not the vocal leader Lampman is, but being an intelligent, hard worker who understands the program sets the perfect example for a healthy culture.
“As time goes on you learn more about Kampe’s coaching style and what he likes and doesn’t like,” Conway Said. “In order to be successful at Oakland you need to be a guy that he can trust in the heat of close games. I have learned over time what I need to do and continue to do in order to be the best player I can be within his system.”
Even with all the ups and downs Conway has seen to this point, he still feels like he is growing as a player, a person and a leader.
“I feel like as long as I play this game I will continue to learn more about the game and more about myself as a basketball player, ” Conway said. “I have come a long way but I know my journey isn’t finished.
They say good things come in threes, and the trio of captains would not be complete without someone else who has had a long journey to get here.
Trey Townsend’s story as an Oakland legacy player is well documented, but he has left his own mark in a massive way so far in his time as a Golden Grizzly.
Unlike his fellow captains, Townsend has started every game he has played in his career. He has seen a lot of time on the court from the moment his freshman season started, and he uses that experience to help not only himself, but everyone around him.
“Being on this team and in this league for as long as I have I feel like I’ve experienced a lot. Highs and lows and everything in between. So I think going through all of that, I am able to help guys navigate through their journeys with a little more ease. Having guys like Chris and Blake who have been here with me through it all makes that job a lot easier,” Townsend said.
He will if he has too, but Townsend doesn’t like to scream and yell to get everyone going on the court. What is clear though, is that the energy he puts into how he plays, even as the leading scorer, motivates his teammates to give their top effort as well.
“ I’m not as much of a vocal leader as Blake is, so the way I’ve found to be the most effective my whole life is to lead by example. I wouldn’t expect my teammates to do something I wouldn’t do so if I’m not working hard on the court, how can I expect them to. Putting egos aside and just playing hard I feel is something that makes this team so special.”
The goal of these three for this season is the same as the rest of their team, to get the NCAA Tournament. This year’s edition of the team has felt different from the moment they stepped on the floor against Ohio St, and the reason why may be the guys at the head of the snake.
“Leadership is everything in preparing and achieving our goal,” Lampman said.” In 2021 we had the most talent you could ask for but our leadership was young and many of us didn’t know how to respond to leadership. This team is the best team I’ve been a part of that listens and responds to leadership and it’s the reason for our success. I see it as a two way street. It’s a coach/leader’s job to prepare the team but it’s the team that needs to respond and to execute. ”
With Lampman, Conway and Townsend at the helm, this Oakland team has broken through expectations all year, just as the three of them have done as individuals their whole career. A league regular season championship will be at stake on Senior Day against rival Detroit Saturday, but the goal is greater. The Golden Grizzlies haven’t won a Horizon League Tournament yet, but this year’s team hasn’t taken their swing at the crown.
The core of this bunch is no stranger to defying the odds, and in this year’s tournament, the trio will look to exceed expectations one more time. Bring on March.
