Findlay Prep's Nigel Williams-Goss makes his case as nation's best

No turning back

It was the spring of 2009 and a then-scrawny 14-year-old eighth-grader walked into Findlay Prep's 5:30 a.m. practice.

Among the Pilots scrimmaging were future NBA players Thompson, Joseph and Bradley.

"First off, I felt right at home because we were playing so early," Williams-Goss said. "I've been playing at that hour for years."

Peck immediately inserted Williams-Goss into a scrimmage, and to most people's surprise, there was no back down from the pup.

"He just walked in there with a supreme confidence," Simon said. "It was very much like he was going to be the guy. I remember the first two or three times he got the ball it went up (he shot it). He was really just a mini version of what he is now."

Said Williams-Goss: "It was 5-on-5, so I just played my game. I played against older guys my whole life. I wasn't intimidated."

But how did the team react to him?

"At the end of the practice, (then senior) D.J. Richardson (now at Illinois) told the coaches to get me a jersey right then," Williams-Goss said. "So I think it went pretty well."

But that wasn't the case the first basketball season at Findlay Prep. 

He and the family knew it would be a struggle — he'd never sat the bench — but with Joseph, Marko Petrovic and Nick Johnson in front of him, there was little playing time to spare.
 
"It was even tougher than I thought," Williams-Goss said. "Until you're the last guy coming off the bench, you have no idea how it feels. Yes, there were nights when I was second-guessing my decision to come there."

But there was no turning back. The entire family — grandma and extended family included — had jumped into this commitment. Mom and dad had to more than once talk their son from the figurative ledge.

"We just tried to let him see the bigger picture, that there were three more years and he was getting a good education," Valerie said.

Said Williams-Goss: "I knew they were right but it was still hard. I remember after one lopsided game we won and I didn't play I cried afterward."

But he never stopped working and Peck, Simon and staff never missed sight of that.

A couple of injuries lifted Williams-Goss to a starting spot and he responded by scoring in double figures both games. He played in 16 of 30 games that year and averaged 5.1 points and shot 48 percent from the floor.

"He more than held his own," Simon said. "It was obvious he was well above the curve."

The next season, Williams-Goss was a starter and he hasn't missed a start since.

His statistics and game have gradually rose, this year topping off at 18 points, 7.5 assists, 4.8 rebounds and 2.1 steals per game. He's shooting a sizzling 59.2 percent from the floor and the one area he really wanted to improve — 3-point shooting — is almost at 46 percent. As a 90-percent free-throw shooter, you can't foul him late.

"He's shot about the same percentage the last three years from the field," Simon said. "But the 3s is where he really worked on and it's all paid off."

Just ask Monteverde Academy.