With an enthusiasm evident by his actions on and off the court, new City High boys basketball coach Don Showalter has brought his love of the sport to the athletes and fans of the Little Hawks.

In his 39th year of coaching basketball, Showalter moved to the head position at City High after coaching for 28 years at his alma mater, Mid-Prairie. He has also coached for numerous years with USA Basketball’s national age group teams and continues in duties with that organization. As for the question of why he made this change now, he says the move to Iowa City just felt right.

“I think the atmosphere that City High gives, it’s a really caring school,” Showalter said. “I enjoy the players and I enjoy the administration, so I think it was one of those deals where I felt it was a good fit for me.”

Showalter has had numerous accolades in his coaching career including USA Basketball Developmental Coach of the Year 2009, 2010, 2011, National High School Coaches Association Coach of the Year in 2009, and Iowa Basketball Coaches Association Coach of the Year nine times.

City High Athletic Director, D’Anne Kroemer says she knew Showalter was a good fit from the beginning.

“Everything that he stands for parallels Mr. Bacon and myself in terms of coaching philosophy,” Kroemer said. “[He has] a strong knowledge of the sport, proven experience, genuine care and concern for student athletes, he’s committed to community involvement, all of those things are things that made the two of us believe that he would be an amazing addition to the City High coaching staff and family.”

In his time so far at City, Showalter has had an immediate impact on his players. He puts a strong emphasis on team building and working together. Showalter says bringing a team oriented atmosphere to the program, will help the players on the court, and in their futures.

“I think my philosophy is based on, ‘discipline yourself and discipline the team,’ but more importantly, we always talk about, ‘It’s not about me, it’s about we,’” Showalter said. “We emphasize being good teammates. You have to care about each other, you have to trust each other, so we’re trying to make it more of a team atmosphere, and I think the players have bought into that.”

Showalter has also pushed the importance of off the court work for his team as well. Last Saturday, the team participated in a service project collecting toys for the Salvation Army and canned goods for the Crisis Center. Additionally he stresses the importance of academic excellence as well by holding weekly “Study Tables” where the team can do their homework before practice.

“It’s really important that [the players] keep up their grades, and I want them to know that that’s important to me,” Showalter said. “Anything we can do as a team really benefits us both on and off the court.”

As this season progresses, Showalter hopes to lead his team to many successes, but over everything else, he wants to share his devotion for basketball and to being the best person he can be.

“I’m really big on passion. Not only for the game of basketball but for excelling in life,” Showalter said. “You work to excel off the court, and it just happens on the court.”