Meet Paul Titchener

With apologies to Lord Tennyson, is it better to have gone D-1 and matched a lumberjack's splinters than never to have reached those so-called vaunted ranks at all?

The standard is 'go D-1 or go home' yet the reality is very successful college basketball careers, but more importantly educations, can be enjoyed at schools far from the ESPN limelight.

Paul Titchener wants to play college basketball regardless of the level and may just decide to enter the coaching ranks after that. Level doesn't matter to him, opportunity does.

A 2012 player now at Burlingame High, the 6-foot-7 Titchener's life is basketball centric. Asked if he had a passion for the sport, he replied," I'd say so. It's been part of my life since the second grade. I'm always out playing or thinking about it."

His college plans will be determined by his physical maturity. "I've made no decision about a level. It depends on where my body is at next year. If I'm mature enough, I'll try and go to a four year school. If not, I'll be looking at a JC."

In an honest portrayal, one not offered by many about their trajectory from freshman to upperclassmen on the court, Titchener said, "As a freshman, I really struggled. It was really bad. Then I had a growth spurt and now I'm much more confident."

He assesses his best skills as "my post moves, like up-and-unders, what I call old man moves. I think I can shoot better than a lot of guys."

As for coaching, Titchener mentioned a pair of names that stand out for him despite the dramatic disparity in the approaches of the twosome. "I read Bob Knight's biography and although I probably wouldn't like all the yelling, I was impressed by the ways he got his teams prepared and motivated."

The other favorite?

"Phil Jackson is interesting because of how he gets his players comfortable in their roles."

Another influence is Titchener's father, who played at Clark University in Massachusetts after not playing in high school and who also coached his son as an assistant on the junior varsity team.

Plus, the younger Titchener believes he has characteristics attuned to the coaching ranks, offering "I get plays well and I'm sort of a [team] leader."

Also, a current NBA player, one riding a crest of popularity since the Dallas Mavericks won the championship, has an interesting association with Titchener: "When I was younger, guys would see my shooting and yell 'Dirk, Dirk [Nowitski]" but it got old quick."

As for his best basketball moment to date, Titchener offered, "When I was on the JV team, we were playing Menlo Atherton at the Oracle Arena. We were winning but they caught up and tied the game. On the last play, I got fouled dribbling, hit the first and intentionally missed the second and we won the game. It was exciting playing there."

Titchener has an interest in history, particularly U.S. history and also writing but isn't sure about what he will major in come college.

But that matter is still a season or more away.

First comes the fast approaching season. Alongside that is the recruiting process. About the latter, Holy Names University, an NAIA school in Oakland looking to move into the D-2 ranks, has officially requested a visit from Titchener. Holy Names Coach Omar Sanchez, an alumnus of the school, heads the Master Coaching Program there. The Hawks have nine Californians on the 2011012 roster.

Here is Titchener's 2011 summer highlights.

Here is Titchener's junior high highlights.