NC’s No. 1 sophomore high school basketball player ‘just superb,’ just getting started

He is 6-foot-8 and ranked by some as the No. 1 sophomore boys’ high school basketball player in North Carolina.

At 15 years old, he already has offers from multiple SEC schools, and has a slew of other Power 5 schools wanting to make their pitch.

He once had 44 points and 20 rebounds in a single game, can dominate around the basket, feels comfortable taking 3-point shots, and loves passing the ball to teammates.

He is averaging 28 points, 11.7 rebounds, 2.7 blocks and 2.7 assists per game.

“And he’s only scratched the surface of what he can do,” R-S Central coach Greg Wright said of Zymicah “Mikey” Wilkins, who has made Hilltopper games a destination for coaches from many of the nation’s top college basketball programs.

Wright knows many people have seen video of Wilkins working his magic in gyms across the foothills and mountains west of Charlotte, almost in the shadow of Asheville.

So instead, he told another type of story about the Hilltoppers’ star player.

It happened in R-S Central’s game Dec. 16 at Hendersonville, the Hilltoppers’ chief rival in the Mountain Foothills 2A Conference. The score was tied 77-all, with a few seconds to play and R-S Central had the ball. Wright called a timeout and set up a play for Wilkins to shoot.

As his team broke the huddle, Wilkins told his coach, “Coach, don’t worry. If I don’t have a good shot, I’ll pass the ball to someone who does.”

As it turned out, Wilkins found himself open from 3-point range and buried the game-winning shot.

A history of success

The “R” in the school’s name is Rutherforton, and the “S” is Spindale. Students from the two towns have attended the same high school since 1926.

During the 1980s, the Hilltoppers were a 3A powerhouse. They won state titles in 1980 and 1986, and were second in 1981. They’ve reached the regional final six times, but not since 2001.

Wright, an R-S Central alum, has been head coach since 2003. His teams have posted winning records all but once in the past decade and at 10-6, they are headed for another.

Last year’s team finished 26-3 and seemed like a state title contender until losing to West Caldwell in the third round of the playoffs.

This year’s team is young and inexperienced but has won three in a row after a so-so start.

“We lost 90 percent of our production from last season’s team,” Wright said. “But these guys love basketball, love each other, and are getting better with every game.”

‘I spent hours in the gym’

None seem to be thriving more than Wilkins, who is from Spindale and whose dad, Jerome — an R-S Central standout in the early 1990s — started calling him “Mikey” for short.

Wilkins started playing basketball at the age of 5, learning from his dad and from older brother Zyrion, who plays at Johnson & Wales University in Charlotte. Today, Wilkins is part of what’s building to be an outstanding statewide class of 2025. It includes several players, like Wilkins, ranked in some of the national top 100 charts — Myers Park’s 6-8 Sadiq White, Southern Durham’s 6-5 Jackson Keith, Millbrook’s 6-7 Colt Langdon, Winston-Salem Christian’s 6-3 Zion Collins and Grimsley’s 6-5 Zacch Wiggins.

“I got tall at an early age, so some of the game — like the rebounding — came naturally to me,” Wilkins said. “But I had to work on my ball-handling, and I spent a lot of time at it.

“I spent hours in the gym,” Wilkins added. “But it never seemed like work, because I really enjoy the game so much.”

By age 7, Wilkins was playing in older age divisions in Rutherford County’s recreational leagues.

By the time he reached middle school, Wilkins was spending a lot of his after-school time at the high school. He and Wright’s son, Noah, practiced shooting and ball-handling in R-S Central’s auxiliary gym, while Wilkins’ older brother practiced next door with the high school varsity.

“I’d see him over in the auxiliary gym, taking shot after shot,” Wright said.

Wilkins progressed to the point where he spent last off-season playing with Charlotte-based Team United, one of the region’s top travel squads.

“That was a good experience for me,” he said. “It seemed like everyone else was bigger and stronger than me. I had to come back and work harder.”

Wilkins’ performances this year have been amazing.

He has scored 40 or more points three times, including that 40/20 outing against Burns. He also had 39 points in a game against West Henderson.

Lessons from Mom

Those around him say he is well-grounded.

“That comes from my mother (Latoya Hamilton),” Wilkins said. “She’s taught me to be humble and stick with the school work. The rest of it will all come, she tells me.”

One of his specialties is a fadeaway jump shot.

“Yeah, I’ve really worked on that,” he said with a smile. “That’s taken a lot of work to get to this point.”

And while Wilkins typically operates near the basket, he isn’t afraid to step outside the arc and shoot.

“I’m not afraid to take the 3,” he said. “Coach says that if I get the shot, to take it.”

Wilkins described himself as a typical 15-year-old who enjoys playing video games and hanging around with friends.

He’s also a 15-year-old with offers from Texas A&M and Mississippi State, among others. And visits are upcoming to N.C. State and Georgia. Wright said “everyone” is after the R-S Central standout.

“I know all of that is there,” Wilkins said. “And there will come a time for that. But right now, my concentration is focused on this team and my teammates. We’re working hard to be as good as we can be.”

‘Great court vision’

Wright said Wilkins is well-liked by his Hilltopper teammates.

“A real sense of trust has developed,” he said. “The players have learned to trust that Mikey will get them the ball. That has made us a more competitive team.”

A lot of that is due to Wilkins’ understanding of the game, his coach said.

“He has great court vision,” Wright said. “He can see the play develop.”

Wilkins said he is far from a finished product.

“Oh, I’ve got work to do,” he said. “For example, there’s free throws. I want to get better at that. There’s a lot of places where I can get better.”

He said staying humble is vital.

“I don’t listen to all the noise around me,” he said. “I don’t pay it a lot of mind. I just concentrate on what’s ahead.”