Winter is a time for excitement in the world of basketball.

NBA season is here and college basketball starts soon, but that is not what is most important around here; Holt basketball season is here.

While last season did not meet expectations for the boys, finishing with an 11-16 record, this year feels different. With a talented, tight-knit group of players, the team has high expectations for this upcoming season.

“As a team this year, our goal is to win districts,” said guard Jake Ryan (‘19). “I think that’s a very achievable goal for us. We have a very talented team and if we play well this season, we could definitely win it.”

“We want to win districts,” said center Carter Collins (‘18). “And beat Timberland.”

“This team can do anything we set our mind to,” said forward Spencer Bogan (‘18). “We’re just trying to build a winning culture here, and I think we’re well on our way.”

It seems like this team is united for a common goal, and that will certainly help them going forward. However, it won’t be perfect right away.

The team is losing its two leading scorers from last season, and there lies significant production that needs to be replaced. As well as those two, three additional seniors are gone, and new players need to step up and take on leadership roles.

One thing that nobody is certain of is exactly where the production will come from now.

“I think we just need to come together as a team and play within our game. As long as we don’t force anything, we’ll be fine,” said guard Anthony Jones (‘18).

“It’s not going to come from any one or two people; it’s going to come from everybody,” said forward Lake Feldmann (‘17). “If everybody steps up, we’ll replace that and then some.”

It should be an exciting year for this team; this is not the Holt team of last year.

Here they come.