First-year Jim Thorpe boys' basketball coach Jason McElmoyle believes that if his players work in unison on the court, they will see game-by-game improvement.

"It's not the five best players who will play, it will be the five who play the best together," he said.McElmoyle, a 1997 graduate and former Olympian basketball player, is the third Jim Thorpe head coach in the past three years. Following a three-year hiatus, he returns to the court after a previous seven-year tenure as an assistant coach with the Olympians.McElmoyle inherits a program that has struggled in the recent past, and will attempt to improve on last season's record that produced just two victories.Only one key player, Bryce Micciche, does not return to this year's roster, which lists three seniors and several unproven underclassmen.Shane Snisky steps away from behind the center as the Jim Thorpe football quarterback to begin his fourth year as a forward on the hoops team."We are counting on Shane to have a stable court presence and to also be a team leader," said McElmoyle. "We will rely on his scoring down low and his defensive rebounding."The other senior is Dave Everitt, like Snisky, a four-year player, who is expected to utilize his size to his advantage."Dave is one of our big guys and we will need him to body up in the low post area. He will have to rebound and get us into our transition game with quick outlet passes. Dave's competitiveness will definitely be a benefit," said McElmoyle.Brett Luciano should see action at guard. He will inject energy into the Olympian offense."Brett is a hustler," said McElmoyle. "His game is to run the floor and dive for loose balls."McElmoyle believes he has a core group of underclassmen that will set the foundation for what he hopes will turn the program around. One of those younger players happens to be the coach's cousin, Jordan McElmoyle."Jordan is our utility guy," said McElmoyle. "We can put him anywhere on the floor and he will do anything that we ask of him."Junior Ryan Green stands 6-5 and is expected to be a defensive force against ball handlers driving down the lane. McElmoyle calls Green "a work in progress" but emphasizes that if the Olympians are to be a tough, competitive team, Green will have to be a significant contributor.The starting five for Jim Thorpe has yet to be decided, but sophomore, Brendan Carroll will be in the mix. He has the ability to take control of the offense from his guard position as McElmoyle seeks a balance of players who have offensive and defensive skill sets.At Jim Thorpe practices, fundaments are stressed. In addition,, much time is spent working on player to player communication and "being in the right spot at the right time.""We are holding them accountable for fulfilling their roles on our team. In a scrimmage against Weatherly, we saw glimpses of the guys jelling on the court, but we need to become more consistent."McElmoyle's team theme is to get better each day, not only at playing basketball, but becoming better students and school citizens.Once more, he contends that his program's foundation is based on accountability, and then, McElmoyle claims, his team's players can reach for their full potential.