Baxter Springs basketball player Payton Gaines told VYPE that so far the best part about his basketball season has been “enjoying my last few months with the same guys I grew up with playing next to growing a bond that won’t ever be broken”.
Gaines spoke of teammate Logan Guess saying “he showed me that loving your sport and being there for your teammates is the most meaningful thing about playing. It’s not just about winning”. Together Gaines and his teammates have forged a relationship that has weathered many challenges starting with “Summer Weights… summer weights for most people is a dreadful time in sports but I feel that’s when my bond with my brothers grew stronger then ever”.
From that statement it should be no surprise that when Gaines spoke of his favorite teacher he named “my strength and Conditioning coach – Coach Buchanan because he’s taught me more than I ever could learn in the classroom not only about strength and conditioning but about life and being a better man”.
Gaines has taken that lesson and applied it to his other pursuits as well. Including, but not limited to “National Honor Society, Student Council, Football,Basketball, and Baseball”.
