Basketball
Favorite athlete: Ja Morant
Favorite team: Philadelphia 76ers
Favorite memory competing in sports: My favorite memory competing was senior year playing against Abington on Senior Night
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: During a summer league game, I had left my shoes at home and had to play with someone else’s shoes
Music on playlist: Last album by Rod Wave
Future plans: Play basketball in college and get a degree in sports marketing
Words to live by: As long as I live, there are infinite chances.
One goal before turning 30: I want to play professionally somewhere.
One thing people don’t know about me: I was a principal actor in a water park commercial.
By GORDON GLANTZ
The odds seemed against the Bensalem boys’ basketball team being repeat champions of the Patriot Division.
After all, every starter from the previous season was gone.
The only player with significant varsity playing time under his belt was dynamic point guard Amir Drummond, who had been the sixth man the year before.
In order to spearhead the quest for a repeat title, it was clear that the 5-8 sparkplug from 2023-24 was going to need to become the engine in 2024-25.
To that end, he began work in the gym with his trainer, Tayron Thomas, and put that work to use in a summer league.
The end result? The Owls – with Drummond averaging more than 19 points per game -- repeated as Patriot champs.
“This team has been as resilient as they come – five new starters, overcoming adversity early on in the season and then just proving all the doubters wrong,” said coach Ron Morris. “We continued to grind and work and play for each other. We just kept getting better. We made plays when we had to, and we were fortunate enough to win back-to-back titles.”
Drummond explained that the Owls adopted an attitude that it was them against the world.
“It was huge, winning the league,” he said. “I feel like nobody believed in us. After you lose all the seniors and all-league guys that we lost, it hits hard. We had people who didn’t play much before, and we were going up against teams with more experience. Us winning the league was true proof that we can do whatever we put our minds to.
“Coach Morris would say that the only people who need to believe in us are the ones here in the locker room, and that was the truth.”
Stepping Up
As good as Drummond was as a junior sixth man, he was even better as a senior point guard and tri-captain.
“Amir had a huge role in this,” said Morris. “Amir has been in our varsity program for three years. He came to us his sophomore year (from Roman Catholic). It was a blessing to get a player like Amir.
“Other players see the work ethic he has and respect that work ethic, and that’s how he led us to where we are today.”
Drummond’s improvement was a step forward that spoke volumes to longtime coach Ron Morris.
“Last year, he sacrificed his own stats and accolades, coming off the bench as the sixth man,” said the coach. “We had a really talented team, and he embraced the role of being the sixth man. That’s something that a lot of other players of his talent probably would have struggled with. He continued to work and continued to grind. He played starters’ minutes last year, and that really propelled him to be ready for this year.”
Drummond, while satisfied with what he had done as a junior, knew he needed to help fill a void this past season.
“I was the sixth man last year, and I did have a lot of big games,” he said. “This year, it was new for me. I never really had a role before where I had to be this much of a leader.”
The work Drummond put in between the end of last season and this season was quickly apparent to Morris.
“He put his head down last offseason and really worked on his jump shot,” said the coach. “He has always been fast and has always been able to
score at the rim, but shooting wasn’t one of his best skills. He worked really hard this offseason, and his shot has improved drastically.”
Drastically enough that a previous weakness is now a strength.
“Now, he is one of the best shooters in the area,” said Morris. “He can score on all three levels. He had a game against North Penn where he was 7-for-9 from beyond the arc. That’s a testament to his work ethic. He doesn’t force it a lot. He shares the ball and sees the floor really well this year, which we are very happy with.”
To focus on just Drummond’s shooting, or even his scoring ability, would be missing the overall picture.
He is the quintessential all-around player.
“Down the stretch here, he has really locked in on the defensive end,” said Morris. “He has also been a good rebounder throughout the season as well. We rely on him to do a lot on the floor, and he has lived up to that, plus some.”
We Are Family
Beyond Drummond’s skill set, the coach noted that his character is infectious.
“That’s not just because of his talent, but because of the type of kid that he is,” Morris added. “He is one of the hardest workers I’ve ever coached in my 20 years, and he always has a smile on his face. He’s easy to get along with.
“When he first came here, it was like he had been a part of our family forever. He easily fit in and got along with the guys. He has got a great personality.”
That is likely attributable to his tight-knit family.
The only child of actress Doree Watkins, Drummond also added in his uncle, Dominic Watkins, and grandmother, Martha Watkins, as vital support sources in his life.
“My mom? She’s my everything,” said Drummond. “She’s literally the person that keeps me going. Even when I’ve doubted myself, I don’t think she has ever doubted anything. She said she knew all of this would happen for me, from when I was a freshman (at Roman Catholic) until now. My mom, like 100 percent, is the engine for my family.”
While also thanking his girlfriend, Ariana Jenkins, for keeping him grounded, Drummond pointed to his uncle for inspiration.
“He’s a little bit more laidback than my mom, but he’s also a huge motivator,” said Drummond. “He has been a big teacher for me. He’ll tell me what I need for this or that to happen.”
And his grandmom?
“She’s just the one that’s there to make sure that everybody is calm, you know,” said Drummond. “We’re a little rowdy in our family, so she is making sure that we are all calm.”
As far as moving from Northeast Philadelphia to Bensalem and transferring to Bensalem from Roman Catholic, Drummond now sees it as a blessing.
“Yes, 100 percent, and not only for basketball,” said Drummond, adding that he only transferred because the daily commute to Roman Catholic would have been too long. “I think it impacted my life, just from learning new things to seeing an almost different culture.”
Looking Ahead
Along the way, Drummond has improved as a student and has gotten involved in school activities, namely Owl Ambassadors.
Drummond has positioned himself to be a student-athlete at the next level, and he is fielding offers from Division I to Division III.
“It’s been cool,” said Drummond, who has developed an interest in sports marketing. “I’m talking with a lot of schools right now, and I’m just seeing what’s a good fit for me. I’m talking to a lot of coaches who are showing an interest in me, so it has definitely been good.”
The one issue – Drummond’s height, or lack thereof -- is the one that he can’t do much about.
“In today’s day and age, unfortunately, college coaches look at height and other measuring sticks,” said Morris. “Unfortunately, my height is a turnoff, which I personally think is ridiculous.”
Drummond, though, realizes that he can’t worry about what he can’t control.
“Going into the year, I was a little bit nervous,” said Drummond, adding that he is open to playing anywhere on the map. “Height, in our sport, is really a key thing. But, with the way I have playing and with the way I have been leading my team, I think that it has gone away a little bit.
“Just talking with coaches has given me some hope.”
Drummond added that he has learned that he is confident that he can put himself in the right position to continue to excel, whether on the hardwood or the game of life.
“As long as I breathe, as long as I believe in myself, nobody can tell me what I can and can’t do,” he said. “I can do whatever anyone wants. I’m here, I’m willing to put in the work and believe in myself. You do that, and you’ll be good.”
In automatically writing off Drummond, certain schools are missing out, Morris added.
“You want good players, and you also want good people, and he really is a good person,” said the coach. “(His height) could affect him, but I think that everything always works itself out in the end when you work extremely hard, and he does.
“He is going to land somewhere. He is definitely going to be a college basketball player. We’ll play out the season here and then go through the recruiting process. We will help him with whatever we can do. There’s going to be a college that gets a real special basketball player, and a special person.”
It will be a win for that college, but a loss for Bensalem.
“In his time here at Bensalem High School, he has improved as student, which is a testament to his work ethic,” said Morris. “What makes me most proud is him getting better in the classroom, and him getting involved in school activities.
“It has been a pleasure to have him around. He has been a leader on the court and off the court. It’s been fun to watch.”
