Leon Peddle

Leon Peddle had a storied career with the Varsity Seahawks where the 6ft10 center dominated the paint. With amazing agility for such a big man, I made a game of counting all the blocked shots he would get in a game when I went to watch the Seahawks during my five years at MUN. Dunk off the drop step, dunk off the rebound dunk on the fast break, he had crazy hops and an amazing vertical leap. Leon made opponents wonder how they could stop him from having his way in the post...and his previously mentioned dunks intimidated the heck out of the opposing team!

So little known fact to share with my readers and a good example of irony...my final game of high school basketball happened at Clarenville High School (where I was in administration for 18 years retiring this year) and my final jump ball was taken against Leon. Funny right? Anyway I soared up high and won the tip...ahhh, no I didn't but it is fun to imagine! So my final game in my career was a loss to Leon and Little Hearts Ease. We lost by 15 despite the fact that I poured in 38 points (ahem) and managed to only have my shot blocked by Leon say 5 times! One of Leon's good friends, Duane Smith, ran the offense and was assigned to guard me but he didn't have much luck (we are great friends now having done PE at MUN together) so then they switched Smitty off me and replaced him with Blair Drover. Blair could easily dunk and I found it very tough to score on him...Smitty was hard to score on as well, I am just teasing him a little now! Anyway back to Leon...he was a dominant force in high school as well as with MUN. I really loved the interview we did and learned a lot about him from our time together. Little known fact Leon played Varsity Volleyball at MUN for his first year before switching to basketball! To close, I hope you enjoy this article and if you have any comments/questions drop me a line!

Interview with Leon:

1 - Can you give us an introduction. Name, high school, are you still involved with basketball now?

Leon Peddle

Played at Little Hearts Ease intergraded/all-grade (Now Southwest Arm Academy)

Coach My daughters Grade 4 Team

Playing Senior Basketball this year in St. John's

For those of you reading this from outside the Rock, Leon grew up in Little Heart's Ease, a small outport community two hours west of the capital city of St. John's. It is one of 13 communities "down the arm" in the local vernacular language.

2 - What got you hooked on basketball?

I grew up in a small community where there was not a lot to do recreationally so all my friends made our own fun. This usually included planning which sport we would play immediately after school each day on the bus ride home. We played road hockey, baseball, basketball, Volleyball, table tennis and just about any other sport we could think of. Most of my friends were very competitive.

3 - Best coach at any level?

My best coach was Glenn Taylor who first coached me on a Newfoundland Basketball team when I was 15 years old. He later coached me for 4 years at Memorial University. I could not leave out my many teachers who volunteered their long hours at my high school who had a deep impact on myself and my teammates. I came up through high school at a time when we could arrive at school and then leave at 9 or 10 am to travel to various other schools for games in numerous different sports. These teachers would always be there to support and transport us, leaving me with lasting memories of long travels to every crack and corner of the island laughing with friends as we went.

4 - Tell me about your high school gym. Level of fan support?

We had a regular sized gym but sports were very big in our area. At that time students were allowed to travel and play during school time. Our school was a K-12/Level 3 school. I remember as a young child being brought to the gym to watch the high school students play various sports at the zone and regional level. I remember being amazed at the level of athleticism, skill and determination. I remember the gym being packed with students, teachers, cheerleaders, parents and grandparents. Later when I played, I remember many of same people travelling with us to watch us play at various other schools

5 - Tell me who were your top 5 teammates at each level? (High School, Post Secondary, Summer Ball and those who went Pro!

This is hard for me to answer because I played at different levels. At high school I would say Blair Drover, Duane Smith, Rocky Drover, Brad Peddle and David Churchill to name just a few.

At the university Level – Peter Benoit, Mike Woods and John Devereaux really stand out as amazing players along with simply great teammates such as Shane Harte and Darren Payne.

6 - What was your record for points per game in high school? What did you do exceptionally well on the court?

I am not sure but it would vary from 15 -25 pts per game depending on teams and what grade I was in. I was good at blocking shots! My vertical leap was 38 inches and I was 6ft10 allowing for easy dunks also!

7 - Most memorable basketball moment?

At the high school level I remember winning the A provincials in Port Saunders, a small community of 650 people on the Great Northern Peninsula. I remember Duane Smith (the aforementioned Smitty) passing me the ball from out of bounds to hold it killing the clock and winning it all. Even though it was only A provincials I still say that this particular team could have competed against any high school team in Newfoundland that year when I was in grade 11.

8 - Who is the best player you have ever faced at any level? The absolute beast mode of a player?

I simply cannot choose between John Devereux and Peter Benoite. Both were amazing dbasketball players. I remember John standing at virtually half court with a rack of balls and not missing one shot! Peter was super dedicated and in amazing shape...when we would finish basketball practice he would then run with then XC running team! Both guys were inspirational and played basketball professionally in Europe.

Upon reflection Leon told me that he feels the same way about Peter and John but has to admit that William Njoku from St. Mary's was the best player he ever played against. Will spent time playing with hometown hero Carl English on the Canadian National team. Drafted in the 2nd round of the NBA draft in 1994 (41st overall) by the Indiana Pacers he worked hard to make the team. Failing to make any NBA regular season roster however, Njoku played professionally for the next ten years for various clubs in Europe. He retired in 1999 due to a chronic back ailment, one which was properly diagnosed and successfully treated allowing him to make a comeback to pro ball at age 31 in 2003. Leon said he was crazy good and really challenged him on the court!

9 - Have you played summer NLBA basketball?

Yes, I made the 15 u team in my Grade 11 year and was coached by Glen Taylor. Out of the 15 players on that roster 7 (including Leon) went on to play at MUN. I credit my experience with this team as being a game changer for me skill wise, emotionally and physically. The tournament was held in PEI that year.r

10 - Where are YOU now? Profession, home city etc.

I am a Physical Education teacher at Mount Pearl Senior High and live with my wife and two daughters in St. John's. Life is good!

11 - Funniest basketball moment's

.

Thanks

Getting billeted out by myself in Port Saunders and having what seems to be the whole community come see how tall there billet was, they had an old rotary dial phone she had to crank up to tell neighbors...you gotta see this! LOL. I was a bit shy back then but soon realized they were super friendly and I let myself relax.

Last question and just for fun...what is your favorite NBA team and favorite player?!

I grew up in the Jordan era but I love LeBron! I don't have a favourite team but Hakeem Olajuwon is my favourite player of all time! His footwork was amazing and he was so strong!

Did I miss anything? Anything you wanted added in? Thanks so much big fella!!

Yes, I just wanted to add that sports kept things interesting for me.. I came from a small town where we always focused upon playing any sport everyday. My friends were very competitive and we wanted to compete to show what we had. I was also larger, so that I always played with older guys, resulting in me having to be better. This helped push me. My confidence also grew the year that I made the Newfoundland Basketball team and travelled to PEI. I started believing in myself more and was in great shape after returning.

__________________________________________________________________________________

I would like to thank Leon for taking the time to answer my questions and reminisce about his basketball days down the arm and at MUN. These articles are not designed to create conflict but are simply written to allow the reader an inside look at their favorite NL basketball days and what they are up to now. I love the writing, the discussing and the dreaming! Thanks again Mr. Peddle!