Only 11 players suited up for the Northern Lehigh boys’ basketball team a season ago.

Eight of those players unfortunately will not sport a Bulldog varsity basketball jersey again.

DeSean Smith, Ryan Hammond, Teague Herzog, Jaden Marlatt, Ardit Mujovic, Mike Repsher, Evan Zambo and Charles Wilk all donned graduation caps this past June.

Entering his second season with the program, Bulldogs’ head coach Patrick Wanamaker is determined to look at the big picture in a positive manner.

“All players this year are key to the success of our program,” said Wanamaker, who watched his Bulldogs finish with a 1-12 overall record and 1-9 in the Colonial League. “The meshing of the incoming football players who did not play last year due to COVID will be the key to our success or lack thereof this season.

“We also are getting a late start as the football team continues their quest for state gold so time will be of the essence.”

And speaking of the NL football team, several of his players were involved in the Bulldogs’ PIAA state playoff run on the gridiron, moving their time on the court to the back burner.

He hopes their success carries over into the winter.

“I am hoping that the success the football players had in the fall season translates into winter and spills over to all members of our team,” Wanamaker stressed. “We will need to get a lot of work done in a short amount of time once our football guys return, but we will be ready to go for our opener.”

Two of those individuals returning for the Bulldogs are Derek Blose (Sr., Forward) and Aiden Parvel (Jr., Guard). Parvel was able to see action in all 13 of the Bulldogs’ games last year, while Blose only took the floor in eight games.

Wanamaker knows that team unity will be significant for the Bulldogs this season.

“We have only one returning player from last season that saw significant minutes so the quicker we all come together and gel as one, the better,” stressed Wanamaker.

After Blose and Parvel, the rest of the Bulldogs’ lineup are all looking to take the hardwood for the first time at the varsity level. Those include juniors Nick Frame (Guard), Isaiah Ramos (Guard), Austin Smith (Forward/Center) and AJ Jimenez (Forward), who are all looking to break the starting lineup and are ready to gain some valuable minutes this season.

And so far in the preseason, the progress in practice continues to look promising despite the Bulldogs’ lack of time against real competition. The Bulldogs are determined to learn, and give it their all, to get the program back to where it wants to be.

“We have athletes at all five positions, and although they are inexperienced, they are very coachable kids who are willing to learn and put in the time it takes to get better,” Wanamaker said. “Our anticipated strength this season is our overall athleticism.”

And with the majority of his Bulldogs taking every day as a day to learn the game better and become a better player, that’s exactly what Wanamaker wants them to focus on. Not wins or losses. Simply progress.

“The only expectation I ever put on kids is that they get better every time they are in the gym,” Wanamaker said. “Success cannot always be measured in wins and losses, so getting better each day is what we use as our measuring tool. It is impossible to compare this year to last due to many variables that impacted last season.

“If we come to work each day, get better while we are together in the gym, and never get complacent, we will give ourselves the best opportunity to be successful.”