Sports : WHS
Tigers' Slifer signs to play basketball for Mules; 4 in his family will be on playing court for UCM
Jun 5, 2008, 7:30 AM
Ryan Gibbs
WARRENSBURG, Mo. -- The University of Central Missouri has signed Warrensburg High School all-state guard D.J. Slifer to play basketball for the Mules next season.
That will put four Slifers on the UCM basketball floor. DJ's dad, Dave, is head coach of the Jennies, and DJ's mom, Tammy, is a volunteer assistant coach for the Jennies. And, DJ's older sister, Brittney, will be a Jennies player next season, after two years with the Johnson County Community College team.
DJ, a 6-foot 160-pound guard, earned Most Outstanding Player honors for the West Central Conference as a senior, averaging 16 points, 6 assists, and 5 rebounds per game in 2007-08 to earn all-state accolades.
He was a three-time all-conference and two-time all-district selection. His assist total ranks him 11th all-time in Missouri history. He also was a cross-country runner, and won all-state, all-district, and all-conference honors four times on the course.
DJ was a four-year starter for the Class 4 Warrensburg boys basketball team and was senior leader. His father has earned the sixth most wins in Div.-II women’s basketball history.
Dave previously coached DJ's AAU basketball team and coached one game during DJ's seventh grade year when the head coach was suspended. He had helped the team before at practices and helped set up the team's program.
"It was absolutely a good experience," Dave said.
DJ said being coached by his father is “kind of” interesting.
“He points out a few things,” DJ said. “He gives me good advice when I need it. I can always ask him, too.”
DJ said he keeps a “50-50” balance between school work and basketball. A day rarely goes by where the Slifers are not involved in a basketball game.
Dave said balancing his schedule to watch his children play sports can get complicated. This past year, Brittney, played for the JCCC team and his youngest daughter, Maggie, played for her eighth grade team.
“Our parents are going everywhere,” DJ said. “We have a really organized mom.”
Dave said he spends 20 hours a week, the limit per NCAA regulation, working with his team during games, practice, film study and weight lifting. The time he spends with the team does not include traveling to recruit.
DJ said he does not look too much into whether or not his father attends his games.
“I focus on the game and not who’s there in the stands,” DJ said. “My parents have (had) to make a choice between my games or my sister’s games. I put it in the back of my mind.”
That should be simplified somewhat next season, with DJ and Brittney both playing for UCM.
Dave said recruiting puts a strain on his schedule. He coaches his team one night and hits the road recruiting the next day.
"My No. 1 priority is to be a dad," Dave said. "and that involves going to as many games as I can."
Dave said he sat down in front of the TV with DJ three or four times a week to discuss DJ's team and how he was playing.
"I try to get his view on how things are going and then I selectively give him my opinion," Dave said.
DJ said getting feedback from his father is “pretty important.”
“He’s been there and he’s gone through more than I have,” DJ said. “If I don’t like it, I try to act like I like it.”
"I've been around long enough to know my judgment, like any parent's, is cloudy when it comes to our own kids," Dave said. "We're pretty careful about what we say."
DJ does not remember a time in which his family was not involved in basketball.
“It’s an accepted fact of our family that you will play basketball,” DJ said. “You couldn’t function in our family without basketball.” Dave said it upset him when he could not attend DJ's WHS games because he loved to watch is son play.
"He reminds me of myself, except he can score," Dave said. "But he controls the game. He does a good job of knowing when to shoot and when to get teammates more involved."
"I think any time you have a son or daughter that plays sports, you have a chance to live vicariously through them," Dave said. "and we have. We have been able to go through the highs and lows of [DJ's] career. "
The idea of living vicariously through a son or daughter sometimes carries negative connotations, but not in the Slifers' case.
"That's not negative at all. It's been an absolute blast to watch (his) team's development and his development throughout the past four years."
"It's great that D.J. has decided to sign with our program," Mules head coach Kim Anderson said. "He is a very well- rounded point guard, who can shoot the ball with great efficiency and distribute the ball to his teammates. He has a great feel for the game, having grown up in a basketball family. He has already been working on increasing his strength and we feel he will be a solid four-year player for us."
That will put four Slifers on the UCM basketball floor. DJ's dad, Dave, is head coach of the Jennies, and DJ's mom, Tammy, is a volunteer assistant coach for the Jennies. And, DJ's older sister, Brittney, will be a Jennies player next season, after two years with the Johnson County Community College team.
DJ, a 6-foot 160-pound guard, earned Most Outstanding Player honors for the West Central Conference as a senior, averaging 16 points, 6 assists, and 5 rebounds per game in 2007-08 to earn all-state accolades.
He was a three-time all-conference and two-time all-district selection. His assist total ranks him 11th all-time in Missouri history. He also was a cross-country runner, and won all-state, all-district, and all-conference honors four times on the course.
DJ was a four-year starter for the Class 4 Warrensburg boys basketball team and was senior leader. His father has earned the sixth most wins in Div.-II women’s basketball history.
Dave previously coached DJ's AAU basketball team and coached one game during DJ's seventh grade year when the head coach was suspended. He had helped the team before at practices and helped set up the team's program.
"It was absolutely a good experience," Dave said.
DJ said being coached by his father is “kind of” interesting.
“He points out a few things,” DJ said. “He gives me good advice when I need it. I can always ask him, too.”
DJ said he keeps a “50-50” balance between school work and basketball. A day rarely goes by where the Slifers are not involved in a basketball game.
Dave said balancing his schedule to watch his children play sports can get complicated. This past year, Brittney, played for the JCCC team and his youngest daughter, Maggie, played for her eighth grade team.
“Our parents are going everywhere,” DJ said. “We have a really organized mom.”
Dave said he spends 20 hours a week, the limit per NCAA regulation, working with his team during games, practice, film study and weight lifting. The time he spends with the team does not include traveling to recruit.
DJ said he does not look too much into whether or not his father attends his games.
“I focus on the game and not who’s there in the stands,” DJ said. “My parents have (had) to make a choice between my games or my sister’s games. I put it in the back of my mind.”
That should be simplified somewhat next season, with DJ and Brittney both playing for UCM.
Dave said recruiting puts a strain on his schedule. He coaches his team one night and hits the road recruiting the next day.
"My No. 1 priority is to be a dad," Dave said. "and that involves going to as many games as I can."
Dave said he sat down in front of the TV with DJ three or four times a week to discuss DJ's team and how he was playing.
"I try to get his view on how things are going and then I selectively give him my opinion," Dave said.
DJ said getting feedback from his father is “pretty important.”
“He’s been there and he’s gone through more than I have,” DJ said. “If I don’t like it, I try to act like I like it.”
"I've been around long enough to know my judgment, like any parent's, is cloudy when it comes to our own kids," Dave said. "We're pretty careful about what we say."
DJ does not remember a time in which his family was not involved in basketball.
“It’s an accepted fact of our family that you will play basketball,” DJ said. “You couldn’t function in our family without basketball.” Dave said it upset him when he could not attend DJ's WHS games because he loved to watch is son play.
"He reminds me of myself, except he can score," Dave said. "But he controls the game. He does a good job of knowing when to shoot and when to get teammates more involved."
"I think any time you have a son or daughter that plays sports, you have a chance to live vicariously through them," Dave said. "and we have. We have been able to go through the highs and lows of [DJ's] career. "
The idea of living vicariously through a son or daughter sometimes carries negative connotations, but not in the Slifers' case.
"That's not negative at all. It's been an absolute blast to watch (his) team's development and his development throughout the past four years."
"It's great that D.J. has decided to sign with our program," Mules head coach Kim Anderson said. "He is a very well- rounded point guard, who can shoot the ball with great efficiency and distribute the ball to his teammates. He has a great feel for the game, having grown up in a basketball family. He has already been working on increasing his strength and we feel he will be a solid four-year player for us."
