Midwest City’s DeShawn Denson II
By Bryce McKinnis
Senior DeShawn Denson II is averaging nearly 30 points per game as the Midwest City High School Bombers approach the postseason searching for a second state title in three seasons.
“My highest goal is to win another state championship,” Denson said. “I believe we have the pieces and enough to make a run at it. Individually, I want to win Gatorade Player of the Year and be Super 5.”
Denson was raised around the game. His father, a Millwood alum, played at Arkansas State.
“My dad has been the centerpiece in my development. The early mornings and late nights with him in the gym has been the key to my play this year,” Denson said. “I’ve had a basketball in my hand since before I could walk, going to my dad’s game, dribbling my ball around. People would be surprised by the amount of work it has taken to get to this point.”
Denson, accompanied typically by his father, has been working out daily before school since he was four years old. Including team practice, he has multiple workouts every day. Evidently, it worked; in January, Denson had a 37-point, 12-rebound, three-steal game against El Reno and is among the state’s leading scorers. He has tallied over 1,600 career points (and will likely eclipse 1,700 by the time this prints) and has received offers from several Division I schools, including Maine and South Carolina State.
“I love God, I love my family, and I love the gym,” Denson said. “It’s been like that since I can remember, and I love the grind and the work.”
Denson’s legacy is an increasingly present factor in his choices. For each of the aforementioned reasons, he’s had a stellar career and would already be considered the best player in program history at 95% of high schools in the State of Oklahoma. But at a program with such a robust history of Division I and professional players, it takes that type of career just to make it on Midwest City’s Mount Rushmore.
“I definitely believe I’ve had one of the most complete careers in MWC history, and I believe another championship would solidify my legacy,” Denson said. “I want to leave MWC as a winning, hardworking program. The last couple of years, I believe we have been overlooked and doubted, and I just want to show kids coming up after me that the odds can be against you, but you still have to make things happen.”
After he graduates and takes his talents to the next level, Denson hopes his legacy inspires those that come behind him, to whom he offers the following advice:
“Don’t take any of this for granted and live in the moment. Don’t worry about the past and don’t worry about the future. Be present and enjoy every minute of it – the good, the bad, everything – because it all goes by so fast.”
Denson plans to play basketball as far as the sport will take him.
