6-foot-6 Derry freshman’s game still growing

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Thursday, February 1, 2024 | 11:01 AM

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His father stands 6-foot-10, so Derry freshman Stanley Rajkovich may have room to grow.

He’s already 6-6 and showing flashes of a dominance in the post, a budding big with a wing span that goes on for days.

But his game is growing, too.

With a Kevin Durant frame, Rajkovich has proven he can handle the ball on a break, finish at the rim and even shoot 3-pointers. (He has nine of them.)

Derry people say it is scary to think how good he might be down the road.

Rajkovich is averaging 12 points and 6 rebounds a game and shooting better than 60% from the field.

His presence may loom largest on defense as a shot blocker. That’s when Stan is the man.

Rajkovich swatted Deer Lakes eight times when the Lancers came to Derry. He had four blocks in a win over Apollo-Ridge on Tuesday.

“Blocks are big, for sure,” he said. “I am learning not to foul all the time. That’s what I was doing before.”

Rajkovich was born in Aliquippa but moved to Derry a year later. His mother played basketball for the Quips.

He attended middle school at Greensburg Central Catholic — with Greensburg Salem’s A.J. Tarpley and Geibel’s Gary Tarbuck — before returning to Derry last year. He is a product of the AAU generation, so he has grown up playing against better competition. But AAU has a tendency to showcase scorers first and all-around players second.

“It’s different with AAU,” Rajkovich said. “Coaches don’t care as much about (developing) players.”

While he has a spot lined up with a high-level AAU program run by former WPIAL standouts Nate Perry (Hempfield) and Tom Droney (Sewickley Academy) in the Wildcats Select (Gold), Rajkovich is learning how to truly play the game at Derry — the fundamentals, the situational instruction, the terminology and team-first approach.

If AAU is a drag race on the orange belt, high school ball is driver’s ed. Move over, Rajkovich will soon be ready to take the wheel.

“Brady (Angus), Nate (Papuga) and Was (John Wasnick) show me what to do,” Rajkovich said of his older teammates. “Credit to coach Po (Matt Polinsky) for helping me with my handles.

“I am playing actual basketball now, and it’s helping me become a better player.”

Derry coach Tom Esposito sees sky-reaching potential for Rajkovich, given his raw talent gets the proper cultivating.

“Stanley’s skills are beyond his years,” Esposito said. “He’s a 14-year-old kid. We’re trying to get him to slow down. He rushes things so much. He attacks the rack. We tell him not to be timid. This is the first time he’s been coached like this. He is learning the high school game and realizing its more of a thinking game. He’s very receptive to it.

“He holds his own. His skills still have to catch up to his body.”

Esposito said Derry shoots better than 50% from two-point range, a nod to Rajkovich’s inside touch.

“Stan and (senior guard) Nate (Papuga) have really learned to work well together,” Esposito said.

But even with seasoned seniors around him, there always is room to grow.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Derry Area