Kevin Devaney Jr.
@KDJmedia1 • 33,321 subscribers
Building the NEW next big thing in HS sports with SportsEngine Play National Sales Manager GameDay One co-founder. Broadcaster, Reporter at heart. Dad x 3
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In all my years of broadcasting, I'd never gotten emotional on air until tonight. It was impossible to hold back the tears. Jack Piccione of Tappan Zee lost his father suddenly last Sept. 1. Matthew Piccione died of a heart attack minutes after playing pickleball with friends. He was 51. Over the last three years, I got to know Matthew Piccione fairly well. One day back in 2023, he asked coach George Gaine for my number so he could call me just to say thank you for calling out Jack's contributions during Tappan Zee's championship run. Jack was a role player who averaged maybe 5 points a game as a freshman. But he started and never came off the court. "I know he doesn't score a lot of points," Matthew Piccione said. "But you are one of the only people who appreciates what he does for the team." Matthew Piccione kept a very low profile at games and reinforced in his son to be the emodiment of all the things that make Tappan Zee basketball different than any other program in the state. Play unselfish. Defend. Be coachable. Defend. Draw charges. Pass. Sacrifice for your teammates. And, of course, defend some more. Nobody in the history of Tappan Zee basketball since I have been covering has ever played that role better than Jack Piccione. He's the best best defensive player in the program and is on an elite level of players I've been around in Section 1. When Matthew died in September, I worried about Jack. I wondered what his senior season might be like. The person most responsible for instilling and reinforcing the values that made Jack great was now tragically gone. Tonight, Jack Piccione scored 5 points in the Section 1 Championship game. FIVE. Yet not only did his team because of his performance, I had the honor of handing him the MVP Trophy to prove it. In the final 90 seconds of the game, I shared the story of Matthew Piccione and his passing. You will hear the emotion in my voice. It's genuine, not because of any relationship I had with him. You just can't be a sports parent and not relate to loving your child and always wanting what's best for them. Because here's what I am going to tell you. And I really want all parents to read this and remember it: Your kids' youth - not just athletics, but all of it - is short and it's precious. You don't get this time back when it's over. It goes way too quick. And some don't even get to see it to the end. You have a choice: You can spend this period of their lives stressing about how many points they score, what awards or accolades they receive, begging people to vote in the online poll for Player of the Week, emailing the coach and complaining about playing time or lamenting the number of shots they get in a game. Go ahead. You can make all of that important for yourself and your child. Trust me, you won't be alone in doing so. Or you can do what Matthew Piccione did. Sit in the stands and enjoy watching your children compete. Teach them that it's team above all else, stress what it means to sacrifice and ensure them that, when you do those things and have success, the feeling of hanging a banner will far exceed any of the personal accolades think are important. And, sadly, God might choose that you won't be around to see it all anyway. Matthew didn't get to give his son a hug after he won tonight. And Jack didn't get to see the pride in his father's face. Think about that. If you are a parent, try to put your child in Jack's shoes. If God forbid your child was confronted with the same tragedy, you'd want them looking back on this sacred period of their lives the way Jack will forever recall them with his dad. Tonight was complete validation for Jack Piccione and all of the things his father always told him. Jack scored 5 points and won the MVP on his way to becoming the most decorated basketball player in Tappan Zee history. Nobody has ever won more in a TZ uniform than the most unselfish player they've ever had. He wouldn't trade his career with anyone, either. Take a moment to listen to myself and Pleasantville coach Nick Bonura from tonight's SportsEngine Play broadcast of DutchmenAthletics TZ Boys Basketball
Kevin Devaney Jr.190,979 views • 2 months ago
The best stories in sports are the long shots; the people nobody expected or overlooked who then rise to prominence. Demetre Roberts of Mount Vernon is one of those athletes. Totally passed over by D1 out of high school and then a star at St Thomas Aquinas for a D2 national power. That would have been wonderful story in itself. But what Roberts, along with coach Tobin Anderson, has done this season at Fairleigh Dickinson University — a team-best 16.7 ppg, 4.3 apg and a NCAA Tournament berth — is not just remarkable. It should inspire. As FDU prepares for tonight's Play-In Game in Dayton, take 2 minutes to appreciate why I've felt very proud to follow Demetre Roberts on this journey:
Kevin Devaney Jr.696,572 views • 3 years ago
Of all the insightful and thoughtful things Adrian Wojnarowski (aka Adrian Wojnarowski) shared during the Inside Stepinac Basketball Podcast on Wednesday, this one stuck with me the most. It was a question about sports media, but Woj applied it to all careers. He humbly kept saying he "got lucky" to do what he did as a sports writer and NBA Insider at ESPN. Of course, he has incredible talent and an unmatched work ethic, which carried him to be elite in his profession. He's applying it all now as the GM of Basketball for Bonnies Men's Basketball Working in sports media is as competitive as any field you can imagine. The rate of retiring in the field is as low as bull fighting. If you work in sports media, you will almost certainly get laid off at one point. Your company or website will likely go out of business or get bought out. You will almost certainly consider switching careers dozens of times. You will have sleepless nights, financial struggles and will often look over your shoulder. I've been there. Woj has, too. He is probably like me: approached and contacted constantly by enthusiastic young adults who want to follow in the footsteps. They want to be a broadcaster or a reporter or an NBA Insider. And like me, I bet Woj wishes he could tell them the truth about the industry, which is that the success rate is probably as low as making the NBA itself. But he offered some very real and useful advice for those trying to make it. And it applies too all careers as we enter this next era; be ready to adapt, evolve, get your heart broken and reinvent yourself. The skills that helped Woj "get lucky" in his Hall of Fame career will ALWAYS carry you through. Work hard, build relationships, be mobile and stay focused. If you're frustrated in your career or questioning profssional decisions on this Thanksgiving Day, hopefully this wisdom can get you through the day:
Kevin Devaney Jr.37,702 views • 6 months ago
I'm totally floored. In all of my years working in high school sports, I have never received a gift quite like the one I got today. My wife ran into the house this afternoon and shared this video, which players and coaches of Section 1 girls basketball created. We watched it as a family. We all had tears in our eyes. My daughters are 11 and 9, and I bring them to HS basketball games a lot. It's not just to expose them to the game so they can learn Xs and Os. I genuinely believe the community of girls playing the sport in Section 1 right now are true role models. My girls idolize players like Sophie Nascimento and Cadence Nicholas, and I want my girls to grow up and be just like them - as much off the court than on it. These players, regardless of school rivalries or AAU programs support each other in a way I just don't see in any other sport. It's a special era. And I'm grateful to be a small part of it. Thank you to Julia Scott and coach Pat Buckley of Albertus Magnus for organizing this video, and all of the girls and coaches who took the time. I don't think any of them truly understand how much it means. I love you all.
Kevin Devaney Jr.74,136 views • 1 year ago
The Tappan Zee basketball program has become synonymous with winning. Yet somehow they've been a part of so many iconic playoff defeats. On Saturday, the Dutchmen buried "the demons" and, for all the players and coaches before them, authored their greatest moment: Capturing the NYSPHSAA Class A State Championship. My video feature (8 minutes) on the win. And all the years of buildup to this moment: DutchmenAthletics TZ Boys Basketball Red Sea
Kevin Devaney Jr.140,121 views • 3 years ago
The NYS basketball tournament starts today. And it's a wonderful event to claim the state's top prize. Remember this about Section 1 and the County Center: People will hear about it if you win a state championship. But they will forever remember SEEING you win the Gold Ball.
Kevin Devaney Jr.63,296 views • 1 year ago
Final: Albertus Magnus 72, Aquinas Institute 50 in NYSPHSAA Back-to-back-to-back state titles for Falcons Athletics Sara Nezaj scored 31 points in the win. The sophomore was sensational as she takes the torch from Clemson-bound Julia Scott after tonight. Via NFHS Network
Kevin Devaney Jr.15,157 views • 2 months ago
🚨 Exciting Announcement 🚨 officially LIVE. After months of planning and building the site - the evolution of KDJBlog - we are thrilled to open the doors to the new home for local sports in Westchester, Rockland, Putnam and Dutchess counties. GameDay One will have Bracketology, scores, schedules, standings - plus far more video, articles and social media content on all of our platforms. The daily newsletter will soon be returning. We'll continue to work in conjunction with LocalLive on streaming, as well as other new partners. Our only focus is to promote athletes, teams and the communities - as we realize the vision for a complete local sports ecosystem for the Section I Athletics CHSAA and NYSAIS schools in our region. This site is a major step. None of it would be possible without the support of Veolia, our launch partner. Veolia and Bill Madden have been longtime supporters of communities in this area. We are grateful for Veolia and bill madden allowing GD1_Ryan and I to make happen. Please support Veolia by exploring their conservation program at Ideas? Business inquiries? DM me or email at [email protected].
Kevin Devaney Jr.60,700 views • 2 years ago
If you want to get caught up in the Private/Public School debate, I understand it. But please know this: There might not be a coach who cares about his players - or has as close of a connection with them - as Albertus Magnus coach Pat Buckley. His emotion tonight was inspiring.
Kevin Devaney Jr.41,451 views • 2 years ago
You want to get pumped for this weekend's NYSPHSAA Football Championships at The Dome? Inject this energy from Somers Football coach Anthony DeMatteo into your veins. Watch and try not to run through a wall on your way to out the door this morning. Let's. Go.
Kevin Devaney Jr.43,650 views • 2 years ago
