GREEN BAY — A star at Green Bay Southwest high school who walked on at UW-Green Bay and eventually turned into a scholarship player.
Redshirt Freshman guard Lucas Stieber, the Grandson of former Phoenix Coach Dick Bennett and nephew of Green Bay’s All-time leading score, Tony Bennett, announced a few weeks ago that he was entering the transfer portal. With UW-Green Bay, Stieber averaged four points, three assists and two rebounds in 24 minutes per game this past season.
NBC26 sat down with Stieber to figure out what's next.
“I’ve loved my time at Green Bay," he said. "I just kind of figured that it was my time to move on just kind of looking for something else. I’ve never been out of the Midwest and experienced new things.”
It wasn’t an easy decision for Stieber. With three years of eligibility left, he talked with his family and after week’s of contemplation he decided that this was the best direction for him.
“It was a little weird going to (Phoenix head coach Will Ryan's) office and (say) ‘hey this is the direction I’m going, this is what I’ve decided for my career.' They were super supportive and they want me to find a school I’m happy at and play my game at.”
You would think going from walk-on to a scholarship player would be his favorite memory with the Phoenix.
“I think financially that’s the best memory," he laughed. "There’s so many memories, there’s so many people I have to thank for my three years.”
It’s actually the relationships he made within the program. From his mentors when he joined the Phoenix to the freshman he mentored over the past few years.
“Those are some of the memories that I’ll cherish forever," he said. "Hopefully in 10 to 15 years I’m still close to some of these guys and say we’re brothers.”
Stieber is excited about going to another school and earning his master’s degree, but after graduation, he wants to follow in his family’s footsteps and be a coach. He wants to continue to grow his knowledge of the game from the school's staff he joins.
“I really want to get into coaching," Siteber said. "I guess it’s like a family gene or family trait. If you’re a boy you just get it. That’s really what I want to do and playing at the highest level that I can play at."
As for what he’s looking for in his next program, he wants to be a pass first point guard and most importantly a great teammate on and off the court.
“I’m not looking somewhere and (say) 'Hey, I want to do this, do this basketball wise.' Because that stuff takes care of itself. Minutes, stats, I mean who cares about that stuff. You just want to go somewhere and contribute to wins and who does stuff the right way.”
Stieber said he will likely be making a decision about his next school come mid-May.
