A difficult boys’ basketball season produced an indelible memory for longtime Lone Tree Coach Tom Squiers and his family.

While coronavirus restrictions and a team with five new starters produced a forgettable win-loss record, there is no doubt his 35th season at Lone Tree will prove unforgettable for Squiers.

It was the season he had his 22-year-old son, Jovonte, on the bench with him as an assistant coach for the entire season.

“Awesome,” Tom Squiers said. “Awesome. ... I have been around, obviously, for 34 years and he played for me. Kind of knows the system but also, he has got a great basketball mind. 

“I hope at some point in time he gets an opportunity to be a head coach because he has got that mentality. But to have him on my bench, it has been special. I have loved every minute.”

Jovonte Squiers was a four-sport star at Lone Tree from 2013-17, where he earned all-state honors in football, basketball and baseball. In track, he was a two-time state champion in the long jump. After high school, Jovonte Squiers attended the University of Iowa to study athletic training, but quickly determined he would prefer to start making a living.

“College wasn’t it for me,” Jovonte Squiers said. “I just wanted to make money and not give it back to (a university).”

During Lone Tree’s district play in the 2019-20 season, Jovonte Squiers joined his father on the Lone Tree bench to fill in for an assistant coach that was ill and Tom Squiers was pleased with the way Jovonte connected with the players and accepted whatever tasks were thrown his way.

“He knows a lot about basketball and the kids really respect him with his knowledge,” Tom said. “They listen to him and it has been nothing but a pleasure to have him on the bench.”

If Tom Squiers needed to confer with an official, Jovonte could jump in and take over the team huddle.

“That is the kind of trust I have in him,” Tom said.

The coaching bug clearly has been transferred from father to son. Following the 2019-20 high school season, Jovonte was reunited with the Iowa Mavericks, an Amateur Athletic Union traveling basketball organization directed by Tyler Cleveland. Jovonte was a player with the Mavericks during his high school days, and the reunion allowed him to help coach the 16-and-under team. He will return to the Mavericks for a second season of coaching later this spring.

“It was just something that came at me one day,” Jovonte said. “And I was like, ‘Yeah, I want to coach so I would love to do this. I like to travel, so it gets me out a little more and helps guys get out and have some fun.”

That experience helped Jovonte progress into the assistant role at Lone Tree this season alongside his father. To hear Jovonte describe it, it was a fun mix of old school basketball with new school. But that is not to say there were not natural, healthy disagreements.

“What can you get from a father-son duo?,” Jovonte said with a laugh. “It’s normal. ... He is kind of still in the old school. I am in the new school, throwing new ideas at him. Saying, ‘Hey, you have got to check this out. Teams are starting to do this. This is the new style. Let’s look at that.’”

It remains to be seen whether the pair will reunite again for the 2021-22 season, which would be the 36th for Tom at Lone Tree.

“To be honest, I thought his last year would have been my year,” Jovonte said with a laugh. “But he loves the game. ... It is something I could see him doing maybe another year or two, or this could be it. I don’t know. It is something him and my Mom will probably talk about.”

Jovonte has an eight-month-old daughter, so he has other factors in play that affect all his decisions. But both father and son would like to see a possible varsity high school head coach position in Jovonte’s future.

“Yeah, for sure,” Jovonte said. “Any time I would love to be a varsity coach, head coach for sure. If my Dad is right beside me, even better. We just flip roles, that would be cool. We’ll see where the road takes me down after this year. Could be possible, could not be possible. So we’ll see.”