Lanzi becomes 1st Hornet basketball player to sign with Division I school

Joseph Lanzi recently made a bit of history by signing on the dotted line. 

Lanzi, a 2017 graduate of Chelsea High School, signed on April 12 — in the library of his former school — to continue his basketball career at the University of Denver. He will become the first basketball player from Chelsea to play Division I college basketball.

“It means a lot,” Lanzi said. “All the hard work you put in and then being able to look back one day and say, ‘I helped shape that for other players.’”

On April 12, dozens of friends and family gathered in support of Lanzi, along with Chelsea coach Nick Baumbaugh and Lewis Brooks, assistant superintendent of administration at Shelby County Schools.

“He’s been a role model in our community and for our youth,” said Baumbaugh. “Every single part of this is really, really exciting. We’re so proud of Joe.”

“It’s a testimony to his perseverance, that he’s sitting here today signing this scholarship to the University of Denver,” Brooks said. “I’m proud to see him take these next steps in his career.”

After mulling a few different options out of high school, Lanzi decided to head to Hillcrest Prep in Arizona for eight months. He had options such as a walk-on offer from Alabama. The process left him in a bit of limbo, but Lanzi said he “learned a lot in the process.”

“I learned how to communicate with people, mainly adults, and how to read situations,” he said. 

During that time, he honed his game and worked with the likes of former NBA player Metta World Peace (formerly Ron Artest).

“It was a great experience,” Lanzi said.

Now, Lanzi will get the opportunity to play at Denver, a Sun Belt Conference program led by Rodney Billups, the brother of NBA champion Chauncey Billups.

“It was a real home feel,” Lanzi said of Denver. “The players were great when I got there, encouraging me to come and saying how it would be a great experience for me. I’ll get a great education there. I want to be a lawyer and they have agreat program.”

Lanzi, a 6-foot-4 shooting guard, cemented his status as one of the top players in program history at Chelsea with outstanding junior and senior seasons. From his sophomore to junior seasons, Lanzi’s scoring average rose from 6.7 points to 10.4 points per game. That number shot up even more, as he posted 17.1 points per game as a senior.

Lanzi was team captain his final two years at Chelsea and was voted best offensive player and team MVP as a senior. He also helped lead the Hornets to back-to-back area championships and regional tournament appearances in 2015 and 2016. 

He holds four school records and is near the top of the charts in several other categories. 

He has the most points in a season (529), most 3-point makes in a single game (eight), most career field goals (192) and most career wins as a player (55).

He’s second in school history in assists (219), third in 3-pointers (105) and steals (124) and fourthin points (963).