Leventhal honored Top; John Leventhal is named 2023 Foothills League Boys’ Basketball Coach of the Year. PHOTO BY SARA SANDSTROM[/caption]

John Leventhal was named the 2023 Foothills League Boys’ Basketball Coach of the Year. This award is voted on by the coaches of the boys’ basketball teams in the Foothills League. It is awarded to the coach who shows excellence both on and off the court. This is Leventhal’s first year as Nederland High School’s varsity and junior varsity boys’ basketball coach.

John Leventhal is a man of many talents. He is a teacher, coach, accomplished musician, bus driver and as his good friend Mary Joyce says, “He is all heart when it comes to kids.”

Leventhal has been employed by Boulder Valley School District for 49 years. In that time he has taught math and physical education. He has also coached a variety of sports and that is only the beginning.

The Nederland/Rollinsville area has been his home for over 36 years. Leventhal has been involved at both Nederland Elementary (NES) and Nederland Middle-Senior High School (NMSHS) for decades.

For some years in the 90s Leventhal worked with Liz Evans on the musicals at NMSHS. Evans says about Leventhal, “He is a wonderful pianist and worked on the music and the live accompaniment for the musicals.” They also worked together on the newly formed Select Choir. It is now the award-winning Loquations choir at NMSHS.

In the 90s Leventhal and Joyce coached a whitewater rafting club at NMSHS. He spent time working in the ICAN program at NES. For many years Leventhal and Joyce headed up the track and field days at NES. He has stepped up time and time again to fill in as a substitute teacher. He also officiates basketball games. Leventhal was a Nederland school bus driver for eight years. All eight years he drove Route 704. He has coached volleyball, track, and of course, basketball. He has spent all his time coaching basketball at the middle level, girls and boys…until this year.

When Leventhal accepted the position as the varsity and junior varsity basketball coach he was not convinced he had made the right choice. He says, “I had my doubts, but that dissipated quickly. These are great kids.”

He added, “Pretty immediately I felt good. I was having a great time coaching varsity/JV boys ball. I was doing something worthwhile. I really enjoyed making connections with the players and their families.”

NMSHS Vice Principal and Athletic Director Sean DePaula says of Leventhal, “John is a total class act. He teaches the boys respect for themselves, their teammates, their teachers, their school, their opponents, and the officials. Under John’s leadership, the boys have become a more disciplined and unified team. The boys played varsity for the first time in several years, and finished with an 11-7 record. This is one of the most successful basketball seasons in the last 20 years in Nederland.”

There is no question that Leventhal has great passion for the game of basketball. He also believes in teaching more than basketball. There are lessons of respect, responsibility, and teamwork that go beyond the court.

Freshman Mason Ivey says of his coach, “He is very dedicated. His passion for basketball makes you want to improve.”

Junior Rick Fortunato says, “Coach cares about the team really being together.”

Junior Gavin Dillon says, “For coach, team chemistry is important, and every aspect of the sport is important. We need to learn the fundamentals. He wants us to excel at the sport.”

Junior Kiryu Sugishita says, “He really turned our team around.”

Freshman Liam Robertson says, “I love him, first he was my bus driver, then my middle school basketball coach, now my high school basketball coach.”

Teacher, musician, bus driver, and award winning basketball coach John Leventhal is a humble man who has great compassion and empathy for kids. When he coaches he teaches more than just how to put a ball through a hoop. He teaches the whole person, the whole team. He inspires the team to work together and take the lessons on and off the court.

“In the end, it’s about the teaching, and what I always loved about coaching was the practices. Not the games, not the tournament…teaching the players during practice was what coaching was all about to me.” ~ John Wooden