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In this 2020 file photo, 2003 Randolph Central School graduate Tim Bontemps, left, receives a commemorative ball from Cardinals’ varsity basketball head coach Kevin Hind. Bontemps played for Hind in the early 2000s.
\nP-J file photo by Tim Frank<\/p>\n
Now that high school and college commencements are in the rearview mirror, it might not be a bad idea if recent graduates follow a career blueprint similar to the one drawn up by area native Tim Bontemps.<\/p>\n
His message is simple and can be applied to any list of potential occupations.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just being willing to put yourself in a position where \u2014 when an opportunity becomes available \u2014 you have a chance to take advantage of it,\u201d he told The Post-Journal last week. \u201cA lot of times, it is something you\u2019re not going to see coming in any way, shape or form, but if you do things the right way and you prepare and you throw yourself into stuff, I think, in the end, you\u2019ll give yourself the chance to take advantage of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bontemps certainly has.<\/p>\n
Thanks to sports-writing stints covering the National Basketball Association at the New York Post, The Washington Post and, for the last eight years, at ESPN, the 2003 Randolph Central School and 2007 St. Bonaventure University graduate has already reached the pinnacle of his profession at 41 years old.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel very fortunate how things have played out in my life,\u201d Bontemps said<\/p>\n
And now he has added a new entry to his impressive resume, courtesy of a significant, just-announced career move.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was certainly not looking to leave ESPN,\u201d he said, \u201cand I only would have if an awesome opportunity came along, and that\u2019s what happened.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u0131\u0131\u0131<\/p>\n
It was made official last week. Bontemps, an ESPN senior NBA writer since 2018, is leaving the \u201cWorldwide Leader in Sports\u201d to become a strategic adviser for the Atlanta Hawks of the NBA. In that role, he will report to president of basketball operations Onsi Saleh.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnsi Saleh and (owner) Tony Ressler and (son) Nick believe that I can help a little bit and try to win some games and try to build something special there,\u201d Bontemps said. \u201cI\u2019m just really honored to be part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
The move means Bontemps, who had been a contributor to ESPN\u2019s digital and television coverage, and the co-host of \u201cThe Hoop Collective\u201d podcast (which he described as the \u201cproudest thing I\u2019ve done in my career\u201d), will be relocating to Atlanta from Manhattan with his wife, Kelley, and their young son, Dorian.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s going to be an exciting new adventure to move down there to a new place, start a new career, try to do hard things with good people and try to build a winner,\u201d Bontemps said.<\/p>\n
Not surprisingly, the son of Jeff and Ellen Bontemps knows a thing or two about teamwork.<\/p>\n
\u0131\u0131\u0131<\/p>\n
During his high school days, Bontemps was a member of Randolph\u2019s very successful varsity basketball team under head coach Kevin Hind. More than two decades later, the bond between the pair is as strong as ever.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s been in my corner for a long time,\u201d Bontemps said. \u201cWhen I went back there a few years ago and talked to the team, he totally surprised me with all the stuff he did (during that visit) \u2026 and he was one of the first people to message me (last week).\u201d<\/p>\n
Strong relationships were also forged during Bontemps\u2019 time as an undergraduate at St. Bonaventure when he served as an intern for then-Olean Times-Herald sports editor Chuck Pollock and where he eventually connected with several Bona alumni who had already made a name for themselves in the sports-writing world, including Mike Vaccaro and Adrian Wojnarowski. Interestingly enough, Bontemps started his career working with Vaccaro at the New York Post and, later, he partnered with \u201cWoj\u201d covering the NBA when they were both at ESPN.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really a close-knit group,\u201d Bontemps said of the Bona fraternity. \u201cIt\u2019s sort of like the-little-engine-that-could school. \u2026 It\u2019s neat to be a small part of that family.\u201d<\/p>\n
The little-engine-that-could description can apply to Bontemps, too. <\/p>\n
Born in Westfield and raised in Sherman and Randolph, he has successfully navigated very competitive career paths, first in journalism for nearly 20 years and now moving forward in an NBA front office.<\/p>\n
In other words, Bontemps has successfully taken to heart what a former teacher, Paul Steward, suggested before he \u2014 Bontemps \u2014 had even graduated from high school.<\/p>\n
Recalled Bontemps in a 2019 interview with The Post-Journal: \u201cI remember him writing in my yearbook, \u2018Good luck trying to pursue this field. It\u2019s incredibly challenging and a crowded business to get into. The way you have to do it is you have to work harder than anyone else.’\u201d<\/p>\n
Sound advice, Mr. Steward.<\/p>\n
Mission accomplished, Mr. Bontemps.<\/p>\n
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