SAN JOSE - Walter Bateast had one distinctive physical trait when he turned out to play Piedmont Hills basketball as a freshman - a huge tattoo across his torso that reads "WALTER."
"We were playing shirts and skins and Walter had this large tattoo across his chest," Pirates coach Pete Simos said. "I said to my assistant 'Oh, man, this kid might need more attention than the average player."
Bateast, an academic failure at first, received that extra focus. That's the main reason he'll be suited up Wednesday at 7 p.m. and starring as Piedmont Hills (19-3, 11-1) hosts Leigh (21-1, 12-0) in a pivotal BVAL-Santa Teresa game. Leigh won the first game between the teams, 45-43.
"Walter has a great mother and she's raised him well," Simos said. "But he struggled academically his ninth grade year and failed multiple classes. He was ineligible as a freshman and I had to sit down with him and ask him if he wanted to be a student athlete or a kid who drops out and doesn't care."
Bateast, now a 6-foot-2 force on the basketball court, chose the former. He worked with private tutor Alonzo Martinez - a former Pirate player and now member of the coaching staff - two to four hours a night until he was back on track academically. Simos used his entire coaching stipend to pay Martinez.
In the fall Bateast will pack up his jump shot and attend Otero Junior College in La Junta, Colo. where he has a full ride.
"Alonzo was a good student and he worked with Walter until he understood what he needed to do to be successful," Simos said. "Walter is not a stupid person. He just didn't know what he had to do. Now he's on pace to graduate. He's a great example of a kid who needed athletics to get going in the right direction."
That right direction includes averaging 19 points, 12.2 rebounds, 3.5 assists and two steals per game. He also has made more than 40 3-pointers.
"He leads us in points, rebounds, steals and assists - do you think he might be our best player?" Simos said with a laugh.
Bateast was far from a finished product when he arrived at Piedmont Hills after living in both Louisiana and Stockton. He didn't play as a youngster, but by seventh grade was already 5-foot-10 and the court beckoned.
"I was not that good at all," Bateast said of those early days as a middle school player in San Jose. "Shooting, dribbling and lay-ups were hard. About all I could do was grab a rebound."
The man-child kept at it, joining an AAU team and traveling extensively. One trip took him out of state on Thanksgiving, prompting Bateast's mother Regina Jules to tell the coach "Coach, that's my baby you're taking away."
"Walter was raw when he got to us, but he was a hard worker and dedicated," Simos said. "Basketball was the biggest thing in his life outside of his mother. He enjoys going out and working on his game. He didn't have as much experience as other kids but he wasn't burned out from playing since he was 7 years old."
The diligence has paid off. By sophomore year he had a grip on his studies and made an impact on the court, averaging 6.8 points and 7.7 rebounds per game on a 28-4 team. Then Bateast fully arrived his junior year, averaging 14.9 points and 10.3 rebounds on a 24-8 squad, including a 29-point, 15-rebound outburst against South San Francisco.
In a recent blowout victory at Willow Glen, Bateast converted putbacks, showed strong inside moves, drained a 3-pointer, took rebounds, fed open teammates, played voracious defense and even dived for a loose ball.
"Other teams collapse on him and Walter is unselfish," Simos said. "He'll hit teammates right in the hands. He's one of the best passers I've ever coached. He's also unbelievably strong. And he reads passes on defense. He knows the other team's offense better than they do. He jumps passing lanes."
At home, Walter is not "The Beast," but more like a teddy bear around his mom who has a job transporting disabled seniors.
"Me and my mom are really close," Bateast said. "We're like best friends. She's been with me more than anyone else and has been through everything like all of the moving and struggling in school."
Bateast amuses his mother, wrestling with his 5-foot-7 older brother Tarabio and humorously subduing him with one hand, like a tiger pawing a kitten; or letting his 16-month-old nephew Tristan traipse around in one of his size 15 sneakers.
"Walter is softer than what people think," she said. "He has a strong exterior, but he's the baby of the family and when the other kids have gone away, he'll say 'It's OK mom, I'll stay at home and be with you.'''
