Standout brothers stick together on and off the court

by A. David Dahmer Madison Memorial High School has been a state basketball powerhouse for the last five years. Every year, Memorial has been one of the boys' high school team that other teams in the state want to beat — if not the team to beat. A key part of the team's success has been the Maymon brothers, Devonte and Jeronne. The Madison Times caught up with them shooting hoops at the Boys and Girls Club on Jenewein Road near Allied Drive recently. The brothers have played together on the Spartans' varsity team since Jeronne, a starting forward for the Spartans, was as a freshman and Devonte, a starting guard for Madison Memorial, was a sophomore. The brothers are clearly tight, sharing each other's triumphs and successes along with their pains and frustrations.   Tim Maymon poses between his sons, Madison Memorial standout basketball players Devonte (left) and Jeronne Maymon. One frustration came very recently, in front of a 14,000-plus crowd at the Kohl Center and a statewide television audience, when the Wauwatosa East Red Raiders shocked the state with a 58-56 overtime victory over Madison Memorial in the WIAA Division 1 state championship game March 8. The loss came despite Jeronne's outstanding individual effort — 33 points and 17 rebounds — for Madison Memorial. "It was a good experience, any time you go the state tournament," says Jeronne, who was named The Associated Press Wisconsin Player of the Year for 2007-08 by a statewide panel of media members after the game. "We had a real good feeling going into the tournament: We was really vibin'. We just didn't finish the deal." It wasn't the first heart-wrenching loss for the brothers and the Spartans, who also lost in the 2006 WIAA State Finals to Oshkosh West. "It's hard," says Devonte, who was the Spartans' third-leading scorer in the championship game.  "I've been there three times, and two of the times we came back with the Silver Ball [second-place trophy]. "The ball didn't bounce our way. It's hard when you get that close — to anything in life — and you don't pull it out." That was the last chance for Devonte, who is off to college next year, and that seems to gnaw at Jeronne. "I feel connected with my brother on and off the court," he says. "It's going to be really different next year without him. I wish we could have gotten the state championship for him." The bond between the Maymon brothers runs deep and has gotten closer and closer over the years. The boys have been playing basketball together ever since they can remember. Sometimes the one-on-one games growing up could get pretty heated; they always were very competitive. "We'd play a series of 10 to 12 games; and I'd be like, 'Eight to four!' and he'd be like, 'No, I won five!' We'd get in some heated arguments," Jeronne says. "And we'd be talking to each other for days after the games: 'Remember when I broke you off?' and he'd be like, 'When? I don't remember that.' And we'd argue some more." In a cruel twist of brotherly fate, younger brother Jeronne started his growth spurt earlier than Devonte, in seventh grade. "I grew quite a bit, but I was still a little fat," Jeronne recalls, laughing. "I was a chubby little character." But that growth spurt would forever affect their one-on-one games. "I started to dominate him," Jeronne laughs. "He dominated the post," corrects Devonte, who stands 6 inches shorter than his little brother. "But he couldn't stop me from outside." Their fierce rivalry and constant competing against each other with their different styles throughout their adolescent years made them both all-around better players over the long run. Jeronne was forced to work on his outside game and to play against a smaller, quicker opponent — something that has made him a much better player in high school and will help him even more in college, when the opponents get taller and he will be forced to play more of a perimeter game. "Playing against Devonte, I had to learn how to penetrate and get to the hole against a guard, and how to finish my shots around the hoop," Jeronne says. And Devonte got plenty of work on getting his shot off against a tall opponent. "Playing against Jeronne taught me how to maneuver myself to shoot the ball over a bigger, taller defender," Devonte says, "and how to guard a bigger, stronger person." "The competition has made them both better and has made them work even harder. I'm very proud of both of my boys," says their father, Tim Maymon. "They both have great futures ahead of them, as long as they keep academics first." Maymon has big dreams for his sons, which he knows can be quickly squashed with one foolish move, one bad decision, or one bad influence that may sneak into their life. He also knows that people are talking about them all the time, which for young men is something that can go right to their heads. "I keep them grounded on a daily basis. I talk to Jeronne and Devonte regularly," Maymon says. "Their mother and I stress how important God is in their life, and we try to keep them grounded in church."  "Sometimes I'm a little strong-handed when it comes to discipline, because I know what they can do and I don't want to see them throw it all away with a friendship or a dumb mistake by somebody else's actions," he adds. "We joke around a lot, we have a lot of fun, and we have a great relationship — but I keep the boys grounded." And the Maymon brothers don't shoot hoops at the Allied Drive Boys and Girls Club just for show; they truly are a part of the Madison community. "The community has helped raised these kids," Maymon says, speaking specifically of Club TNT (Today Not Tomorrow) which creatively reaches out to young people ages 10 to 18 through the vehicles of music, dance, and poetry, and which the boys were a part of during their youth. "We've been blessed to have a lot of different entities in the kids' lives, to keep them moving forward," he added. And the boys know that as star basketball players in the local community, all eyes are on them constantly, especially those of young kids. "We definitely see ourselves as role models, and we watch what we do when we're in the public eye," Devonte says. "We have a lot of little kids asking us for autographs. We're in the public eye, and people are making constant judgments on us, so we have to humble ourselves and always watch what we say around people." The boys have been eating, drinking, and sleeping basketball since a very early age. Their break from basketball is actually occurring right now — spring break. What do they like to do in their spare time? "Chillin'," and "hanging out," they say. "I like movies," Jeronne says, when asked to expand upon "chillin'". "There's been a bunch of great movies that have come out lately." "We'll drop them off at a party here or there, but we have to meet the parents and make sure it's going to be a safe party," Maymon says. "We do a lot of checking up." "I'm the type of father who likes to get involved," he adds.  "I hope the boys will be able to go on to college and say, 'Dad wouldn't allow this,' and 'Dad kept us focused on our goals.'" Devonte, who will start college in the fall, has had plenty of offers from Division II schools. Papa Maymon says he appreciates the offers, but he feels that his son has Division I talent. Division I schools South Carolina State, Northern Michigan, and South Dakota State have already expressed interest. "We're looking at some schools in Texas and at Valparaiso University," Maymon says. ""He has made a great statement in the [WIAA state] tournament, so that's a plus. And he's going to keep playing and getting better. As long as he's not signed, he can play two tournaments of AAU this summer, in Arkansas and [in] Houston, Texas." Devonte knows what he has to do to bring his game to the next level.  "I need to lift [weights], obviously, and just keep working on my all-around game, because you're never as good as you think you are," Devonte says. "Practice makes perfect, so I'll keep working over the summer. I'm looking forward to playing at the next level and seeing how far I can go. I'm confident I will continue to get better and better, and the sky will be the limit if I work hard." "I think he's going to have a great year outside of Jeronne," adds Tim Maymon. "The attention has always been on his brother, but once he leaves it won't be: 'Look at Jeronne Maymon's brother. They've always been labeling him that. I think that college will be great for him, he will sprout out, and people will say, 'Where did he come from?'" The younger Maymon, with all his fantastic statewide honors - Jeronne earned 2007 Associated Press and Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association Division 1 All-State honors to go along with his other honors —has an all-around game that is fairly complete and polished, but he'll spend the off season working on improving his free-throw and 3-point shooting and trying to get stronger. He is already a popular recruit with national basketball powerhouses like Wisconsin, Marquette, Florida, Texas, Iowa, Baylor, and Iowa State already expressing interest, but Jeronne's focus is still on high school — particularly on some unfinished business.  "It's a guaranteed state championship for Madison Memorial next year," Jeronne smiles. "It has to be. I can't lose again." Jeronne has promised Madison Memorial Coach Steve Collins that he was going to win a championship for him; he just didn't tell him when. "That's true," Jeronne laughs. "I won't be leaving Madison Memorial without a championship." "Get that title for me, Baby," Devonte adds with a smile.