Kevin Barona

Head Coach | Pine Forest High School

[Ian Sedah Jr @Ian2Sedah]

REGION XIV HONORABLE MENTION all-conference and all-region. #AGTG @BlinnMBB @CoachSchuHoops @CoachSpeeedy

[Kevin Barona @CoachBarona]

Don’t ever doubt @coachprichett again. BACK2BACK 🏆🏆

[Charles Baggarly @swaggarly]

FINAL | Mansfield Summit 52, United 40

Jaguars win back-to-back state championships. A proven powerhouse in DFW. @JunitBasketball @MISDathletics

[MISD Athletics Dept. @MISDathletics]

.@JunitBasketball @coachprichett was awarded the @NFHS_Org State Basketball Coach of the Year Award tonight at the State Tournament!

Congrats Coach!

The Jaguars look to win back-to-back State Championships tomorrow afternoon at 1pm against Beaumont United.

[Kevin Barona @CoachBarona]

@joe_creal Will have to fly in, just make sure my boy Joe balls out for one more!

[Kevin Barona @CoachBarona]

Back2Back. See you in SATX 👀

[Lyndon Cook 🏀 @GASOLyndon]

#UIL 5AD2 State Semifinals

Mansfield Summit 52
Lovejoy 35

@JunitBasketball will get the chance to defend their title on Saturday - smothering Lovejoy’s offense with an elite defensive display in the second half, only allowing 11 points after the break.

@sneed_jaxon22 was at the heart of Summit’s success, getting to the paint consistently as he finished with 15 points and several assists.

2029 @joecreal3 helped put the game away late with 7 points in the 4th

Luke Modersohn led Lovejoy with 13 points in a valiant effort.

#GASO

[Kevin Barona @CoachBarona]

The ending of this North Crowley vs. Duncanville game 😱😱😱

[Kevin Barona @CoachBarona]

If I have the #1 pick, i’m going Boozer. Best winner out of all the lottery guys. Nothing flashy, just gets the job done.

[BJ Edwards @CoachBJ_3]

Top tier response from a college coach that I had to share…
This is straight from the source: they’re not recruiting talent alone — they’re recruiting discipline, accountability, effort, and character.

SWFL Hoopers/Families- Free Game

@CoachMelDub24

[Kevin Barona @CoachBarona]

😤

[Ian Sedah Jr @Ian2Sedah]

20p 8r

[Kevin Barona @CoachBarona]

Kingston Flemmings is crazy good. Torching a physical defense like this is impressive.

[Pine Forest Basketball @PFHS_Hoops]

Senior night was a success! Thankful for Gabe, Dre, and Isaiah for all the hard work they put in this year. Finished the night with a W! Your eagles are 4-1 in the last 5 games!! 📈

[Tom Crean @TomCrean]

Bad pass Turnovers are usually pretty obvious. Bad passes that lead to missed Shots not so much.
Every Teams stresses passing the Ball but you have to work on, emphasize and drill HOW you are passing the Ball.
The easiest part of the Game to take for granted is basic passes.

[Kevin Barona @CoachBarona]

Today is the final day to help support the Pine Forest Boys Basketball program for in-season expenses. We appreciate all of those who have donated so far!

https://t.co/w2o0VSZnnl

[Kevin Barona @CoachBarona]

🎯

[Coach Holman @CoachHolman1]

I think a lot of people think that consistent winning is about teams and players who make winning plays…

Consistent winning is much more about teams, players, and coaches who identify and eliminate the things (on and off the court) that get you beat.

[Ian Sedah Jr @Ian2Sedah]

🙏🏾

[Kevin Barona @CoachBarona]

@Justin_Mann1 Good luck this season coach!

[Kevin Barona @CoachBarona]

This right here.

[Mike Jagacki @Mike_Jagacki]

Such a bad take. Kevin Durant said defense is easy — that “anyone can bend their legs,” and that you just “have to make shots” to win a championship.

That might be the most offensively-minded nonsense ever said by a generational scorer. Because here’s the truth:

Since 2000, 22 of 25 NBA champions were top-10 in defense. 17 were top-5.
The average defensive rank of a champion? 4.1. Offense? 6.3.

The 2025 Thunder? #1 defense all year, #1 defense in the playoffs. The 2024 Celtics? #2 defense. Luka didn’t just lose — he suffocated. The 2023 Nuggets? Defense jumped from 15th to 4th when it mattered. The 2022 Warriors? #2 defense. The 2021 Bucks? #1 playoff defense. The 2019 Raptors? #5 defense.
That’s six straight champions who smothered teams before they scored.

Offense comes and goes. Defense scales and sustains.
League-wide data since 1997: Teams that finish Top-5 in Defense win the title 68% of the time. Teams that finish Top-5 in Offense? Only 24%.
Playoff offense drops by an average of –2.5 points per 100 possessions. Playoff defense improves by +3.0.
Because postseason basketball is a war of attrition — not a shooting drill.
And you want irony? The only players who’ve won two rings since 2020 are Alex Caruso, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and Jrue Holiday.
None of them are “bucket-getters.” They’re defensive savants who tilt series by denying buckets.

Meanwhile, KD’s career arc is the blueprint for why defense matters:

He won when his team was #1 in defense (2017, 2018). He lost when it wasn’t — 2012, 2021, 2023 — all top-tier offenses, all exits courtesy of better defensive units.

You don’t win because you make shots. You win because you erase theirs.
Defense is the great separator: It doesn’t depend on rhythm, refs, or shooting variance. It shows up when your legs are gone, the crowd’s hostile, and the game’s ugly. It wins Game 7s. It wins legacies.
So when KD says “defense is easy,” remember this: He never hoisted a trophy without it. He never lost to a team that didn’t have it.
It's a bad message to players, coaches and general managers.

[Kevin Barona @CoachBarona]

@CoachLaborte & kids wish they could be coached by coach Laborte!! Best in the business.

[Kevin Barona @CoachBarona]

🔥

[M.Summit Basketball @JunitBasketball]

Always great when those who helped establish our foundation and culture come back to visit. This guy was a big part in that! @MISDathletics @MISDSummitJags
#FAMILY
#TOUGH