The thing about Frederick’s Luke Justice and a hyper-speed game that had coaches and fans alike marveling throughout the winter, is that in some ways, it still hasn’t been enough. At least for him.
The senior, always up for another challenge, refuses to rest on his laurels. Even after this latest one: The 2022-23 Longmont Times-Call boys basketball player of the year.
“I got to be better,” he says, looking forward.
It has been three weeks since the end of the basketball season and Justice says he is already head-first after his next basketball goal, which is to play in college.
For his senior year, he finished second in Class 5A scoring at 22.2 points per game, leading the Golden Eagles back to the state semifinals for a second straight time. He was first in the class in 3-pointers made with 82, which broke the school record by 21.
And that was just the box score.
His game, for those who saw it live, was eye-popping theatre at the forefront of a team seemingly playing at another gear.
On a typical night at Frederick High School, it was commonplace for the undersized guard to put away off-balanced runners and hit 3s just in front of midcourt, sometimes falling out of bounds. At just “6-foot or 6-1” per his measurements, “Swift” Justice could bury teams in a matter of minutes.
.@lukejustice23 from a MILE to end the third quarter! #StVrainStorm pic.twitter.com/D47oGABsdy
— Golden Eagle Broadcast Network (@FHSGEBN) February 25, 2023
“I think Luke had a great year and lived up to all the expectations that we thought he would,” Frederick coach Jeff Conway says. “Luke solidified himself as one of the best scorers to come out of Frederick High School.”
All of it, though, accumulated into just one college offer by the end of the season, coming from NAIA Valley City State University in North Dakota.
“Still just trying to get looks,” says Justice, who will play a bit in the summer to connect with college coaches. “Just waiting for a coach to take a chance on me.”
Adding, “I’d been letting them come to me. I feel like I got to pick up on my part.”
Consider it another challenge for a player who hasn’t proven to back down to one.
Justice scored 45 in a game and hit a school-record nine 3s in a game twice in his career.
He played his final two games on an injured ankle, then played in the state’s premier Top-20 Game as part of the all-star game, The Show. There, of course, he wowed with an acrobatic dunk.
“It’s God’s plan,” he says, looking ahead. “I just got to put my head down and keep going.”
Justice was named to the first team for the Longs Peak League and the 5A classification.
