After finishing its most successful season in 17 years, the Grady basketball team was left with a serious hole: its coach, Douglass Slade, was retiring from the job he had loved so much for more than 30 years, and it was unknown who would replace him. Finally, after a period of uncertainty, the person chosen to continue Slade’s legacy was Brian Weeden.

Weeden, a native of Alabama, is no stranger to the sport of basketball. He played basketball throughout all of his earliest school years. He worked his way up to the collegiate level, playing as a guard at Miles College, before transferring to Alabama State University. After college, he decided he wanted to stay involved with the sport.

“I decided to try something new, simply because I love sports,” Weeden said. “They mean that much to me.”

Weeden received a coaching job at Enterprise High School in Enterprise, Ala., shortly after applying. There was a catch, however: not only would he be a basketball coach, he would also be a quarterback and safety coach for the Enterprise football team.

“As much as I love football, I’m more of a basketball guy,” he said.

When Weeden was involved in the basketball season, his team was much more successful. As a coach for the Enterprise basketball team, he led the Wildcats to an outstanding 24-7 record, taking them all the way to the regional championship game in the playoffs. After a heartbreaking defeat, he decided it was time to change things up once again.

Rodney Howard, assistant principal, formed a student-athlete panel which, along with Grady administrators and coaching staff, interviewed many candidates for the open basketball coach position. As the interviews came to a close, Weeden’s impressive basketball history, coaching career and quick improvements to the team at Enterprise stood out, allowing him to become the newest addition to the athletic department.

“It was somewhat difficult because we got a late start [on the search],” said Howard. “But it became clear that [Weeden] was different from the other applicants. He was well prepared, very knowledgeable of the game, and he has the potential to go above and beyond the call of duty to be the best he can be.”

Of the many options available to him, Weeden chose Grady to have a new experience in the city of Atlanta.

“It might take some getting used to here in the city, but I would choose Grady High over many schools because it is such a great school. It keeps students busy academically, and it’s good to see that the administration is behind the students and teachers 100 percent,” Weeden said.

So far, Weeden has received a very warm welcome, especially from many members of the varsity basketball team.

“I really didn’t know that much about him,” said senior Brandon Watkins, the starting center for the Knights. “But I’m getting to know him more. He truly knows what he is talking about when it comes to basketball.”

As a coach, Weeden has high expectations for this year and the years to come.

“My intention is to build the basketball program here at Grady, and nothing less than a state championship is desired. We must prepare to win every game,” he said. “As far as my students go, I want them to be student athletes by excelling in and out of the classroom, and I want to help them grow up to be ready for their futures. I just want them to be successful in everything they do.”

Weeden considers himself a “defensive-minded” and “old school” coach.

“You could say that I’m tough on my players,” said Weeden. “But I don’t consider myself strict. However, there are rules that apply and should be followed.”

As the basketball team prepares for another successful year, it has many expectations for the new coach.

“Hopefully he can get us into more tournaments to give us more exposure to prove that we can compete with the top teams in the state,” Watkins said. “Maybe we could even get some new goals or utilities to work with.”

Grady will likely still encounter many rivalry teams this season, such as Decatur, North Clayton, and APS rival Washington. But as Grady moves from class AAA to class AAAA, bigger and better teams pose a new threat for the Knights.

“We’re ready for the challenge,” said Watkins. “We play many teams that we have played before, and our team is very solid this year.”

Weeden said he knows what he must do to overcome this challenge.

“We just have to work hard,” he said. “Hard work is absolutely necessary for success.”

Outside of school and coaching, Weeden enjoys a “simple” life, filled with activities such as working out, playing basketball with friends, fishing, and enjoying fraternity brotherhood as a member of the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity. As he plans for the future, he knows he must fill the role of a Grady icon and legend.

“Nobody can replace [Coach Slade],” said Weeden. “All I can do is teach my athletes life lessons and work towards leading Grady to a long-desired state championship.”

As the days of seeing Coach Slade on the sidelines come to a close, this is not an end, but a new beginning.

“It will still take some getting used to being without Coach Slade,” Watkins said. “[Slade] was like a father figure for us, but we have to work with what we have. As long as [Weeden] works with us and shows us that he cares, we all can work towards building a relationship with him and give him our all.”

As Grady continues to move forward, Howard is extremely confident in the new coach.

“He’s young, and he seems to have that winning demeanor that a coach must have,” said Howard. “He clearly has a plan to make his own adjustments from [Slade] this year. You can’t replace a coach like [Slade], and everybody has to be themselves. What Weeden must do is establish his own home here, and he can be the one that takes us over the hump to win that long-desired state championship.”