Kendre Pride, one of the top junior two-sport athletes in the state, announced Saturday evening on social media he has transferred from Phoenix Carl Hayden to Chandler Basha.
Basha football coach Chris McDonald confirmed in a text message that Pride enrolled into the school this week.
Basha is expected this season to make a run at the Open Division state title in football. The basketball team also is on the upswing with a young, talented roster and is expected to battle for an Open Division playoff spot next season.
Pride, 6-foot-2, 175 pounds, is a top running back in football. He rushed for 1,090 yards and 16 touchdowns, averaging 11 yards a carry, in seven games as a sophomore on varsity.
In basketball, he’s a talented guard who is being recruited by colleges in that sport, as well.
Pride has a 3.9 grade-point average.
Basha has become a destination school for top football players, it appears, in the last year.
Last summer, 2023 cornerback/punt returner Cole Martin and 2023 athlete Deshaun Buchanan transferred from Hamilton to Basha. They helped the Bears go 10-0 in the regular season and reach the Open playoffs.
Early this summer, three of the top players at Mesa Eastmark — defensive end/wide receiver Javery Mayberry, linebacker/tight end Jordan Howard and running back Javien Celaya — transferred to Basha.
Unless all four are able to gain hardship through the Arizona Interscholastic Association, they’ll have to sit out the first five games of the season, before becoming eligible, per AIA transfer rules.
This is the first transfer for all four players.
To suggest human-interest story ideas and other news, reach Obert at richard.obert@arizonarepublic.com or 602-316-8827. Follow him on Twitter @azc_obert.
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