If there was ever a young man playing with the proverbial “chip on their shoulder,” that award clearly belonged to 6’6 ’18 Kenyon “KD” Burt of the NC Runnin’ Rebels. In the Grassroots TOC 16U ACC championship game against Team United EYBL, the 6’6 workhorse simply put on a blue-collar effort that was very impressive. Burt finished with a game high 26 points and corralled 13 rebounds. His presence was clearly felt on both ends of the court and he completely dominated the boards in the 79-66 championship win. In our opinion, Kenyon Burt simply “out worked and out willed the opposition” in allowing his team go a perfect 5-0 record in which they were never seriously challenged.
Coach Aaron Clyburn summed it up best when he stated, “KD plays with a high motor and has the ability to do everything on the floor. He played in the post in many of his younger years and even for his high school team so is a very effective player around the basket. In addition to that he is very efficient playing on the wing as he handles the ball very well, can get to the basket and finish at the rim, and has made great strides with knocking down the outside shot. With Thomas Allen heading to Brewster I’m expecting for him to have a HUGE year this upcoming high school season.”
Last season, Burt averaged a double/double for Garner High School. He averaged 16.6 PPG, 13.5 RPG, and 2.3 BPG. So far this season for the NC Runnin’ Rebels, Burt is also averaging a double/double for coach Aaron Clyburn with 17 PPG and 11 RPG. While these numbers are quite impressive, it only begins to tell the story about Kenyon Burt. Burt brings a high level of energy and effort that is not often seen by his peers, not to mention that chip on his shoulder.