The press breaker and deadly accurate free-throw shooting of the Liberty High School boys basketball team during the State 2B basketball tournament in March of 2015 produced a flashback to days of yore. You’d have thought the ghost of Ray Thacker-the Hall of Fame, Central Valley coaching legend from the early 1940s through 1971 highlighted by the Bears’ 1968 state championship-was hovering near the Lancers’ bench. Perhaps it was. After all, Thacker’s youngest son, Mike, is Liberty’s coach.
He channels much of his late father’s philosophy and some of the family
personality. “Definitely the press breaker is something I brought with me from my dad,” Mike Thacker said. “Some of my out-of-bounds offenses are what my dad ran and definitely all his ideas on shooting are a lot of his stuff . When you’re around a guy that long, a lot rubs off .” He also inherited dad’s legendary fiery temperament.
Mike Thacker cut his own swath from more than 30 years of basketball experience as both player and successful coach at four different high schools. The baby in the family and 1977 CV grad played basketball as both Bear and at Eastern Washington University for three years. When injury sidelined his career, he began coaching at East Valley while student teaching. The odyssey had begun.
Thacker moved to Tonasket from 1981-85. He spent 11 years in Moses Lake, 10 as coach, spent nearly a decade in Freeman and this year completed his sixth year at Liberty. Although he said he probably shouldn’t have taken on Moses Lake given its notoriety as a wrestling state power at the expense of basketball, he did take the Chiefs to their first state tournament in some 35 years.
They’ve only made one trip since. “It took years off my life,” he said. At Freeman, the Thacker Scotties, which hadn’t been to state in a dozen years, qualified for the State 1A tournament eight straight, placing five times and finishing as high as fourth. His career record there was 234-91.
Then, out of the blue, he was unceremoniously dropped in 2007. It resulted in a contentious and mystifying public airing despite overwhelming support by Freeman parents, a memory Spokesman- Review columnist John Blanchette described prior to the 2015 State 2B tournament as a “clumsy and unpopular coup.” Freeman’s loss became Liberty’s gain. The Lancers hadn’t been to state since 2000. They reached the state finals in 2015.
“One of my former players reminded me of something I told him a long time ago,” Thacker said, half joking. “If we had taken third place or any place other than second, we probably would have been happy. But when you (lose) the championship game, at the time, it’s such a letdown. But it’s a great feeling, don’t get me wrong. Second place is great for the kids and great for the program.” The Lancers finished the 2016 campaign with a 21-4 record, just missing the state tournament.
What else would a Thacker do but coach? It’s the family business-along with tending the apple orchard on the family’s Spokane Valley property. Among those who have followed in the family coaching footsteps include brother Jim (who won a state basketball title at Walla Walla) and is also in the Hall of Fame, sister Jo Anne Poulson, cousin John Thacker and assorted other relatives by marriage. “I was at my dad’s heels since I could walk,” Mike Thacker said. “That was a lot of basketball. He was a wonderful basketball mind long after he retired. I still use one of (the) offense
(s) he and I put together. “We were sitting at the kitchen table and arguing over the ins and outs of this offense that I use to this day.” Mike Thacker is a professed basketball junkie and plans to keep coaching as long as it’s enjoyable. Since Ray Thacker was forced into retirement kicking, it could be for a long time. He has a little kids program (K-6) in place in Spangle and a good Junior-Senior nucleus that contributed to Liberty’s 2B finals run.
“We have a good thing going right now,” he said.
