Scott Novak

Scott Novak has spent much of the past two decades studying and preserving
the rich basketball history at La Conner High School.
He’s also been a big part of that history, having guided both its boys’ and girls’
teams to multiple State Tournament appearances. A rarity anywhere, Scott
simultaneously coaches both squads—and has managed to strike an ideal
balance doing so.
Consider that his 2013 La Conner boys’ team placed fourth at the State 2B tourney and his 2015
Lady Braves finished a program-best third at Spokane. Like any coach, Scott constantly eyes the
future, always looking ahead to the next game or season, but what helps set him apart is his
appreciation of the past.
Scott’s research and mining of local archives has allowed him to convert part of the foyer at Landy
James Gym into a Wall of Fame honoring many of La Conner’s top all-time players. He has also
compiled for display La Conner High team photos dating back nearly a century. A remarkable
commitment from the Adna High alum, whose alma mater is often paired against La Conner in
tournament play.
But now Scott and his wife Susan’s family tree is deeply rooted in La Conner. Their son, Spencer,
now a guard at Skagit Valley College, in Mount Vernon, was an All-State performer for the Braves.
Their daughter, Katie, was a three-point specialist for back-to-back La Conner High entries in the
State girls’ bracket. Scott arrived in La Conner in 1988, having taken a fairly circuitous route. After
making his mark at Adna, he played collegiately first at Centralia College and then at Simon Fraser
University. His first two years at La Conner were spent with the boys’ junior varsity. Scott led the
JVs to a combined 30-5 record and then moved up to the boys’ varsity. In 21 seasons at the Braves’
helm—a tenure interrupted by a brief two-year stint as an assistant at SVC—Scott has compiled a
356-167 record with 11 league titles, three District crowns, and 14 State appearances.
He added coaching the La Conner High girls’ varsity team to his duties in 2007, a dual role that
sometimes made scheduling stressful, but allowed him and his players to reap double the dividends.
Scott has guided the Lady Braves to a 136-43 ledger, five league and three District championships,
and three State trips. The Braves have gone 158-46 over the same time period. Still after 522 wins,
Scott deflects attention borne of that success from himself to his players and assistant coaches. In
much the same way the Wall of Honor and pictorial history of La Conner basketball focuses on the
achievements of others.
“One of the things I take great pride in,” Scott says, “is 12 of the 24 assistant coaches we’ve had
here at La Conner have been former players of mine. To me, that’s very special.”
“What I’d really like to emphasize,” he says of his Hall of Fame induction, “is this isn’t just about
me. In my way of thinking, it’s more about the many people at La Conner who’ve helped me out
over the years.”