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Amber Gray vividly remembers suiting up for Lakota West High School's girls basketball team for the first time.

It was Nov. 23, 2004, and Gray — a bally-hooed freshman — stepped on the Vandalia Butler court, unsure about what to expect out of herself.

"Nerve-wracking," Gray said. "I didn't know what I was going to do; didn't know what I needed to do. I wasn't really sure about myself yet."

Turns out, she didn't have anything to worry about.

Gray dropped 24 points on 9-of-13 shooting and grabbed 10 boards against the Aviators, thus beginning the argument that all the hype surrounding her was justified.

Gray — who participated in the McDonald's All-American Game Wednesday night, March 26, in Milwaukee, Wis. — closed out her Firebirds' career as the Lakota school district's all-time leading scorer (1,931) and rebounder (925). She also was named Ohio's Ms. Basketball and Associated Press Division I Player of the Year upon leading the program to the state finals.

And what's now certain about Gray — a 6-foot-1 forward headed to the University of Tennessee — is that she is the most decorated athlete to ever walk the hallways at West.

The road to stardom

Gray began playing basketball at age 5 in a YMCA league, and fell in love with the game immediately.

"I wasn't good at all actually to start off," Gray said. "I was a lot bigger than the other kids, that's about it."

Gray — whose first AAU team was the Shock Wave — met West coach Andy Fishman at age 10 when she joined his AAU program, the Ohio Hardwood Heat.

When Fishman watched Gray try out for the Heat's 10-year-old team, he knew she would be a can't-miss type of player.

"You can tell with young athletes," Fishman said. "Some girls have a presence about them and they stand out, and she's certainly one of them. The first time I saw her play, I could immediately tell she was way beyond her years."

Gray attended Landmark Christian school through the sixth grade, but when its doors closed, the family was stuck searching for another school district. The Lakota Local School District and West Chester Twp. seemed to be the ideal location.

"It's the total package that Lakota offers," Fishman said. "They were looking at an area that she could get an excellent education, and this became a desirable choice for them. She had friends here, strong academics and obviously our athletic program, as well-renowned as it is."

Gray — who went to Ridge, then Plains during her junior high career — knew basketball could take her a long way when she opened up her first recruiting letter in seventh grade.

"That's when I realized that basketball was what I wanted to do," Gray said.

Family support

Gray admits she wouldn't be where she is today without the backbone of her family.

Her father Carlton — a former NFL defensive back — and mother Tonya Carter have always been by her side, along with numerous other family members: grandparents, great grandparents, aunt, uncles, cousins and sisters.

"They raised me to be the type of person that I am," Amber said. "A lot of kids don't have that support group. I'm not in this alone. I'll always have people by my side."

Even when she arrives in Knoxville.

While about 15-20 family members attended every Firebirds game, Carter said someone from the family will be there each time Tennessee plays at home.

"It will somewhat be an adjustment," her mother said. "Throughout her high school career, she's had a strong group of family members there to support her. Carlton and I together have instilled family values."

Carlton was a volunteer assistant on the Firebirds' staff when Amber was a freshman, then became a full-time assistant alongside Fishman the following season.

"I'm extremely proud," Carlton said, "but obviously the basketball part is easy to be proud of. I'm more proud of the person that she is. More people come up to me and compliment her on the way she carries herself as much as they talk about the basketball.

"She's great with kids, which is the biggest thing," he continued. "A lot of these little girls look up to her. She realizes that's always more important than the stats in the basketball game."

On the court, she's unselfish — never taking all the credit, but always deferring to her teammates and coaches.

"That's how I was raised," Amber said. "You can't take full credit. It's not an individual sport. You're not playing one-on-five. It's five-on-five. You have to give a lot of credit to your teammates and coaches."

A transformation

When Gray kicked off her prep career, she was known strictly as a back-to-the-basket player.

Fast forward four years and countless practices, and she can do it all on the court.

"No one has transformed her game in the state of Ohio like Amber has since (Mason grad) Michelle Muñoz," said Tom Jenkins, founder of the Ohio Girls Basketball Report. "Like Michelle, she's gone from a block-to-block kind of player to a legitimate face-up player who's a serious threat from behind the arc among other things. She's a tremendous kid and has a tremendous work ethic."

That determination to be the best she can be drives Gray.

"I felt that she had the tools," Fishman said. "The one thing you never know when they have talent is do they have the stick-with-it-ness to cultivate that talent. Every year, Amber started working harder and harder."

When the high school season came to a close each year, Gray took no more than a week off before spending the rest of the spring and summer traveling the country with her AAU team, Cincinnati's Finest.

"There are some blessings that Amber has that are obvious," Carlton said. "Her combination of height, size, speed and strength is a rarity on the girls side. From the beginning, I've never had to coach her up on her work ethic. That makes it easier to get into the gym and do a lot of things she does to improve her game. If she doesn't have that kind of success at Tennessee, it won't be because she didn't work hard."

Off the court

The general consensus about Gray is she's genuinely kind-hearted and thoughtful away from the game. And toss in fun-loving and weird.

"It's hard to explain," said West senior Quinessa Johnson, who has known Gray for eight years. "She's funny, goofy, loves to play around.

"When she gets a chance to get away from basketball, she takes advantage of it. People can have a wrong perspective about Amber that because she's a good player, she must be cocky. She's the complete opposite. She's not big-headed. She's humble. She's the plain old Amber. Everyone doesn't know that about Amber."

Said fellow senior Emma Zieverink, "She's a really good person, and someone you want to hang out with every day. I am so grateful to have spent the last four years with her."

The next level

The next four years for Gray will be spent at Tennessee, where Pat Summitt — college basketball's all-time winningest coach, men's or women's — will oversee her progression.

"I get shocked sometimes that I'm really living the dream of any female high school basketball player," Gray said. "It's a great opportunity to play for coach Summitt, the best college basketball coach there is. I'm excited. I can't wait to get down there."

In Knoxville, the women's basketball program reigns — unusual for a college campus.

"One of the main things that made me fall in love with the school is it's all about the women's basketball program there," said Gray, who leaves June 2 to begin summer classes toward a sports management degree. "I'm ready to go down there and finally find out myself."

Contact this reporter at (513) 755-5113 or smatthews@coxohio.com.