A standout guard with the Windsor Lancers men’s basketball crew that would capture four national championships in a span of five years, from 1963 to 1967, Sudbury native Angelo Mazzuchin was inducted into the Windsor Alumni Sports Hall of Fame in 1992.

For as much as he is more well-known for his curling prowess, Chucker Ross was also a key cog in the Sudbury Merchants team that captured the Senior B Eastern Canadian Basketball Championship in 1956. He is also a hall of famer, inducted into the Sudbury Sports Hall of Fame a little over a decade ago.

That’s pretty good genetics in play for recent MacLeod Public School graduate Quin Mazzuchin.

If the 14 year old can find a way to combine elements of the skill sets of both of his grandfathers, the Lo-Ellen Park Knights are likely to have themselves one heck of a point guard. Whether by nature or nurture, Mazzuchin has always thrived on the basketball court.

“I can remember just playing with my own basketball net out here in the driveway, being really young,” said the youngest of the three children in the family (Dylann is with the Laurier Golden Hawks while Dax is heading into grade 12 at Lo-Ellen). “I wasn’t that talented – but every time I would make a basket, I would yell at my mom.”

“Looking back, it’s really cool to see where I am now.”

Mazzuchin is currently among the leaders of a talented Sudbury Jam crew that also includes the likes of Adam Scott and Oak Runia, even as he plays up one year. A very familiar face in the gymnasiums at Laurentian University prior to the pandemic, the 5’6” ball-handling wizard slides in nicely with the older crowd.

“I was always playing with kids that are older than me and taller than me, so I got used to it, being shorter.”

Thankfully, there is a natural athleticism that rises to the forefront, one that allowed Mazzuchin to also shine on the soccer pitch as well as in track and field during his time at MacLeod. “I remember winning every single meet one year for the triple jump, except for my last one,” he said, noting that he did set aside time to practice with both his mother (Julie) and his brother.

“I had an interest in soccer when I was really young, but nowadays, it’s just basketball.”

In fact, he absolutely does not attempt to conceal in the least his long-term aspirations.

“I want to go far in basketball, I want to go really far,” said Mazzuchin. “I need to get stronger. As I said earlier, I’m a smaller guard, so I will need to get bigger and learn how to use the contact.”

With his father (Chris) standing 6’4” and Dax right on his heels at 6’3”, there is obviously plenty of hope for a growth spurt. In the meantime, the youngster looks to take advantage of every opportunity to improve, even if the level dictates a different kind of progression in going from MacLeod to the Jam.

“With school ball, I expect to be the leader in that situation,” he said. “Not everyone will be as skilled as the guys with the Jam. I try and focus on making people around me better. When I play for the Jam, it’s for me to get better, but when I play school ball, I focus on getting my teammates better.”

Basketball is #1 in his books, to be sure. But just as he had at MacLeod, Mazzuchin will at least sample an array of sporting opportunities as he makes his way to the south-end athletic powerhouse.

“I’ve always been a huge fan of football, so I want to play that,” he said. “I know a lot of the teams, I love watching it – but I’ve played with my friends only. I want to be a receiver, so I’m going to have to be quick. And I’m going to do track, maybe long jump and triple jump – those are my favourites.”

And maybe a generation or two down the road, the genetics of Quin Mazzuchin will remain in play as his children or grandchildren follow in the impressive footsteps of those who came before.