Passing the torch (and his jersey number) at GA

It began 20 years ago. A lanky 13-year-old, uncertain about his high school future, met an up-and-coming basketball coach eager about his new job.

Within three years, the duo had turned Germantown Academy into an Inter-Ac League powerhouse.

The player, Alvin Williams, went on to have a nine-year NBA career with the Portland Trail Blazers, Toronto Raptors and Los Angeles Clippers.

The coach, Jim Fenerty, became the Patriots' winningest coach, with 360 victories and 10 league crowns.

Through the years, they have maintained a relationship that brings more joy than a lucrative NBA contract or a coaching milestone. It's a tight-knit relationship that now includes Fenerty's son, Jimmy.

"Alvin is family," said Jim Fenerty, in his 19th season at Germantown Academy. "We say that without hesitation. He's family. He will always be family."

That is evident at every Patriots practice and home game. In honor of his mentor and unofficial older brother, Jimmy Fenerty, a reserve junior guard, wears the No. 20 that was on Williams' jerseys at Germantown Academy, Villanova and Toronto.

Jimmy Fenerty has been wearing that number since he began playing organized sports. Unable to get it a couple of years ago, he did the next-best thing.

"Alvin's number was 22 his senior year," Jimmy said. "So I just wore No. 22."

But in this, Jimmy Fenerty's first season as a full-time varsity player, wearing No. 20 is significant for all involved.

"Basically, I wanted to keep it in the family," the 33-year-old Williams said. "I have been involved with this family since Jimmy was so small. And Coach has been in my life since I started playing ball on the high school level.

"So it would be such a great honor if Jimmy would wear it."

Very few would have expected this to happen in 1989. Williams was a 6-foot eighth-grader, looking to find a way out of Germantown Academy. Though he was a pure point guard, he played forward and center out of necessity on the Patriots' junior varsity team.

As a result, the Mount Airy native seriously considered transferring to Frankford, Simon Gratz or Bishop McDevitt.

Later that spring, Fenerty was introduced as the Patriots' new coach after six seasons at Bishop Egan. And after hearing rave review after rave review about Williams, Fenerty decided to attend one of his Sonny Hill League games.

"I didn't know who Mr. Williams [Alvin Sr.] was," Fenerty said. "But I'm watching Alvin play, and Mr. Williams comes over and says, 'What do you think of that kid, No. 20?' I said, 'He's a natural point guard.' He said, 'OK, he's staying at GA.' "

In doing so, Williams helped Fenerty with much more than winning consecutive league championships during the 1991-92 and 1992-93 seasons.

As a senior, he was one of the Fenertys' unofficial babysitter/playmates for Jimmy. Williams often watched after 2-year-old Jimmy in the gym while Fenerty attended meetings at the middle school. And when it came down to choosing one of his many scholarship offers, Fenerty was the person Williams went to for advice.

"It was never pressure," Williams said. "Coach Fenerty would take me to McDonald's. We would sit there and eat and talk about different schools."

Those conversations continued during his playing career at Villanova and in the pros. Whether it was in person or on the phone, Williams and Fenerty would chat at length during the highs and lows.

"When I wasn't playing well at Villanova, coach would call me and say, 'I've seen you biting your jawbone. Why are you upset?' " Williams said. "It was just those little tendencies that he would know."

Having Fenerty's shoulder to lean on will never be forgotten.

"He was just there for me, along with my dad," Williams said. "He and my dad were a team that made sure that I was going on the right track."

"I've always felt that bond with Jimmy," said Williams, who was released by Toronto in 2006 after a knee injury forced him to miss parts of three seasons. "I always felt that [Jimmy] knew that he could call me any time, like I could call his family any time."