Finding a home on the hardcourt

LOVELAND, Ohio – Bobby Capobianco is used to being on the move. He was born in Orlando, Fla., but has since lived in six other states. In August 2005, his family moved to Loveland, just outside of Cincinnati. Prior to Ohio, Capobianco called Greensboro, N.C., his home.

“I lived there for six years, which is the longest I have ever lived anywhere,” he said.
Capobianco has been a welcome addition to Loveland, and he will likely end his four-year varsity basketball career as Loveland High School’s all-time leading scorer, rebounder and shot blocker.

He’s already two-thirds of the way there, just 131 points short of that feat with 11 regular season games to go.

But he isn’t getting too comfortable in Ohio either. Ten days after graduating from high school, the IU recruit will begin summer classes at IU and officially join the basketball team.

The senior said he “literally got into (his) house three days before school started freshman year,” so he isn’t bothered by yet another abrupt move.

“I’d leave after this interview if I could,” he said in a sit-down during winter break. “I’m ready.”

Though he calls his former North Carolina home “Basketball Heaven,” there has never been any doubt these last several months how much he is looking forward to putting on an IU jersey.

“One of the things that really stands out about Bobby is how much he loves Indiana, and we are excited to have him,” IU coach Tom Crean said in a statement following Capobianco’s official signing in November.

But IU was never a likely destination for the three-star forward, who says he is 6-foot-9 in shoes and between 235 and 240 pounds, even though he has been playing in the Bloomington-based Indiana Elite AAU program.

“I had always been around IU, and I thought it was a great place,” Capobianco said.

But former IU coach Kelvin Sampson never called.

Capobianco was, however, actively recruited by Crean and assistant coach Tim Buckley while the two were still at Marquette.

But Capobianco dreamed of attending a large school and playing in front of his parents, something Marquette couldn’t offer.

After Sampson left IU, Capobianco and his father joked about Crean taking the head coaching vacancy, despite the coach’s name being virtually non-existent in talks about the next IU coach.

“My dad was like, ‘There is no way,’ but then all of a sudden he got the job, and about a week later I got a call,” Capobianco said. “At that point I was set. I knew I wanted to play for him.”

On April 16, Capobianco gave his verbal commitment to Crean. On Nov. 13, he faxed in his letter of intent, officially making him a Hoosier.

“The day I signed that letter and faxed it back, that just kind of showed that all of that was worth it,” Capobianco said. “But at the same time it was kind of like, I have that much more to do.”

Capobianco’s father, Bob Capobianco, said everything that happened in early April “just all fit together perfectly.”

“I would say that I can’t think of a place that would be as good a fit,” he said. “I think his game certainly fits the Big Ten – it’s physical, hard-nosed. I think that’s one aspect of his game that fits it to a tee.”

The future Hoosier says he will do whatever is asked of him next year, whether that is to score or simply play defense and rebound.

He’s also not afraid to hit the baseline.

“I’m looking forward to the day in and the day out, going back to my dorm room and passing out because I’m that tired,” he said. “I’m looking forward to running until I can’t anymore. I think that will be awesome.”

Though his name won’t be on the IU roster for several months, Capobianco indicated that down the road he’d like his legacy as an IU basketball player to be defined by his toughness.

“If people are going to remember something, I want them to remember that I was a guy who never got outworked – that I was out there, whether someone was more athletic than me, more talented than me, whatever it might be, that I’m going to outwork them and I’m going to beat them just because (of my) will,” he said. “That’s something I’d like to be remembered as – a guy who just gave it his all, all the time, no matter the situation.”

Even when his playing days are through, Capobianco still plans to be out on the hardwood.

“I know that I want to go back into coaching,” he said. “I’ve always thought that my mental aspect of basketball has been my best feature ever since I started playing.”

Though he is unsure what he will study at IU, he already has some teachers who can help reach his dream job.  

“I think whether it’s Indiana, whether it’s Tom Crean, he will certainly have great coaching and great mentoring to help him if he chooses to follow that career path and become a college coach after he finishes out,” Bob Capobianco said.

If there is one thing his college coaches won’t have to teach him, it’s how to deal with moving all over the country. He’s got that down.