For Brookline boys’ basketball players, it’s ‘post’ or ‘perimeter’

"That's about as far as we go," said Day, in his fourth year at the helm.

"We kind of have a running joke this year; I have one kid we call a forward and everyone else I've listed as guards."

Last Friday night, before a 69-45 win over Bay State Conference rival Walpole, five 'guards' were announced as starters.

"We don't really have that much size and everybody plays everything anyway," added Day.

Day's philosophy is becoming increasingly popular among coaches to capitalize on players' athleticism and versatility. It starts at the youth level, where players are bouncing around the court as quickly as the ball itself.

"Youth coaches are getting the message not to pigeon hole kids," said Day, who led Brookline to a 15-7 season in 2014-15. "All kids are practicing all skills, so by the time they get to a higher level they're more used to doing lots of different things than they have been in the past.

"If you have a kid who suddenly sprouts up, he's already been doing his dribbling and outside shooting skills so he doesn't lose those. Even if he's always been big, if he's been doing those kinds of drills since he was young he's gonna have both the inside and the outside game."

Day has one player who excels at shifting from the post to the perimeter in 6-foot-3 senior Ronan Schwarz . The team's second-tallest player, Schwarz is a lights-out perimeter shooter who also has the ability to be an overpowering inside presence at both ends of the floor because of his strength.

"We have guys that can do everything," said Schwarz, who averaged 16 points per game last season.

"[Against Walpole] we had a [5-foot-10] wing player playing great defense on the other team's center. We play five guards out on the wings, anyone can get it and score."

Schwarz has committed to play at Colby College next year and acknowledged that the Mules' coaches were enamored with his ability to play anywhere on the court.

"Part of what Colby liked about me was that I could stretch the floor and play positions one through four basically," he said. "That's something that I've really been priding myself on."

In seniors Eric Sellew and Austin Hoey, Concord-Carlsile has two players who can seamlessly shift positions from possession to possession.

"It just allows us to do so many different things offensively," said C-C coach David Cohen, who guided the Patriots to last year's Division 2 Central final against Marlboro.
"It allows us to really be successful against a number of different types of defenses."

The 6-7 Sellew, who averaged 22 points and 14 rebounds a game last season on his way to earning MVP honors in the Dual County Small, has grown seven inches since his freshman year.

The Amherst College recruit started his career at guard and his ball-handling skills have carried over, while his size now allows him to be a strong post presence, earning him the uncommon title of "point-center" from Cohen.

"If I have a bigger guy defending me, I will usually spend most of my time on the perimeter, either driving or taking the outside shot," said Sellew, who also led the DCL in assists last season. "If a smaller guy is covering me, I will usually stay in the post.

"My length helps me get to the basket easier on the outside, while also helping me score easier around the hoop."

Hoey's athleticism and versatility, meanwhile, stretches much farther than the court.

A two-time conference all-star on the court, the 6-3 Hoey is also a three-time all-star in football and a two-time all-star in lacrosse.

"Playing other sports definitely helps a lot," said Hoey. "The knowledge of spacing and getting the general concept of the game, that helps me be able to bounce around to every position.

"I'm not gonna take over a game down low or take over a game up top, but [Cohen] trusts that I'll get the job done at each position and I'll make the right play."

The starting quarterback for the football team, Hoey is also a natural at directing the Patriots' offense on the court.

"He's everywhere," said Cohen. "He really can do everything, forward, point guard; he's on the bigger side for a guard but he's just got incredible court vision. He's the most natural in-the-flow player that we probably have ever had in terms of his ability to see things as they develop.

"In any game, he can play every single position."

St. John's Shrewsbury coach Bob Foley has seen the game evolve during his five-plus decades on the sidelines — he has been a head coach for 53 years, the last 36 at St. John's — and tends to tailor his teams toward the types of athletes he has on the roster.

Unlike Brookline, he has maintained traditional positions but does have one player, senior Adham Floyd, who plays small forward and both guard positions.

Foley said a player that juggles different positions during a game has to, "know the game, know the different things that are expected out of a certain position."

"[Floyd] can hit the three, he drives to the basket real well, he's an excellent passer, and he's a real ball hawk on defense. He does a little bit of everything out there."

And these days, that is music to any coach's ear.

Five high school boys' basketball teams to watch this season, listing final 2014-15 record.

■  Concord-Carlisle (18-5): After runs to the Division 2 state final and the Central final the past two seasons, the Patriots are shooting for the finishing touch behind seniors Eric Sellew and Austin Hoey.

■  Franklin (18-4): Seniors Tim Prunier and Kevin Gill will help fill the void left by Marcus Giese, who led the Panthers to the Division 1 Central semifinals last season.

■  Marlborough (21-4): After last year's loss in the Division 2 state final to Danvers, the Panthers have plenty of motivation for a repeat run with sophomore forward Chris Doherty.

■  Newton North (22-3): Despite the graduation of Globe All-Scholastic Tommy Mobley (Phillips Exeter), second on the program's career scoring list, the Tigers remain in prime position with sophomore guard Ethan Wright and Nate Hollenberg .

■  St. John's Shrewsbury (19-4): The Pioneers are minus their three top scorers from a squad that advanced to the Division 1 Central final last season, but with senior guard Adham Floyd back, they expect another deep postseason run.

Eric Russo can be reached at eric.russo@globe.com.