Helpful and Bright, Laibow Stands as a Beacon to All : Agoura Guard Is a Guiding Light on Court and Off

AGOURA HILLS —  Brian Laibow is among the fortunate few who make achievement appear as easy as strolling to the corner grocery. And he will tell you so.

But the unabashed self-confidence of Agoura High’s best basketball player is tempered by a dose of empathy generous enough to splash onto anyone who meets him.

Laibow, the Chargers’ all-time assist leader, positively lives to give.

He is his team’s top scorer, but his game is defined by how he elevates the play of those around him.

Off the court, his merit is measured by the guidance he provides rank-and-file youngsters throughout his community. Dartmouth-bound and dapper, Laibow, 6 feet 4, has led a marginally talented Charger team to the top of the Marmonte League standings in his fourth season as a starting guard.

Laibow’s game is so controlled it looks as if he could coach, referee and serve as public-address announcer in addition to averaging 19 points, five rebounds and five assists. He doesn’t appear to sweat, his hair is always in place, and his thoughts are as crisp as a snappy chest pass.

“Brian is one of the most-intelligent people I know,” teammate Matt Greene said. “He knows where everyone is on the court. He’s a total student of the game. He’s an assistant coach, basically.”

Making certain each teammate contributes, adjusting his role as a game unfolds, taking charge with the outcome on the line, that’s the Laibow M.O.

“I play a secondary role early and make sure everybody gets touches,” he said. “As the game develops I let them know they can rally around me.

“Keeping my head straight, staying positive, getting my points in a natural rhythm. . . . That way nothing is forced.”

Off the court, Laibow’s peripheral vision is similarly focused searching for a kid to help with his dribbling, or his math homework, or simply his confidence level.

Laibow spends several hours a week as an academic tutor and even more time giving private basketball lessons and running clinics for the Agoura Youth Basketball Assn.

“Tutoring is the event in my life that has rewarded me the most,” he said, noting that he wrote his Dartmouth entrance essay on the topic. “It shows what I really care about.”

The endeavor is equal parts community service and entrepreneurship. He charges by the hour for tutoring and basketball lessons, and even dishes off clients to teammates. That Laibow plans to study business finance at Dartmouth is no surprise.

He has conducted four clinics for the AYBA, drawing about 140 kids, all of whom he lists on his computer along with their ages, phone numbers and the names of their parents.

Laibow loves it when after a game his charges dash up for a high-five, remembering that when he attended Agoura games in elementary school the players seemed unapproachable.

“One of the things Brian is doing is building that bridge for the kids to feel connected all the way through from youth ball to the high school,” said Dudley Herndon, whose elementary school-age sons Will and Sam take lessons from Laibow. “He wants kids to enjoy the game and to enjoy themselves. He is very sincere about it.”

Laibow has benefited from several strong coaches himself, beginning with his father, Ken. Over a four-year stretch Laibow’s youth teams--all coached by Ken--rattled off 72 consecutive victories.

At Agoura, Coach Kevin Pasky has developed a reputation for getting the most out of his teams. Fiery and demanding, Pasky was not much of a change from dear old Dad for Laibow, who joined the varsity as a freshman.

“It was a hard transition not playing for my dad, but he is similar to Coach Pasky,” Laibow said. “Very intense.”

During off-seasons, Laibow played for Rich Goldberg in the American Roundball Corp. and last summer for Roger Milstien of Team Avia. Ever the entrepreneur, Laibow persuaded Goldberg to include caps with the ARC logo in the registration package, and the two split the profit.

Laibow credits Milstien with gaining him exposure to colleges, and he admires the Beverly Hills-based Team Avia coach for the time he volunteers with high school players.

Laibow has given to Team Avia in return, tutoring several teammates, including North Hollywood’s Shannon Jones, on preparing for the Scholastic Assessment Test. Laibow scored 1,250 on his only try, which goes nicely with his 3.96 grade-point average.

His academic success was as instrumental as his basketball prowess in gaining acceptance to Dartmouth, an Ivy League school of 4,500 in Hanover, N.H. The school offers no athletic scholarships but Laibow said his financial-aid package will cover most of the $30,000 a year in tuition and board.

“Brian uses his brain to play basketball, but all these years basketball was simply a ticket to get to a fine school,” Ken Laibow said.

A player so intelligent and talented might be a tad full of himself. Early on, Laibow said he was precisely that.

“I had a real arrogant attitude as a freshman and sophomore,” he said.

Even now, he is not shy about saying matter-of-factly, “I know basketball better than anyone I play.”

Those who know him best understand he is merely saying what he believes.

“Until high school Brian was always the best player on the floor,” Pasky said. “Then in high school he was not always the best player. He had to shape his game around his teammates’ skills and he has done so very well.

“His understanding of the game enabled him to adjust sooner than most guys with his talent.”

As Laibow gradually came to terms with doing what it took to win rather than what it took to stand out, Pasky noticed another change. “Brian seems to be enjoying this season more than the last couple,” he said. “He has a natural sense of joy about him.”

Leading Agoura to a third consecutive league championship would give Laibow his greatest joy, and his legacy will be left in the school record book. He set the assist record as a sophomore and currently has 384. He is second in scoring with 1,130 points, trailing Sean Martin’s 1,355, and is third in rebounds with 280.

Another legacy will be left with the children he has tutored and taught.

Ken Laibow was out of town early this season and asked Brian to fill in and coach his eighth-grade team for a doubleheader. Initially worried about gaining the players’ respect, Brian was thrilled when the team won both games.

“I was told by parents that the kids responded to him so incredibly,” Ken said. “He was so excited they played well for him.”

Laibow is similarly rewarded when his Agoura teammates prosper. Their success in turn creates more opportunities for him.

“If I play my game, nobody is going to stop me,” he said.

On and off the court, Laibow has learned that his best game involves everyone around him.