Deontae Robertson Continues to Prove He’s One of Western PA’s Most Underrated Hoopers

(Photos courtesy of Sean Gallagher)

Podcast Episode: Anchor, Apple, Spotify

(This is a similar dialogue to the first time I met Deontae Robertson in class)

N – “Hey, you’re Deontae from the basketball team, right?” 

D – “Yeah, who are you? You look familiar.” 

N – “I’m Nate Steis. I worked in Sports Information last year. You went to Alderdice, right?”

D – “Nah, man. Woody Hills!” 

N – “That’s right, my bad. How’re you guys going to be this year?”

D – “I think we can be pretty good. We have a lot of talent and our team just needs to get used to playing together.”

N – “I think so too, man. A lot of talented players transferred in and some talent returned as well.”

Fast forward 11 months later, and Robertson is now a professional basketball player who soon will head to Portugal. I knew from the first conversation we had that us sitting together in Dr. Ron Raymond’s class was going to be filled with non-stop sports talk and conversations about how he and the team were doing.

I felt like an outlet for him; a safe person he could express himself to and he felt like I wasn’t just trying to get the latest dirt on Fighting Scots hoops. Almost a year later, I still feel like I can be that person for Deontae. If it wasn’t for sports, we probably aren’t friends to be completely honest.

I’m a small town, country kid, while Robertson is an inner city kid from Pittsburgh. He grew up in an area where most people looked like him, while I grew up in an area where most people looked like me. But, basketball and school brought us together.

I think that may be the most beautiful attribute of sports; you don’t necessarily always have to be from the same area or have the same upbringing, appearance, or similarities in life to be able to speak the language of sport. I’ll always be thankful that even if I was never the best athlete myself, high profile athletes give me the time of day because I can speak their language.

What I’ve grown to know is Deontae is one of the most kind-hearted, genuine guys I’ve ever met. He’s confident, but not arrogant. He’s patient, but stern when he needs to be. He also loves Edinboro like few people I know.

In the summer of 2020, Robertson was about as low as he’d ever been. He was suddenly in the transfer portal and was not sure where to turn. But, the Fighting Scots men’s basketball team gave him the opportunity he needed to earn his degree and work towards becoming a professional.

Since he started playing ball around the age of seven or eight, he’s made it his goal to play the game for a living. Now, he’s just mere weeks away from doing that. This summer, he’s validated any doubters that may have been left as the current leading scorer of the Pittsburgh Pro-Am. This after becoming an All-PSAC West Second-Team selection.

A college career that saw him go over 1,000 points, Robertson bet on himself and earned a full scholarship to Slippery Rock after two years at Beaver County Community College. Later, he transferred to Edinboro and finished the last two years of his schooling and college career.

It’s been a wild ride, but we discuss in more detail in the latest episode of the Western PA Sports Blog Podcast. I hope you’ll enjoy the inspiring tale of Deontae Robertson 🏀