Colt Almodova is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Arcadia High School for AZPreps365.com

It was a Tuesday night on Dec. 4, 2018, when the Arcadia Titans were on the road to face the Desert Mountain Wolves. However, for one Titan, a different path lay in the road ahead.

It was only the fourth regular season game in his first year after transferring to Arcadia High School when Max Majerle jumped up to defend a Wolves shooter and came down awkwardly on his left knee. A day later, a CT scan confirmed that Max suffered a torn ACL and his sophomore season was over in the blink of an eye.

It was at that moment when Majerle reached the turning point in his basketball career. From the very beginning, Max was focused on getting back on the court and instantly began his nine-month recovery process.

“He just worked his butt off,” Arcadia basketball coach Stephen Danford said. “He attacked his rehab within days after surgery.”

Titans head coach Stephen Danford (left) alongside Max Majerle (right) (Stephen Danford photo/Arcadia)

On Dec. 3, 2019, almost a year after he suffered the injury, Majerle made his comeback to the court when he suited up for Arcadia’s regular season home opener against Prescott. Majerle dropped 25 points in the Titans’ 73-31 victory over the Badgers.

“When he came back, his jump shot had improved, his vertical had improved, and he really hit the weight room hard,” Danford said.

As a junior, the 6-foot-4-inch, 185-pound Majerle tallied 13 points, five rebounds, and three assists per game as shooting guard for the Titans. Arcadia was one of the best teams in the 4A last season, highlighted by its postseason run to the state quarterfinals where the Titans fell to St. Mary’s 63-50.

“That injury has really played a big part of my life,” Max said. “It’s made me a way better player than I was before.”

Majerle’s basketball journey started out as a kid in the Phoenix Suns locker room. His father, former Suns guard Dan Majerle has made a name as one of the best-known players to ever wear the purple and orange, a career that Max has looked up to from the beginning.

“I used to study his highlights when I was young on YouTube,” Max said. “I used to watch and try to perform his own form with my form, even though he’s a righty and I’m a lefty. He’s taught me pretty much everything I know.”

When Dan was an associate head coach for the Suns from 2008 to 2013, Max grew up shooting free throws and doing ball handling drills with NBA legends like Steve Nash, Grant Hill, Channing Frye, and Shaquille O’Neal, who Max calls “Uncle Shaq.”

“Getting to meet them at such a young age and seeing everything that they’ve gone through has really molded a path for me,” Max said. “I realized at a really young age that you’ve really got to work hard to make it.”

As the son of a former NBA all-star, Max doesn’t let the comparisons to his father faze him.

“I’m just trying to do my own thing,” Max said. “I feel like I’m more talented than my dad at my age.”

The former Suns star wants others to recognize his son as “his own person” and “his own player” rather than comparing Max to his achievements. Dan has always supported his son’s basketball dreams, a dream that Max says includes going pro just like his father did over 30 years ago.

“The main thing I’ve always said to Max is first to have fun and really enjoy the game,” Dan said. “The second thing is to play hard, no matter what.”

Max doesn’t just play hard. He works hard. And that work extends beyond the classes that start at 7:45 a.m. and the 6 p.m. basketball practice.

“You don’t see the work that he does off the court,” Danford said. “You don’t see the lifting weights at five o’clock in the morning, getting shots up at five o’clock in the morning, getting shots up at 10 o’clock at night after he does his homework. He’s not going to let any opportunity to get better go by.”

With college on the horizon, Max is talking to “multiple Division I schools” and has offers from Portland State, South Dakota, and Grand Canyon to play basketball at the next level. On the academic side, Max is still undecided on what he is going to major in but is considering pursuing a degree in communications or business.

“He’s probably going to be the hardest worker on the floor,” Danford said. “They’re going to get a kid that cares about his teammates, works hard in the classroom, will never be a problem outside the classroom, and will definitely make any program that he chooses to join better.”

Max, now a senior, is going all in to lead Arcadia to the top of its new conference in the 5A. Along with the new competition in the 5A, Max will be sporting the No. 1 on his jersey this year, cementing his role as the leader of the Titans.

“Max is a leader by his actions,” Danford said. “When we’re up 30 or down 30, Max is still diving on the floor to get a loose ball. His effort is his leadership. His work ethic and how hard he works is really his example.”

Max is determined to leave a legacy at Arcadia despite any challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic may bring to the season or his journey ahead.

“We’re going to come in and push each other every day to work hard,” Max said. “Hopefully, after this season we win a championship and hopefully I taught the younger kids something that they can teach the kids after them.”

With the recent AIA decision to postpone winter sports in Maricopa County due to the rising number of COVID-19 cases, it is uncertain if Arcadia’s first game against Saguaro on Dec. 1 will go forward as planned.