David Webber signed on to play basketball with the Oklahoma Storm in the United States Basketball League — a team that former CMU teammate Tim Kisner has already become a big part of.

Kisner said he isn’t exactly sure how Webber came to join the squad, but enjoys having the familiar face around.

“God works in funny ways and that’s just how it worked out,” he said. “I’m thankful that it did, though.”

CMU Head Coach Jay Smith said he’s proud of his former players.

“I think it says something about the quality of players we had in our program and the quality of person they are,” he said.

Smith coached both players during their time at CMU. He spoke fondly of Kisner.

“He was a coach out on the floor. He knew the game, knew how to play it, and he won a lot of games for us, especially some buzzer beaters,” Smith said.

“He’s already proven he can play in the CBA and now he’s onto this. And from here I think only good things can happen to him,” he said.

This may be a step down for Webber, who had aspirations of joining the NBA last fall.

“I think he’s got his foot in the door here,” Smith said. “He tried out for the Sacramento Kings and he was one of the last groups that got cut and now he’s got a chance to prove himself here in Oklahoma.”

Webber helped lead CMU to a regular season title in 2001 when he was named MAC Player of the Year. The Farmington Hills native ranks third on CMU’s career scoring chart with 1,774 points.

Kisner said his reunion with Webber is good from both a basketball standpoint and a personal standpoint.

“It’s good for him too, coming into a situation where he knows someone. He’s not just going in blindly, so it’s good for both of us,” he said.

Kisner has been running the point for the Storm all season, averaging 8.9 assists per game (second in the league). Now with Webber on the squad, the two share the spot.

“It gives us a chance to help each other out,” Kisner said. “When I’m sitting on the bench, I can tell him what I see and he can do the same for me.”

Kisner started for CMU all four years before leaving in 2001.

He then spent a year substitute teaching before he joined the Grand Rapids Hoops of the Continental Basketball Association.

The Hopkins native started 28 of the team’s 42 regular season games and helped the Hoops to the CBA Championship Game in March, where they lost to Yakima, 117-107.

Kisner said he looks at the CBA Championship Game as a learning experience.

“No matter what you do, whether you’re a business man or a basketball player, you try to get to the top. And that’s what we tried to do and we had fun,” he said.

Kisner said when his season ended with the Hoops, he had a week and a half off before the Storm called him in need of a point guard.

“I definitely didn’t want to sit at home all summer, so I packed my bags and went,” he said.

Kisner started all but one game for the Storm this year as they wrapped up regular season play Saturday by losing in triple overtime to the Kansas Cagerz. They finished 17-13 — fourth place in the nine-team league.

Playoffs start Friday and Kisner said he’s ready.

“We’ve had a pretty good year and we have as good of a chance as anybody right now to win,” he said.

Following the playoffs, Kisner said he’s looking forward to playing overseas in the fall, but first he wants some down time.

“After this league, I'm looking forward to taking a month off. I've played almost 90 games this year,” he said.

Kisner said he’s negotiating with teams in Germany, Poland and Sweden.

And while he doesn’t plan on playing basketball for the rest of his life, he is enjoying getting paid to right now, he said.

“A lot of people have to do that nine-to-five routine and here I get to play basketball,” he said. “I’ve been very blessed and I’m thankful every day for it.”

After basketball, it’s on to more basketball for Kisner.

“In five years, I want to be retired from basketball, and then I want to get into coaching college basketball and hopefully make a career out of that,” he said.

The eye of the Storm

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