By 605 Sports Staff

Sioux Falls Christian’s Griffen Goodbary is the 2023-24 Gatorade South Dakota boys basketball player of the year. Goodbary is the first Gatorade South Dakota boys basketball player of the year to be chosen from Sioux Falls Christian. 

The award, which celebrates the nation’s top high school athletes for excellence on the court, in the classroom and in the community, distinguishes Goodbary as South Dakota’s best high school boys basketball player. 

The 6-foot-10, 200-pound junior power forward averaged 19.4 points, 7.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.7 blocks per game this past season, leading the Chargers (23-3) to the Class A state title game. Goodbary recorded 19 points and 11 rebounds in an overtime loss in the state final. 

A 2024 all-tournament selection, he is ranked as the state’s No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2025 by PrepHoops. Goodbary has volunteered locally on behalf of The Banquet, helping to feed the less fortunate. He has also donated his time to Feeding America and has both coached and served as a game referee for youth basketball players. 

“Griffen is a young man of high moral character and has a servant’s heart when it comes to interactions with his teammates and others,” said Mike Schouten, head coach of Sioux Falls Christian High School. “I believe he’s one of the best players in the state of South Dakota and the entire region. You can see his intelligence on the floor as well— he often sees things that I don’t see or sees them before I do. His basketball IQ is very high. He’s a great person both on and off the court." 

Goodbary has maintained a 4.0 GPA in the classroom. He will begin his senior year of high school this fall.