Sioux Falls Christian’s Griffen Goodbary is the 2024-25 Gatorade South Dakota boys basketball player of the year. It is Goodbary’s second consecutive season winning the award. 

Gatorade player of the year is the top honor in high school sports, celebrating the nation’s best high school athletes for their success on the court, in the classroom and in the community.

At the time of his selection, the 6-foot-11, 210-pound senior power forward had led the Chargers to the Class A quarterfinals, scheduled for March 20. Goodbary averaged 18 points, 6.1 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.8 blocks through 24 games, shooting 65.3 percent from inside the arc. The state’s returning Gatorade Player of the Year and a 2024 all-state and all-tournament team selection, he’s 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 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 has signed a written letter of athletic aid to play basketball at South Dakota State University this fall.