Boys Basketball | Franklin's leading man lies in Siva

The line begins with the jersey retired on the Franklin gymnasium wall, Jason Terry, then continues through Alvin Snow, Aaron Brooks, Lyndale Burleson, and most recently, Venoy Overton.

With each standout Franklin guard who leaves, another is ready to take his place.

"It's been a bit of a tradition around here," boys basketball coach Jason Kerr said. "It has been one great guard after another, passing it down to the next."

Junior Peyton Siva followed the Quakers as a child and came to Franklin to be that next great guard. And with Overton now at the University of Washington, the line now moves on through the 5-foot-11 Siva.

"It's very important," Siva said, "to keep that tradition alive."

The past two years, the Quakers relied on Overton to lead. Siva was comfortable in the background, swishing long-range jumpers and swiping passes.

Overton pushed Siva in practice, forcing him to find and fix the flaws in his game. Siva shined, and Franklin won the Class 4A title in 2006 and finished third in 2007.

In his freshman year, Siva averaged 13.2 points. He improved to 18.7 last season. In the Quakers' semifinal loss to Ferris, Siva wowed the Tacoma Dome crowd with 35 points.

"It's a snapshot of his talent," Kerr said of that game. "But I don't think points by themselves come anywhere near to describing what he's capable of. You could let a Peyton Siva go every night and he could score 40 points a night. The question is, will that help his team win? I don't think it will."

Siva hasn't been able to shake the memory of that semifinal defeat. The Quakers were so focused on winning the state championship, Siva said, they overlooked the semifinals.

"We had state on our minds," he said.

Franklin should challenge for the state title again. The Quakers start the season ranked second — behind Ferris — by The Seattle Times.

Franklin received national hype when Ferris' DeAngelo Casto, who scored 27 points against the Quakers last March, transferred to Franklin this fall. But in late October, he returned to Ferris, where he has been ruled ineligible at the district level because of transfer rules.

"There's not a whole lot of conversation about it," Kerr said.

Roosevelt coach Bart Brandenburg sees Franklin's success boiling down to Siva, whom Brandenburg said is one of the state's best players with the ball at the end of a game.

"He makes plays," Brandenburg said. "He makes a steal, and within three seconds, he's scored.

"But can he step in and be that leader guy? "If he can't do that, there are teams out there that have as much talent as them."

Kerr is in no hurry to rush him into a leadership role.

"For him to balance being our best player and being a good teammate is a difficult thing for anyone in that position," Kerr said. "Right now, he's doing it well."

Tom Wyrwich: 206-515-5653 or twyrwich@seattletimes.com