GATLINBURG — Hopes are high in Highlander country ... and not just for the football team.

The Gatlinburg-Pittman Highlanders hoops squad has made some noise this offseason with the addition of four talented transfer students, but the Blue and Gold are happy to see that the beginning of the season is less than two weeks away and all attention can finally be paid to the hardcourt.

There have been wild rumors and speculation tossed around carelessly about why four talented students would want to transfer to G-P, but Placeres said it should come as no surprise to anyone.

“This won’t be the first or last time someone is going to want to transfer here,” said Placeres. “They come here for a great education, and for a good sports program.

“There’s reasons why kids would want to transfer here. We’ve got some of the best academics in the county, the state, really. There are a lot of kids who get academic scholarships at G-P.

“And we’ve got the best basketball team in the county. There are definitely reasons why kids want to be here.”

Two of those transfer students are from out of state in 6-foot-6, 220-pound junior Jose Agosto and 6-foot-5, 200-pound junior Morrease Barber. The parents of those players were fortunate enough to find employment in Sevier County during a tough national economy and chose G-P as their school.

Then there are 6-foot-5, 205-pound Garrett Buckner and senior point guard Marquise Wall, who are former Sevier County High School students that were both academically ineligible to play for the Bears.

Those students transferred to G-P and agreed to work hard in summer school in order to be academically eligible to play for the Highlanders.

“They approached me and asked if I would give them a chance,” said Placeres. “I laid it out for them what they needed to do, they worked their butts off in school all summer, they earned it and now they’re part of our team.”

And what a team it figures to be with the four new guys combined with the lone returning Highlander starter in senior McKinley Maples, who will round out the projected starting five for the Blue and Gold this season. Maples figures to top the 1,000-point career plateau this year, barring any injury.

There is some depth to go along with the talent on the G-P roster. Seniors Drew Barton and Jake Jackson, junior Jon McCroskey, sophomore Brandon Stewart and 6-foot-3, 185-pound freshman Davis Soehn figure to play a key role in Highlander success this hoops season.

“I’m very excited,” said Placeres. “But no more excited than I was last year at this time.

“The great thing about this program is that we’ve gone from a four-win season four years ago, to 13 wins under coach Spencer Beaty, to 16 wins my first season and 18 wins last year.

“We’ve gotten better each year. We’ve been busting our tails, and we’ve been able to win here without a lot of true basketball talent.

“Now we’ve got some talent, and the sky is the limit for this team. But now that we have the athletic ability on the court, it’s just a matter of putting it all together to become a unit, a team.”

The influx of talent couldn’t have come at a better time for the Highlanders, with the team moving into a new and much tougher district this season. G-P will have to play the likes of the back-to-back state champs in Fulton, last year’s 27-2 Austin-East, Carter with its two potential Division I players and last year’s Union squad that finished with more than 20 wins.

“But I expect us to compete,” said Placeres. “We’re just approaching things on a day-to-day basis, but if we play hard, unselfish ball, there will be a good chance for some nice hardware at the end of the year.”

The Highlanders have already impressed with a 50-39 win at a strong Knoxville Catholic squad last Thursday in the Blue and Gold’s lone preseason scrimmage to date. Next up is Jefferson County at G-P 6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 12, before starting the regular season with the Sevier County Jamboree 6 p.m. Monday, Nov. 16, at Pigeon Forge High School.