BOYS’ TENNIS / 1994 PREVIEW : Staying Out of Limelight Helps Sunny Hills’ Kim Shine

While local reporters gathered around Newport Harbor freshman phenom Geoff Abrams last year, touting his successes and documenting his failures, Sunny Hills freshman Kevin Kim simply hid in the background, honed his game and smiled.

“I didn’t really mind,” Kim said. “I was having fun. I didn’t really want to be noticed. All the media exposure does is create pressure, and I don’t like pressure. All the media didn’t really help Geoff last year.”

Abrams, the youngest Southern Californian ever selected to the USTA junior national tennis team, had a decent season, but showed he isn’t ready for the pro tour.

But Kim is suddenly realizing what Abrams did: If you have talent, the spotlight will eventually find you.

It found Kim last Thanksgiving at the USTA boys’ 16 national indoors in Wayland, Mass. On his way to a loss in the finals, Kim was featured in a story by Boston Globe tennis writer Bud Collins, also a tennis commentator for NBC and ESPN.

But Abrams didn’t need Collins to tell him Kim could play. Kim had defeated Abrams, 6-4, 6-4, at the U.S. boys’ 16 hardcourt championships in July 1993, and he beat him again, 1-6, 6-2, 6-4, at the Puerto Rico International junior tournament in January.

Joseph Gilbert, Kim’s friend and Sunny Hills’ teammate, said Kim’s rise is easy to explain.

“Kevin grew a lot (physically) this year,” said Gilbert, who along with Abrams and Kim, is one of the top five 16-year olds in the nation. “Abrams had a little fall mentally. Kevin’s improved a lot, and everybody’s catching up to Abrams in size. We’re growing into our bodies now, and we believe we can beat (Abrams) now.”

Sam Olson, Kim’s coach at the Balboa Bay Club, said he believes Kim is talented enough to beat most junior players in the country. In fact, Olson encouraged Kim, 15, to play in the boys’ 18 division this year.

“I think he could do well in the 18s,” said Olson, who coached Eric Lin, last year’s top 18-year-old in Southern California. “He’s almost as good as Eric Lin right now. His game’s that advanced.”

What makes Kim so good?

“He hits the ball really hard, and he’s got great ground strokes,” Olson said. “He’s got some of the nicest technical strokes of any kid I’ve ever seen.

“He’s a pretty good volleyer, but he feels he can win on the baseline. He hits his ground strokes like (Pete) Sampras or (Ivan) Lendl does.”

Kim learned the power game from bigger and stronger opponents last year. While his fellow 14-year-olds played against their contemporaries, Kim was facing players one and two years older than him in the boys’ 16 division.

“No one knew who he was and that helped him mature,” Olson said. “Sometimes, it helps a kid to stay out of the limelight. And meanwhile, he was getting used to the older game.”

A nagging shoulder injury last spring helped Kim stay out of the limelight and off the court. He missed most of last year’s high school tennis season, including the prestigious Ojai tournament, though he did return in time to help Sunny Hills win the Southern Section Division II team championship.

All but two starters are back from last year, and with the addition of two talented freshmen, the Lancers figure to have an excellent chance of winning the team title again. With Sunny Hills’ talent, Coach Steve White could probably win the section title without Kim, which might happen because of Kim’s busy junior tournament schedule.

“I don’t know how often I’ll play,” Kim said. “Our league (the Freeway) is pretty bad. I don’t want to go out and waste my time.”

If Kim’s game continues to mature, Olson figures his pupil won’t be a member of any team in a few years.

“Kevin’s not thinking about playing college tennis,” Olson said. “He’s thinking about playing pro tennis.”

But before he goes anywhere, Olson said Kim needs to work on a few things.

“His serve is the weakest part of his game,” Olson said. “He also needs to get faster, quicker and make fewer unforced errors.”

H. Andrew Kim, Kevin’s father, said his son’s mental game could use some work.

“Kevin’s one of the nicest boys you’ll probably meet and he’s one of the most popular,” Kim’s father said. “He’s sometimes almost too nice on the court, so he doesn’t have that mental toughness yet.”

Boys’ Tennis at a Glance

Top players: Geoff Abrams, Newport Harbor, So.; Adam Call, Woodbridge, Sr.; Nolan Cooper, Trabuco Hills, Jr.; Brandon Fallon, Dana Hills, Fr.; Johnny France, El Toro, Sr.; Paul Fruchbom, Corona del Mar, Sr.; Joseph Gilbert, Sunny Hills, So.; Brian Gruner, Mission Viejo, Sr.; John Han, Sunny Hills, So.; Robert Horansky, Estancia, Jr., Brett Hankey, Mater Dei, Jr., Ryan Hollis, Villa Park, Sr.; Heath Kula, Canyon, Sr.; Bryan Johnson, Trabuco Hills, Sr.; Kevin Kim, Sunny Hills, So.; Jason Meyers, University, Sr.; Jakub Pietrowski, Ocean View, Sr.; Daniel Roditi, San Clemente, Sr.; Tyler Stonebreaker, Corona del Mar, So.; Ryan Thompson, Foothill, Jr.; A.J. Thoryk, Woodbridge, Sr.; Frano Trani, Los Alamitos, Jr.; Jed Weinstein, Corona del Mar, Sr., Elliott West, Laguna Beach, Jr.; Robbie Wilkins, University, Sr., Thomas Yim, Laguna Hills, Sr.

League favorites: Century: Foothill; Empire: Los Alamitos; Freeway: Sunny Hills; Garden Grove: La Quinta; Olympic: Valley Christian; Orange: Valencia; Pacific Coast: Trabuco Hills; Sea View: Corona del Mar; South Coast: Dana Hills; Sunset: Marina.

Key dates: Ojai tournament, April 20-23; Southern Section individual tournament, May 21, 27, 28; Southern Section team tournament, May, 17, 19, 24, 26, June 1.

Notes: Six of the nation’s top eight returning players in the boys’ 16 division reside in the Southern Section--Kim, Abrams, Gilbert, Jason Weiss of Calabasas and Mike and Bob Bryan of Oxnard Rio Mesa. . . . Roditi won the individual doubles two years ago as a sophomore with Jeff Marsden. After moving to Sacramento last year, Roditi has transferred back to San Clemente. But while playing soccer, Roditi badly sprained his left ankle and will be out for most of the nonleague season. . . . Newport Harbor Coach Charlie Bleiker said he expects Abrams, a member of the U.S. junior national team, to play about half of the Sailors’ matches. Abrams won the boys’ 16 division last year at Ojai. . . . Pietrowski, who reached the section individual semifinals before losing to Palos Verdes Peninsula’s Loren Peters, has signed a letter of intent with Notre Dame. . . . Peninsula, with Kyle Spencer, Diamond Bar and Santa Barbara figure to be three of the top teams outside of the county. . . . The new rule that puts more emphasis on doubles than singles, 12 points to nine, has excited many county coaches, at least the ones who know about it. Coaches from two of the top six-ranked preseason teams were unaware that the rule had been implemented. Most coaches figure the rule will give teams with more depth a chance against teams that have two or three solid singles players. . . . St. Margaret’s has the only co-ed team in the county. Coach Jamie Paul expects to have four girls on her team.