Warrior Insider

Bill Amis is a tribute to determination and hard work.

When he signed with the Hawaii basketball team in 2007, Amis was an unheralded recruit – a sixth man at his junior college who, at the time, would have been content to play that same role with the Warriors.

Four years later, Amis is the emotional leader and top post player for the Warriors.

“It’s probably a combination of being a late bloomer and hard work in the off-seasons,” the 6-foot-9 senior forward said. “The hardest part is kind of more mental – knowing that you have to step up and be there every night for the team to have a chance to succeed. I was never like that in the past. I was just trying to play my role.”

His role now expands to both ends of the court. He is currently averaging 14.3 points and 7.1 rebounds per game, and leads the team with a .558 field goal percentage and 27 blocked shots. Making it more impressive, Amis missed 10 games earlier this season with a stress fracture in his foot.

He redshirted last season because of another foot injury, and it turned into a blessing in disguise. By pushing his senior season up one year, Amis got to play under new head coach Gib Arnold and a bunch of new young teammates.

“I feel fortunate to get a chance to play for Coach Arnold and the new staff and play with these new guys,” Amis said. “I’ve had a really good time with them.”

The redshirt year also allowed him to focus on his academics, and it resulted in his graduation last December with a degree in communications. He is currently taking graduate-level courses.

“It was a big deal,” he said. “It was something I always thought I would do, no matter what.”

In addition to his communications degree, Amis has a pretty big connection to Hollywood. His uncle is James Cameron – director of such mega-movies as Avatar, Titanic and The Terminator.

“He’s married to my dad’s sister,” Amis said. “He’s a pretty cool guy.”

Amis and other family members were invited to the Hollywood premiere of Avatar, but he had to decline because it was during basketball season.

It was more proof of his dedication to the University of Hawaii and basketball, and he hopes it pays off next season. Amis said he would like to chase professional basketball first, before he puts his degree to use.

“I’d like to continue my career if given an opportunity,” he said. “It’s tough to do, but it would be like a dream for me to get paid to play basketball.”

First, Amis would like to lead the Warriors to a successful late-season run. He played on winning teams in high school and junior college – including an Oklahoma state championship with Putnam City High during his senior season – and would like to add Hawaii to that list.

The Warriors are 13-10 this season, which means Amis is on track to finish with a winning season for the first time in his four-year career with the Warriors.

“Keep watching – it’s going to be a good run to end the year,” he said.

Here are video highlights and interviews of Amis, split into two parts. Part I:

Part II: