Ruben Rodriguez has placed himself among the greats at Reading High
Ruben Rodriguez didn’t understand the full impact of what it meant to be named to the All-State basketball team when he was selected following his sophomore season.
It was just another box the Red Knights’ dynamic guard could check off a growing list of honors, achievements and milestones.
Then it struck him as he walked into the Geigle Complex one day: Being All-State meant his photograph would hang on the wall outside the Red Knights’ home court, alongside Reading High greats such as Lenny Moore, Bruce Gilmore, Donyell Marshall, Tommy Miller, Stu Jackson and Lonnie Walker IV.
“Once I heard that my picture goes up on that wall, I thought, that’s crazy,” Rodriguez said. “It’ll be crazy to see.”
| Reading’s All-State picks* | Team | Year |
| Ruben Rodriguez | 1st | 2022 |
| Ruben Rodriguez | 1st | 2021 |
| Moro Osumanu | 1st | 2021 |
| Daniel Alcantara | 1st | 2021 |
| Wesley Butler | 2nd | 2019 |
| Wesley Butler | 3rd | 2018 |
| Lonnie Walker IV | 1st | 2017 |
| Lonnie Walker IV | 1st | 2016 |
| Lonnie Walker IV | 2nd | 2015 |
| Trinity Burdine | 1st | 2010 |
| Jordan Burdine | 3rd | 2008 |
| Donyell Marshall | 1st | 1991 |
| Donyell Marshall | 2nd | 1990 |
What’s crazy is all that Rodriguez, a junior, has accomplished in such a short time. Sunday he was named to the Pennsylvania Sportswriters Class 6A All-State team for the second straight year.
He is believed to be just the third Reading basketball player to earn first-team All-State status twice, joining Walker, in 2016 and 2017, and Jackson, in 1972 and 1973.
A year from now he can join Walker — a third-team pick as a sophomore — as the only Reading High player to be named All-State three times, and one of the few ever in Berks.
Donovon Jack, who played at Central Catholic and Berks Catholic, is believed to be the only other three-time pick over the last 50 years.
Rodriguez can do more special things next season. He has a chance — and a good one, considering who the Red Knights bring back — to win a fourth straight District 3 championship. He won one as a freshman at Muhlenberg in 2020 and with the Red Knights the past two seasons.
Red Knights coach Rick Perez has the perfect adjective for him.
“He’s just a winner,” Perez said. “That’s the bottom line.”
Until being stopped by Archbishop Wood in the second round of the PIAA Tournament in March Rodriguez had led the Red Knights to 13 consecutive postseason victories: County, district and state. Over three seasons he’s gone 21-3 in the playoffs, with a Berks County championship and a PIAA gold medal to go along with three district golds.
He’s building an unprecedented resume in Berks basketball — and his game is still on the rise.
After averaging 14.6 points during Reading’s run to a state championship in 2020-21 he elevated his game in every area this season. He boosted his scoring average to 19.8, tops in Berks, improved his defense and, as a veteran player, shouldered more of a leadership role.
That’s theimprovement in his game he’s most proud of.
“My sophomore year, I had Mo, and Rene and X,” he said of Moro Osumanu and Rene Rodriguez, seniors in 2021, and Xavier Davis, a senior this season. “I feel I took a big step in the leadership role; I did a better job leading. My senior year, I’ll have to step up even more and show the new guys that are coming up how to do it, so that when I leave they can keep it going.”
Rodriguez has always made the game look easy. He stepped in as the starting point guard at Muhlenberg as a freshman and quickly gained the reputation as a clutch shot-maker. He hit a pair of game-winners during the Muhls’ run to the Class 5A title and state quarterfinals.
He moved back to Reading, where he grew up playing, for his sophomore season and has continued to elevate his game — literally. He arrived on the varsity level as wiry and thin but excelled because of his quickness, athleticism and ability to get to the rim.
Last season he was finally able to get above the rim, throwing down dunks off the dozens of open-court steals he forced. He saw the possibilities after his initial success and has worked hard ever since to get stronger.
“After (his freshman season) he flipped a switch,” said his father, Ruben Rodriguez Sr., a coach at Reading High. “It was: ‘Whatever you want me to do, I’m gonna do it.’ He was dedicated to it. (Basketball) is his passion; this is what he lives for.”
“I’ve seen him becoming more physically imposing, embracing more contact,” Perez said. “Defensively, he became a bit more of a menace; he’s always getting his hand on the ball.”
Since the end of the season Rodriguez has taken his training to a new level, going to Garage Strength several times a week.
“He’s paying attention to the entire body,” Perez said. “It’s not just about lifting weights, it’s the functional strength, the core strength. Ruben never neglects those things.
“He works out on a Vertimax (to improve explosion) in his garage. That major improvement in his vertical (this season) is not by accident; he is developing another level of strength. It’s exciting to see.”
Rodriguez is calm in pressure situations and has a flare for the dramatic, making big plays at big times. He showed that on the big stage in January when the Red Knights faced national star Mikey Williams and Vertical Academy at Santander Arena.
Rodriguez stole the show, scoring a game-high 22 points — including the 1,000th of his career — in Reading’s 71-66 win. Overlooked so far on the recruiting trail, he was motivated to show people that he can compete with top players.
“I felt I needed that game to prove that I could perform at a high level, in the pressure, against good teams,” said Rodriguez. “I always knew I could compete with them. It was more to show (others). It was more of a wake up for (other) people.”
In two seasons at Reading Rodriguez has scored 1,003 points. He has 1,291 career points and could finish in the 1,800- to 1,900-point range and in Berks’ all-time Top 10, likely surpassing Walker (1,828) along the way.
His 593 points this season were fourth-most by a Reading High junior. Only Dick Nyquist (677 in 1917-18), Jackson (655 in 1971-72) and Marshall (626 in 1989-90) have scored more.
He set the program record with 50 points in a January game against Daniel Boone. Only three other Reading players have topped 40: Buck Friedman (48, in 1918-19), Marshall (43, in 1990-91) and Brian D’Amico (42, 1985-86).
Rodriguez also had a pair of 35-point games, against Berks Catholic and Harrisburg; he is the only Reading player to score 35 or more points three times in the same season, and only the second to do it in a career. Walker did it three times, once as a junior, twice as a senior.
Points, Rodriguez said, became easier to find this season. He became more adept scoring off the dribble rather than just as a stand-up shooter or in transition.
That’s in games. Practice is a different story. Points are much tougher to come by there. Rodriguez constantly goes against first-class defensive stoppers Amier Burdine and Myles Grey, guys who don’t give anyone an easy look.
That has motivated Rodriguez to take his defensive game up another level. He wants to compete with Burdine and Grey to draw top defensive assignments in big games.
“I’m trying to take a big step in my defense,” he said, “trying to become a lock-down defender and separate myself from a lot of other high school players.”
