How about Magic Johnson's successor at the point for the Los Angeles Lakers in 1991?

A better question might be, where did the Bulls and Lakers finish those seasons?

Iolani School senior Kyle Pape knows something about big shoes to fill, having to take over as the Raiders' leader after Derrick Low's legendary four-year career as perhaps Hawai'i's greatest high school basketball player.

But unlike the poor fellows who had to follow in Jordan's and Magic's Sasquatch-sized footsteps, Pape (rhymes with "TAPE") comfortably slipped into Low's high-tops and has Iolani right back where it was the past three years at this time of the season: undefeated (14-0) and seeded No. 1 in the Hawaiian Airlines State Tournament.

"After last year's championship (the Raiders' third straight title), someone asked me if we could expect to win it again," said Iolani coach Mark Mugiishi. "I said if you look at what we're losing — Derrick and six other seniors — it would take a lot of work just to get back into the tournament. But it's a credit to Kyle and the other guys on this team that they did all the work that needed to be done in the offseason."

Pape, a 6-foot-2 wing, technically does not play the same position as Low, a three-time Advertiser State Player of the Year now playing point guard for Washington State University.

But his role as a scorer and leader is almost identical, and his performance has been remarkably similar. In addition to leading the team with an average of 17.9 points per game, Pape remains the Raiders' defensive leader, often being assigned to guard the opponent's best player.

"Defense is something we all take pride in," Pape said. "Our defense — by making steals — gives us extra possessions and makes up for our rebounding, since we're not very tall."

Pape, a three-year starter on Iolani's volleyball team, and 6-3 forward Kawika Shoji (The Advertiser's 2004 Volleyball State Co-Player of the Year) play a lot taller than their heights because of outstanding leaping ability, and 5-10 center Wally Marciel also plays bigger with a physical game marked by extra hustle.

Leading by example

As for his role as a leader, Pape may have as much pressure as Low did or even more because he is one of only two seniors on the team, and the only one who sees significant playing time.

"At the end of last year, I knew my role was going to be team captain, so I've thought about it since then," said Pape, a third-year varsity letterman. "My personality is more on the quiet side, but I won't be shy about telling the other guys what to do. But I'd rather show them than tell them."

In several close games this season, Pape showed his leadership with clutch finishes. In a 52-50 victory over Punahou on Jan. 21, he scored a game-high 24 points, grabbed five rebounds and dished out two assists.

Against Kamehameha on Feb. 1, Pape scored 14 of his game-high 20 points in the second half as the Raiders held off the Warriors, 63-57. And in a rematch against Punahou on Feb. 10, he scored 10 of his 12 points in the final five minutes of a 44-43 victory, including the game-winning basket with seven seconds left.

"I think most teams that are successful have a 'go-to' guy in those situations, and Kyle puts himself in that position for us," Mugiishi said. "He's more of a quiet person who leads by example, but when it comes down to a time where everybody is like, 'What are we going to do?' they turn to Kyle."

Pape's coolness under pressure was developed from several sources, starting with his parents, John and Karen. Both are former FBI agents, with John seeing front-line duty and Karen working as an evidence analyst.

"It took a lot of guts to work in the FBI, and my parents taught me how to look at the whole perspective of things," Pape said. "I'm proud of what they've done, because they made our whole community a safer and better place to live in."

Pape also learned from being the younger kid playing with older players such as Low at the Kalanianaole Athletic Club, Manoa Valley District Park and Kalakaua Foundation Clinic. He also was a key member of three state championship teams, two in basketball and one in volleyball.

A learning experience

The leadership experience still was a learning one, as he discovered in the Iolani Prep Classic two months ago. Pape made only one 3-pointer in two losses to Mainland teams, but rebounded to score a game-high 32 points — including six 3-pointers — in 62-58 victory over Male (Louisville, Ky.).

"I learned that you can't beat a good team by yourself," Pape said. "It takes a group effort."

Since then Pape's strong, fluid all-around game has drawn interest from Division I schools such as Portland and Santa Clara, along with Division II Seattle and Hawai'i Pacific.

"Basketball is a big part of my life and I want to play in college, but the main thing is I want to go to a good school," said Pape, who had a 4.0 grade point average last quarter while taking two advanced placement courses. "I want to be a civil engineer. I like creating new stuff."

Crafting a record fourth straight state championship would be a good place to start.