Xy Childres, this week’s Athlete of the Week, has come a long way from the quiet kid watching his older brother’s basketball practices. 

• Now a senior captain for Fort Walton Beach High School, Childres has grown into one of the Vikings’ most vocal leaders, helping guide the team to a 21-7 record and a spot in the Sweet 16 of the FHSAA state playoffs.

On Saturday, Childres scored 18 points as the Vikings defeated Rickards to advance to the Sweet 16. Beyond the scoring, he drew the defensive assignment on one of Rickards’ top players, a challenge head coach Chris Carswell said he embraced.

“When you play against guys like that, you can’t stop them from scoring. You just want to slow them down,” Carswell said. “We did just enough to slow them down. Xy had his opportunity and he did a great job.”

The performance was the latest chapter in a breakout senior season for Childres, who has helped the Vikings build one of the best records in the area. But his path to becoming one of the team’s leaders wasn’t exactly planned.

Last year, the Vikings’ starting point guard tore his ACL, and Childres was thrust into the role. It was a turning point. Carswell, who coached Xy’s older brother, started seeing something change.

• “I started seeing his leadership begin to blossom,” Carswell said. “Going into his senior year, he just brought it on in and all the guys respect him. He’s going to get on you if you’re not doing your job, but he holds himself accountable if he isn’t doing his job as well.”

Childres sees it the same way.

“I definitely think they look at me to be a leader,” he said. “Being able to tell them how to do it, and what to do. It’s also important to show our younger players how the program has to keep going and how to keep elevating.”

It’s a role he may have not expected, but does seem to come naturally. Childres credits his mother as his biggest influence, saying she always told him that people look up to him and would follow his lead.

• “I never really liked being around a bunch of people,” Childres said. “Her telling me that, and then now that I am a leader on this team and seeing how my teammates follow me, that’s helped a lot.”

A versatile scorer who can operate in the post, from mid-range and behind the arc, Childres pointed to the second Choctaw game this season as his proudest moment — a game where his shooting sparked a comeback for the Vikings.

“We started off slow and then I started hitting shots and brought us back,” Childres said. “Me and our other captain, Rodric [Starks], him talking to me, telling me he needs me — how we feed off each other just feeds into the team and we play better.”

Off the court, Childres is just as active. A lifelong member of Beulah First Baptist Church, he serves as president of the youth usher board and president of a youth progressive ministry that spans northwest Florida. When he’s not at school or practice, he said he’s most likely at church helping his mother.

In the classroom, math has always come easy to him, and he has his sights set on college with a major in sports medicine — a way to stay connected to the game even after his playing days end. He’s also considering the National Guard after a recruiter spoke to his class earlier this year.

• “Coach always says basketball is not going to be forever,” Childres said. “But I always want to stay around sports.”

Carswell said the sky is the limit for Childres, but what matters most to him is being a resource for his players beyond the court.

“Whatever they want to do, I just want to be a stepping stone for them to get where they’re trying to go,” Carswell said. “And it doesn’t have to be basketball.”

For now, Childres is focused on the road ahead in the playoffs. As a senior, the stakes are personal.

“I want us to stay locked in and win,” Childres said. “With it being my senior season, I want to go out with something and have something in the gym to be remembered by.”

Get The Coast’s Athlete of the Week is brought to you by Okaloosa Gas District.