Photo by William "Bud" Hardy, Neuse News

A pillar of Kinston’s team over the past three seasons will be moving further south next season.

Vikings stalwart Damian Dunn will be transferring to Meadowcreek High School in Norcross, Ga. for his senior campaign. Dunn was a three-year starter for Kinston and averaged 17.5 points per game in 2017-18, helping the Vikings had the top seed in the NCHSAA 2A Eastern bracket, an Eastern Carolina Conference tournament victory and a share of the ECC title.

Dunn will be joining a Mustangs team going 26-6 last season en route to winning the Georgia 7A state championship, just two years removed from a 7-20 campaign.

“I felt like this was a bigger opportunity toward the future,” Dunn said. “The exposure is much larger in Georgia and that was a key factor. There’s nothing wrong with Kinston’s program — I just wanted to open a new door and try to get my name out there even more.”

Paul Dunn III, Damian’s father, said it was something his son contemplated about for a while.

“The opportunity to go to Meadowcreek came up last year, but Dame wanted to stay and see if he could help the team win a championship,” Dunn III said. “He felt like this move was best for the sake of his future and the goals he wants to accomplish. We prayed on it for a few weeks and discussed it, and ultimately (Damian) felt it was the best thing for him to get into a more competitive and intense environment.”

Damian Dunn won’t have much of an adjustment at Meadowcreek, with several of his new teammates also playing on his AAU team, Stackhouse Elite. Dunn was a part of the 16U team which won a national championship last season and will learn from former Kinston greats Jerry Stackhouse and Tony Dawson, the latter an assistant coach with the Mustangs.

“He’s getting the best of both worlds here and my wife and I support him,” Dunn III said. “We want our boys to have a voice, to know their opinion counts, understand the consequences of their actions and to be able to deal with it. We’ve got some great kids and it’s worked. He’ll have the opportunity to get some more professional training and he wanted to shake it up a bit as far as not being complacent.”

Damian Dunn said he took a lot of advice from family and friends, but made the final judgement.

“Decision-wise, this was something I felt like I needed to do on my own,” Dunn said.

Overall, Dunn said he’s appreciative of everything Kinston had done for him over the years.

“I want to thank (Kinston) for everything and showing support since Day 1,” Dunn said. “I’m thankful for the opportunities, the friendships and the relationships I’ve had over the past three years. Thank you to my teammates for pushing me in practice and also Coach Tyndall. He’s a great guy and I love him to death, along with the rest of the coaching staff.

“I wish the team the best of luck and this definitely won’t be the last time they hear from me. I’ll be checking on them all the time like I’m a part of the team.”