It was early in the season, but Luca Varallo knew he had taken his last high school shot.
The Philadelphia Performing Arts: A String Theory Charter School senior was already recovering from a dislocated shoulder in October as the Knights prepared for the 2024-25 basketball season. A dedicated leader, and a heck of a guard, Varallo wanted nothing more than to be back on the court with his buddies for his last season at the Guerin Recreation Center in South Philly.
Varallo is known for being quick. And unfortunately he was a little too quick when it came to rejoining his teammates after the injury.
“I went to a few different doctors,” Varallo said. “The first one said wait three to four months to start shooting. The second one said I could wait two months with physical therapy. Obviously, with me wanting to play, I went with the guy who told me two months. That was the decision I chose.”
Varallo took the court in late December as the Knights were playing non-conference holiday tournaments. In his third game back, and despite playing with some added caution, Varallo re-injured his shoulder and was sent back to square one. This time, there was no chance of recovering before the season’s end.
“We’re certainly missing Luca out there,” coach Eric Funaro said. “I only have three or four returners from last year and out of them all, he had played the most significant time. But we’re hoping our underclassmen learn from our seniors not to take the season for granted. Even with the record we’ve had, they’ve been working hard.”
At that point, it had become evident there would be no Public League championship for String Theory this season. And Varallo had two choices: Find something else to do with his time or be one of those seniors to help drive Funaro’s message home.
“I spoke with his brother Mike and he said (Luca) was really down and depressed,” Funaro said. “I went back to ask Luca, ‘How would you feel about coming to the next game?’ And he was here. Now, he’s a voice and a motivator to the team.”
High school only happens once and Varallo was going to soak up every minute of it, even if his arm was in a sling.
“I wanted to be here as much as I could and support my teammates and coaches,” Varallo said. “I’ve been here four years and played with so many good guys. Just being here I feel like I could help a lot and maybe help coach.”
So he did. Luca became a permanent fixture at practices and games in helping steer the young Knights through a rocky season. String Theory competes in the second highest of five Public League divisions and took its lumps, ending up 1-10 in the PPL B League.
“Luca, even though he’s injured, has been at all of our games and practices hyping the guys up,” Funaro said. “And we’ve certainly gotten better as the season has gone along.”
For a short stretch, it looked like Varallo had made the right call. He briefly altered his game in an attempt to prevent the second injury. But his passion took over.
“I really thought he was ready,” Luca’s brother Mike Varallo said. “It was just a freak accident. We were even trying to slow his game down because he’s so fast and athletic and just have him make reads better and don’t get hurt. But his first game back, he had something like 16 (points) after two quarters and was really feeling it. Next thing you know he’s jumping up and hitting the backboard for blocks and taking charges. Everything changed.”
Mike, who is three years older than Luca, had a similar injury his freshman year at String Theory. He was able to guide Luca through the physical and mental recovery.
“I tore my labrum in my left shoulder my freshman year,” Mike said. “I was on him to take his time in coming back but it’s hard. I was a 14-year-old who had plenty of time. He was a senior who didn’t. But unfortunately it happened again. But everything happens for a reason. God has a plan for him. I just try to keep telling him that.”
Luca said his path will be culinary school and community college as he prepares to continue his family’s legacy. Luca and Mike have been two of the hardest workers at Varallo Brothers Bakery at 1639 S. 10th St. in East Passyunk. Luca wants to be a steady fixture there eventually.
“I’m going to do culinary school and community college at same time,” Luca said. “I plan on being the third generation of my family’s business and be a baker there. I’d also like to continue playing basketball and soccer in clubs at school if possible. This past summer, I was working seven days a week to help me see what I wanted to do with my future. I learned a lot about the business that I didn’t know in the past. It was a big year of growing for me in both sports and work.”
Varallo was three-time All-Public in soccer and the league’s MVP runner-up during his junior year. He said he’s still teetering on wanting to play sports while beginning his career.
“I thought about it,” Luca said. “The end of this season kind of hurt me a little bit. Before the season, I was definitely thinking about trying to walk on somewhere in college. But this injury showed me so many things past basketball and past sports and I really like being able to work with my grandparents and my dad and my brother. They showed me a side of life that I didn’t think I’d like as much as I do. But sports will always be an option for me no matter where I’m at. If the opportunity comes for basketball or soccer, I will 100 percent take that.”
