Imagine learning about the game of basketball from individuals who reached the pinnacle of success in the sport. Now, envision those individuals taking time to offer encouraging words and instruction on both physical and spiritual levels to maximize the impact the game on a life.
For over 55 children in
Avery County, imagination became reality last week as
Avery County native and
North Carolina State University basketball legend Tommy Burleson, in partnership with
Avery County Parks and Recreation, hosted his annual basketball camp.
Boys and girls ranging from grades 3-12 spend five days at the camp learning fundamental skills such as dribbling, passing, shooting, and defense, but also acquire a wealth of knowledge from the former
N.C. State University, U.S. Olympic basketball, and NBA standout.
“It was a great week. The kids seemed to have a really good time. I know I did,” Burleson remarked at camp’s end. “All my counselors were excellent. They were very emotionally tied in with the young kids and I could see they enjoyed working with them. They invested time and effort into it from coaching to refereeing and showing little idiosyncrasies and technique to help the kids with their game.”
This year saw an increase of enrollment, as a large group of around 55 campers received an official camp t-shirt quoting Scripture from Psalm 117:1, which reads “Praise the Lord, all ye nations. Praise Him all ye people.” The statement is also indicative of the importance Burleson has placed through the years of teaching campers moral truths in addition to basketball principles.
“We were able to give witness, and I hope what we spoke will impact the lives of the kids. If your message is able to reach at least one kid, it’s all worthwhile,” Burleson remarked. “I could see by some kids’ attitudes that we weren’t breaking through, but I also saw more kids whose attitudes changed about Christ and that we were getting through. I think we touched the lives of at least a half a dozen or a dozen kids, and I hope we reinforced the positive Christian messages that parents teach at home. Hopefully we also got the message out to kids who have never heard the message before.”
Each year the camp provides students with drills and techniques to help them improve their game. Whether a child is first learning about the game or has years of experience on the court, the camp offers something for every skill level.
A unique aspect of the camp each year is the presence of special guest speakers and instructors who share a testimony with the campers and teach specialized skills.
During Thursday morning’s camp session the students heard from Bobby Jones, former University of North Carolina basketball star who won an NBA championship with teammates Julius “Dr. J” Erving and Moses Malone with and the Philadelphia Sixers.
Jones shared Biblical examples Hezekiah and Samson to explain to the campers that the decisions they make will always involve consequences, regardless of whether the decisions are good or bad. He encouraged students to trust those positive role models in their lives who are telling them to do the right things in life, such as coaches, teachers, and parents. Jones also commended the campers on their skills that he witnessed earlier in the day and led them through a number of drills to improve agility, speed, and lateral movement on the floor.
On Friday morning the campers were visited by David Thompson, Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer, close friend and former teammate of Burleson at NC State. Thompson spent time speaking to the attentive group of campers, sharing the mountaintops and valleys in his life from being a top professional draft pick in both the ABA and NBA and the highest paid athlete in the game to his past difficulties with eventual conquest over substance abuse. Thompson shared how his Christian morals guide his life today.
“It’s important that kids understand the consequences and choices in their lives. I want to see kids make good choices and not have to go through some of the things I went through before I finally saw the light,” Thompson remarked after speaking to the group. “It’s important for me to tell the kids to keep God first in their life and they’ll be successful. Everybody might scrape their knee every now and then, but once you have that seed there’s a foundation to build on and come back to.”
The camp featured a number of boys and girls of varying ages who showed sound technical skills in areas such as dribbling, shooting, and playing tough on the defensive end of the game.
“We had a large, diverse group. There was a high number of players I could see who got better and took the fundamentals to heart, practicing them, and putting them into their game,” Burleson added. “We were able to show kids the proper technique and many of the kids picked it up well.”
ROCK HILL -- The Carson-Newman Eagles, who won their 20th conference championship in 2008, are the favorite to defend the conference title, in a vote of the league's head coaches.
