ATLANTA – The whistle shrieks and, suddenly, sneakers screech to a halt across
the hardwood basketball court earlier this week inside a Cordova training
facility.
Ten young teenagers circle around a group of coaches for a few final
instructions as the team wrapped up its final practice in Memphis. In a few
hours, a caravan of three mini-vans will transport ‘Team Thad’ on the five-hour
drive to its next weekend tournament in suburban Atlanta.
Amid the frenetic, vagabond existence of AAU summer basketball, these sort of
weekly treks around the region and country are as routine for these coaches,
players and family members as reaching for phones and scrolling through the
latest updates on social media apps.
However, this next journey isn’t quite business as usual for these 13- and
14-year-olds. And their coaches want to make sure they drive home that point
before they drive east across I-22 and I-20 to their destination.
“This is going to be the best of the best we’re about to face,” an assistant
shouts from inside the circle. “But I’m not worried about them. You know why?
Because we are one of the best of the best, too. But we have to be disciplined.
We have to stay focused. And we have to bring that with us.”
That mindset has gotten them all this far, and has them believing they can
extend the remarkable run. Team Thad is the Memphis Grizzlies Youth Basketball
affiliate that has advanced to this weekend’s Jr. NBA Global Championship
Southeast Regional Finals in Georgia.
Part of the youth basketball program run by Memphis native and NBA veteran Thad
Young, Team Thad qualified for the Southeast Regional Finals by going undefeated
in the Grizzlies’ first ever Jr. NBA Championship Local Qualifier in April. It
has already been a unique ride for both Team Thad and the Grizzlies’ Jr. NBA
venture. According to the NBA, Memphis was among a select number of teams to
host a Jr. NBA Local Qualifier, and was the only franchise to do so inside a
league arena when the Grizzlies used both the FedExForum court and main practice
facility to hold games two months ago.
“This one is just like that one (at FedExForum), where we played together as a
team and won,” said Team Thad point guard Andre Watson, a 9th-grader entering
Bartlett High. “What makes this team special is the talent we have. We don’t get
nervous. It’s just about doing the best we can, have fun playing the games and
going to the malls. We’ll be ready.”
Team Thad emerged as the most dominant team in that local field in April, and
now moves on to Regionals to play at least four games for a shot to advance to
Sunday’s championship round. There are eight national regions within the United
States and eight Jr. NBA global regions across the world, including Canada,
Mexico, Latin America, Africa, Europe/Middle East, China, Asia Pacific and
India.
The U.S. Regional champions in both the girls and boys divisions advance to the
16-team Jr. NBA Global Championship Finals in August at Walt Disney World
Resorts’ ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. The Grizzlies have seen rapid growth
in its partnership with Jr. NBA programs the past two years. During the league’s
Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration events in January, the Grizzlies set a
franchise record for its Jr. NBA 3-on-3 Youth Basketball Tournament, with more
than 90 girls and boys teams through the region participating in the games and
development sessions.
The April tournament in Memphis was an extension of that growth, and Team Thad
heads to Atlanta having trained both on and off the basketball court in the Jr.
NBA’s core values of Determination, Teamwork and Respect.
“Team Thad’s involvement presents an exciting opportunity to showcase the
talents of our Grizzlies Youth Basketball affiliates and the entire city of
Memphis,” said Antonio Perez, Grizzlies director of youth basketball
programming. “While we anticipate a higher level of competition at Regionals,
it’s no accident Team Thad went undefeated in our Local Qualifier. They’re
well-coached and their players show an exciting combination of skill,
athleticism and discipline. We’re confident in their ability to compete on this
grander stage and we’re rooting for their advancement to the Global Finals.”
After winning the local qualifier in April, Team Thad also represented well in
the Chicago Classic AAU tournament last month over Memorial Day weekend. The
squad’s continuity was established long ago and is strengthened each day.
During a two-hour practice Thursday night, Coach JeMarcus Thaxton pointed to a
roster that boasts prolific three-point shooting guards and versatile bigs,
including 14-year-olds as tall as 6-foot-6. But the bonding goes beyond
basketball, and many of the teachable moments during the workout were about
life.
“A lot of times our biggest connections happen when we eat together, when we try
to allow them to play around with each other, like some trips when we go
swimming,” Thaxton said. “It’s not just about how well they play on the floor,
but it’s also about how well they are together off the floor. We’re asking them
about their report cards, how school is going and things of that nature. We take
them to the malls, allow them to walk around and see how different cities are.
It’s a very unique group of kids.”
Anthony Medlock, a forward who will be attending Arlington High, believes Team
Thad’s recent success on the court is a byproduct of the lessons learned in
times when they are away from basketball. Winning tournaments is great, but
nothing quite tops the fun the team had that time when they went to a trampoline
park. Despite being elite-level teenage prospects, they’re still kids who love
to have fun while learning the core values of Jr. NBA programs.
“We have a good starting five, a deep group and we have strength in numbers,”
Medlock said. “Everybody can shoot, pass the ball, dribble and push the tempo.
Some of us have been playing together since about fourth grade. We have a good
team chemistry because we go places and we bond with each other. When we go out
and hang out at like trampoline parks, that’s building something, too.”
That is another reason why Thaxton’s coaching staff doesn’t take any moment for
granted. Every time the whistle blows and the sneakers squeal to a halt, there
is another pearl of wisdom shared.
“We use basketball to teach the game of life,” Thaxton said. “You’re not always
going to be up and you’re not always going to be the winner. There are going to
be times you have to put your head down and work a little harder. You might not
be getting that A or B in a class, and it requires you to take a step away from
some things to focus on school. So it is like life, you’ve got to get in there
and fight, continue to work hard and stay disciplined. That’s what we preach a
lot.”
Success for Team Thad typically comes down to three things.
“Do what you’re supposed to do, do what you’re asked to do and everything else
will fall into place.” Thaxton vowed. “It’s about basketball. But it’s also
about a lot more than basketball.”
Winning the local qualifier on the Grizzlies’ home court offered only a hint of
what Team Thad is capable of accomplishing. It provided confidence to pursue the
ultimate goal of bringing a Jr. NBA Global championship back to Memphis.
“That was a dream come true, because all of us have always wanted to play on the
Grizzlies court,” Medlock said. “Man, that was cool. Now, it’s a bigger stage
(at Regionals). We still have to go out there and play hard to get this
championship, and then keep going. We’re looking forward to the exposure.
Everybody knows how good Team Thad is. We just want to keep making a name for
ourselves.”
The Regional Finals will be streamed on both FloHoops and Eleven Sports USA, and
fans can follow Grind City Media’s Michael Wallace (@MyMikeCheck) and Grizzlies
Youth Basketball (@MemGrizzYouth) for Team Thad’s results and other tournament
content. To learn more about the Jr. NBA Global Championship, visit
www.jrnbagc.nba.com.
The contents of this page have not been reviewed or endorsed by the Memphis
Grizzlies. All opinions expressed by Michael Wallace are solely his own and do
not reflect the opinions of the Memphis Grizzlies or its Basketball Operations
staff, owners, parent companies, partners or sponsors. His sources are not known
to the Memphis Grizzlies and he has no special access to information beyond the
access and privileges that go along with being an NBA accredited member of the
media.
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