KC summer forecast calls for hot hoops
Kansas City Star, June 18, 2007
Before Terry Nooner became a star at Raytown and later a Kansas Jayhawk, he spent many of his summer evenings inside hot, sweaty Bell Recreation Center.
'My mom dropped me off at 5 p.m. and I told her not to pick me up until 10,' Nooner said. 'I loved it. I saw big-time matchups like when Anthony Peeler played against Tony Dumas. I saw Derrick Chievous and Danny Manning.'
Nooner actually played one year in the Bell Recreation League, but when the center was sold to University of Kansas Medical Center in the late 1990s, the summer league faded from Kansas City.
Thanks to Nooner and Eric Stamps, high-quality summer basketball is back. The Kansas City Pro-Am basketball league features a who's-who of area hoops talent.
Curious how current Kansas guard Mario Chalmers would match up against former Kansas guard Kirk Hinrich? See for yourself for free at 8 tonight at Penn Valley Community College. And, unlike the old Bell Recreation Center, Penn Valley -- located at 3201 Southwest Trafficway -- is air-conditioned and holds about 800 people
'We wanted a place that was central and made it easy for people in Kansas and Missouri to get to,' Nooner said. 'We wanted a gym that wasn't too big, but not too small.'
The inaugural game is 6:30 tonight, with Watson's team taking on Fade Away. The 32-game league culminates with a championship game Aug. 2. The league will follow NBA rules with the exception of four 10-minute quarters, and the three-point line will be the college distance.
Two games (6:30 p.m. and 8 p.m.) will be played Tuesday through Thursday each week. The schedule, rosters, standings and other information can be found on the Web site: kcproamhoops.com. The response has been so overwhelming the league could grow from eight teams this year to 12 next summer.
Marcus Harvey, men's basketball coach and athletic director at Penn Valley, is thrilled the school could play a role in this league.
'It gives people an opportunity to see the talent in Kansas City,' Harvey said. 'This was something I wanted to do for years. I played in the Bell Rec League. I remember playing against Danny Manning when he was a freshman at KU. (Former Kings) Reggie King and Joe C. Meriweather were in the league.'
The KC Pro-Am league will have the same kind of flavor.
From current NBA players Hinrich, Earl Watson and Tyronn Lue to former college stars Jevon Crudup and Victor Williams to current KU standouts Chalmers, Sherron Collins and Russell Robinson, the league offers a bit of everything. Even Kansas City high school legend JaRon Rush is expected to play.
'We have a lot of great players in the area that didn't have a league to compete in,' Stamps said.
The league could help players in the early stages of their college careers. For instances, several UMKC players are playing, along with Isacc Miles and Casey Crawford.
'Earl and Tyronn, they like to mentor and give tips to younger players,' Nooner said. 'They can give them tips on how they made it to the NBA and how to deal with playing in college and things you need to do to prepare for games.'
Kansas City Pro-Am basketball league
** WEB SITE: kcproamhoops.com
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