ATLANTA SELECT TEAMS OF THE WEEK, MAY 23, 2009

Team of the Week honors is shared by the Atlanta Select 13u Boys Team Black, the 15u Boys Team White and the 16u Boys Team White.

The 13u Boys won the championship in the YBOA Memorial Day Classic by defeating the DC Blazers. This team has won 10 games in a row in tournament play winning championships in their last two tournaments. The key to the success in a semifinal game was the effort by Tylon Bynum who scored 23 points sealing the game. Congratulations to Coach Davis and the mighty 13u Black team.

The 16u Boys won the championship in the Henry County Memorial Bay Classic by defeating a team that beat them in a previous tournament by 20 points. The same team had beat them by 2 points earlier in the day but they met in the championship game. In the championship game the team was down most of the game but with 5 minutes left the team displayed the SYNERGY that they had been taught and won the game. Congratulations to Coach Foster and the mighty 16u White team.

The 15u Boys won the championship in the NAYBA Memorial Day Classic by defeating a 17u team, Camp Jordan) from Detroit Michigan. This tournament had a mixture of team participating in the same age group. The 15u Boys did not realize that they were playing against older boys until the championship game. But this team is tested, consistently playing on Sundays for the entire season, thus they are well prepared to meet any challenge. congratulations to Coach Christopher and the mighty 15u White team. Team picture will be added later.

What is a Student Athlete? JAQUAN PEEPLES

Jaquan Peeple, a member of the Atlanta Select 14u Boys Team White and a student graduating from Montgomery Middle School, is a true student athlete. At his school he was selected MVP and the best offensive and best defensive basketball player for the school year. But more importantly, he scored in the top 5% on the CRCT's and received the "President Award" for being a top student. He is a key player on his Select team that has won four trophies thus far, this season. His coach and Dad, Wallace Lanier, his teammates and the entire Atlanta Select organization are very proud of Jaquan and wish him continued success.

ATLANTA SELECT TEAM OF THE WEEK, MAY 17

The Atlanta Select Team of the Week, May 17, 2009 is the 15u Boys Team Red coached by Coaches Sanders and Hubbard. A month ago this team entered its first tournament and did not win a game. The team thought about taking a few weeks off and going back to the gym and practice. They were advised that their game was solid and the problem was the lack of focus and a sense of SYNERGY. The team was advised to start playing every weekend. And since that time they have played on Sunday, three weeks in a row, resulting in this past Sunday playing in the championship game. The team finished as "Runner-up" in the YBOA Summer Challenge.

The Atlanta Select is extremely proud of this team for displaying the perseverance and SYNERGY that makes champions. The coaches and student athletes of the 15u Boys team Red can be justifiable proud of their accomplishments thus far this season.

Watch out for next weekend.

44 TROPHIES AND 4 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

In the three and half years of Atlanta Select operations the organization has earned over 200 championship and runner-up trophies. Forty four of those trophies have been earned by teams coached by Coaches G. Stewart, M. Gates, M. Harris and L. Whitted. These coaches have guided the Atlanta Select Boys Black Team since they were 9u to 12u today. They usually have two teams, one a year older than the other. These teams, in addition to winning 44 trophies, have won four national championships, one YBOA and three USBA.

Coach Gates, who is the proprietor and lead trainer at Best Fitness by Pharr, in Buckhead, recently installed, a "Trophy Case" in his center to display the teams' trophies. Friends, fans and former players are invited to visit the center at 360 Pharr Road to view the trophies and enjoy a complimentary personal fitness consultation and Free training session. All ages are welcome, with special programs for sports, teens and the over 50 crowd.

Congratulations to the 12u Boys Black Team and their former players for their unparalleled achievement.

ATLANTA SELECT PARTNERSHIP WITH BUTLER STREET YMCA

Part of the mandate of Atlanta Select is to affiliate with local community organizations. Coach Baskerville and his 10u and 11u Boys Silver teams have adopted the Butler Street YMCA, located in the Sweet Auburn District in downtown Atlanta, as their partner. The teams use the facility for skill development training and basketball practices. Coach Baskerville with his teams, parents and friends, purchased basketball wall padding for the gym facility to add protection and safety for players using the basketball court.

Additionally, plans are in the works for several joint skills development, educational and social activities between Atlanta Select and members of this local YMCA. Pictured above is Coach Baskerville with Coach Zeigler as they toured the facility and inspected the newly installed basketball wall padding. We envisioned a long and lasting partnership. The manager of the "Y" is Ms. Brett L. Cave-Lewis.

ANOTHER DIPLOMA FOR AN ATLANTA SELECT COACH

Continuing Education and Career Development are taken seriously by Atlanta Select 17u Boys Head Coach, Jarett Brown. Recently, Coach Brown received his diploma in Medical Assisting from the Everest Institute. He states, "You should always prepare yourself for as many courses of action as possible in life as well as different courses of actions in a basketball game". Coach Brown is setting an example for his players that education comes first and must always be taken seriously. Coach Brown is pictured at his graduation with his mother, Rev Pearl Brown and, also, with Coach Z who taught him Algebra in the 9th grade at Cedar Grove High School.

ATLANTA SELECT TEAMS OF THE WEEK, MAY 10

The two teams selected as Atlanta Select Teams of the Week for May 10 have had an interesting season thus far.

The Atlanta Lady Select 16u Red team has made a name for itself for being the team to beat in the 16u Girls division. These talented young ladies are being recruited by major colleges from all over the nation and they all will be showcasing their talents in tournaments in Florida and Nevada later this season. This past weekend they finished as "Runner-up" in the YBOA Tri-County Shootout.

The Atlanta Select 13u Boys Team Black had a slow start this season. After a couple of disappointing tournaments the team regrouped and started to jelled. Then the team began to built momentum, finally displaying the SYNERGY that was missing a few weeks ago, resulting in the team finishing as champions in the YBOA Suwanee Roundball Classic this past weekend.

These two team under the direction of Coach McCrae (Lady Select) and Coach Davis (13u Team Black), respectively, are displaying the perseverance and professionalism that's the test of true champions. Congratulations.

ATLANTA SELECT "TEAM OF THE WEEK" MAY 2

One Sunday afternoon two months ago, two men met with me separately to express a desire to coach an Atlanta Select team. To their and my surprise, these two men knew each other, were old friends and had coached baseball with their sons before. They agreed to work together and the SYNERGY they produced has resulted in their team, "The Atlanta Select 14u Boys Team Black" being selected as the Team of the Week, ending May 2.

These young student athletes came together quickly and jelled as a team and in their second tournament finished as "Runner up" in the YBOA 14u 8th Annual "TBA" Classic. These 12 young men representing 10 different schools are displaying what SYNERGY is all about. The players are DeAndre Mack= Wesleyan, Eric Ward = Date Middle, Bakari Copeland = Stephenson, Jalaan Moore = Shiloh, Chaston Talley = Heritage, Khalid Abdullah-Daniels = New Timbuck Academy, Colby Trusclair = Miller Grove, N"Kotei" Junior Ne'equaye = Henderson, Marcus Alford = Champion and Jontavious Johnson, Quintin Walker, Jonathan Perkins from Greenforest Christian Academy.

The coaches are Owens Walker, James Moore and Aazim R. Abdullah.

Go SELECT!