Winning equals getting ‘washed up’ for DC Elite Summer League champs

BIRMINGHAM Former NBA No.

1 overall pick and Detroit native Derrick Coleman says theres enough of his awards laying around his moms house that it could be a shrine.Whenever I transition from this earth, my kids are gonna put all my crap in storage somewhere and forget about it, Coleman said laughing.

Weve got the NBA Rookie of the Year trophy, the Dream Team II gold medal, the McDonalds All-American jersey ...

What do you do with all that?That question had been floating in the mind of the Northern High School alum and No.

1 overall pick of the NBA Draft, whose DC Elite Summer League involving a number of area middle school and high school boys basketball team nears its conclusion.This is the seventh or eighth year the circuit which has featured players like Cassius Winston (U-D Jesuit), Isaiah Jackson (Lutheran Northwest, Waterford Mott) and Pontiac native Jamal Cain (Oakland University) has been held at Groves High School, but its been around for roughly double that time after Coleman said he was spurred to create it after a trip to the Final Four.

Related ArticlesHundreds of kids turn out for Lions WR Jameson Williams youth football camp at ND PrepPhotos from Lions WR Jameson Williams youth football camp hosted by Pontiac Notre Dame PrepFord trio, coach among locals set to feature in Tuesdays MHSSCA all-star gamesOLSM grad Ike Irish drafted by Orioles in first round of 2025 MLB DraftRoyal Oak native Derek Smith ready to help Ravens soar as new athletic directorI went to a coaches meeting and was talking about where kids were (from that were) going to schools, Coleman said.

When it got to Michigan, we probably had four or five going high-major D1, and Im like, thats got to be wrong.

Not in Michigan.

All we do is produce good talent.

When I got home, I (asked myself) what I was going to do, because I saw the decline.

I wanted to create a summer league.For years now, the league has awarded trophies at the conclusion of the four or five-week run.

This summer, the hardware has been done away with, and replaced by home appliances.Say hello to the DC Elite Spin Cycle Championships.The transformation originated from Colemans partnership with business partner and friend Tarence Wheeler, a standout at Southwestern HS that played at Arizona State, whose foundation and efforts have helped provide food to families and foster positive relationships with youth in the community.

Together, they created a food pantry at Henry Ford High School and wrapped the walls to honor former standouts of the school like Greg Kelser.There, he encountered a woman who is a Pathways 2 Potential Coach (through the Michigan Department of Health & Human Services) whose refrigerator at the school that had seen better days.

Students were frequently visiting the room in the hour or two that Coleman was there, stopping by in need of everything from deodorant to a hoodie.It got Coleman thinking that the hoops league could provide something students and teams could use far more than a summer trophy: a washer and dryer.Berkleys Pierre Hannah attempts a shot in a game Friday night during the DC Elite Summer League at Birmingham Groves High School.

(BRYAN EVERSON MediaNews Group)I thought about how we could impact what were doing with kids, and the best way, for me, is being able to provide a service that no one really talks about, Coleman said.

No one talks about kids coming to school without clean clothes.

Instead of (trophies), lets build laundry rooms for teams that win.One middle school and two high schools that emerge as champions from their respective divisions will be the recipients of those appliances, and more, if their laundry room facilities can accommodate it.If your room is big enough, well supply four washers and four dryers, said Coleman, who noted that the assistance could go beyond just those.

Were looking at partnerships with soap companies, whatevers out there.The ambition goes beyond just providing those necessities to the school in the future, according to Coleman.

This is a pilot program, doing it here at the HS and middle school level, he said.

My ultimate goal (is), if theres 15 kids on a team (here), being able to donate washers and dryers to every kid on the team (for their) home.

Were just trying to change lives through this sport.Berkley head coach James McCulloh, whose team took the floor on Friday for a play-in game of the leagues playoffs, was one of many in support of the initiative.I think its awesome, McCulloh said.

I had a conversation with him last week about it and told him its great what theyre doing, because theres a lot of kids who dont have access to these types of facilities.

And the mindset that we have at Berkley and the way that I want a lot of coaches thinking is to give a college experience at the high school level, and (part of that) is making sure kids have clean uniforms and clean gear so that they dont have to feel ashamed for their stuff when they come in for a practice or a game.Beginning Monday, multiple teams from Oakland and Macomb County will have a chance to win the laundry room makeoverIn the High School A Division playoffs, North Farmington, Warren Lincoln, Lanse Creuse North and West Bloomfield are among the 12-team field.The play-in bracket was still in progress as of Friday night, but the High School B Division playoffs include the host Falcons, as well as Arts & Technology Academy of Pontiac and Pontiac HS.Finals for both brackets are set for July 28..

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