The 2018 Autism Awareness Basketball Classic
April is Autism Awareness month and All Things Hoops is partnering up with Chris Williams and a number of other prominent basketball brands to present the 2018 Autism Awareness All Star Classic. April 16, 2018 will be a day full of festivities that aims to promote awareness of Autism in our community. Although Autism affects children of all demographics and ethnic groups it is in the African American and Latino races that often have late or misdiagnosis. Families need more education on Autism and learning some of the warning signs. With this education we can start to overcome the disparity of cases that are diagnosed late or incorrectly.
Chris Williams is putting together an event that will be one of this years highlights. Bringing influential brands invested in the basketball culture together for a good cause.
This is the 2nd annual Autism Awareness Basketball Classic event and this years will be bigger than the first. There will be an 8th grade game, a Slam Dunk contest as well as a High School senior game. Some of the best High School ballers in the NYC metro area will suit up as we try to educate people on Autism and the importance of having children tested as early as possible.
Chris Williams and I go back over 25 years. We were raised in the same neighborhood and it was a pleasure to not only write this article but to get a chance to sit down with him and interview him on what motivated him to start this showcase, amongst other things.
AllThingsHoops: Chris it is a pleasure to get a chance to sit down with you and find out a little about what you are doing and where you plan taking the Autism Awareness Classic.
Chris Williams: First and foremost I’d like to give you a shout out! I love what you are doing for the basketball culture and I want you to keep pushing forward to reach your full potential with All Things Hoops. For those who don’t know I’m a HS basketball coach at St. Raymond’s in the Bronx, NY. Been coaching at there for about 8 years.
AllThingsHoops: To be such a young guy, you have a pretty long track record for coaching and just being connected in the basketball world. Can you tell us how you got started with Autism Awareness Classic?
Chris Williams: Absolutely. In 2013 I took a small break from New York and moved down to Dallas, TX. During that time period I took a job coaching Emmit Conrad High School and that’s where my Awareness for Autism began. I had just come off a City Championship with my Freshman team when I decided I needed a change in scenery and moved down to Dallas (TX) Independent School District to work with a school named Emmit Conrad High School. This is where my Awareness for Autism began. I was assigned to work with children with special needs. Little did I know that most of these children were Autistic. That awakened me to wanting to find out what Autism was and from there educating myself about Autism. That’s where I got the idea for the Autism Awareness Basketball Classic… it was birthed down in Dallas.
AllThingsHoops: How long have you been actively coaching?
Chris Williams: I’ve been coaching, at least for the past 15-16 years. Since I’ve been 20 years old I’ve been putting that work in. I actually got into coaching by working summer camps. Growing up, I used to go to UConn basketball camp every summer and UConn soon became my home base. They helped me establish my coaching career and I’ll never forget… I was coaching a camp playoff game, but at this time I was still playing and wasn’t thinking about coaching. We end up loosing the playoff game but it was there that I was bit by the coaching bug… In UConn’s Gampel Pavilion is where everything started for me. The rest is history…
AllThingsHoops: How did you end up at St. Raymond’s?
Chris Williams: After spending some time coaching the Dallas Mustangs AAU squad I came back home to NYC. I learned a lot about the business of basketball in Texas and met some really good people but it was time to come back home. In 2006 I started coaching in Harlem at Thurgood Marshall High School with my guy Abdul Taj. I helped build that program and started coaching with the NY lightning… eventually an opportunity presented itself at St. Raymond’s in 2010-11. So that’s pretty much my background. I’ve been doing this a few years and have learned a lot from a lot of good people.
AllThingsHoops: You have had a good chunk of your life invested in, not only helping young people with their basketball but also been a role model and mentor. Who were some of the guys who served as that mentor for you at the beginning of your journey?
Chris Williams: That is an excellent question Cal… Being young in this business can really be tiring. You want to run around and be at every event and every showcase but there was definitely a few guys to give me some game about how to be effective without having to be everywhere. First and foremost someone who was inspirational to me was my cousin Pat Sellers, he’s coaching at Fairleigh Dickinson University right now. He’s coached at UConn, UMass, Creighton and DePaul… and has been a mentor to me for many years. I witnessed his grind and passion for the game at the coaching level and it really rubbed off on me. This is a guy who is doing this from a family standpoint. Watching him play professionally in England to coaching at his alma mater Central Connecticut State and just having the opportunity to coach at some big programs is just a great story. Somebody tangible that I can see actually making positive moves and that was huge for my development. Watching him I started to see the game as a business and a way for opportunity.
AllThingsHoops: That’s great that you can have someone in your family who was there to help your development. Where there any others from the New York City basketball landscape who contributed to your development, directly or indirectly?
Chris Williams: In the New York City basketball community there definitely were a few guys who helped me along the way. Guys like Derm Player, Maurice Hicks, Tiny Morton and Gary Charles have been founding fathers to this game in New York City in this generation of High School and AAU basketball. I’ve watched these guys do this for so long, through different eras and different time periods. Throughout it all they still maintain the same level of respect. Wherever you go around the world l… when you think of New York City basketball, you think of those guys. Well there are a few others that I would like to acknowledge as well…. Maxwell “Bingo” Cole as well, there’s a ton of guys but those guys I’ve named had the greatest impact on me.
AllThingsHoops: The reason behind All Things Hoops lays with the foundation of paying homage to the people who came before us and paved the way for what the Basketball culture is today.
Chris Williams: You can imagine how many tournaments and trophies these guys have won. Most importantly, the countless amount of youngsters that whose lives were impacted. This is just a few of the guys too. The list is pretty extensive. I want to have that type of influence and respect that those guys have.
This is the first half of the Interview. Check back on AllThingsHoops.com soon for the other half of the interview as well as an event recap. Make sure you come out and support the Autism Awareness Classic on Monday, April 16th, 2018. It will be a eventful shaowcase of NYC High School Basketball. You dont want to miss it!