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Coast2Coast

Coast2Coast Basketball Showcase Recap

Written by Thomas Gordon


Always assume you’re being watched.

That’s the advice that Coast2Coast co-founder James Blackburn stressed to participants at the

camp held in Las Vegas, Nevada.

For basketball players with professional aspirations, it’s important to realize scouts, coaches and

agents look at a lot more than just what you do on the court. Scoring 20 points on 50% shooting

is fantastic. But if those watching you see a player who doesn’t respect teammates or coaches,

walks through warmups or lacks focus off the court, the on-court results won’t matter in the

slightest.

At the Coast2Coast Basketball Showcase, held over two days at Cheyenne High School,

approximately 90 players with varying degrees of basketball experience had the chance to put

themselves on the radar of professional teams. Each player was placed on a team and given an

hour to practice, followed by three guaranteed games and possibly more depending on outcomes.

The showcase put on by Coast2Coast Basketball is one of the best around in large part because

of the coaching staff. This event had nine coaches with experience from all over the world. Some

of the countries that these coaches came from included Romania, Finland, Denmark, Slovakia

and more. For players looking at a potential international career, these were the men to listen to.

With only a few days to demonstrate their abilities, many participants made the most of their

experience. The games were fast-paced and competitive. Another perk of this camp was having

legitimate referees officiating all the games. It was easy to tell these were more than just pickup

games at the local gym.

An added benefit of following a tournament format over the course of the showcase was that

players had time to network in between practices and games. Each coach stood ready to talk and

discuss the pro experience with his players. Scouts, agents, general managers and other coaches

sat in the stands or walked around offering advice to those looking for it.

As with any tournament, there were winners and losers. However, while the outcomes may not

have been what the players were hoping for, each had an opportunity to get more film to increase

their chances of getting contracts in the future. Every game was live-streamed by InStat, and

participants will be able to download their team’s games to cut and edit into their own highlight

reels. Exposure is one of the biggest results of the Coast2Coast camp.

But as Blackburn said, it’s not always about what happens on the court. Professionals need to act

and remain professional in all that they do. With the showcase in Vegas wrapped up, players will

get to see if their hopes of furthering their basketball careers will become a reality.

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