RALEIGH, N.C. — Students were inspired to dream big by taking part in a girls' basketball tournament Monday. Their coach is inspiring the next generation through the spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
What You Need To Know
- Elite Exposure Basketball hosted a talent showcase for high school basketball players in the Raleigh area
- The event focused on inspiring young girls through the accomplishments of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
- The goal for the event is to get kids noticed and eventually recruited for college basketball so they can get a free education
Coach Gerroid Doughty works hard at helping his students show off their skills while creating leaders at the same time. He recently established a talent showcase to get college coaches in the room with the goal of wanting to hear three words, “Who’s that kid?”
Doughty, also known as Coach G, started coaching for his son’s team over 10 years ago, but it quickly grew into a passion. He started Elite Exposure Basketball in 2015.
“Because I’m not only coaching my players,” Doughty said. “I’m coaching other kids too because I just want to see everybody do good.”
It’s about more than just the game; it’s about life lessons. Doughty said he has a heart for kids, and has seven kids of his own.
During Monday’s event, he wanted to encourage the high school students through the life and accomplishments of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He said there’s a lot of facts people don’t know about the civil rights hero.
“I feel that events like this helps everyone learn more about the person who enabled us to have a lot of the freedoms that we have today,” Doughty said. “We just want to make sure that everyone is aware of the sacrifices that he made.”
The theme for this year’s talent scouting event was "be the dream."
“All the things that [Dr. King] talked about, especially about us living together, one accord as one nation and everybody being accepted as equals,” Doughty said. “This starts with, you know, everybody doing their part.”
He hopes these games help kids fulfill their dreams for the future. Doughty said the showcase embodies the values of sportsmanship, diversity and community — all things that aligned with Dr. King’s legacy.
He’s doing it all this through the universal language of basketball. He explained the hope is to get kids recruited for college basketball so they can get a free education.
