Celtics champ hosts basketball camp
Published 6:00 pm Thursday, August 15, 2024
Lowndes County Public Schools Superintendent Samita Jeter visits with Boston Celtics basketball star JD Davison. Photos by Samita Jeter.
Children learn ball handling techniques at basketball camp. Photos by Samita Jeter.
Student-athletes practice ball handling under the supervision of camp instructors. Photos by Samita Jeter.
Campers learn game-winning techniques before enjoying a scrimmage. Photos by Samita Jeter.
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One of Lowndes County’s own basketball stars, Boston Celtics shooting guard JD Davison, held a basketball camp for student-athletes on Aug. 3. The event, hosted by The Calhoun School, was aimed at transmitting a few of the skills that launched the Braggs native to National Basketball Association (NBA) play and ultimately an NBA championship.
The camp afforded school-aged players the opportunity to work with Davison and his “crew” who ran them through drills to practice game-winning techniques.
“I knew I was coming back home [for a visit],” JD Davison said. “I just wanted to do something with the young kids who watch basketball, to come out and celebrate with them. We did a little skill work — ball handling and layups. We did a little scrimmage and had fun. We fed everyone towards the end.”
Growing up in Lowndes County, the Calhoun graduate said he traveled to attend similar camps, but did not have the opportunity close to home. By hosting the camp, he said he hoped to bring better opportunities to the children of “the 45.”
Roughly 50 children attended the one-day event that family members, including JD’s mother, Catrina Davison and his brother, Jerome Davison, helped to facilitate.
Catrina Davison now lives in Greenville. She is a Central High School graduate who raised her children in Lowndes County and understands the need for community members to pour into the lives of local children.
“It means a lot, a whole lot, to help with the effort,” Catrina said. “In Lowndes County we didn’t get the exposure that other kids did in the top counties or bigger cities. It means a lot to come back and do this for the children.”
After attending the University of Alabama and now in his second year with the Celtics, JD urges student athletes to know they can reach their goals and succeed.
“I tell them, the first thing is to trust God and trust your work,” JD said. “Just do what you do. Just have fun when you’re young because once you get old it’s a business thing. As kids, just have fun, trust God and trust your work.”
