A total of 140 athletes from 17 different schools were on hand for the 22nd annual Jumpstart Summer Basketball Camp at Dufur High School.
Not only are these basketball mavens instructed on the intricate aspects of the game, they are broken up into skill levels and positions so they can harbor some knowledge of each area of the floor ranging from guard, to wing and post knowledge.
Along with the opportunity to work together to practice their new skills, the aim of the camp is predicated on emphasizing the fundamentals, developing proper mechanics and gaining valuable game experience. Campers acquire and carry the knowledge over for a chance to get a solid start to their upcoming seasons. In the end, there is no bigger tool then getting on the hardwood.
“Today’s preparation determines tomorrow’s achievement,” said event coordinator Tom Conklin of the Jumpstart Camp’s motto. “We want these players to ask themselves, ‘what are you doing to be better?’ We teach them to keep going. We encourage them to work to improve.”
While an athlete may be blessed with speed, size, possess solid inside skills or a deadly 3-point shot, Conklin said none of those attributes matter if a player cannot mesh with his or her teammates.
“There’s discipline, there’s listening to people that have some wisdom and there’s teamwork – that’s huge,” he said. “We talked earlier in the week and we started with teamwork and how well these athletes work with others. We are and will be on many teams. There is great emphasis placed on being able to work together as a cohesive unit.”
Dufur varsity boys’ basketball head coach and first-year Jumpstart Coach Tony White was happy to a part of the process of molding and shaping youths from second-through-ninth grades for a week during the summer.
“It’s nice to be able to work with future high school basketball kids from all levels,” White said. “We have kids from 17 different schools attending jumpstart this summer and it will be nice to watch these youngsters mature.”
Of the 140 campers attending, 65 were young athletes ranging from the second-through-fourth grades. The boys and girls were training in the upper gym, the lower gym and four outdoor courts were reserved for the older group of boys and girl campers from fifth-through-ninth grades.
Tuesday, the Dufur pool hosted an afternoon girl’s party, while the boy’s had their turn on Wednesday afternoon.
This year’s camp sponsors, Casa El Mirador and Devco Mechanical teamed up with the Jumpstart programs for another season also.
The money raised helps fund the Jim Schultz Scholarship program at Dufur schools and many of the other Dufur sports programs. To catch up on the latest news and notes, interested parties can email questions to Jumpstartyouthactivities@gmail.com or log on to Jumpstartcamps.com.
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