The second annual Milani Malik Elite Basketball Clinic has united some of the city’s finest young boys and girls on and off the court, to learn, develop and grow.
A passion project for founder Milani Malik, vegan pro basketball athlete and business woman, the invite-only event was a way for Malik to give back, as she does throughout the year and is committed to doing her entire life.
Malik hand selected 50 athletes from the New York tri-state area who have good grades, are passionate about basketball and display the work ethic to progress to the next level. Malik provides students with not only instruction and encouragement from top trainers, coaches and players, but full Nike uniforms, bags, trophies, refreshments, SLAM Magazines, NY Knicks takeaways and more.
A few months ago, she held the “Milani Malik Happy Hour Fundraiser” in order to provide the youth with many of their takeaways. She also received help from sponsors including SLAM, Nike, Body Armor and Kenneth Cooper of Awards Depot.
City College’s amazing athletic complex offered a much larger space than the first annual clinic held in the summer of 2014 at Wadleigh High School. Their gym included four full courts and plenty of room for the young athletes to get the maximum workout possible, moving from station-to-station throughout the day and competing in games at the end of each session.
The coaching staff included the overseer, playground legend Pee Wee Kirkland and extra help from Little Pee Wee, NBA Hall of Famer Nate “Tiny” Archibald, overseas pro Monique Coker, Hofstra Hall of Famer and former NBA/overseas pro Norman Richardson.
Additional coaching staff included USA Certified Basketball Coach and Knicks Community Relations veteran Dayon Floyd, former St. Francis College and current X-Men Streetball player Sean Dantzler, certified strength and conditioning coach Kurt Joseph (Master’s in Exercise Science), and former UMass basketball player and current Assistant Principal June Clarke.
Not only did each staff member take them through rigorous training, they encouraged them to push themselves harder than they thought they could, giving them tools to build their game externally and the grit they need to stay the course in their minds. Campers also learned teamwork as it was emphasized in all of the lessons and language.
From the start of the day, to the awards ceremony at the end, where MVP Jordan Nixon walked away with a 6-foot trophy, the clinic was nothing short of an amazing experience for all involved. The players also had access to photos taken by @JSwiftSports of JSwiftsports.com from the event on Malik’s website, milanimalik.com. A hashtag on Instagram (#MilaniMalikElite) was created for pics of the event as well.
It could not have been possible without the vision and work plus her family and event managers Remi Amole and Laryssa Hicks who helped everything run as smooth as a set shot. Overall, the students walked away equipped with the vision, skills, and motivation needed to continue to develop their game throughout the summer and beyond.
