ROANOKE, Va. – “It was like ‘Hey, this is the right way things need to go and I have a son in it so let me see if I can figure out what to do to get it all together.’”
Formed in 2016, Team 540 Boys AAU program aims to elevate young men on the basketball court and in life. Co-founder Tavaris Whorley, aka “Coach Squeak” found inspiration to try and do things the right way and help today’s youth understand more than just basketball. They stress the importance that winning is part of the game, but not everything to the game. But when the right things are prioritized and the wins come, the rewards come in abundance.
Over the summer, Team 540 had three of its teams win national championships--its 6th, 7th and 8th grade teams.
“They fully bought into [the point that] if you’re fully prepared then you have nothing to worry about,” said Joseph Fitzgerald. He coached the 6th grade national champion team. “If you do your homework behind the scenes, when you show up you’ll be able to live with the results.”
The 3rd grade program also captured a national runner-ups nod as well.
While winning the rings and hardware were great experiences, Whorley has bigger goals for the young men that are part of Team 540.
“I want to see scholarships for our kids whether academic or athletic,” said Whorley. “It doesn’t matter if they make it in basketball, just making them a better person in life and getting them to get use to structure in life is what we’re looking for.”
For more on Team 540 and to hear more from the coaching staff, be on the lookout for a special edition of Around the Way with EJ.