From a youth project to a championship-winning basketball team in the Queen City

What started out as project to engage young people at INLIVIAN properties has become a life-changing experience.

From a youth project to a championship-winning basketball team in the Queen City What started out as project to engage young people at INLIVIAN properties has become a life-changing experience.

By Andrew Barnett

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QC Life) - What started out as project to engage young people at INLIVIAN properties has become a life-changing experience.

Ryan Grace, INLIVIAN’s Youth Service Coordinator assembled an amazing team of young men from our communities known as the Soul of a Champion All Stars.

On QC@3, we talked to Coach Ryan Grace and Barron Harris, a 16-year-old 11th grader from Myers Park High School.

The basketball team, formed in Feb. 2020, has been on a roller coaster ride, but winning and losing is a part of the sport.

What they could not have imagined is how their team would turn into a brotherhood.

These young men had never played any organized sports and have gone on to dominate the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) basketball circuit nationally winning 25 First Place Championships to date.

Being on the team has been an eye-opening experience for the members of this team.

For many, traveling to games was the first time they had left Charlotte, let alone the state. Being a part of this team has brought the boys opportunity and accolades, including:

  • Higher grades in school
  • Less school absenteeism
  • 25 1st place championships
  • 2 championship rings
  • Placed 2nd in the National Travel Basketball Association two years in a row
  • 4 MVP players in four different tournaments
  • 2 Prep school invites
  • 3 college visits scheduled
  • 3 players who have averaged 20 points per game
  • A visit from President Joe Biden and NBA player Chris Paul

The Soul of a Champion All-Stars practice on Wednesdays and Sundays at the Curry Court located at INLIVIAN’s Carole Hoefener Center, 615 E. 6th. Street.

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QC at 3
Andrew Barnett

Andrew Barnett

Andrew Barnett is a young writer from Alabama. A lifetime music lover and enthusiast. He has been writing for years and has published several places ranging from AllHipHop.com to Raycom Media’s Digital Hub before joining WBTV. He writes about any and everything, from news and politics to music and sports, and is a lover of research and learning.