Bouncing back against opioid addiction

The ball bounced from player to player towards the basket in a blur of colorful jerseys, and quick turns shattered any silence with high-pitched squeaks of rubber soles against the polished wooden floors of the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School (MVRHS) gym as teams from across the East Coast came together on the court for the sixth annual Martha’s Vineyard Boats to the Basket (MVBB) tournament. 

The tournament, held this past Thursday to Sunday, was about more than just what happened on the court itself. It was moved from Niantic Park to inside at MVRHS due to the weather.

This year, the event used the sport to open conversations with young athletes ages 10 through 17 about opioid awareness, financial literacy, community engagement, and more. Organizers said that they hope the lessons will stay with players long after the final buzzer. The winning boys’ and girls’ teams were also each awarded $1,000. 

The tournament is part of MVBB’s Unity Series, an annual youth basketball showcase and community event organized by Play4Peace, a nonprofit organization that uses sports to build positive relationships between law enforcement and communities. 

“It’s always more than just basketball,” Jeffrey Venter, executive director of Play4Peace, told The Times, “Coach Mike [Daniel], who is the founder of MVBB, is an Islander, and we’re aware that opioid is a major epidemic here. So we wanted to put together the basketball piece, what I call the ‘ice cream,’ because the kids will come for it, and then [they will stay] for empowerment, knowledge, and awareness about opioids, and financial literacy.” 

High-level athletes are more likely to be prescribed opioids during recovery from an injury, and MVBB and Play4Peace have worked together for the past six years to bring awareness about the issue through basketball. 

Michael “Mike” Daniel, an Islander who grew up playing basketball at the courts in Oak Bluffs and has coached alongside Venter for roughly 17 years, told The Times, “We’re using basketball as a vehicle to bring awareness about the opioid epidemic.”

Daniel shared that his inspiration to start the MVBB program sprouted from MVRHS’ class reunions, where he realized the weight of the opioid epidemic on the Island.

“The reason why I started this is because of one of my high school reunions. I got a call, and I found out, a couple of my classmates and their friends had passed away from drug abuse. We had another reunion, and more of my classmates had passed away [from addictions],” he added.

This year, nearly 120 young athletes from across the East Coast were invited to attend three classes provided by MVBB.

The classes were tipped-off by a session about opioid awareness and addiction prevention held by Dr. Marcus Amos, followed by a health and recovery class with Dr. Chuck Morris, both of which were held at Cottagers’ Corner in Oak Bluffs. A talk about financial literacy by Adrian Walton was held at the Strand Theatre, also in Oak Bluffs.

Walton is a professional basketball player who recently published a book titled “A Whole Lotta Game: From Rucker to Revenue,” and told The Times that his talk had one main purpose, “My goal is to use my story and who I am.” He wanted to show that a career in basketball is possible, but financial success also stems from financial literacy.

John Ogeleza coaches OHS Academy, a 17U division team from Queens, N.Y. He told The Times when he was on the Island that the seminars helped bring light to options for recovery that don’t require painkillers. “When you’re a high-level athlete and performing at a high level, you want to make sure you’re taking care of your body and nutrition to prevent injuries as well as recovery,” he said. 

Rising high school senior Gui Wilkins plays on BrickSquad Monopoly, a basketball program based in Atlanta, Ga., which rapper Waka Floka Flame serves as program manager for. He said this tournament gives him a peak into what he hopes for in his future: “Most things I dream of in basketball are being able to travel, go to an Island to play basketball, and that’s what we’re doing.”

Among the crowds Saturday afternoon was Paxton Lane of Boston, who watched the teams intently. He shared with The Times that he aspires to play in this tournament someday, “Maybe in two years, I’ll play,” he said. 

For Brooke DeBarros, the tournament is an opportunity to bring Team Chase Foundation to the Island. DeBarros explained that after losing her son, Chase, who was a basketball enthusiast, in a car accident, she decided to found a nonprofit in his memory. Team Chase Foundation came up with the Chase Challenge Kindness Ball, where a basketball-like QR code challenges people to do acts of kindness around the world.

“The goal is to pass it to someone that you did something kind for, so they’ll do something kind. It’s like a ripple effect that will keep on going,” she said. 

Asil Cash is an Islander who coaches the Boys and Girls Club girls team. Cash said initiatives like MVBB carry significant weight for the local community. 

“It’s so important, especially for our area on the Cape. Tragically enough, we’ve been hit hard with an epidemic and to make our youth aware of that epidemic is very important,” he said. “Just bringing the community together to support one another in this battle against opioid addiction is amazing, and we’re very fortunate to be able to be part of it.”