“I missed it,” said youth basketball coach Ray Porredon, speaking of the driving force behind his recent decision to start a 3-day basketball camp in Dawson County. “When you’ve done something like this for 40 years, it’s hard not to,” he added.
Porredon, a Lumpkin County resident of 3 years now, has a rich history full of experience in instructing youth in the sport of hoops and working with some of the sport’s biggest names; such as San Antonio Spurs and Philadelphia 76’ers
Head Coach John Lucas and Boston Celtics Legend Larry Bird’s Head Coach Bill Hodges to name a few.
“I’ve worked with coach Jeff Price of Georgia Southern, Georgia Tech’s Kenny Anderson, NBA Hall of Famer Nate Archibald and many more,” said Porredon, who now hopes to pass on the lesson he’s learned from such basketball greats to North Georgia youth interested in playing basketball.
“One of the main things that I emphasize is character. Character is something that you don’t see as much in the sport anymore and I want to help bring that back because basketball is a great way to earn character, discipline and good sportsmanship,” said Porredon.
During the course of Porredon’s 3-day All-Star Basketball Camp, participants learned several techniques in how best to improve their game and perhaps one day move on to college and eventual professional league play.
“We worked on their offensive skills, they did a lot of drills, fundamentals, defense, shooting and more,” said Porredon.
The semi-retired Porredon said he feels revitalized after hosting such a successful basketball camp that had more than 20 participants from Dawson and surrounding counties.
“It went very well. I’ve even been asked about doing it again in December when the kids are on break,” he said.
Porredon’s current focus though is on his upcoming North Georgia All-Stars game at North Georgia College and State University, Sept. 6.
“It’s going to feature some of the best young high school players in North Georgia. There will be a slam-dunk and 3 point contest and all of the proceeds will go toward benefiting the Diabetes Foundation of Georgia,” said Porredon, who works closely with the foundation. “Anyone who is a type 1 diabetic gets free admission,” he added.
To learn more about future installments of Ray Porredon’s All-Star Basketball Camp or to purchase tickets to his upcoming North Georgia All-Stars charity game, call Porredon at (706) 864-6807.
E-mail Adam C. Stapleton at adam@dawsonnews.com.