DC Thunder made noise Pt. 1

Printed with permission from i95ballerz.com.

September 23, 2014 - This past travel team season, DC Thunder, as its name suggests, was certainly heard from. Over April thru July, its flagship 16u team not only played in the Adidas Gauntlet Series (the organization is sponsored by that apparel manufacturer) - traveling to multiple cities in the process - but competed in a local event and two tourneys sponsored by the Hoop Group. As the season bore on, successes kept piling up, including three tournaments being won and the championship game of another reached.

Not bad for an organization, in its first year of elite travel team operation!

"I thought it went very well" said Zach Suber, Thunder's past 16u coach and a major figure in the outfit, one that last year also included a 15u crew and 12u group. "The first time under the DC Thunder umbrella. And you know with a few new players; we lost four to DC Premier and gained three. I thought it went well".

Suber and most of his 16u crew were former members of DC Premier (previously DC Assault). He, the players, assistant coach Aaron Ratliff and others including former DC Assault, Temple and professional standout Dave Hawkins, joined the Adidas Gauntlet series with anticipation and ultimately success.

"We would win two, lose one" recalled Suber of their early success at tournaments in Dallas and Indianapolis. Things improved as the season bore on; Thunder 16u won the Gauntlet's Orlando leg, and reached the league's final game in its end-of-season, Las Vegas based, Super 64 finale.

From a local and equally as important perspective, Thunder 16u took on two DMV area rivals, Team Takeover and DC Blue Devils, defeating them both in DMV Elite's top flight Super Team Showcase. Local bonafides were earned there.

Add a pair of Pennsylvania-sited, Hoop Group, open period outings - Summer Classic East and Summer Jam Fest - to the organization's spring/summer schedule. For the record, Thunder 16u won both.

That's a lot of wins, a lot of travel. Which also equates to a lot of cost.

"We were a sponsored team. It kind of worked out" shared Suber of the costs associated with his team traveling and competing. "It wasn't where parents had to come out of their pockets for anything big. Just food money, the usual stuff".

Mike Brown, DC Thunder's General Manager expounded upon how this was achieved.

"Actually I have a history with this stuff", recounted Brown after a pre-July open period practice. "Back in '95 along with Curtis Malone and Troy Weaver (VP/Assistant GM of NBA's OK City Thunder), I was kind of the behind the scenes guy with them, helping them get sponsorship with Adidas (for DC Assault)".

Continuing, he shared "fast forwarding things up real quick, Troy Weaver and I went to high school...Troy has a son, 12 (years old), like I do, both of them are in the sixth grade. Last year in the fifth grade we started DC Thunder for our kids.

"And then what happened, when Zach didn't want to move forward with DC Premier, he contacted Troy and myself and asked us would we be interested in picking up his team and a 15 and under team. Troy and I talked about it, I made a few calls, and Adidas was interested in getting back in the area. It just came together".

Both coaches and players must bring something to the table to make it work.

"We're totally committed to the kids. we're looking out for their best interests, as far as school, academic wise, and achieving a basketball scholarship" expounded Suber on the organization's philosophy, "and to make them a well rounded person". It continues during the school year, case in point being "September 20th we will start volunteer work with the National Capital Food Bank", which is mandatory for older players.

Brown also asserts himself in putting DC Thunder kids in college.

"I've seen him where he's made an assertive and conscious effort to reach out to coaches to get our kids looks" revealed Anthony Cowan, Sr, the father of DC Thunder 16u guard Anthony Cowan, Jr. "This occurs for the number one guy on our team to the number 11 guy on our team".

According to the team's general manager, a need to work together amongst players is key, since "you are not going to have all the top guys" given the DMV's relative small size compared to actual states like California, New York and Texas, as well as competition from Under Armor sponsored DC Premier and Nike's Team Takeover.

"We were fortunate enough to have a team that had some chemistry, a championship pedigree and a championship coach" he said. "I think their experience from playing together has really kept them on top".

Player buy-in is crucial Brown noted: "Everyone has to make sacrifices to play for this kind of team. You can be a 20 point scorer, a 18 point scorer on your high school team. But when you come to what's considered an all-star elite team you have to accept your role".

Next year, expect DC Thunder to definitely offer 17u, 16u, 15u and 13u teams, with a 14u group also possible.

When asked how he would prime fans for 2015's DC Thunder flagship team 17u team, Suber declared "What they can expect next year is a better product. I think we are going to surprise a few people right out of the gate".

He's looking to add a couple of new players to an already formidable lineup.

One guy likes what he sees of the organization in general.

"It's already become a solid program in just one year, and it has a really strong foundation to build on going forward" stated Marcus Helton, DMVElite.com's Editor-in-Chief and an expert on DMV youth hoops. "It definitely looks to be one of the area's top programs".

As Suber said, "I think we will be force".

Part 2 will focus on specific players.