Nuggets go grassroots for latest basketball clinic

On any given day, about 40 kids come through the doors of the non-descript community center that sits a few blocks north of Interstate 70.

Some utilize the well-equipped weight room. Others prefer the spacious rec room that features a pool table, air hockey, foosball and two big-screen televisions. Many stay for the complimentary hot meals served daily at lunch and dinner.

“Kids don’t have to pay a dime to come in here,” said Randy Perkins, founder and president of the Colorado Miners. “All they have to do is pay respect.”

Over the past 13 months, Perkins and his staff have turned a dilapidated, graffiti-covered building into a place of refuge for residents of the poorest economic neighborhood in the Denver-metro area.

The Colorado Miners basketball program is a big part of the community center’s identity. The Miners started with one youth AAU team in 2004 but now boasts 17 teams and a fleet of volunteer coaches.

“This used to be just a random building,” said Justin, a 13-year-old who plays basketball at the community center nearly every day. “Now, it’s almost like a second home to people.”

Justin was among a large group of kids who took part in a basketball clinic organized by the Nuggets this week.

Nuggets coach George Karl spoke to the group for about 15 minutes, emphasizing the values such as education, teamwork and good practice habits. Assistant coaches Chad Iske and Jesse Mermuys then led the kids through defensive and ball-handling drills.

SuperMascot Rocky closed the night with a special appearance that included high-fives and photos with the kids.

“If you just look at the smiles, it says it all,” Perkins said. “It is something that rarely happens in this community – to get a kid to smile – so for Coach Karl & Co. to come out and spend some time with these kids, it says a lot.”

Giving back to the community and promoting the game of basketball has been one of Karl’s tenets since playing basketball for Hall of Fame coach Dean Smith at the University of North Carolina.

In September, Karl and his staff held a clinic for regional college coaches in Colorado and Wyoming, and they welcomed professional and college coaches from around the country into the Pepsi Center in the first week of October.

“We’re trying to just enjoy the game,” Karl said. “For me, when opportunities call to get in the gym, you do it. We’ve had some good times with the coaches in Colorado and national coaches that came in to talk hoop.”

While the coaching clinics presented an exchange of ideas in a film-room setting, the trip to the community center was a grassroots opportunity to emphasize the basics of basketball and acknowledge the tremendous work being done at inner-city community centers such as the Colorado Miners.

“I think we’ve run into people who have put themselves in positions to be influential in difficult situations,” Karl said. “This place has a good reputation throughout the city and state of Colorado for producing good programs. Basketball is a passionate game and if you have passion and teach it the right way, you can have fun with anybody.”

If there’s one thing Perkins is not lacking, it’s passion.

The North High School graduate worked as a manager for the health insurance company PacifiCare and later managed a 24-Hour Fitness, but neither job fed that passion for making a difference in people’s lives. He combined his love of basketball and sense of community by founding the Miners as a non-profit organization in 2004.

The Miners nickname was a tribute to blue-collar miners who do much of their work underground and out of spotlight. Whether it is on the basketball court, in the classroom or in the community, the message is simple: Do your best even when no one is watching.

“It’s incredible what they’re doing here, providing meals, providing stuff for school, giving them a gym and a place to hang out,” Iske said. “All we want to do is come help promote that and help them have success in the gym so they want to get back in there.”

When Perkins made his first trip to the community center, the building was a canvas for local taggers, and the floors featured more duct tape than carpet. Despite the conditions, he agreed to lease the building from Denver Parks & Recreation and then went about meeting the needs of the people who would benefit from keeping the center open.

He spent several days buying pizza for the kids who hung out at the skate park behind the community center. He listened to their input and then went about making their needs a reality.

“One person asked me what’s the barometer of success?” Perkins said. “I tell them to look at the building. There is no tagging on my building. You walk outside and you will see tagging on buildings, but you won’t see it here.”

Perkins, whose business card reads, “Be A Good Player … Be A Better Person,” provided an outlet for some of the local taggers by enlisting them to perform their artwork in various rooms throughout the community center. The move fostered the trust necessary to make the project work.

It’s an investment that pays dividends every time someone gives him a high-five when they walk through the door.

“It’s places like this that save lives because we’re able to give these kids a safe haven,” Perkins said. “To be able to add an opportunity to get a full meal and do some study hall, there are not enough of these places around.

“My soul gets fed every day. Kids come up to me and give me a hug every day. There’s no price you can put on that.”