DALLAS – Thanks to the commitment from the Mavs Foundation and sponsors like Wesley Matthews, Pro Players Foundation, Sprite/Coca-Cola and Fox Sports Southwest, the luxurious new basketball court for BridgeBuilders in the Buckeye Trail area of South Dallas has been defined as a game-changer for the folks who live in that community.
Gone is the old tile floor that was so decrepit that it caused much pain whenever a kid would fall on the court. In its place is a modern high-tech state-of-the-art floor that rivals any basketball court in the entire Dallas/Fort Worth area.
“The other court was old, dirty and was a hard tile,” said Shaun Grant, the director of kids programs at BridgeBuilders. “When the kids fell, they got hurt.”
“So this is just something, and they deserve it. It looks good, it looks professionally done and it’s not only good for the kids that come to the program, but also for the community as well. Some of these guys who are coming in here now were kids when this gym first opened, so they are super excited to see their kids get to play in a gym like this.”
Volunteers from the Dallas Mavericks, Mavs Foundation and Pro Players Foundation installed the floor, built new bleachers and painted the walls at BridgeBuilders. PPG Paints donated the paint, NexCourt is the provider of the SportsCourt floor, new goals and new wall pads for safety, and the Dallas Housing Authority maintenance crew chipped in to lend a helping hand to create the new space.
On hand for the recent court dedication included Mavs guard Wesley Matthews, Mavs front office staff members, and sponsors/representatives from Pro Players Foundation, Sprite/Coca-Cola, the Mavs Foundation and FOX Sports Southwest.
“We do a lot of work with the Dallas Mavericks,” said Rebecca Leppert, the chief operating officer for Pro Players Foundation. “And we’re extremely happy to be here and to give these kids a better place to play and have a safe space after school and during the summer.”
Seeing this court come to fruition was personal for Matthews, who ever since joining the Mavericks has wanted to put down roots in the city and believes strongly in giving back to the community.
“One of my biggest things was to be, not only leaving everything on the court, but off the court as well,” Matthews said. “The objective of BridgeBuilders pretty much is in line with our objective of Matthews motto Driven 2 Greatness, and that’s helping our youth get better in whatever way is possible, in whatever way we can. And if that’s through sports, then that’s one avenue.”
“This opportunity was too good to pass up on. It was too meaningful to these kids and to this community.”
Those associated with BridgeBuilders insist the previous court was so feeble that it was difficult to play on it. Thus, whenever the kids at BridgeBuilders played basketball in a league, they had to play all of their games on the road, often as far as 32 miles away in Plano.
“What is so significant about this is the surface that was originally on this floor was not suitable for competitive basketball,” said Michael Craven, the president of BridgeBuilders. “So it limited the children and this community’s opportunities to participate in local leagues and to host home games.”
“Their parents often never got to see them play sports because we were traveling to places like Plano. So this new court changes everything on that front and it keeps basketball in this community, it keeps competitive basketball in this community, and more importantly it provides a safe environment for these kids where they can remain active and stay out of the streets and not find themselves falling into trouble.”
Katie Edwards, the executive director of the Mavs Foundation, acknowledged that it was a no-brainer choosing BridgeBuilders as the place where the Mavs were going to build their 24th basketball court over the past 22 years.
“There are a lot of wonderful nonprofits out there who do great work with kids in the community and every year we look to see where the greatest need is in our area,” Edwards said. “And when we learned about this court here in South Dallas we really wanted be able to give them a new beautiful space where they can play and be safe and have a place to gather.”
“It’s also a community hub, so it gives them a way to have something here, right in their area where they can be together. It’s a beautiful floor, but it’s also durable, it’s safe and it’s not concrete or tile where someone might fall and hurt themselves. It’s a place they can be proud of and it’s a place they can call home.”
And that – taking pride in something they can call home –is priceless for these kids. Just ask 11-year Terrence Kimbrough, who, along with his friends, had been trying to make due on a dilapidated court for a few years.
“The basketball court had cement floors and it used to hurt every time you fall,” Kimbrough said. “And the goals were damaged a little bit.”
That long 64-mile round-trip to play in Plano wasn’t too soothing, either.
“It didn’t feel right,” Kimbrough said about the journey to the North Dallas suburb. “We could barely play on our court. We always had to use their court.”
“Now we can use and stay on our court. It looks better than the last basketball court.”
From Grant’s perspective, the new basketball court represents more than just a new floor where the kids can bounce a few basketballs. It’s the satisfaction the kids received from accomplishing something very meaningful.
“We played in a basketball league in Plano and they have beautiful gyms up there, and then they come back and they see this old tile floor and dirty dingy walls,” Grant said. “So this really will give them a sense of pride in their gym and in the community, and I believe it’ll boost their self-confidence and their skill as they learn basketball and other things in here.”
Craven is appreciative of the role the Mavs Foundation and Wesley Matthews played in BridgeBuilders being the recipients of the new basketball court.
“First and foremost, thank you,” he said. “We’re just incredibly grateful.”
“This is such a gigantic leap forward in our ability to serve and impact this community. And without their help we just wouldn’t be where we are.”
Grant acknowledged that the basketball court will be used for more than just playing basketball.
“We are going to use it for basketball camps, multi-purpose things,” Grant said. “Especially with the heat outside during the summer, for our summer camps we’ll come in here and do the lacrosse camp, they’ll do soccer, and they’ll participate in a bunch of things, dance.”
“The kids really needed this new court. And the kids, the community, they are just super excited for it. It’s been long overdue.”
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