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 June, 2010        
           Open Gym, or 8 Teams to 25 Years 

By Staff Reports

Ask anyone involved in the Deveroes Summer League and you will undoubtedly discover a common theme: There is no shortage of praise for the significant basketball talent and great competition the league has produced over the years.

Whether it’s the current college players, area standouts or Deveroes Summer League alumni – no one disputes the competitiveness of the league. It also represents a superb entertainment value for fans that can’t get enough of basketball in the summer.

As the league celebrates its 25th year this summer, it’s also a good time to reflect on some of the other byproducts of it throughout the years.

Ralph Lee, a Xavier point guard from 1982-86 and one of the league’s co-founders, says the league has produced “not only great players, but great coaches” and has developed a greater sense of community pride with commitments from area businesses, who often sponsor teams.

The longevity of the league speaks volumes to the success it has had over the decades, Lee said.

“I think (25 years for the league) is a huge accomplishment,” said Lee, who is a senior human resources director for Cintas. “I’m really proud of it.”

Lee is not alone in his pride for the summer league. In the summer of 1986, Lee along with Butch Burbridge ( Miami University ), Derek Davis (NKU) and current league director Dennis Bettis (NKU) were among the college players who founded the league at Woodward High School .

Lee recalls some players competing at Woodward three days a week (Tuesday through Thursday) in the early days at the school. From there, the league quickly expanded from its original four teams.

Once the league received NCAA certification it needed, the league’s popularity soared in the early 1990s as UC made its Final Four run in 1992.

“It is always a way for fans to get a sneak peek of the incoming freshmen,” Lee said. That was certainly the case in 1993 when the likes of Dontonio Wingfield and Damon Flint were in the Bearcats’ recruiting class.

The early 90s also produced current Xavier coach Chris Mack, who was league MVP in 1991 and ’95. Mack was known as one of the fiercest competitors in the league, Lee said.

“The Deveroes Summer League has provided so many players an opportunity to keep in shape, work on their game and enjoy life-long relationships they’ve made through basketball in this area,” Mack said.

“For years, (league director) Dennis Bettis has done an incredible job running the league. I have a lot of great memories and friendships because of Deveroes and the competition it provides.”

Other players turned coaches include Walt McBride, a former Xavier player who has been a successful area high school coach and former UC player Andre Tate, who is now coaching at Cincinnati State .

But for the most part the fans and players remember the games – whether they were played at Purcell Marian, Woodward or Oak Hills.

“The championship is always big in Cincinnati – it doesn’t matter (who is playing),” said public-address announcer Jamal Walker, a former summer-league player in the late 1980s. “It’s always standing-room only.”

Former UC player Terrance Gibson won multiple MVP awards and championships as a player in the 90s in the league. Gibson said he remembers the electric atmosphere at Purcell Marian with a standing-room only crowd when it felt like the gym was at “200 degrees.”

Gibson, who played at UC from 1989-93, still enjoys attending games and seeing the players he competed with and against in the league – he said it’s similar to a family reunion every summer.

“It was basketball at its finest,” Gibson said of the league during his playing days.

Jack Jennings, who played for 15 years in the league, recalls some classic game matchups against the likes of then-future NBA players Brian Grant (XU), Corie Blount (UC) and Nick Van Exel (UC).

Jennings , a bruising forward who last played in the league two years ago, is one of the most well-known former Deveroes Summer League players. He was a part of the John H. Flessa Law Office team that won at least three league titles during the previous decade.

Jennings , who played at Western Kentucky from 1990-94 and is a 1988 Holmes High School graduate, now attends the league as a spectator because of his busy profession. But, he keeps close tabs on the league and said it will contain to thrive in the future because of the consistent talent from the area college programs.

“It’s good for kids in the summer – whether it’s (players) from UC, XU, NKU or Thomas More – it’s just good basketball and good competition to be honest with you,” Jennings said.

Kevin Britten agrees. A multiple MVP winner (’92, ’94 and ’97) and multiple league champion, Britten, a guard, played 12 years in the league. Britten said he recently spoke to Tate about getting an Alumni Game organized at Cincinnati State .

Britten, a 1985 Taft graduate, is still connected with the league through his son, DeAndre Byrd, a 2006 Taft graduate, who plans to play in the league this summer and is playing professionally in Europe.

Britten can still recall several fiercely competitive games when he played in the summer league – all the games which were played without air-conditioning, he added.

“You are playing the best,” Britten said. “You can’t take a night off.”

George Riley, otherwise affectionately known as “Coach” has rarely taken a night off in more than 20 years of being in the league. Instead of being a player, however, Riley has worked the front-door entrance in helping to collect donations from fans entering the gym.

Riley has worked concessions, created posters and helped in any other way he could at Purcell Marian, Oak Hills and Woodward over the years. He recalls missing only a time or two over the years.

“I enjoy (working in the league),” Riley said.

Riley, who has coached high school football and been an area baseball umpire, has an in-school bowling program for young people in elementary schools around the city.

Riley likes being around young people and said he enjoys seeing the fans and the college players in the summer league.

Riley arrives at Woodward 90 minutes before the first scheduled game to help set up the day. His favorite memories of the league are of the 1990s when Van Exel and Blount played at UC.

Riley even recalls Van Exel sitting and speaking with him at the front-door entrance as they greeted some of the fans who entered.

“There is a fellowship of people coming to see (the league),” said Riley, who has worked with young people in variety of sports in the community over the years. “You meet a lot of people and meet a lot of friends.”

Bettis said he still can’t believe the league has been in operation for 25 years, but he feels very blessed that the league has continued to remain successful. He said it’s a players’ league and those who participate form a unique bond with one another over the years.

“I look at the basketball players in the city as a fraternity,” Bettis said. “I want us all to pull our resources together to help each other.”