'I owe the game': Giving back through basketball

Jamichael Blair knows what it takes to get there.

He is a former college basketball player, and the game was his haven and outlet away from the poverty and gangs he grew up around. 

He improved his skills at the Boys & Girls Club and at school. Basketball took him to tournaments around the country and faraway places like the Bahamas and Australia. 

"When I'm out on the court I could just let everything go and just think about playing basketball and get away from the world and just me and the rim," Blair said, sitting on a bench overlooking the basketball courts at Harriet Tubman Park in East Knoxville. 

The 36-year-old former Austin-East High School player played at Sheridan College and was later recruited by Lee University. One memorable experience was when he played on the court at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, home of the Tar Heels, his favorite team. Unfortunately, his prospects of going pro were cut short by a knee injury he suffered before his junior year of high school.

He returned to Knoxville, bringing with him his experiences and life lessons. His goal? To build up local talent.

"When people think of basketball in the state of Tennessee, they think of Memphis," Blair said. "They don't think of a small town like Knoxville having any talent."

After seeing local players who were weak in certain areas of the game, he began teaching kids the fundamentals. The first two years he coached for free and told his friends he owed it to the game.

"With my expertise and my experience and what I have learned myself over the years, and also watching it and also playing it, is to give back the fundamentals, the IQ of the game and pouring what I have into these kids," he said.

On a recent evening, Blair trained with a group of five at Harriet Tubman Park. Running through dribbling exercises, shooting stances and other drills, they raced before incoming storm clouds could soak them in rain.

Looking over the court, he said coaching brings back a lot of feelings. Growing up, he didn't have anyone to work with him and help him improve.

He said he just wants to "give back to these kids," to give them "something to lean on." And hopefully, one day, they can get there, too.