Baller-in-Chief

By Claude Johnson

Last week I got a call from the producer of a new upcoming television show called “The Buried Life” on behalf of these four young guys who are trying to accomplish a list of 100 things to do before they die while helping strangers do the same thing.

So it’s a kind of a how to do anything series with a pass it forward twist.

The four guys tracked me down because #95 on their list is ‘Play Ball with Obama’ and they thought maybe Baller-in-Chief.com could help.

From their website, which is impressive and well done:

We’ve decided to step up our game and add another seemingly impossible item to the list: #95: Play Ball with Obama.  Bay-rock is one of our heroes, he changed the world in a moment -- we want to see if he can ball.  One on one, one on four, TBL vs. The White House, whatever!  The challenge is out Mr. President.

Their project sounds really interesting, especially the altruistic component where they help others.  It also seems well-funded, which in and of itself is quite an accomplishment for this quartet of seemingly ordinary everyday guys. Well-funded enough, anyway, to make a difference with a charitable organization, an important social cause, or in lives of individuals who could benefit most. This is as important as ever, in D.C. as well as elsewhere.

Kudos to the group for creating something from nothing, and taking their vision this far.

So I told them I wasn’t sure if I could help but that I would try.

The guys in this group are Ben Nemtin, Duncan Penn, Jonnie Penn, and Dave Lingwood. They seemed likable and energetic.

“We started this project to inspire others and to prove anything is possible,” Duncan later explained.

It’s an improbable list, especially #95.

“This is a tough one,” I said.

“They’re all tough, but we’ve completed all of the ones we’ve tried so far,” their producer said.

Of course, playing President Obama in basketball would have been much earlier than #95 on my list, but I give the guys credit nevertheless.  Or maybe they’re saving the hardest ones for last.

My advice to them was that if they focus on helping provide assistance and exposure to local D.C. community service projects, then 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue will tend to pay that much more attention to what they’re doing.

Their trailer below does a good job of explaining the project:

Meanwhile, the entire crew is in Washington, D.C. this week talking to politicans, officials, media contacts, people who’ve played basketball with the President, and anyone else who might offer clues or leads or advice.

Keep an eye out for a big purple bus rolling around in the city.

If you have any leads, they say, you can contact them here: crew@theburiedlife.com.

Or go to their website, where you can sign up and create your own personal list of 100 things to do before you die.

What’s on your list?

By Claude Johnson

There’s been much chatter lately about President Obama and his family spending their summer vacation in the traditionally African American enclave of Oak Bluffs on the island of Martha’s Vineyard.

If you’ve never been to Oak Bluffs, you’ve got to check it out.  The black history heritage trail of Martha’s Vineyard is fascinating and little known.  And, don’t believe the silly hype from the recent New York Magazine article that claims visitors and residents adhere to self-imposed racial segregation.  That’s simply not true.

By the way, my wife and I got married (over a decade ago!) at a private house in Oak Bluffs, overlooking the water, in a lovely low key ceremony.  Boston Celtics star Ray Allen did the same thing last summer (got married there, that is, not necessarily low key).

Yes, Oak Bluffs and Martha’s Vineyard do have their share of celebrities.

Meanwhile, the Boston Herald suggested this week that “the Secret Service reportedly has scoped out a number of homes” there.

But has anyone scoped out the basketball options for the president?  Where did Ray Allen shoot around while he was there?

Sure, people have driveway hoops.  But that’s not what we’re talking about here.

Unfortunately, the best place to play, by far, won’t be ready until next summer.  It’s the brand new Y.M.C.A. gymnasium that’s going up in nearby Vineyard Haven, a mile or two down the road from Oak Bluffs.  The $1.7 million facility will include a sweet, full sized basketball court with accompanying locker rooms, cafe, snack bar, wellness center, and other features.

Until then, the president (and everyone else) will have to “settle” for the awesome outdoor lighted court at Niantic Park in Oak Bluffs. That court is sweet too.

It’s got a special smoothly finished surface, extended backboards (so you go hard to the rim), padded poles (ditto), a neat paint job with contrast colored keys and center circle, bleachers, and an electronically controlled scoreboard.

It’s also got an enclosed fence and parking. Plus, it’s right in the middle of Oak Bluffs, you can’t miss it, and everyone can walk over there from wherever they’re staying.

And guess what? The president could attend the annual Vineyard Streetball Classic!

It’s a 3-on-3 youth basketball tournament that takes place on July 4! This year marks the seventh annual event!  It’s for boys and girls ages 10-18 (pre-registrations July 1-3).

Best of all, the tickets, registration, and sponsor fees benefit the Oak Bluffs Parks Department and the Martha’s Vineyard Chamber of Commerce Charitable Fund.

Isn’t that right along the lines of what President Obama and Mrs. Obama have asked Americans to do, as far as supporting their communities through volunteerism and goodwill?

Opening rounds for the Vineyard Streetball Classic on July 4 begin at 10 a.m.

By the way, the court stays open late, and there’s even an open-age night hoops league played there.  Maybe, just maybe, the president can use his executive privilege to substitute in on one of the teams as a ringer.

(Photos courtesy of the Vineyard Streetball Classic and the Vineyard Gazette.)

From a piece on Politico.com:

When we tracked down Johnson at Friday’s Radio & Television Correspondents’ Dinner, we asked him not only to assess President Barack Obama’s basketball skills, but whether he thinks he could school Obama on the court.

The answer?

Editor’s Note: Is big skunkitude wise?  Are there not many ways to skunk, and be skunked?  Who is the Skunker-in-Chief?  Does not he who skunks last, skunk best?

(From NBC Sports Online)

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) -North Carolina made President Barack Obama’s bracket a winner with its romp through the NCAA tournament. Now Obama will get the chance to thank the Tar Heels for making him look good.

The president will honor the national champions at the White House next Monday.

Obama – who played a pickup game with the team last spring – picked the Tar Heels to win the title before the tournament. North Carolina was the only one of his Final Four picks to make it to Detroit, but the Tar Heels’ 89-72 win against Michigan State on April 6 allowed him to finish in the top 20 percent of the 5 million-plus people who entered ESPN.com’s pool.

It was the fifth NCAA championship for the Tar Heels (34-4) and the second in five seasons.

(From John Altavilla for The Hartford Courant)

WASHINGTON — – Long before he became a candidate, President Barack Obama was a huge basketball fan. Well documented during the presidential campaign, his alter ego is that of a gym rat — a guy with a nice first step, decent jumper and pointy elbows.

And after the ceremony on Monday welcoming the national champion UConn women’s basketball team to the White House, Obama decided to prove it. He invited them to the basketball court he had constructed on the White House grounds.

“We played P-I-G, which is a shorter version of H-O-R-S-E,” UConn center Tina Charles said. “He beat Maya [Moore], Renee [Montgomery] and myself. He was shooting 17-footers all over the perimeter.”

Said Montgomery: “He only missed one shot out of five shots. In 20 years, I’ll remember that I could not make one jump shot at the White House. My clothes hindered me. I couldn’t extend my arms.”

Obama extended all sorts of greetings on this day and he did not need a speech writer to help him find the right words to describe what went on in Storrs this season.

“When we were inside with him, he knew what we’d done,” coach Geno Auriemma said. “He knew who Maya, Tina and Renee were. It certainly wasn’t a run-of-the mill conversation with a Washington politician, who is trying to figure out how to get through the day without messing up anyone’s name.

“And you know what? His shot was a little unorthodox, but I’ve always said I’ve never met a bad left-handed shooter. And he talks a little trash, too. A typical, Chicago trash-talker. But he can back it up. That’s all that counts. He’s got the swagger.”

Before departing, Obama signed and gave Montgomery the basketball they played P-I-G with and offered Auriemma a signed home gray jersey to help him raise money for his charity, Geno’s Cancer Team.

Earlier, before the private time on the court, the South Portico of the White House was the site of the ceremony.

Obama praised the players for their individual accomplishments and community service and put on a pink bracelet given him that represents Geno’s cancer charity.

“All of this makes the Storrs community stronger, the state of Connecticut stronger and our nation stronger,” Obama said. “But I also want to say something as a father. It was this program, as much as anything, in the mid-1990s that helped propel women’s basketball into the national consciousness. Thanks to these women, and those that came before them, young women look at themselves differently, especially the tall ones like my daughters.”

During the course of last year’s presidential campaign, the UConn players, the majority African American, took pride in the ascendancy of Obama, first as a candidate, then as a nominee and finally as the nation’s elected president.

His victory in November, a week before the season began, was met with great elation by the players, many saying they felt personally connected with his story.

“When he was elected, we were all dancing around Coach’s Auriemma’s kitchen, saying we were going to see him,” Montgomery said.

The older players knew that winning UConn’s sixth national championship would likely ensure an invitation to the White House.

“It was definitely motivation for us,” Charles said. “It helped us play hard. And once we arrived at the Final Four, we realized we could actually meet him. It was a big boost for us.”

Well, it happened on this hot afternoon shortly after 2 p.m., just before Obama’s meeting with foreign finance and environmental ministers. The Huskies took pictures and joked and smiled with the president.

Montgomery handed Obama, who picked them to win the national championship in his women’s poll, the requisite UConn jersey — a No. 1 home white with B. Obama written on the back.

They stood behind him, beaming as he spoke of UConn’s third perfect season, the first in NCAA history that included double-digit victories in all 39 games.

“I want to congratulate Coach Geno on his incredible season that took place as a consequence of these extraordinary young women,” Obama said.