This story appears in SLAM 255.
Darius Acuff Jr. doesn’t have too many vivid memories from when he was really young—we’re talking 2 or 3 years old. But he does remember running around the ACC’s gym that sat just down the street from his childhood home in Detroit while his older cousin’s team tried to practice. All of his memories with the game began in that gym with striped royal blue walls.
Since 2003, the father of Darius’ uncle Rashad has taken care of that very gym. Known across the community as Coach V, Virgil Phillips serves as the director of youth programs for America’s Community Council Youth Center on Seven Mile. And along with Darius’ father and his uncle, Coach V is one of the main reasons why Darius still calls that particular hardwood home. Even after becoming the nation’s top-ranked point guard, winning EYBL Scholastic Player of the Year with IMG Academy and committing to Arkansas as John Calipari’s next great PG.
“I was just in there every day working out. Literally since I was around that age up to now, I’ve been working out there. It’s never changed. I’ve been working with my dad, uncle, all types of stuff. Even our AAU team when we were little, that’s where we practiced at. All the memories are definitely in that gym,” Darius says.
Jared ebanks 