by Aubrey Bruce, For New Pittsburgh Courier
The date was February 7, 1996. The place was the Regent Theatre (now the Kelly Strayhorn Theater). This was the era when the New Pittsburgh Courier was published on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
That evening many people in the sports world and beyond had gathered to honor the late, great city editor Frank Bolden and to also premiere the HBO documentary, “Journey of the African American Athlete.”
Two Pittsburgh Public Schools athletes, Naron Jackson and Mike Pupa, were also profiled. Jackson is the son of the heralded Schenley High School basketball legend, Jack Jackson.
What makes this story unique is that when I returned to Pittsburgh in 1990, my mother gave me a little duplex located at 2925 Spring Way in Lawrenceville. Directly across from the house was a playground nicknamed, “the tot lot.” It was equipped with a full-sized basketball court. I knew that I would have to do most of my writing during the late morning-early afternoon hours because like a fine-tuned Rolex, Courtney Wallace Sr. and Naron Jackson would be on the court refining and defining their skills after school, hour after hour, until dusk, eight days a week. There were many days that I would look out of my second-floor foyer window observing their evolving skills. After high school, Courtney Wallace Sr. went on to become a star player at Duquesne University and went on to play professionally in South America (in Chile), His “tot-lot” partner, Naron Jackson, went pro with the American Basketball Association.
COURTNEY WALLACE SR. COURTNEY WALLACE JR.
Fast forward to the new millennium. The Neighborhood Academy, located in Pittsburgh, is a private school. A few years back, the school was on the verge of creating a basketball program. The head of the school, Dr. Anthony Williams, approached Jordan Marks to be the head coach of the program. Marks served as a staff member of the University of Pittsburgh men’s basketball program under the former Pitt head coach, Jamie Dixon. Coach Marks recalls that Dr. Williams informed him that they had two great players coming from the 8th grade; one of them was Courtney Wallace Jr.
“Building a program with a lot of young guys can be challenging,” Coach Marks said. “We didn’t have a senior on the roster last year. Courtney had to mature a lot, and he was very coachable. Playing 30 minutes a game out of 32 as a freshman is never easy. But he took it and ran with it and he got better and better as the season progressed. We started three freshmen for the majority of our first year (2021), but we went to the playoffs and won the first playoff game in school history.”
This summer, Courtney was fortunate enough to receive his first Division 1 scholarship offer from former Pitt standout Ronald Ramon, who is now an assistant coach at Fordham University, in New York City. When Ramon came to see Courtney, he played exceptionally well against players three years older than him.
There is great admiration from Courtney for his coach and his school. “I could have gone to another school, but my focus is being a student before playing basketball,” the now-sophomore told the Courier. “I’m not sure how many high schools were interested in me, but I just knew that The Neighborhood Academy is where I wanted to go.”
When I asked Coach Marks about Courtney’s work ethic, his response takes me back to the “tot-lot” and the work habits of Courtney Wallace Sr. “He has called me numerous times asking me, ‘Coach, can you give me the gym before you go to work?’ This was at 6 p.m. just to work out with his dad. Now he’s inviting his teammates which reinforces the advice that I’ve given him regarding being a leader. Hard work and dedication are rare these days. He has passion coupled with a strong work ethic: a character trait that most great players have.
As far as emulating his father on the basketball court, Courtney said: “I just recently got a chance to watch my dad play in a real game. I had always heard about him. One of the things that he does that I would like to do is to be a complete player and cover both ends of the floor.”
Having a strong work ethic doesn’t have to be generic; it may also be genetic. Want to argue that fact with the “souls” of Spring Way that are alive and deceased: Jack Jackson, Calvin Houston, and Mark Halsel, all members of Schenley High School championship teams. The following two players, Stephen Hill and Reggie Wallace, were neighborhood standouts in their own right. If so, they are “locked and loaded,” ready to challenge you to a “spirited debate.” They may no longer be able to challenge you on the basketball court, but if you encounter them in the hallowed and historical halls of Arsenal Park and Arsenal Gym, they will surely give you a run for your money. Having a work ethic was not an exception, it was a steadfast rule.
As an African American griot, it is my responsibility to keep the generations of basketball legends alive and well in the consciousness of the present and the future. It is my hope and prayer that one day, my grandson or granddaughter will be recording the athletic exploits of the son or daughter of Courtney Wallace Jr. However, I am also charged to propel the legends of the present into the future annals of glory because if we don’t narrate our own story, who is going to narrate it, and narrate it correctly?
About Post Author
