A game-changer on the court, Los Angeles Clippers point guard Baron Davis strives to be a difference-maker off it as well—which is why the 11-year NBA vet has been nominated for an Emmy Award in the category of “Best Documentary Film.”
That’s right—when BD isn’t dishing out dimes on the hardwood, he’s busy running the show as a documentary filmmaker. His Emmy-nominated project, Bloods & Crips: Made in America, sheds light on the roots of gang life in his hometown of South Central Los Angeles, a notorious hub of gang-related activity on the West Coast.
As a teenager, Baron escaped gang life by using basketball to achieve something greater. He excelled in the classroom and earned a scholarship to attend the Crossroads School, a college prep academy in Santa Monica. He went on to rep the True Blue and Gold of UCLA, where he was the Pac-10 Freshman of the Year and All-American as a sophomore.
Now, he hopes to use his passion for filmmaking to provide an outlet for youngsters facing the same pitfalls he was able to avoid. “We have to build roads to success, not roads to the penitentiary,” Baron says.
And he wants youngsters to know that professional sports aren’t the only avenue to success. “You may not be a professional basketball player,” he says. “But there are all sorts of opportunities associated with sports, and with the arts. You don’t have to be a millionaire, but you can definitely have an opportunity to further your life and have a better life.
“Basketball has been the foundation for me to do everything in my life. If it wasn’t for basketball, I wouldn’t be here with this opportunity to do other things.”
For more Baron-born inspiration, check out the video above.
Source: espn.com
Photo: blacksportsonline.com
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A game-changer on the court, Los Angeles Clippers point guard Baron Davis strives to be a difference-maker off it as well—which is why the 11-year NBA vet has been nominated for an Emmy Award in the category of “Best Documentary Film.”
That’s right—when BD isn’t dishing out dimes on the hardwood, he’s busy running the show as a documentary filmmaker. His Emmy-nominated project, Bloods & Crips: Made in America, sheds light on the roots of gang life in his hometown of South Central Los Angeles, a notorious hub of gang-related activity on the West Coast.
As a teenager, Baron escaped gang life by using basketball to achieve something greater. He excelled in the classroom and earned a scholarship to attend the Crossroads School, a college prep academy in Santa Monica. He went on to rep the True Blue and Gold of UCLA, where he was the Pac-10 Freshman of the Year and All-American as a sophomore.
Now, he hopes to use his passion for filmmaking to provide an outlet for youngsters facing the same pitfalls he was able to avoid. “We have to build roads to success, not roads to the penitentiary,” Baron says.
And he wants youngsters to know that professional sports aren’t the only avenue to success. “You may not be a professional basketball player,” he says. “But there are all sorts of opportunities associated with sports, and with the arts. You don’t have to be a millionaire, but you can definitely have an opportunity to further your life and have a better life.
“Basketball has been the foundation for me to do everything in my life. If it wasn’t for basketball, I wouldn’t be here with this opportunity to do other things.”
For more Baron-born inspiration, check out the video above.
Source: espn.com
Photo: blacksportsonline.com