Former NBA star and current TNT basketball analyst Kenny Smith has revealed having launched a virtual basketball camp to help kids hone their skills amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The camp, hosted by the two-time NBA champion, is called Jet Academy and also features some top-quality instructors from both the NBA and WNBA, with Kemba Walker, Diana Taurasi, Brittney Griner, Victor Oladipo, Breanna Stewart, Sue Bird, and Trae Young all involved.
“I was sitting at home and social distancing and quarantine, and my kids typically go to basketball camps,” Smith said to Jason Goff on the latest Bulls Talk Podcast (per Yahoo Sports). “They can’t go to camps anymore, I can’t do my basketball camp in North Carolina, I had 700 kids.
“And I just noticed it was a need in the world that was going on, and I said I’m going to create – and I created – the first virtual basketball camp for kids and adults and anybody who plays the game, virtually. And you can do it from anywhere, any time, on any device, with anyone.”
Kenny Smith says he’s deferred to his younger counterparts where the actual drills are concerned.
“I was talking to Kemba, I was like, ‘OK, Kemba, so this is what we need to do in the camp’ and he’s like, ‘OK, what are the drills you want to do?'” he said. “I said, ‘No, no, no. Trae, Kemba, I want you to do the drills that you do to get ready.
“I want to see how you got your jumper like that. That’s what I would want to see. ‘Kemba, show me the pullback.’ He said, ‘Alright, I’ll show you the pullback.’ I said, ‘No, but then you gotta tell us why you use it and when you use it.’ That’s what a trainer at times can’t give you.”
The camp will launch on July 20 and will be available to anyone. It will offer two-hour live video sessions daily and campers will have the options of texting questions, uploading their own training videos and viewing footage on-demand.
Heat to jetacademycamp.com if you’re interested in checking it out but do note that it isn’t free. The lowest-priced package is attached to a fee of $29 a month.
