These 2 NBA, NFL stars grew up in KC. They’re coming home this weekend to give back
Growing up as the son of a basketball coach, Ishmail Wainright played the game since he could walk. The 28-year-old Kansas City native is thankful.
His father, Calvin Wainright, taught his son and the many youths he mentored the skills and discipline needed to succeed on the court and in life.
After his father’s death last year, Wainright, now a power forward for the NBA’s Phoenix Suns, wanted to make sure his father’s legacy lived on in KC.
He is partnering with a fellow Kansas City native and professional athlete, Detroit Lions defensive end Charles Harris, to host their first free Winners Circle Weekend July 14-16. They are returning home to use their platforms within the NFL and NBA to create a weekend to teach sports, personal development and collaboration.
“My father had wanted me to do this for a very long time. It sucks he won’t be able to see it physically, but I know he will see it,” says Wainright. “I want to do basketball camps and it will be a lot of community work because my dad passed the torch down to me.”
The weekend’s events will kick off Friday with the Making Moves Mixer, a networking event for young professionals that will feature a panel of KC entrepreneurs. Saturday will be Wainright’s youth basketball camp, followed by Harris’ youth football camp the next day.
Wainright will be announcing details of his new nonprofit organization, the Calvin Wainright 1 (CCW1) Foundation, created in memory of his father. In addition to his basketball camps he also intends to create a college scholarship for student athletes.
Though both now live in the cities where they work, Wainright (a graduate of Raytown South High School and Baylor University) and Harris (a graduate of Lincoln Preparatory Academy and the University of Missouri) remain dedicated to cultivating future athletes back home.
“We knew each other growing up and knew the same people,” says Harris. “Now we are creating something with our platforms. It is all about making connections.”
“Having a guy like Charles, I think it will be dope because there is a football side and a basketball side,” says Wainright. “When you get two people who play sports at the highest level coming together, it is very special.”
Both have worked at youth camps organized by teammates and became motivated to start one in Kansas City.
“It is hard to make it in any kind of professional sport. To make it to where you are in a place where you can actually give back and have a team to put stuff together takes a tremendous amount of work,” says Harris, 28.
Each considers the lessons and skills learned in youth sports as a critical factor in who they are as successful adults.
“I want to show them the importance of drills, ball handling, footwork, going faster and harder, but I also want to teach them it is all right to go outside their comfort zone,” Wainright says.
The two hope to make the Winners Circle Weekend an annual event and continue to add in other elements and more influential KC natives.
“Coming from the city and coming from nothing we know what we been through, so it is always good for us to give back,” says Harris. “We wanted to give back and show the kids there is something else out here for them and support them.”
Winners Circle Weekend events
Register for events at winnerscircleweekend.com. All events are free.
▪ Making Moves Mixer, 6 to 8:30 p.m. July 14, Made Mobb building, 221 Southwest Blvd. Networking event centered around business development and ownership and wealth. Panelists include Joshua Lewis, founder of the Updown App and Kin Seltzer; Nassir Criss, senior investment associate at Sixty8 Capital; and Nia Richardson, managing director of the KC BizCare Office.
▪ Ish Wainright Skills Academy, 9 a.m. to noon July 15, Ewing Marion Kauffman School, 6401 The Paseo. A basketball camp led by Ishmail Wainright for youth in fifth through 12th grade. There will only be 100 spots per age group.
▪ Legacy Makers Block Party, 2-9 p.m. July 15, 18th and Vine Street, behind American Jazz Museum. Live music, food and vendors, hosted by Wainright and Harris.
▪ The Charles Harris Football Camp, 1 to 4 p.m. July 16, Lincoln College Preparatory Academy, 2111 Woodland Ave. Harris and other professionals will teach athletes in ninth through 12th grades. There will only be 150 spots per age group.
This story was originally published July 8, 2023 at 5:30 AM.
