What We Have Done

I-CAN YOUTH FOUNDATION has assisted many youth acquire scholarships from prestigious colleges and universities across the country.  I-CAN YOUTH FOUNDATION has over 200 college graduate alumni and has stimulated over $1,800,000 in scholarship awards.

To date, more than 300 I-Can Youth Foundation alumni have played Division I college basketball or/and professional basketball. Currently, we have more than 35 alumni playing Division I college or professional basketball. In fact, in 2011 alone, three I-Can Youth Alumni were drafted in the first round. These include: Derrick Williams – 2nd pick; Paul George – 8th pick and, Jordan Hamilton – 26th pick.

 

Some of these players include:   

Derrick Williams – Minnesota Timberwolves (University of Arizona)

Jordan Hamilton – Denver Nuggets (University of Texas)

Paul George – Clippers (Fresno State)

Larry Anderson – Belgium Pro League (CSU Long Beach)

Tony Freeland – CSU Long Beach

Deonte Burton – University of Nevada

Devonte Elliott – University of Nevada 

Moses Morgan – De Paul University

Kahlil Johnson – UC Berkeley

Luis Rodriguez – Ole Miss

Emanuel Tshimanga – UC Irvine

Nate Tshimanga – Troy University

Marquis Moore – Southern Utah

D'Andre Bell - Georgia Tech – Los Angeles Clippers

D’Andre is a a young man whose mother was addicted to drugs.  When he started playing for I-Can, no schools were interested in recruiting him.  While attending school at Palisades High, I-Can approached D’Andre and personally asked him to play for I-CAN.  Within one month of joining I-CAN and participating in two tournaments, Mr. Bell was offered full scholarships from Georgia Tech, Georgetown, Michigan State, and UCLA. In his junior year at Georgia Tech, he was injured and was told that he would never play basketball again.  After receiving this news, Mr. Bell wanted to quit college and give up playing basketball.  During this difficult time, I-Can stood by his side and encouraged him to stay in school and move forward.  I-Can shared that he would play again.  After recovering from a spinal cord injury for one year, D’Andre resumed playing basketball and also received his bachelor’s degree.  Presently, Mr. Bell is in the LA Clippers organization.

Jordan Hamilton - University of Texas - Denver Nuggets.

Jordan is a head strong young man who had no problem speaking his mind. Because of his strong desire to win, he was reckless on the basketball court. Most of the time, Mr. Hamilton was so competitive that he displayed a negative disposition.  As a result, he received technical fouls and developed a bad reputation. Many people thought Jordan would never make it to college. Even his coaches gave up on him.  I-Can refused to give up on him because we understood the importance of standing by his side. So by supporting Jordan and with the support of his parents, Jordan attended college and was drafted in the first round of the NBA.

Larry Anderson - Long Beach State – Belgium

Larry is  young man with two brothers who are former gang members. When he was 13 yrs old, one of his brothers ask I-Can to save Larry.  At that time, he had no basketball skills.  I-Can encouraged him to play basketball.  Larry liked basketball so much that in his junior year at Long Beach Jordan High School, he had become one of the top basketball players in the state of California.  As a Freshman in college, he received Freshman of the year honors in the Big West Conference and made First Team All Big West honors.  While attending college, his grandmother died and two months later his first cousin was accidentally killed by his own brother.  Two months later, his mother went into a comma. Despite all of these unfortunate circumstances, Larry graduated from college and received Defensive Player of the Year and made First Team All Big West Conference. Presently, he is playing professional basketball in Belgium.

Tony Freeland – DePaul University – Long Beach State

A young man who was born and raised in South LA. Although Tony’s father (a gang member), was not in his life, his mother provided the guidance he needed. This included enrolling Tony in the I-Can Basketball Program. Tony loved basketball but was extremely aggressive on the court such that coaches did not know how to handle him.  I-Can heard 6’ 6” 15 year old kid who is knocking kids out on and off the court.  Our staff attended one of his games and sure enough he engaged in fighting another player.  Rock, I-Can President, ran out on the court, grabbed him and calmed him down.  With the permission of his mother, I-Can worked with Tony.  After graduating from Fremont HS, Tony received a scholarship to DePaul University.  In his second year at DePaul, Tony’s grandmother, who essentially raised him, became ill and thus Tony transferred to Long Beach State to be closer to his grandmother.