InkBlog

Moses Moody remembers the day vividly. Long before he was the No. 14 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, he and his brother, Miles, were faced with an urban rite of passage. They were playing and the ball went into the neighbor’s backyard. Of course it went over the fence of a neighbor with a mean dog.

“When the ball went over the fence,” Moody said, “we were like, ‘Aight. Game over.’ That was it.”

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That wasn’t an acceptable response for pops, though. He made them go get the ball.

You could imagine the kids’ rebuttal. But the dog is  …

Go get the ball. That was the edict. Fear wasn’t allowed to win.

“They were terrified,” Moody’s dad said, recalling one of his favorite wax-on, wax-off type of lessons he gave his boys. “Are you gonna go to the ball or you going in the house? They had to wrestle with that.”

They had two options: Use their smarts to figure it out, or deal with disappointing dad. So they put their heads together and plotted how they’d get the ball back without getting mauled.

They came with a plan and executed it. Moses, the youngest, threw another ball over the fence, away from the ball they wanted to get. Miles, seizing the window of opportunity while the dog chased after the incoming ball, hopped the fence and ran to grab the first ball while danger was distracted.

“He was moving fast,” Moody said, laughing at the memory.

Miles, scared to death, grabbed the first ball and high-tailed it back over the fence. He made it — with all his limbs.

They felt good. Not only could they resume their game, but they conquered their fears. They used their collective brainpower and worked together. It was a moment of growth and of brotherhood.

And that was all still true even after they realized there was no dog.

“He knew the neighbors moved away,” Moody said, “so the dog wasn’t even over there no more.”

To better understand what the Warriors have in Moody, their first-round draft pick, one must know Kareem, the granite from which Moody was chipped. Moody’s work ethic, his discipline, his heart, has a lot to do with his dad.

Kareem Moody is a community leader in Little Rock. He played sports in his day but he made his name pulling neighborhood youth from the trenches.

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In 1994, HBO’s “America Undercover” series released the documentary “Gang War: Bangin’ in Little Rock,” uncovering how rough it was in Arkansas’ capital. That was around the time Kareem started working in his community to address the violence and reclaim the treasured commodity of young lives.

Since then, Little Rock has been wrestling with the stigmatization of its city in addition to the poverty and its poisonous fruits. Like many urban cities battling the same ills, it has its issues and its gems. Its people have seen encouraging victories — including Bobby Portis just winning a title with the Milwaukee Bucks — and gut-wrenching defeats. The city made some progress and, especially with the pandemic, suffered through regression.

But Kareem Moody represents a perennial presence in Little Rock, a member of a resistance against hopelessness. They often go unknown, unrewarded, but they keep 10 toes down in the community and fight like hell to save every person they can. Moses Moody is one of Little Rock’s gems, and he was raised by one of its long-time soldiers.

“You’re going to see resilience in Moses,” Little Rock mayor Frank Scott Jr. said. “That is the fabric of Little Rock.”

Kareem graduated from Henderson State University, where he played basketball for the Division-II Reddies for four years and earned a bachelor’s degree in communication. Not long after graduation, he became the coordinator of the Youth Initiative Project, which was funded by the city of Little Rock and targeted gang-involved youth. After that, he was the program director for the P.A.R.K. — Positive Atmosphere Reaches Kids — after school program and creating safe, nurturing spaces for some 250 youth per year. P.A.R.K. was started by Little Rock native Keith Jackson, a College Football Hall of Famer who after starring at Oklahoma became an All-Pro NFL tight end who starred with the Eagles and Dolphins before winning a Super Bowl with the Packers. After a decade, he became the director of The Network For Student Success, a U.S. Department of Education-funded program held at Pulaski Technical College in North Little Rock. That’s service at the municipal level, the non-profit level and the federal level.

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In 2006, Kareem Moody wrote a parenting book — “Raise Them Up: The Real Deal on Reaching Unreachable Kids” — and in 2013 he was given the Community Leadership Award by FBI Director James Comey, one of 49 people across the country honored for contributions to their local communities through service.

And that’s just the official stuff. The resume doesn’t have room for the unplanned phone calls to go squash a beef, for the face-to-face conversations with a future hanging in the balance, for allowing your home to become the community’s home.

This kind of work requires a toughness that doesn’t come from biceps and abs. This kind of work requires discipline and work ethic, to grind with scarce thanks and pay without getting burned out. This kind of work requires hope that borders on delusion, endeavoring to save those society wouldn’t think twice about letting go.

“I’m working with all these other kids,” Kareem Moody said. “So I can see that you need claws as a young black male. You’ve got to be able to defend yourself. You’ve got to be able to speak up and hold your own. But at the same time, you’ve got to have that spirit of forgiveness and have the passion to hear people.”

And he poured that into his boys.

They did a lot of talking, sometimes for hours. It might be a lecture. It might be a debate to challenge their thinking. It might be a discussion about what’s happening in their world. Pops always had some game for his boys.

But a lot of what they learned came from watching. Their life was a front-row seat to a man who served his household and his community. He was pulling kids out of the clutches of poverty. At the same time, he was making sure his boys had things to do to avoid idleness, a good circle of friends and a present father — even if that meant them tagging along with him into the community.

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“He just really showed me hard work and the things he had to sacrifice for the greater good of whatever we needed,” Moses Moody said. “With that representation, that role model right there at all times, that subconsciously got into my mindset. Sacrifice is the thing I like to do at this point. I feel like the bigger the sacrifice, the bigger the reward. That’s just been part of my life for so long.”

So it’s no wonder how Moody quit soda in the fifth grade, on his own volition. Gave up candy, too. By eighth grade, he’d cut out juice and Kool-Aid and went heavy on water. In ninth grade, he realized staying up late came with a price. So he just decided, on his own, that he would go to bed on time. Faithfully.

“He puts himself to bed,” Kareem said. “He wakes himself up. He eats right. He goes to work out. He’s been that way for years. Moses fell in love with the grind.”

Moses Moody began at Parkview High in Little Rock. His brother had issues with the coach there, but Moses went anyway because he wanted the challenge. He then went to North Little Rock High School where he was Mr. Everything and led them to a state championship.

Seeking a greater challenge, he transferred again. At 16, he moved to Florida to attend Montverde Academy. With stud prospects like Cade Cunningham and Precious Achiuwa, Moody knew he’d have to reach another level. And he was so mature, his parents trusted him to go.

“So he goes from being the tallest player on the team and the most respected, to starting over,” said Kareem, who paused the community work to be hands-on when his youngest son got to high school. “And he wanted it. He said he wanted a bigger challenge.”

That’s a mindset that points directly to his father. What Moody didn’t inherit, though, was his father’s game.

“I wasn’t very good like that,” Kareem said. “I wasn’t a shooter. I was a hack. I’m the guy that’s going to keep everybody in line, hit you in the mouth. I’m that dude.”

Mike McDaniel, the 49ers offensive coordinator, was fired up about a particular question on Wednesday. Grant Cohn of SI.com asked how does he assess a running back in general without tackling?

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“It is hard. There’s no shortcut,” McDaniel said. “Where’s his balance? Are his shoulders overs his toes? Is his center of gravity right at the point of contact? And you can (only) take that to a certain degree.”

This year, the 49ers will have a luxury they didn’t have in 2020 when preseason was canceled. They will get to see their running backs respond to tackling. This is key because they have three new running backs in the fold: rookies Trey Sermon and Elijah Mitchell, and free agent signee Wayne Gallman. Especially Sermon.

“I’ve been pumped with Trey,” McDaniel said, “because he’s come a long way in a short period of time with us in terms of our techniques. We run around the corner a ton. Realistically, a majority of all the stuff that he did in college was from the (shotgun). So (he’s now) under center and when you’re under center, you have to listen to a snap count. When you’re in gun, you can kind of get away from looking at the ball snapped and not really going off the snap count. So (at) those types of things, he’s been growing and growing.”

The 49ers know what they have in Raheem Mostert, who does most of his damage before contact. Jeff Wilson was a pleasant surprise last year in part because, when freed from goal-line limitations, he showed some elusiveness to go with his physicality. More than a third of his yards came after contact and he broke nine tackles (in 126 carries), per Pro Football Reference. But Wilson’s torn meniscus will keep him out a chunk of the season. So the 49ers need a back with some thump to complement Mostert.

Sermon, who is 6-foot and 215 pounds (about the same size as Wilson), is known for his physical running style at Ohio State. Similar traits are found in Gallman, who is listed at 6-foot, 216 pounds and entering his fifth year out of Clemson. Even Mitchell, a sixth round pick the 49ers will develop, employs a tough, downhill style at 5-10, 200 pounds.

The 49ers have the speed to get outside in Mostert (and receivers Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk). McDaniel is pumped to find out who can provide a bit of thunder.

“We really rely on those preseason games to see not necessarily their yards per carry or if their stats were good,” McDaniel said. “But how are they on contact with defenders dragging on them? Are they going to get extra yards? Are they a guy that if it’s blocked for three, he’ll get five? So you can only take (the analysis) so far (without tackling). We do the best that we can. But, a lot of it, you have to wait until people can actually tackle you.”

Let’s pause real quick and inject your eyes with some Oakland swag.

My daughter had a meeting with her new guidance counselor last week. This is happening. High school.

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She wore a fancy dress to the meeting, because she is incredible and ready for the next level.

We ended up walking around the campus, figuring out all the vital places she will grow familiar with over the next few years. Her parents even bought matching sweaters.

We went to check out the library. They said this would be the spot for the students who arrive at school a little early. The princess was pretty excited. She started looking around. It’s much bigger than the one from her middle school, with comfortable seats and socially distanced tables. She wandered off, looking for the “Amulet” series, while I scanned the shelves to see the offerings.

Full disclosure: I was checking out the collection of books by and about Black people. Saw some Nic Stone on display. Some Angie Thomas. A Ta-Nehisi Coates. Plus a couple other popular books. And sure enough, they had her favorite.

I called her over, keeping the suspense alive as she made her way. 

“Look what they have,” I said. “Your favorite.”

She bent over and looked where I was pointing. She couldn’t find it and asked where. I assured her it was right there, in her face. She kept looking.

Then busted out laughing.

“Daddy!” she yelled, grabbing the book and pulling it out. OK, maybe it wasn’t her favorite book. She read the title out loud while holding it up.

“Golden. The Miraculous Rise of Steph Curry,” she read like an official presenter. “By Marcus Thompson the second.”

Maybe now she’ll actually read it. 

Diana Taurasi and Sue Bird made history by becoming the first basketball players with five Olympic gold medals, capping incredible careers with Team USA. They’ve been such mainstays, their departure leaves a vacancy in the backcourt.

Don’t be concerned. The talent waiting in the wings is crazy.

Really, America doesn’t have to look further than the Tokyo roster. Chelsea Gray, newly of the Las Vegas Aces, is a star. She is a true point guard who can handle a team full of stars and also switch gears and become a load to handle herself. And while Seattle’s Jewell Loyd isn’t the shooter Taurasi is, she is a certified scorer who can be a force for USA. The Phoenix Mercury’s Skylar Diggins-Smith — the only player currently in the top-10 among guards in points and assists per game — will be 34 when the Paris Olympics roll around but it’s a safe bet the way she takes care of herself she’ll still be in her prime. Washington Mystics guard Ariel Atkins, 25, didn’t play much in the Olympics but will only get better and has the talent to be a problem for the rest of the world.

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And still there is New York’s Sabrina Ionescu waiting in the wings. And Dallas’ Arike Ogunbowale, one of the purest scorers in the league. The Liberty’s Betnijah Laney is coming to her own and ready. Chicago’s Diamond DeShields and Kelsey Plum of Las Vegas are finding their way back from injury and have yet to hit their primes.

Breanna Stewart, A’ja Wilson and Brittney Griner are virtual locks in the frontcourt. Griner is 30, but judging by the 30 she dropped in the gold-medal game, she’ll be a force at 33. The suspense moving forward for the women’s national team is which of the plentiful crop of guards will emerge as USA’s new backcourt, now that the legends are done.

Or are they?

A special duo 😌🥇 pic.twitter.com/q2qaEYlbLu

— USA Basketball (@usabasketball) August 8, 2021

Speaking of extraordinary women athletes, I have a new cousin. Her name is Jordan Thompson. She plays volleyball for Team USA. I’m just taking the liberty of adopting her into the cool Thompson family.

The Warriors have gotten pretty fancy for this year’s Summer League.

Normally, like all teams, they’d borrow a Las Vegas-area gym for practice. Sierra Vista High has been a common spot. But in those situations, the Warriors are guests with a limited window. They’d book the gym for a few hours and that’s it. They’ve had to hurry out before because another event was coming in.

Unable to confirm if the Summer League team with Stephen Curry, Anthony Morrow and Anthony Randolph was indeed kicked off the court because high-school cheerleaders needed to practice. But it’s possible, and the very thing the Warriors will avoid this year.

Because for two weeks, they bought out the Las Vegas Basketball Center, about 20 minutes outside the Las Vegas Strip. It’s a facility with five full-length courts to which the Warriors will have unlimited access. They even put their logo on the walls and plastered Oracle, the partner of the Summer League Warriors, all over the place.

Thanks to the brainchild of Eric Housen, the Warriors’ vice president of team operations, if rookie Jonathan Kuminga wants to work on his 3-pointer late at night, he has a place to do it. If Moses Moody and Gary Payton II wanted to get an extra hour in working on defense, they can do that. If Jordan Poole wants to come to Las Vegas and be supportive of the new crop of youngsters, he has a place to get work in.

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The timing of this new feature is ideal considering the Warriors have two first-round picks (plus draft-and-stash guard Justinian Jessup) who need developing and a revamped development staff to work with them. Getting the work in should be easy in Vegas with a place of their own.

(Top photo: Arturo Holmes / Getty Images)

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