Wally Seaver Invitational back for 11th run

When John Fleming started sending his Winchester boys basketball program to participate in the Wally Seaver Invitational about six years ago, it was out of interest of not only putting his players in front of the region’s top local talent, but also to get them thinking about something important beyond the game.

Little did he know then that he’d be helping out a cause that has unfortunately hit very close to home. He certainly didn’t expect it to develop into a relationship between two coaches using charity toward promoting the awareness and research of ALS for similar reasons.

But as the invitational kicks into gear this weekend for an 11th time, Fleming’s Red and Black will join Paul Seaver’s Milford program in support of their respective coaches’ late fathers – both of whom passed from the illness, albeit at much different times. Winchester and the Scarlett Hawks even have a slim chance to play against each other, but while the invitational is also very much about seeing how each group stacks up to one another in a raw setting, the concentration is more on what an event like this one is about.

“I do think it’s an opportunity for kids to think about something beyond just the sport, it gets them thinking about things in the future – something that hits close to their home,” Fleming said. “We’re starting to see young adults, former players, who are getting involved in charities, fundraisers, running marathons for different organizations. Typically, you do want to focus on something that you do have that close connection with, but I think learning about how to do some of those things without that connection sets you up for success later in life when you want to focus in on something.”

The chances of the two playing this weekend are slim, but the chances of them playing in the regular season this upcoming year are a sure thing.

For a second straight season, Milford and Winchester will play an endowment game in hopes to further accomplish much of the same of what the invitational provides as the two coaches look for as much fundraising opportunities as possible through the sport. Last year was a bit of a disappointment, only in the sense that the COVID Omicron variant was spiking at the time and the game couldn’t draw the fans in the stands Fleming and Seaver had hoped for.

This year’s meeting likely won’t fill all the stands, either, but it will be far from a disappointment as the efforts reach a grand stage.

The venue? TD Garden.

Fundraising and date details are still be determined.

“We knew we were going to play, we knew we were going to play at Winchester, and then we ended up reaching out to Steve Gibbs – he runs the Andrew James Lawson Invitational at the Garden,” Seaver said. “I know he’s still working through the schedule, but he’s kind of informed us that, ‘Hey, you guys will be one of the games.’ … Did I think it would just be another game to get another run in, and all of a sudden for it to turn into this? No, but it’s pretty cool. And I know obviously it’s a great opportunity.”

“It’s amazing,” Fleming added. “The event and the full-day opportunity and experience for the kids is amazing on itself, right? But to be able to have that event and be able to continue to spread awareness to communities where it might not be on their radar yet (is great). To have it at a venue like the Boston Garden is amazing. … In a place like that, to get that information out, is meaningful, and there’s no better place for a high school basketball player to play than the Garden.”

Fleming’s father, Bill, wasn’t a high school coach, but attended just about every game he could with Fleming’s mother as the son navigated a playing and coaching career. Those opportunities proved plentiful, and Bill made sure to get involved by hyping up the team or giving his two cents to Fleming.

For Paul Seaver, he grew into coaching by watching his father do it for years. As the invitational this weekend continues to grow every year and he builds relationships with more people that want to take it a step further, he simply just wishes Wally were around to enjoy the movement with him.

“I wish my father was here. That’s my connection to this dreadful disease,” Seaver said. “The Winchester community has also been affected by its impact. We started this event 11 summers ago, we had 16 teams and my father was alive. It was just to kind of raise money for his care. … It’s a legacy thing for my father and my family’s name, and a lot for what he did in his life for basketball. I wish he were here to see it.”

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/aSqoXtE