Clippers Guard Maalik Wayns to Host Basketball Camp

When a player is arrested or otherwise ensnared in drama, all too often the media is hyped to write all about it. The same isn’t always true, unfortunately, about the media’s coverage of positive player developments. On that note, SLAMonline is going to momentarily buck that trend and tell you about something good brewing around second-year guard Maalik Wayns: “Following in the footsteps of many Philadelphia ballplayers who have come from some of the city’s worst neighborhoods to reach the NBA before him, Maalik Wayns is giving back. Wayns, who played for Villanova from 2009-2012 and is currently with the Los Angeles Clippers, is hosting his his first-ever basketball camp this Friday and Saturday, Aug. 16 and 17, at Simons Rec Center in the West Oak Lane section of [Philadelphia]. The two days will each have a different focus. Friday will focus on children aged 5-14 that have learning disabilities like obsessive-compulsive disorder, autism, anger management disorders and other issues. The second day will be an invitational elite camp, with 30-40 top area high school ballplayers from Pennsylvania, N.J. and Delaware. Future Division I players Rashann London (Roman Catholic), Ben Bentil (St. Andrew’s), Traci Carter (Life Center), Samir Doughty (Math, Civics & Sciences) and more are on the list. While the second day of the camp will have a lot of big names like Dion Waiters, Marcus and Markieff Morris, Kyle Lowry and others helping out, it’s the first day that really stands out to Wayns. ‘Where I’m from, a lot of kids are less fortunate,’ he told CoBL. ‘So I just wanted to give back and hopefully give them the opportunity to see things that I couldn’t see when I was younger.’… The camp will run from 9:30 AM until 1:30 PM on Friday, Aug. 16 and 9:30 AM-2:30 PM on Saturday, Aug. 17. All children and players participating will get a t-shirt, food and beverages for lunch as well as a healthy snack. Simons Rec Center is located at 7200 Woolston Avenue in Philadelphia.”