Ed Calloway Jr. is up out of his seat, waving his hands and talking, like all great coaches do. A smirking collection of George Washington High School basketball players watches eagerly.
Eyes sometimes bulging, Calloway paces the floor, acting out one of several shared memories until delivering the inevitable ending, which comes out more like a punch line.
His players crease over in laughter, fists shielding their mouths or hands slapping.
Calloway returns to his seat to work on his plate of barbecue. The only basketball game Thursday night was on the flat screen behind him. Up there is Chauncey Billups, current star of the Detroit Pistons and former star of this group, which formed the core of George Washington’s 22-2 state championship squad in 1994.
While few can argue Billups’ place as the state’s best, what of the 1994 squad?
The best? Probably not. Top five? Longtime East coach Rudy Carey ranks them there.
These Patriots had talent in excess. They faced obstacles. They tasted glory. They had Billups, Billy Hessel, Derek Washington, Devon Ford, David Bennett Jr., Jamal Clements and Jeff Wennberg.
And they all have a story. Just like every great family does.
“They mean the world to me. I wouldn’t trade them for nothing,” Clements said. “Those days right there are a big reason why I’m the man I am today. We did a lot of big things on that basketball court as a family.”
Brothers in hoops
Growing up, the Park Hill neighborhood was the world to the George Washington squad. Skyland Recreation Center, now called Hiawatha Davis Jr., was their sanctuary, where they poured their hearts into basketball.
During high school, they met at each other’s houses before games, talked hoops, watched videos and got each other hyped up for the next opponent.
Tasked with replacing key players from the undefeated 1993 GW squad, Calloway needed Billups to be the glue for a group that was nearly as green as the Patriots’ uniforms. Grades had cost Ford a chance to play in the 1993 final. Washington was in only his fourth season of organized basketball. Bennett was undersized and Clements and Wennberg were sophomores.
Hessel had plenty of experience, but as a senior transfer from Lakewood, he needed time to adjust to his teammates – and city hoops.
“It was a special team,” Billups said last week. “Man, we had a few challenges.”
Like when East ended GW’s 27-game winning streak, or a subsequent pounding delivered by Montbello. Those setbacks, Calloway said, forced him to change his lineup to one that wouldn’t lose again.
They shot over you, dunked on you and pretty much did what they wanted while living under the microscope that comes with city fame.
“We had size, shooting ability – it was the whole package,” Wennberg said.
“We were very team-oriented,” Hessel said. “We had very good leaders.”
And that started with the coach. Calloway prided himself on being a disciplinarian. When he first saw Washington roaming the halls as a 6-foot-4 freshman with no interest in sports, he informed the youngster he was playing – no ifs, ands or buts.
He knew the burgeoning Bloods gangs in the local neighborhoods were pulling hard on Washington and Ford, so Calloway pulled back with a firm hand, respect and basketball.
A satisfying smile creeps across Calloway’s face when he hears the success stories of his former players, and when they call him “Coach” like they did as skinny teenagers.
“I tell you, it really makes you feel good, because being in education, you never hear it until years later,” said Calloway, who left GW after the 1995 season. “Kids, they don’t necessarily know what you’re trying to do at that specific time in their lives.”
Chasing dreams
Ford can’t help but laugh sometimes.
It might happen when he’s hanging out in an exotic city, or driving through a foreign town, or checking out his locker room complete with marble floors. Or maybe the awe comes when he meets adoring fans, flies his wife and three kids around the world, or cashes his paychecks from playing basketball.
Such is the life of an international hoops star. No, it’s not the NBA, but Ford’s blessed life brings a smile to his face, from the rundown gymnasiums in Mexico to being pampered by a prince in Saudi Arabia.
It’s even more satisfying for Ford. He recalls nearly giving up on the sport after an injury-plagued senior season at Idaho.
Six players from the GW team received college scholarships. They tasted the glory of college athletics and beyond, but battled through injuries, transfers and missed opportunities.
Washington played four seasons at Wyoming and nine months in Germany. Clements totaled five games in the American Basketball Association.
Things weren’t always rosy for Billups, either. Drafted third overall out of the University of Colorado by the Boston Celtics in 1997, Billups became a young journeyman after being shipped to four teams by 2000 before catching on with the Pistons in 2002.
But what Ford, Washington, Clements, Hessel and Wennberg did find were college degrees that have translated into jobs today.
Ford might be the exception. He thought hoops were done with him until an agent encouraged him to try Mexico. Now he has a passport with more ink than a tattoo parlor.
“It’s amazing,” Ford said.
Reaching out to kids
Bennett lost his soul after high school.
While his teammates were at college, he wandered aimlessly, thinking the world owed him something and that opportunity would fall in his lap. Currently enrolled in an apprenticeship program through the University of Northern Colorado, Bennett now teaches at Green Valley Elementary and has started coaching hoops.
He feels his soul has made a long-awaited return.
“I hadn’t felt it since playing at George Washington,” Bennett said.
The fine line between fame and pain screams at Bennett when he considers two friends. Billups is a famous millionaire, while a younger George Washington player, Bruce Mingo, also blessed athletically, was sentenced to life in prison for the 1998 beating and stomping death of a Moroccan immigrant.
Though situations differ, each player has found the time to try to make an impact during the more impressionable time in a kid’s life.
Wennberg also teaches, recently landing the head coaching job at Columbine High School. The last time he saw Billups was at a Broncos game, where the two-time NBA all-star – minus fanfare – had brought 10 local kids with him.
“Trust me, we’ve all seen a lot of our friends fall to the wayside,” Billups said. “That’s the thing that keeps us talking to kids. … We’ve seen it all. We’ve seen the worst of the worst and we’ve seen the positive influences of the neighborhood.”
Hessel’s job today with Education Sales Management is to try to convince young adults, especially those who already have dropped out of college, to enroll at a junior college and “get them back on track.”
Ford, who said he played basketball at GW solely to see a look of pride on his mother’s face, counseled kids for two years at a rec center before embarking on his international career.
“I grew up without a father,” said Washington, who has a 3-year-old son, Jayden. “One thing I said I would never do to my son is not to be in his life. I always want to push people to be in their kid’s life. A lot of kids here are abandoned.”
Those are the same kind of kids Clements sees every day at the Henry Wade Juvenile Justice Center in Dallas. Clements is counselor with the START program, where he works with kids about to be released back into society.
Odds are those kids never had the kind of friends, coaches, parents, administrators and teachers the 1994 George Washington squad did. The kind of people who gave their time, kept a watchful eye and pushed each other to succeed in life and basketball.
“If I ever had the chance to step foot on the court with that family again, I would give it all to do that,” Clements said. “I love those guys.”
Where are they now?
George Washington won its second consecutive Class 6A state boys basketball championship in 1994 behind junior guard Chauncey Billups, currently a star with the Detroit Pistons and widely regarded as the best high school player in state history. The 1994 team, which finished 22-2 and was ranked No. 9 in the nation, arguably stands as one of the state’s top five teams. Billups had a standout season and the team got key contributions from six other players, who all scored in the Patriots’ 71-67 state final win over Horizon. With Billups in the spotlight (his attempt to get the Pistons back to the NBA Finals failed Saturday night), freelance reporter Brian Forbes looked up those players and coach Ed Calloway Jr. to find out what made the team so special and where life has taken them since their prep glory days.
DAVID BENNETT JR.
In 1994 | Junior starting guard was 5-foot-6, 135 pounds, and played with the tenacity of someone always fighting for playing time. He was the trash talker on the floor, but also a cool and steady passer. Stepped up big in the semifinals and scored two points in the final.
His journey | Was offered a scholarship at Northeastern Junior College in Sterling, Colo., but it fell through; went back home to Massachusetts when Billups was drafted by Boston Celtics; returned to Denver and had years of “pity parties,” bounced around between odd jobs feeling like he “lost his soul.”
Today | Found his soul in a teacher apprenticeship program through University of Northern Colorado, working at Green Valley Elementary and coaching youth basketball.
CHAUNCEY BILLUPS
In 1994 | With improved range, Billups, a 6-foot-3, 195-pound junior guard, was practically unstoppable. Led the Patriots to their second state championship and was named player of the year for the third time. Had a poor game in semifinals, but came back in the final with 29 points, nine assists, five rebounds and four steals.
His journey | Played two seasons at Colorado, averaging 18.5 points per game; drafted No. 3 overall by the Celtics in 1997 draft; traded to the Toronto Raptors (1998), Nuggets (1999), Orlando Magic (2000) and Minnesota Timberwolves (2000) before signing with Detroit Pistons in 2002; helped lead the Pistons to 2004 NBA championship, same year he was Finals MVP; two-time all-star.
Today | Attempt to get the Pistons back to the NBA Finals ended Saturday against the Cleveland Cavaliers, who beat Detroit in the Eastern Conference finals four games to two.
JAMAL CLEMENTS
In 1994 | Sophomore reserve player usually was first off the bench down the stretch. Good defender, very athletic at 6-3, 170. Scored four points in state final.
His journey | Played two seasons at Otero Junior College in La Junta, won conference and region in his freshman season; tore anterior cruciate ligament in sophomore season and took a “three-year pause”; signed with Bemidji State (Minn.) University in 2002, won the conference and advanced to regional tournament in 2004; got degree in criminal justice; played five games in the American Basketball Association with the Colorado Storm and New Mexico Style.
Today | Works at the Henry Wade Juvenile Justice Center in Dallas, counseling kids and helping them re-enter society.
DEVON FORD
In 1994 | The 6-3, 190-pound junior power forward was second in the state in rebounding, averaging a double-double. Scored 12 points in the final.
His journey | Went to Northeastern Junior College and was Region 9 player of the year and first team All-American as a freshman; transferred to University of Idaho and had two good seasons; litany of injuries “took the love for the game away”; graduated with a 3.5 grade- point average with a degree in criminal justice; returned to Denver and began tutoring kids at recreation center; signed with Aguascalientes Panteras in Mexico to kick off an international career that has led him all over the world for tournaments with teams based out of Brazil, Venezuela, Chile, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon, where he has been MVP on multiple occasions and won one championship; also had a brief stint with Albany Patroons of the Continental Basketball League.
Today | He’s back in Denver with his wife and three kids for the offseason and waiting to pick the next country where he will play. He’s leaning toward Israel or Spain.
BILLY HESSEL
In 1994 | A 6-4, 170-pound senior transfer from Lakewood. His mother, Barbara, was a longtime teacher at George Washington and he had been friends with Billups since third grade. A shooter and dunker, he had a big game in semifinals as Billups struggled. Scored six points in final.
His journey | Scholarship to Wyoming and played two seasons; transferred to Adams State in Alamosa and played one year; transferred to Northern Colorado and stopped playing hoops; got degree in business administration; married and lives in Denver.
Today | Works for Education Sales Management, a company that tries to encourage and recruit young adults to get back into college and finish their degree.
DEREK WASHINGTON
In 1994 | A raw, 6-10, 210-pound senior provided a vital inside presence. He controlled the glass and was the intimidator inside. Started playing hoops as a freshman. Although not always a big scorer, he had 16 points in the final.
His journey | Received scholarship to Wyoming with Hessel; played four years, had some injuries; received degree in health science rehabilitation; played nine months in Germany with the Crailsheim Merlins; came back to Denver after “both knees were shot.”
Today | Works as a massage therapist for a company that does contract work out at DIA.
JEFF WENNBERG
In 1994 | A 6-7, 180-pound sophomore reserve forward, his job was to play defense, rebound and hit the midrange jump shot. He scored two points in the final.
His journey | Received scholarship from Belleville Area College (now Southwestern Illinois College) and saw limited time with injuries; transferred to Christian Brothers University in Memphis, Tenn.; received degree in business administration and information technology; returned to Denver; got married and has two Great Danes; coached varsity boys basketball at Arapahoe High School for one year.
Today | Head boys coach at Columbine High School.
