Packed into a bustling gym along New York City's Pier 36, Team Loaded Virginia's summer began with a thump.

College coaches were everywhere: Louisville head coach Chris Mack mingled with the crowd on one court, while others, decked in boldly-colored T-shirts, sat in folding chairs.

It was here that Team Loaded Virginia, a Petersburg-based outfit that started in 2009, began its summer journey.

Levar Allen, Jr., a bearish 6-foot-1 point guard out of Richmond's John Marshall High, darted through traffic; 5-11 Jalen Cone, a Walkertown, NC, junior and Allen's backcourt mate against the Pittsburgh-based ITPS Wildcats, peeled off into daylight.

In the sometimes-frenetic summer circuit, Team Loaded Virginia's coaches have tried to insert a calm into the team's psyche.

"Our motto is family, scholarships, and championships," said 15U coach Brandon Jones. "Everybody's doing AAU but I don't know if everybody's doing it right. We're doing this as a service to the next generation and hopefully it'll set an example so that they'll do it for the next generation."

Jones spoke along Manhattan's darkened riverfront, far from the flow of coaches and athletes. A program that has jump-started NBA players like Frank Mason, Dennis Smith, Jr., and Andrew White, Team Loaded will undertake its first trip to AAU Nationals this week in Orlando, Florida.

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"Normally we go to California and Las Vegas for the Adidas Summer Championships," said Team Loaded Virginia 16's coach Tladi Conway. 

Added Jones: "It's a chance for us to play teams from other shoe circuits."

The 17's should be a contender in Orlando, featuring, along with Allen and Cone, Earl Timberlake, a 6-6 wing from D.C. power DeMatha, Henry Coleman, a 6-8 forward from Richmond's Trinity Episcopal, and Mark Williams, a 7-0 center from Norfolk Academy in Virginia Beach.

"it's a chance for us to get some Florida sun and to play," Jones said. 

Bearcats Overcome Differences, Unite Before Tourney

Out of Chicago, the Illinois Bearcats know this terrain well. The team advanced to the semifinals last year. Coach Elijah Cooley is confident in the chemistry of this group.

"The camaraderie is there," Cooley said. "They all came from different neighborhoods and weren't getting along. As we grew as a team, they became the best of friends.

"This is something they'll get to experience that's once in a lifetime. We've been grinding for years to get to this point. It'd be great to see them accomplish something (like winning the tournament) because of where they came from."

DeMarco Collins, a 5-9 point guard (2019) is the team's leader out of Chicago-area Thornton High School. He's being recruited by Wisconsin, among others.

When the team needs a basket, they turn to 6-4 power forward Raymond Grant out of Youth Connection Leadership Academy. He's the team's catalyst, Cooley said.

"He gets the rebounds, dunks, all of that," said Cooley, a former player at Eastern Illinois who also played overseas in Spain.

A 12-man roster with players like Shamari Banks out of Homewood-Flossmoor, 6-2 Marquail Collins out of Foreman High School, small forward Eddie Moore from Eisenhower, all class of 2019, make the Bearcats tough to beat.

"We're probably the only team in the tournament to play 12 guys," Cooley said. 

Hoops Lineage Helps Tennessee Legends

The Tennessee Legends, according to coach Timothy Hodges, promise to be in the hunt in Orlando. And in do-everything guard Timotheus "Bobo" Hodges, the coach has someone constantly on the attack. 

A 6-0 guard, Hodges is the younger brother of East Tennessee State's Bo Hodges, the Southern Conference Freshman of the Year.

"He leads the team in scoring and rebounding," said Timothy Hodges of Bobo, who averaged 33 points during a recent trip to Atlanta for the Gatorade circuit. "He's an all-state quarterback (at Maplewood High School in Nashville). His brother was the same way. He was an all-state receiver, but he likes to play basketball."

The 6-1 combo guard William Shaw out of Pearl Cohn High School, 6-3 wing Timothy Chapman out of Knowledge Academy in Antioch and 6-3 wing Hunter Spurlock, all class of 2019, will be in the mix.

"This team should win it," said Hodges. "It's a strong team and I don't have a big team."

Trekking From The Heartland No Issue For SEMO Elite

The Cape Girardeau, Missouri-based SEMO Elite, coached by Tommy Delph, have made AAU nationals a regular stop. Based in a town about an hour and a half south of St. Louis, for this group, the 16-hour drive is worth it.

"In this area, you see all the same players, and they're usually from the local high schools," said Beverly Delph, Tommy's wife and an assistant with the team. "When you go to AAU nationals you get people from all over the United States."

SEMO Elite has appeared at nationals seven times, including last year, when they finished eighth at the 16U level. They made the Dallas Live 2018 semifinals in April.

"These boys are small in stature but they do not quit," said Beverly Delph.

Barry "B.J." Wilburn, a 5-9 point guard out of Forest City High School (AK), leads the group. He's joined by 6-2 Kinyon Hodges, an athletic guard out of Cape Girardeau High School, 6-1 Chauncey Hughes, also of Cape Girardeau, and a cousin of former NBA player Larry Hughes, and 5-11 Juwan "J.J." Whitby, also out of Forest City High School (AK).

Boys From The Low Country

The Columbia (SC) Hoyas, coached by Terry Miller, are a rising program culled from South Carolina's low country.

"I'm a country boy," said Miller, who began the program 14 years ago. "I come from the low country. Most of my kids are from the country."

One such country boy, Marlow Gilmore, is a 6-7 "freak of nature" whom college coaches were clamoring for when the Hoyas played at the Phenom Summer Havoc tournament in Spartanburg, SC, this past weekend. He is in the class of 2019. Another top player, point guard Sean McCabe, recently reclassified to the class of 2020 (he is attending Northside Christian Academy in Lexington, SC) is the team's "White Chocolate," according to Miller, because like Jason Williams "he's not scared."

They're joined by Wright's son, Isaiah, a 6-4, 289-pound football player, and Kameren Stewart, a 6-6 post player who's committed to Coastal Carolina for football.

Four weeks ago, Sonny's SportsPlex, an indoor basketball facility, opened in Columbia and will bolster Wright's program, which now includes teams from third grade through 11th grade.

"My team, every year, I don't care how good or bad they are, I bring them to nationals, because I want them to have the experience," Wright said.

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Brian Towey is a Queens, New York-based writer covering basketball and track and field. He can be reached at bc_towey@yahoo.com and @BcTowey.