This article was originally published on HoopHerald.com on July 7, 2023.
Before the NBA rebranded it as the D-League and eventually the G League, the National Basketball Development League had eight franchises in the southeastern region of the United States in the early 2000s. Of those originals, the Huntsville Flight served as North Alabama’s nearest source of professional hoops for local fans and aspiring future players to watch.
Sitting on those sidelines was an elementary-aged Levi Randolph, whose first steps on a pro hardwood floor came as a ball boy for the team. The nearby native of Madison established relationships with Bama standout Rod Grizzard and Michigan State champion Mateen Cleaves quickly, on and off the floor.
“Those are some of the guys that taught me and I was around and gave me hope, so I kinda wanted to be the same as I got older,” Randolph told The Hoop Herald in a phone interview. “They had a camp in the summertime and I remember the guys that I looked up to and went to their games. They would be hands-on and teach us, play games and everything for their camp, so I knew one day eventually I wanted to start that.”
Two decades later, as an eight-year pro, he paid it forward just like those before him, as a successful third-annual Levi Randolph Basketball Camp is now in the books. Unlike the previous iterations that were too long and included outdoor post-camp activities that underwhelmed due to fatigue and hot conditions, Randolph cut it down to a single day to involve families and residents.
With over 80 participants between ages 8-17, the camp lasted from late morning to early afternoon. There were games and competitions, moments of wisdom and more last weekend at Bob Jones High School, where Randolph attended and played.
Later that night, despite the gym feeling “like a sauna” due to a broken air conditioner, the kids were permitted free entry to a charity celebrity game.
“Let me see if I can bring guys even I played with that the city may want to see or have heard about,” Randolph explained of his idea. “Or people that can’t go to the University of Alabama to see a game or can’t go to Auburn or make the trip to Memphis to see the Grizzlies or Atlanta to see the Hawks, you know what I mean? Let me see if I can bring in pros to give the city something where it’s a fun event for the summer. Like, we’ll look forward to this every summer.
“We never really had like a charity game or anything like that celebrity game, but I’ve seen other cities that have done it, so I was like, ‘I think that would be cool for Huntsville,’ especially because it’s growing so much.”
Kira Lewis (New Orleans Pelicans), Kobi Simmons (Charlotte Hornets), Malcolm Miller (2018-19 NBA champion with the Toronto Raptors), Reggie Ragland (Atlanta Falcons linebacker), Alex Poythress (former three-year NBA forward), Josh Magette (formerly with the Atlanta Hawks), Jeremiah Martin (ex-NBA guard for the Brooklyn Nets and Cleveland Cavaliers) popped in.
Additionally, John Petty (Alabama), JaCorey Williams (Middle Tennessee), Malik Newman (Kansas), Adonis Thomas (Memphis), Au’Diese Tony (Arkansas), Justin Pride (Cal State Bakersfield), Jordan Swing (UAB), Giddy Potts (Middle Tennessee), Jay-R Strowbridge (Oregon), Jeff Garrett (LSU Shreveport), Justin Hopkins (Texas Southern), Nick King (Middle Tennessee), Orlando Coleman (Texas Southern) and Perrin Bufford (Middle Tennessee) all got involved.
“A great group, a great list of guys. I’m thankful for them coming out and supporting. From all over, it was good,” Randolph said. “I’m very appreciative ’cause I know they didn’t have to come in, but my city’s appreciative also because they don’t get to see this amount of pros on the court at one time, you know what I mean?”
Randolph is thankful that everybody stuck out the sizzling temperatures. He also tips his cap to Tyler Neal and Alan Deep for helping him put his vision into action when he first brainstormed it a few years ago.
📹Action from the 2023 Levi Randolph (@LeviRandolph20) Summer Classic celebrity game: pic.twitter.com/zWFRjamwYS
— Max Cohan (@MaxCohan) June 25, 2023
Randolph’s love of home extends beyond his town. After a decorated four years at Bob Jones High, most notably an AHSAA 6A Championship win and state tournament MVP honors as a junior, he earned a ticket to Tuscaloosa to play for the Crimson Tide only two hours south.
Asked about his time with the SEC powerhouse, Randolph couldn’t say enough good things about the program.
“That feels like home for me because I had so many great memories there. Bama was bigger than basketball for me,” Randolph shared. “It wasn’t so much everything that happened on the court. We didn’t win as much as I would like, but I feel like we laid the groundwork for what they have today. I have a lot of respect and a lot of appreciation for the university.”
Randolph speaks highly of the dominance that the football, softball and golf teams bring to the table every year. Being around Bryant-Denny Stadium and seeing the title teams that played on its grass just made him want to be a part of something special. As a freshman, the Tide squad he was a part of was top-20 in the nation and made the NCAA Tournament.
“The slogan is ‘Where Champions Are Made, Built By Bama.’ Being on the team like that, it felt great and was a great start to college,” Randolph said. “I feel like you have to be there to know what I’m talking about and just feel the love and feel how much tradition and culture that the university has.”
In his first season, Randolph picked up on pointers from those more experienced than him, such as future NBA veteran JaMychal Green and dynamic guard Trevor Releford. Another was Andrew Steele, who is now an assistant coach at Tennessee Tech. According to Randolph, those three and “a lot of guys” were instrumental in showing him what it was to be a hard worker and how to withstand adversity.
The Tide’s coaching staff meant a great deal to him too. Antoine Pettway was an ex-player at Bama in the late 1990s and with the program for 15 years, four of which coincided with Randolph’s time there. (Small world note: Pettway spent a season playing for the Flight a year after he was the ball boy.) Pettway is now a first-time head coach at Kennesaw State. He believes that then-Bama head coach Anthony Grant — currently at Dayton in the same chair — molded his way of thinking as well.
Each stays in contact to this day with each other, even if it’s just a check-in or a hello.
“Alabama was more about life than basketball,” Randolph said. “Just anything you want, you have to work for it. Nothing is gonna be easy, and you have to know that even within working hard every day, nothing is promised. You could work hard towards a goal and you don’t accomplish it, but that doesn’t mean you failed. You just have to keep working.”
In his sophomore year, the Tide went 23-13 but lost in the second round of the SEC Tournament. Bama went a paltry 13-19 in his third season. Randolph had his best statistical campaign as a senior, averaging over 15 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists and more than a steal per game. He led the Tide to a 19-15 record in Grant’s swan song with the university before it hired Avery Johnson.
After that, it was off to the pros.
Randolph did not get selected in the 2015 NBA Draft. His first taste of professional basketball was in Orlando Summer League with the Oklahoma City Thunder and in Las Vegas with the Utah Jazz. The Boston Celtics saw something they liked and brought him in for training camp on an Exhibit 10 contract. Before the season started, he was waived and ended up playing for the Maine Red Claws in the G League.
That next offseason, Randolph had a decision to make — was it the NBA dream or going overseas? He settled on the former, taking his talents across the pond to Lega A. Coincidentally enough, he’d be playing alongside his longtime Tide teammate Retin Obosohan, which was a pleasant surprise.
“Our freshman year, he redshirted. So he had an extra year, he played his fifth year. I decided to go to Italy,” Randolph recalled. “And so I was telling him about it. I was like, ‘Yeah, I think I’m going to Italy this year.’ He was like, ‘Wait, I’m going to Italy.’ So I asked what team and he told me. I was like, ‘I’m going to the same team.’
“It’s crazy because we always talked. He’s one of my really good friends. But we didn’t know that we were both going to the same team until we had that conversation.”
(According to RealGM, Randolph has played 134 total games with Obosohan, the most of any teammate he’s had.)
Over the next two seasons, he played for another Italian squad in Dinamo Sassari and French club SIG Strasbourg in the Jeep Elite League (LNB Pro A). He suited up for multiple Summer League teams in between campaigns and found himself with the Indiana Pacers squad in Vegas in July 2018. A few months later, the Cavaliers came calling with a training camp invitation, and Randolph was back with an NBA organization for the second time.
In what he referred to as “my favorite part of my basketball career,” Randolph made a ton of memories with the then-Canton Charge and Cavs for the next three seasons.
“I learned so much and met so many great people. That’s probably the highlight of my career as far as not really feeling stressed, but just playing the game because of the love,” Randolph said. “You don’t really make money in the G League, so you’ve gotta really love the game to want to wake up every day and continue to develop.”
Randolph entered the mix on the heels of LeBron James exiting stage left to Los Angeles and the Cavs’ four straight NBA Finals appearances. Tyronn Lue was still running things when he first go there until the championship coach was let go six games into the season. Randolph had what he described as an “okay” camp, then proceeded to have a solid debut campaign with the Charge as one of the team’s most consistent pieces.
Despite not receiving an invitation to Cavs training camp in 2019, he kept plugging away in Canton. With arguably his most impressive production as a pro, Randolph averaged 16.9 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.1 steals per game. Over those 39 games, he had shooting splits of .488/.343/.802 with a True Shooting percentage of 61.9%.
About midway through that season, Randolph earned his first NBA promotion, as the Cavs signed him to a two-way contract on Jan. 6, 2020. Unfortunately, Cleveland ended the deal just six days after the fact. (It’s peculiar for a two-way to end that abruptly versus just using a 10-day contract slot.) While there is admittedly confusion on how the contractual decision went down. there are no hard feelings on his end because his dream came true.
“I knew I was getting a call-up. That’s all that mattered to me,” Randolph said. “Whatever time, I appreciated it and I was gonna put it on my resume whether I was playing or sitting on the bench, I was gonna try to be a part of the team whenever I could. So it didn’t matter to me whether it was a two-way or a 10-day. I just wanted to try to get as much time and kinda soak it all in as much as possible.”
Of course, the COVID-19 pandemic stopped everything in March 2020. Sports were put on the shelf for months until leagues came up with the idea of carrying on within a closed environment. The NBA Bubble in Orlando, Florida allowed playoff teams and those on the cusp to continue and finish out the campaign at the end of July.
At only 19-46, the Cavaliers were not able to participate. Instead, the organization went forward with its own in-house bubble downtown. Randolph was one of the select few to be a part of it.
“That’s the first time I really felt a part of the team,” Randolph said. “They didn’t bring in many guys and I was there the whole time. Everything the team did, I was there.”
Though everybody was there to develop and get their legs under them, Cleveland truly established chemistry off the court during that time. Randolph remembers the game room and hanging out with his teammates in the hotel, which they couldn’t leave unless they were going to the gym or had group activities planned.
He enjoyed when the Cavs took a boat trip on the Cuyahoga River and down to The Flats, heading over to Punch Bowl Social and eating dinner with good views. He bonded with guys like Kevin Love, Larry Nance Jr. and Collin Sexton, making it a memory he’ll never forget.
“I was an NBA guy, so I can always say that and keep that with me forever. The total experience was fun,” Randolph said.
The trip solidified Randolph’s status with the franchise, as the Cavs brought him back for training camp to prepare for the next season. That stretch of months did a lot for him.
“I played a lot. It showed me that I could play in the NBA. It showed me that it wasn’t skill level or talent that was keeping me there,” Randolph said. “Sometimes, it just comes down to opportunity, a roster spot or salary cap. It’s things that are outside of my reach that I can’t control, and that kind of scratched that itch of, ‘Okay, I know I can play here. I can’t keep chasing it, but let me go overseas and do the best I can there. And if I ever get the callback and it’s the right opportunity, then I’ll take it.’
“But my three stints with the Charge and the Cavs were great. I think a lot of my basketball career has been bigger than basketball. Maybe something is in store for me once I’m done playing that was more important than reaching the pinnacle on the court.”
Randolph played his final game for the Charge on Dec. 18, 2020. After that, he changed course and flew overseas to play for the New Zealand Breakers in the National Basketball League for 15 games. That was his first stop internationally post-NBA/G League, with plenty of talent around Australia to compete against. As we’re seeing now, the NBL has boomed in popularity.
Following that brief stint, Randolph elected to take his talents to the BNXT League, agreeing to terms with Filou Oostende. It was one of the best decisions he’s made, as it resulted in championship gold.
“As far as European competition on this level, this is as far as I’ve gotten on the big stage,” Randolph explained. “That was amazing. I won the MVP of that season. We went all the way to the championship and we won it. So it was a great feeling. It was my first championship as a pro. I’ve been close before, but never actually won the whole thing, so that was a great feeling.”
Winning the award in its inaugural 2021-22 season, Randolph is already in the history books as BNXT’s first Most Valuable Player.
Levi Randolph accepts his BNXT award.
(©BELGA)
Keeping that momentum going, Randolph headed over to Israel to join Hapoel Jerusalem last summer in the Champions League. He recently finished up his debut campaign with the program, one that ended with a title runner-up and a true connection with the team and its fans.
“We had a great year, first year with this team. New coaching staff and everything. My coach, he understood me. He allowed me to be myself and I appreciated him for that. I mean, we had a great year, so I think that has been what has pushed me into ‘Mr. Israel’ or whatever. They embrace me and I embrace them.”
Randolph likens his budding relationship with the franchise and area to that of what he had at Alabama. It’s not about whether he is or isn’t making shots, but rather how he’s affecting winning. Having immersed himself into that culture, Randolph has been allowed to be himself.
“They’ve embraced me and took me in and I have so much love for the city of Jerusalem. It feels like home now, you know,” Randolph said. “Going out there and playing in front of our fans, I feel like we have some of the best fans in FIBA basketball. So, I’ve tried to be as much of a part of the culture as I could. When I play the game, I just try to play with as much heart and play as hard as I can. That’s the type of people they are and that’s what they like to see.”
He averaged 15.7 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists a game in the BCL, leading Hapoel Jerusalem to a Final Four victory over defending champion Lenovo Tenerife before falling to Telekom Baskets Bonn in the championship game.
“Nobody expected us to make it out of our group and we made it to the championship,” Randolph said. “We lost to a good team, but I feel like the gap between Champions League and EuroLeague is very small. It’s a lot of good teams all over of the world. Basketball is international. It’s expanding.”
BCL competition is “great” according to Randolph, who mentions he’s taken on several opponents he’s crossed paths with in college, the G League and NBA levels.
“I think basketball has always been at a high level. I also think that with social media it’s allowed people to see all the different places,” Randolph said. “So now, people that weren’t able to travel to Australia to see the NBL, they’re able to see that it’s a high competition of basketball through social media and things like that.
“Or people that aren’t able to normally see Champions League games because they can’t travel to Italy or Israel or France, they’re able to see through social media that, ‘Okay, there’s people all over the world that are really good at basketball.’ So I think that social media bridged the gap between people knowing and not knowing that there’s great ball all over the world.”
For Randolph, seeing the hours and dedication to the game pay off over the last couple of seasons has meant a lot.
“For me, it’s always been like I’ve been so close. I mean, so close to getting drafted. So close to the NBA of getting a call-up. So close to making a roster. So close to EuroLeague,” Randolph said. “So it’s finally a good feeling to see all the hard work these last two years come to fruition. Everything seeming like it’s going in the right direction. I can see the fruits of the labor.
“It really just makes me more hungry to keep winning, to keep working because I feel like I haven’t reached my ceiling yet. I know people joke on my teams all the time, they call me ‘Unc’ because I’m getting older now, I’m 30, but I still don’t feel like I’ve reached where I can get to. So I continue to work, continue to grow. It’s a great feeling to see this, but I feel like people get complacent once they see the fruits of the labor. I feel like it’s a waste. Once you see those fruits, you’ve gotta continue to work because it’s a lot more out there.”
Levi Randolph celebrates after making a shot for Hapoel Jerusalem. (PHOTO CREDIT: Basketball Champions League)
This offseason, Randolph will keep grinding away. He is fully intent on winning more trophies with Hapoel Jerusalem. Though it’s always been a dream of his to be in the NBA and stick, he’s learned in life to be where his feet are. If the right opportunity presents itself, he’ll be open to it.
He doesn’t have to chase the NBA anymore in his eyes. Even though the itch will always be there, he’s already proven to himself that he can hang with the best in the world. With the way he plays and how the league is starting to lend itself toward being more fundamentally sound and less dependent on athletics, he feels he’d fit in just fine.
“You have to think the game now. We’ve got the European style that’s coming a little bit. I feel like I learned at the end of the day, basketball is basketball,” Randolph said. “Guys get bigger, stronger, faster, but you think there’s a big gap sometimes between the G League and the NBA or overseas and the NBA… There’s a few guys that you have that are top of the top like LeBron or KD (Kevin Durant) or James Harden or Steph Curry, but most guys 8 to 15 are role players. They’re in my position. Guys that can come and help a team win, be a good locker room guy. Just guys that can be put into a position or role. I think that’s what I learned with my experience being there.”
Every squad could use a rugged, 6-foot-5, 200-pound guard that can shoot, defend and be a matchup problem — and that’s who Levi Randolph is.
“This is the biggest thing I’ve always thought of me. I’ve been a guy who has really grinded out of the mud. Like, I don’t have fancy trainers or I don’t have where I’m going to a nice, crazy facility. I come back home to Alabama, I either go to the university or have my guys I work with in my hometown. So we come up with the ways to make it work for me and be successful.
“I’ve always dreamed and wanted to have the opportunity to be a part of a team to where in the summer I’m getting NBA-skill performance on and off the court. I think that would kinda shorten the gap on some of the things that I may be missing or was missing in the past. Or I’m spending a whole summer with the staff. I’m physical, can defend multiple positions, spot-up shooter. Whatever it may be. Great decision maker. I think that I can help a team win. Time’s ticking for me, but I think every team could use somebody of my skill set and my size.”
This article was originally published on HoopHerald.com on July 7, 2023.
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