WS Chronicle

The adult men’s basketball league at W.R. Anderson, dubbed “The League,” has begun its third season of the spring league. With several returning teams, plus some new additions, The League, sponsored by the Josh Howard Foundation, continues to grow in notoriety and prestige.

With two weeks down in the season, the contenders are starting to separate themselves from the pretenders. League commissioner, Steve Nivens, continues to be pleased with the constant influx of new talent that The League presents every season. 

“Things have been going great so far, the atmosphere is good, with good positive energy, and we have been enjoying it,” said Nivens. “Everything has been going pretty much as we expected, but even better.”

Nivens said there are several teams that have gotten off to a hot start. Right now, he feels there are two or three teams that have separated themselves from the pack.

There have been many teams that continue to come back and play in the spring or summer. Nivens said his goal was to build something that would be sustainable and make teams want to come back year after year.

“I definitely appreciate the teams that come back every season, because it lets me know that I am doing my job and meeting their expectations of what the league should be,” he said. “It feels good to have so many returning teams and not just to play ball, but they understand we have that competitive edge and want to win.

“That keeps me motivated to keep me doing what I am doing and lets me know that I am doing it right,” he continued.

It has been a surprise for Nivens that The League has caught on as quickly as  has.  He says they routinely receive calls from teams and players from outside of the Triad area wanting to join. 

“I didn’t think it would catch on this quickly, to be honest,” he said with a smile. “The turnaround has definitely been quick, but my vision has always been there. My expectations and what I expect from The League is to take it further than what it is right now.

“It’s getting pretty exciting, because it seems the word is getting out there. It’s getting to where we want it, we are not there yet, but it’s progress to where we want to be.”

As the league continues to garner interest from other locations, Nivens says he has plans for the future, but does not want to spill the beans on how he wants to do that. He said he also might have plans to have a women’s league, based on the positive feedback he has received so far.

“The way the men’s league is going, I definitely want to take this to new heights and see how far I can take it,” Nivens said. “I just want to take the competition level to where they have it up top in New York, New Jersey or Baltimore. I want to see The League go as far as it can, but I know I have to expand on my end to make it reach those heights. I just have to go slow so that I don’t rush anything or mess up any plans we have in the works.”