Still growing, Columbus' Kingdom Summer League prepares to open 10th season
Trey Burke, known on this court as “Trey Work,” had done all he could. The Northland product, University of Michigan star and nine-year NBA veteran had poured in 52 points, willing his team time and time again to the verge of a championship.
Zavier Simpson, a fellow Wolverine and native Ohioan, would get the final word. With the final seconds ticking off and the score knotted at 122, the Lima Senior product cut to his left, leaped from the foul line extended and tossed up a right-handed floater over the outstretched arms of his defender. The ball arced toward the basket at Ohio Dominican’s gym, the buzzer sounded and it swished through the net.
Pandemonium ensued. The final game of the 2023 Kingdom Summer League ended in dramatic fashion, with Simpson’s shot leading team Committed To My Craft past 4Deep for a second consecutive championship. As Simpson and his teammates celebrated with the fans who stormed the floor, the man responsible for it all was in the middle of the moment.
More than a decade prior, Tihon Johnson was given an assignment during a mentorship program with Dr. Myles Monroe, the late Bahamian minister and prolific author whose bibliography includes a series of books on the topic of the Kingdom of God. During the mentorship, Johnson was tasked with blending his passion and his purpose to create something.
On Sunday, that something will begin its 10th season when the Kingdom Summer League resumes action. The first game tips off at 2:30 p.m. inside the ODU gym. Again, Johnson will be doing everything from taping up sponsorship banners to making sure the games all take place. He’s gotten plenty of help along the way, and the venues have changed, but Johnson’s vision has been constant.
As his slogan says, "Spread love the Kingdom way."
“Growing up, they say, ‘Use the game, don’t let the game use you,’ ” said Johnson, now entering his fourth season as Northland’s boys basketball coach. “I feel like with these endeavors we’ve been able to do through the Kingdom, that was one way not to let the game use me.”
How the Kingdom Summer League started
The Kingdom Summer League began in 2014 without the fanfare that accompanied 2023’s finale. After deciding to address what he felt was a void in the Columbus landscape after the legendary Worthington Summer League ceased operation, Johnson was able to use his connections as a local, as a former college and overseas player and as a trainer for some of the region’s top players to assemble his own league.
It began at the now-shuttered Sawyer Community Center, Johnson’s neighborhood rec center. Johnson said he took tips from NBA veteran and one-and-done Michigan star Jamal Crawford, who runs an annual “Crawsover League” in Seattle, and relied on the help of his wife, Sanikwa, to bring the vision to fruition.
The first game featured Terence Dials, the 2006 Big Ten player of the year and a 2015 inductee into the Ohio State athletics hall of fame, among others.
“I just remember him starting something for the community and I was still playing at that time, so I was able to do whatever I could to promote it and help get it going,” said Dials, now a member of the Ohio State coaching staff. “He asked me to play, and I played. There was no questions about it. Now it is what it is now, and it’s a testament to the work and the community getting behind it.”
Dials was among the first accomplished players to participate, but far from the last. Each year, the league features both youthful players and others with high-level experience, and its list of alumni reads as a who’s-who of Ohio basketball with a heavy emphasis on central Ohio. Burke and Simpson have participated, but so have the likes of Gary Trent Jr., D’Mitrik Trice, Caris LeVert, JD Weatherspoon and high school players at the time John “Juni” Mobley Jr. and King Kendrick. At least 18 players with NBA experience have played in the league.
In most years, Ohio State’s current players also participate. Malaki Branham had multiple 40-point games in 2021 and Brice Sensabaugh poured in 50 during a game the following year. Jared Sullinger, Aaron Craft, E.J. Liddell, Duane Washington Jr., Jae’Sean Tate and others have showcased their abilities in the league. Ohio State coach Chris Holtmann did not permit the Buckeyes to play in 2023, breaking from his own precedent, but those who want to participate in 2024 will be allowed to do so.
Previous iterations have been held at East High School, Tihon Johnson’s alma mater, South High School, Northside Christian School and Tree of Life. The league did not take place in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Kingdom has a yearly agreement and pays a fee to use Ohio Dominican’s facilities. A member of the Panthers’ coaching staff is always on hand for assistance, and the university allows the league to store its sponsorship signs in the facility. Concessions are handled by the Kingdom – and Johnson’s family in particular. His wife and her sister cook the fish sandwiches available just inside the front door.
After wandering through the wilderness a bit, Tihon Johnson has found a more permanent home for the Kingdom. There are benefits to both parties: ODU’s coaches include a graphic featuring the league in their PowerPoint presentation they show to recruits.
“I want to have one stable place for years to come, and they’ve accommodated us and it’s been a great relationship,” Tihon Johnson said.
Johnson gave the league its name as inspiration from Matthew 6:33, which reads, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.” That Bible verse has informed not just the league, but a number of community initiatives as well. Through the league, Johnson is able to hand out backpacks of school supplies to kids in need, participate in an annual shoe drive and also award scholarships among other outreach opportunities to children.
But while it’s not just about the basketball, the basketball is pretty important.
Ohio State Buckeyes: Jared Sullinger shines, current and former Buckeyes watch in Kingdom Summer League action
A day in the Kingdom Summer League
The eight-team league features a six-week regular season that culminates with two semifinal games and a championship.
Admission is free, although donations are accepted at the door and collected by Tihon Johnson’s mother-in-law, Sally Watkins. Walk through the aroma of the fish cooking and past the bleachers, where you might see Johnson’s kids selling Gatorade, and you’ll hear the voice of Davonne Folks ringing out through the speakers and over the on-court action.
A native of Queens, New York, Folks was a youth basketball player of local renown who met Tihon Johnson through mutual friends. Folks grew up listening to the legendary Boobie Smooth, who ran the microphone at New York’s Rucker Park and occasionally emulated him and other in-game announcers as a kid from the end of the bench with his team comfortably ahead. When Johnson started to get the Kingdom going, he asked Folks to bring that New York City vibe to the games.
“On a Sunday afternoon, it can stop a kid from doing anything,” said Folks, a 40-year-old mail carrier on the West Side. “If any kid got any type of situation in the streets going on or anything at home, it can take them away that they can come and just watch good basketball and hear this crazy guy on the mic making them laugh to get your mind off of whatever situation or reality you’ve got going on.”
It was Folks who dubbed Burke “Trey Work.” Or Luther Muhammad “The Assassin,” or Mobley “Action-Packed.” Or a player from Detroit who ate candy before games, leading to the nickname “Sweet Tooth” being called out over the speakers every time he touched the ball.
“I try to put it in a way that you can’t just come to me and tell me your name,” he said. “You have to earn it, so if you can hold your own, OK. I want kids to start playing so they can earn their name and they can get that nickname that can carry them to the NBA and then it can trickle down.”
Holding things together near the middle of it all is Victor Dandridge, who goes by “Coach Vic.” Dandridge still runs “Coach Vic’s Open Gyms” that feature prep players each fall, but during the summer he’s the administrator and right-hand man for Johnson. Dandridge keeps the scorebook, tries to competitively balance the rosters before the season starts and communicates with the NBA and colleges to ensure players are allowed to participate. While most colleges sign off on having their players participate, Dandridge said Dayton has remained a holdout.
He also collects the jerseys after each game, washes them and brings them back the next week.
“It’s a lot of work to get it done, but I will tell you, come Sunday when the ball is tossed, it’s worth every second of it,” he said. “The people love it. The kids love it. The players love it. We’ve had some great players and tremendous games, games that honestly probably should’ve been on television, they were that exciting.”
Ask Dandridge, Folks, Johnson or any longtime attendee of the Kingdom Summer League and they’ll have their own list of games to fit that criteria. Johnson himself played in the league for years and went out on top, winning a title in his final game a few years ago.
Juggling time as a player and director of the league was a unique challenge, Johnson said.
“If there’s a problem, I have to address it,” he said. “I might be in the game and there might be a leak in the bathroom or something.”
During games, he’s seemingly everywhere at once, whether he’s talking with players on the bench, hugging friends in the crowd or using an intermission to honor someone from the community with a plaque. It’s clear he’s got a critical support system, and Johnson is quick to credit those around him as well as the players who now make it a point to attend year after year.
It’s just as clear, though, that he’s the fire that keeps the engine burning.
“Tihon’s a pillar in the community,” Dandridge said. “It’s greater than basketball. He’s more than basketball.”
Ohio State Buckeyes: Join the Ohio State Sports Insider text group with Bill Rabinowitz, Joey Kaufman Adam Jardy
What’s next for the Kingdom Summer League?
As the Kingdom kicks off its 10th season, Johnson is working to expand its reach. This is the inaugural season for the Kingdom League Cincinnati, with games being played at Princeton High School. This year, June saw Northland host the Kingdom First basketball camp for youngsters.
On the court, the hope is to add more players with NBA ties, Johnson said.
“We want to continue to showcase the ability, the talent, the hard work, the years of work for each one of the athletes that come in, whether they play high school level, JUNO, NAIA, all the way up to D-I,” he said. “Here in Columbus, Ohio State is everything for us and we love Ohio State, but we don’t get a chance to see NBA guys a lot with us not having an NBA team. I think that’s a personal goal.”
While coaching Northland at Ohio State’s team camp in early June, Johnson pointed to an eighth-grader who suited up for the varsity. He’s going to be a special player, Johnson said, and through the Kingdom he hopes a player of his talent can get to know players like Burke, Tate, Levert and Branham.
Locally, the community outreach will continue as Johnson further strengthens relationships within the community. Teams are named after local businesses, from Bexley Car Care to the Reitano SportsCenter Elite sports complex. The African American Male Wellness Agency has been a strong partner. Arby’s and Wal-Mart have helped, too.
Their support will help allow the next generation of basketball players find their way into the Kingdom. Perhaps they’ll earn a nickname from Folks as they play their way into college and beyond. And along the way, they’ll help the Kingdom continue to grow.
“Outside of my wife and my children, it’s one of the biggest blessings,” Johnson said of the community impact. “I try not to take it for granted. I look back on my phone and see the memories and it’s definitely God’s work. I think that’s the most fulfilling thing.”
Get more Ohio State basketball news by listening to our podcasts
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Still growing, Kingdom Summer League prepares to open 10th season
