By:Anthony Rifilato
It goes without saying that Darius Burton, the coach of the Baldwin Bruins varsity basketball team, is a bit of a basketball junkie.
The 2003 and 2004 Nassau County Conference II Coach of the Year and former Hofstra University star lives and breathes the sport. Burton not only coaches the team -- which is currently No. 2 in Nassau County, with a 16-2 record -- but also volunteers at the Long Island Lutheran Basketball Camp in Old Brookville, coaches elementary-school kids at Milburn School on Saturdays, and works individually with youngsters who want to perfect their basketball skills.
Clearly, Burton is one of the most venerated high school coaches in the county and New York state. Last week he was again named Conference II Coach of the Year, a happy surprise that he attributed to his players' hard work. Brandon Harris and Matt Fabrico were named All-County, while Shane Timoll and Brian LeGrande were named All-Conference. LeGrande was also named a Scholar Athlete of the Year.
"It's great," said Burton. "It makes me feel good. It's really because of the kids. They believe in my coaching philosophy."
And this summer, boys in grades three through eight will be given the opportunity to learn from Burton. For a week this August, he will direct the inaugural Baldwin/Freeport Basketball Camp, where kids will be able to learn the fundamentals of the game or perfect their skills.
"This camp is a great opportunity for a young player in the community to learn from the top coaches around and be in the gym during the summer," Burton said.
The idea for the Baldwin program gelled when Burton was approached by Marc Von Essen, former coach at Southside High School in Rockville Centre and the founder of Game 7 Basketball, a network of coaches from across Long Island who have been directing five camps in Nassau County and Queens since 1997.
"We had a lot of feedback from people who wanted camps in their area," said camp coordinator Nills Bosch. "We do like to talk about ways to help the community."
Now, Von Essen, who was a rival of Burton's when he was at Southside, has added Burton to his list of coaches. "He felt that I brought a lot to the table," said Burton.
Burton's camp will be open to anyone in the Baldwin and Freeport area. It will run from Aug. 9 to Aug. 13, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the Freeport Recreation Center. The camp is limited to the first 100 players who sign up, and the cost is $190.
"I'm here to help the community," said Burton, who noted that the camp will keep kids off the streets and interested in basketball, even if it's only for a week. He explained that by coming to the camp, not only will they learn valuable basketball skills, but they'll become more confident and focused. "I want to help kids in general," he said.
If the program is successful, Burton said it may be longer in the future and open to more youngsters.
While the camp is intended for kids who want to learn the sport as well as those who are already on teams, Burton said students shouldn't expect it to be recreational. With the help of some of his star high school players and Game 7 staff, he will teach kids many of the same drills and techniques that his varsity team uses, and the aim of the camp is instructional.
"We'll work on fundamentals of the game," said Burton. "I think it has to start at a young age."
With a number of middle school students expected to enroll, the camp will serve as an introduction for players who may someday end up on the varsity team, with Burton as their coach. "Some of them are kids who are going to be with me in two to three years," Burton said. "The youth is where it starts."
