DA was one of my lil' homies with whom I spoke with weekly... He was a very talented kid, with a personality and smile that could light up a room... He spoke with that Down South Florida drawl, that always made conversation with him memorable (Especially for those of us not originally from the South).
He's the perfect example of a kid who had literally came outta nowhere! He made it into our 2006 ABCD Camp through one of our Try-out camps that we had down in Florida. And once he came to camp it was obvious to everyone watching that he was a man on a mission! He played well enough throughout the week to earn a spot in the Underclassmen All-Star game, where he wowed EVERYONE in attendance and was named one of the Co-MVP's of the game (along with Brandon Jennings). Dante finished with a team high 22 points, and he shot 8-15 from the field & 5-10 from beyond the arc... He left the camp with his name on the top of every college coaches list, and with the reputation he came to camp looking to build...
This past spring, Dante was still out on the hunt as if he hadn't accomplished anything. He's the type of kid who was ALWAYS looking for respect out on the court. He had played well enough to earn a spot on Team Rbk USA, a group of 12 kids hand picked by Rbk's Global Director of Basketball Chris Rivers which included:
Isaiah Thomas, 5'9" PG *Committed to Washington
Malcolm Lee, 6'4" PG *Committed to UCLA
Will Buford, 6'5" SG *Committed to Ohio State
Darius Miller, 6'7" SF *Committed to Kentucky
J'Mison Morgan, 6'10" C *Being recruited by UCLA, Kansas, Alabama, Baylor, etc
Quincy Acy, 6'7" PF *Being recruited by Baylor, Texas, Texas A&M, etc
Eric Frederick, 6'7" SF *Being recruited by Baylor, Texas, Texas A&M, etc
Kenny Frease, 6'11" C *Committed to Xavier
Philip Jurick, 6'11" C *Committed to Tennessee
Bill Walker, 6'6" SF *Freshman @ Kansas State
Dante Anderson, 6'4" SG
Who were put together to tour Italy, and play against the U-20 teams over there.
On his way back to Florida after his 1st "Training Camp" with the team, he had an overnight layover here in Atlanta, so I picked him up from the airport and he spent the night at my home. We talked all night long about the things he had in mind for the circuit this spring/summer, and he was really looking forward to his trip to Italy, as well as his return trip to our Reebok All American Camp (RbkU) where he planned on putting on a show all over again...
Not too long after that evening Dante passed away as result of a tragic car accident. He is sadly missed, and we now have an award that we will give out annually at our camp (Rbk U) in honor of our fallen friend.
Below is a link to a video of Dante playing shortly before his passing...
RIP lil' homie... You will always be missed...
'Zo
http://s172.photobucket.com/albums/w10/Bestof2009/?action=view¤t=Dante.flv
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