Coaching Friends 6th Annual Hooops Has Basketsful Of ‘Nice Things’

Until three years ago, retired Central Valley School District administrator Chuck Hafner had never coached a sport.

Then some parents, disgruntled with the coach of their AAU team, urged him to consider it.

“I hadn’t played basketball. All I’d done is watch it all those years,” he said. “They finally came back and said, ‘Why don’t you do it?”’

Hafner used his teaching background and experience as principal at both University and Central Valley high schools and transferred it to the hardwood.

“I read every book in depth that I could find on coaching,” he said. “I talked with Terry Irwin and every coach I knew.”

Then he took a fifth grade team that included his grandson Matt Thompson and preached the basics.

Things must have worked out all right. The team has been competitive at the AAU level and in three Hoopfest tournaments has finished first once and second twice.

This weekend it will participate in the sixth annual Valley Hooops, the 100-team fund-raiser sponsored by the Spokane Valley YMCA.

Three players, Hafner’s grandson, Nate Wendlandt and Kevin Devonport, played together on Hafner’s AAU team. The fourth, Michael Droppers, previously played on a team coached by his dad Jim.

The two teams had practiced against each other during the season.

Next year Hafner’s and Droppers’ teams will join forces in the eighth-grade AAU league.

“I had kids who played a lot of soccer,” said Hafner. “We decided we’d have a team of kids who want to concentrate on basketball.”

Jim Droppers is happy that Hafner is coaching the team. He will be coaching his fourth-grade son, Andrew, also during Valley Hooops. Indeed, last year Droppers coached both Michael in AAU and Andrew in the YMCA league and understands the difficulty of doing both.

“I’ve coached about everything in the YMCA and Spokane Valley Baseball,” said Droppers.

This is Michael’s third Hooops, Andrew’s first.

It is also their dad’s third year of involvement with the YMCA event.

“I actually got involved as a volunteer three years ago through the Optimist Club,” he said. He has been an advocate for the local event ever since.

Unlike Hoopfest which has grown so large it is spread throughout Spokane, Droppers will likely be able to watch both sons play should their games happen at the same time.

“One of the nice things about Valley Hooops,” said Droppers, “is that all the courts are fairly close together.”

The other thing he likes is the availability of parking and the convenience of being able to go home between games.

“It’s a fun event,” said Droppers. “Our kids have met kids from all over. They get to know each other and walk around the mall with each other later.”

Friendship, he said is the YMCA’s philosophy. One developed between Hafner and him resulted in their teams joining forces.

And that’s what Valley Hooops has come to symbolize.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: 100 TEAMS SUITING UP The numbers are the same for this year’s Valley Hooops 3-on-3 basketball tournament. “We’re sitting right at 100 teams. There’s no growth but we’re still good-sized,” YMCA activities director Pat Estes said of the tournament that takes place Saturday and Sunday in the University City Shopping Center parking lot. The only difference is that this year there are more youth teams and fewer adult teams. All participants will play a two-day round-robin and single elimination tournament. “Ninety percent will play four games on Saturday and two on Sunday,” said Estes. “The Y’s philosophy is, ‘Hey, let’s play’. I think we’re accomodating that.” There are 16 courts, up two from last year. There will be 3-point, slam dunk and blindfold free throw shooting specialty contests. Estes said the tournament is still in need of volunteers, particularly court monitors. He can be reached at 927-1474. Mary Lou’s Ice Cream Parlor, All-Star Pizza and Brock’s Hot Dogs and Specialty Sausages will provide concessions at the YMCA fund-raiser. “Hoopfest is Hoopfest,” said Estes. “But there’s obviously a market for these tournaments. Ours is right up there as the second or third biggest.”