Even with successful business, Givens’ passion is still basketball

ALBANY — Ravii Givens doesn’t even think about the question. His response is immediate.

Asked how he manages a schedule that would break most other mortal men or women — Up at 6 a.m.; personal training session from 6:15-7:30; quick shower; work at his JMR Homecare Services business from 9 a.m.-noon; play pickup basketball at the YMCA from just after noon to 1:30 p.m.; back to work from 1:30-4:30; training young basketball players from 4:45-8 p.m. — Givens offers a half-smile.

“I don’t mind the schedule,” the former Westover High School All-American says. “Basketball is my life.”

When Givens, who’d just finished a stellar career at Stetson University, was left to ponder a choice of going overseas to continue his love affair with basketball in professional leagues several notches below the NBA or start work in a business set up for him by his mother that would pay him more in a week than he’d make in a month playing ball, he went with the money.

Even now, a decade later, Givens is not 100 percent sure he made the right choice.

“The business that I have was a graduation gift from my mom,” he says. “She told me if I graduated college, she’d set me up in a business that would give me an opportunity to be successful. And even though the business has done well and I have the time to do the other things that I love, there are a lot of moments when I wish I’d taken the opportunity to play overseas.

“I’ll always wonder what might have been.”

Even as owner/administrator of JMR Homecare at 1906 Dawson Road, Givens has channeled his basketball passion into activities that keep him in the game. He provides one-on-one skills training to a list of players that starts with beginners and reaches the NBA level through his Go Hard Training 365, and he passes on his love and knowledge of the game to youngsters through his nonprofit Georgia Go Hard youth basketball program.

“Go Hard” is a fitting name for Givens’ basketball endeavors. A relentless creator on the court from his point guard position, he willed Westover to the state finals his sophomore season and was crucial to the Patriots winning the crown two years later. After being named to this newspaper’s Super 6 teams both of his final seasons at Westover and to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Terrific 10 each year, he was selected to the first-team All-State teams in ‘97 and ‘98 and capped his career accomplishments by being named to the Street & Smith All-American team.

Givens spent a year at Notre Dame Prep in Massachusetts working in the classroom to meet college eligibility requirements before signing a scholarship with Stetson. There, he became the first Hatter to accumulate 1,200 points and 400 assists in his career. But not getting to sign with the University of Georgia is one of the star player’s big disappointments.

“I went through high school not taking education seriously,” he said. “I was devastated to learn that I couldn’t go to Georgia or Florida State or DePaul, any of the big schools that were recruiting me. I really wanted to go to Georgia, but it didn’t happen for me. That was one of the lowest points in my life.

“So now, I tell kids how important it is to take their school work seriously, I want them to know that it doesn’t matter what their friends or classmates might say, it is cool to be a smart kid. Even for the best athletes, the ball will stop bouncing one day. But their education will last forever.”

When Peggy Chester, who’d run the successful Loving Hands home care service starting in 1998, showed her son the financials associated with her business, he chose not to pursue basketball opportunities in Holland and Great Britain and instead took his mother up on her offer to run JMR Homecare. There, he manages 20 employees who cook, run errands and do light house cleaning for elderly clients.

“It’s a rewarding business because we’re providing needed services,” Givens says. “And while I admit that my heart is with my other two programs, I am proud of the business. It’s something I hope to pass down to my brothers (Marcus Givens and Jarrell Chester) or my son (8-year-old Bryce Givens).”

Givens offers one-on-one training sessions through Go Hard Training 365, currently at the gymnasium he rents from Rehoboth Bible Church at 714 W. Broad Ave. He helps athletes develop or refine agility, quickness and strength skills through a program he’s refined over the years. His clients range in age and skill level from 6-year-olds to professionals like former Dougherty High School standout Alexander Johnson.

He’s worked with players from Deerfield-Windsor School, with members of the Lee County High School varsity program, and with a large number of players who have gone on to college or professional careers, including Jeremee Davis, who is currently starring in England’s professional league; Kendra Berry, who signed a scholarship with Furman University; Chris Edwards, who signed with Jacksonville University; and Brandon Shingles, who is also playing professionally overseas.

“I was one of Ravii’s first clients,” Davis, who is currently second in MVP voting in Britain, said in a phone interview. “I knew he was one of the best point guards to ever come through Albany, and he really helped me refine my skills. I played about a third of a year in Spain before getting a chance to play in the (NBA) Development League for Dallas and Washington affiliates.

“This year I came to England and am having a great time. Salaries are improving here, and it’s been great culturally. I’ve visited 10 countries while playing here. But, ultimately, my goal is to reach the NBA.”

Davis, a point guard, is currently averaging 21 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists a game.

During a recent workout session, a quartet of young players — Lavonte Clyde, Zachary Payton, Smith Flynn and Mandela Nelson — are drilled by Givens and Justin Wilcox, who played at Albany Technical and Albany State colleges.

“I definitely notice a difference in Smith’s skills since he’s been working with Ravii,” the Deerfield sixth-grader’s mother, Leigh Ann Flynn — who helped D-W win the 1988 girls state championship as Leigh Ann Margeson — said. “He handles the ball well now, and the dribbling camp Ravii had last year also helped a lot.

“I knew little about basketball when Coach (Gordy) Gruhl recruited me to play, but I certainly could have been a better player if I’d had someone like Ravii work with me at a young age.”

James Payton, whose 11-year-old son Zachary is a 6th-grader at Robert Cross Middle, said the youngster’s skills have improved markedly since he started working with Givens as a 6-year-old. In fact, he offers video evidence.

“Here’s Zach when he first started working with Ravii,” Payton says, calling up video on his phone. “This is him a couple of weeks ago. He’s got a ways to go, but you can see that he’s come a long way.”

At the encouragement of a basketball-loving friend, Givens developed the Georgia Go Hard youth basketball program that has more than 100 participants from grades four to nine. His teams play in Youth Basketball of America, Amateur Athletic Union and United States Basketball Association-sanctioned events, as well as the Georgia Youth Cup Series, and in Exposure tournaments from March to July.

And while Givens and a group of personally-selected coaches — Mike Taylor, 4th grade; Givens, 5th grade; James Payton and Derrick Harris, 6th grade; Craig Drawdy II and Lewis Watts, 7th grade; DeAndre Robinson, James Moore and Terrell Lawson, 8th grade; Wilcox, 9th grade; and Kiera McConnell, 8th grade girls — have done well in tournament play, winning more than 50 tournaments and finishing as national YBOA runners-up twice, he says the emphasis of the program is evolving.

“Everyone wants to win, and we’re going to teach the kids to play to win,” Givens said. “But we’ve started to place more emphasis on development. I think it’s more important that all the kids who are interested in basketball get a chance to play and that they learn how to play right.”

With all his endeavors, Givens has little time for himself. That makes him miss Bryce even more, but his hectic schedule also keeps him moving at the same pace that made him a star on the basketball court.

“People have told me I’m an inspiration,” he says modestly. “But I’m not interested in the limelight. If I can help others through any of the things I do, I’m fine.

“I feel like I’ve been blessed in life, and the greatest gift I’ve ever gotten is my son. I love him, cherish him. I have a pretty hectic schedule, but life is good, real good.”

(Information about Georgia Go Hard, Go Hard Training 365 or any other of his business or basketball activities is available on Ravii Givens’ Facebook page or by calling (229) 291-2736.