Some people grow up with a cheerleader in their corner. Someone who can spark a passion, guide them on the right path. Others aren’t so lucky. But Isaiah Wilson ’19 is working to change the latter—whether purposely or without even knowing it.
Mentoring comes naturally for the Global Business major and guard on the Regis men’s basketball team who is set to graduate early in December. In 2016 when Wilson reconnected with a former high school basketball coach who founded a youth basketball program, one weekend turned into an assistant coaching position.
“The team was heading to Virginia for the AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) 12U (under 12) nationals and I asked to help out,” Wilson recalls. “I connected with the players and realized the impact I could have.”
Wilson wasn’t ready to walk away from the team—Seaford Heat (aka Heat Elite) out of Nassau County, New York. The program aims to benefit youth through the sport of basketball and in July 2018 won the AAU D1 14U (Division 1, under 14) championship. And Wilson believes in its core fundamentals: hard work, determination, and sportsmanship.
“Sometimes I have to tell players things they don’t want to hear or help them see things they don’t want to see,” he says. “But nothing in life is given, and it’s my job to help them build the confidence to face adversity instead of giving up.”
Even for Wilson that is not always easy. He recalls one talented player who hadn’t played organized sports before. “There were new rules and he wasn’t buying into the team’s playing style, no matter what I tried.”
But then Wilson went from mentor to mentee with simple advice from one of the team parents. “He told me not to give up on him.”
Wilson didn’t give up, and the player went on to become a strong team leader. “Within a year, he transformed. I was able to help him by putting myself in his shoes.”
That kind of empathy informs Wilson in various student advocate roles at Regis: Student Government Association (SGA) representative for his freshman class; senior class president; and resident assistant. He also volunteered for the Special Olympics basketball program (a long-standing commitment of the Regis men’s basketball team). When he was sidelined by an injury during his junior year, Wilson worked behind the scenes with men’s basketball coach Nathan Hager to learn the ins-and-outs of scouting and player development.
“Isaiah is a mature leader who genuinely cares about the well-being of others,” Coach Hager says. “His mix of high academic accomplishment, community-driven ideals, and team leadership is what we aim to instill in each of our student-athletes.”
A “quiet kid” in high school, Wilson says he found his voice at Regis. “I remember my first year sitting in on SGA meetings and listening to the older students respectfully tackle different issues. Over time I thought, ‘I can talk just like them.’ I took a lot away from that experience.”
Today, he serves as that same kind of role model.But he remains humble.
“I don’t want people to refer to me by a title like ‘coach.’ They can call me Isaiah or Zeek,” he says of the nickname given to him by his Regis basketball teammates. “I try to act like a big brother to guide people toward making the right choices. I keep myself on the same level and give respect, and it comes back to me the same way.”
And though he shies away from titles, Wilson is excited to become the assistant varsity basketball coach—and continue to mentor—at St. John the Baptist Diocesan High School in New York after he graduates from Regis.
Read more articles
Read the entire magazine online