Baltimore Loses Its West Side Bear

I.W. Asir, Chief B'More Writer

Leslie Dennis, who passed yesterday, with his wife Trina. (Asir)

October 1, 2008 - Yesterday, the Baltimore basketball world lost a giant in the inner city recreation and parks and AAU basketball circles. Early yesterday afternoon at 58 years old, Coach Leslie “Tar” Dennis, lost a valiant fight to cancer. Many members of the Baltimore basketball circle know that Coach Dennis, a bear of a man, rarely lost a fight on the court or in the streets, advocating for youth. Though employed by the city public water works division, Dennis volunteered a ton of his free time to teach, mentor and coach young boys about life and basketball.

Hailing from a prominent basketball parlor in West Baltimore, John E. Howard Recreation Center, Coach Dennis was also known for his motivational coaching style and being a no non- sense disciplinarian. Moreover, he was an extremely successful program recruiter that was brutally honest with parents and players.

One of the prominent Baltimore City AAU programs benefited greatly from his efforts: In 1999, near the height of AAU basketball, under the Baltimore Stars umbrella, a group of men from the city came together with its leading recreation centers: Madison Square , Bentalou, John E. Howard, Mount Royal, Chick Webb etc., to forge an alliance, so young men from Baltimore could better compete on a national level. Coach Dennis insisted that the young kids have the very best, even though there were no Reebok, Nike, Adidas or shoe deals of any kind for Charm City’s basketball baby ballers – he was one of the few men who put his money where his heart was, and that was with the inner city youth, purchasing team hats, bags, shoes, shooter shirts, sweat pants and sweat jackets. What motivated him was enjoying lighting up the faces of the many kids who just did not have.

The fiery Leslie Dennis led AAU ages 9U and 10U but started on the AAU circuit assisting current Baltimore Stars President Duane Davis at the 11U age bracket. Coach Dennis had several top ten nationally ranked AAU teams and is credited with beating the bushes, finding and helping to introduce some of today’s household names to basketball at a very young age.

Coach Dennis often told the story of introducing a 6’1” ten year old phenom, who could touch the rim, dominate a game and who turned the 10U, AAU nationals upside down. Who was the phenom you ask? He is none other than Leshon Edwards (Princeton Day Academy). Coach Dennis told another story of a feisty nine year old scoring machine that was going to be special; you know him as Josh Selby (DeMatha High). He took another kid that was long, gangly and a fearless clutch shooter at ten years old, unleashing him on the AAU world. Today he’s ranked top 20 in the nation; his name is Will Barton (Heritage High/Lake Clifton).

There’s much more. Coach Dennis befriended a Kentucky native and his two sons when they were 11 and 8 years old, convincing them to come into Baltimore City to be basketball tested, yielding Dejuan Goodwin (Marist University) and Quinton Goodwin (City College High School) . He convinced a very quiet kid and his parents who lived in the house across the alley to give this thing called basketball a try. Today, that kid is doing his thing in the NCAA with the entire country watching; I know you’d never guess, he is DaJuan Summers (Georgetown University). Those who really know the basketball side of Coach Dennis understand that other than his own sons, of all the many youngsters he championed, his heart was a young West Side prince, a two time Baltimore Sun All Metro selection from North Western High School sure to splash on the D1 scene shortly; Jeremy Robinson, (Tallahassee Community College).

Helping produce ball players like the aforementioned and Larry Bastfield Jr, (Toledo University), Johnny Higgins (New Mexico University), Marquise Sullivan (Loyola College), Landon Bussie (Maryland Eastern Shore) and Zack Moore (Redding College) was some of what Coach Dennis was known for.

Coach Leslie Dennis was one of several coaching cornerstones that used John E. Howard Recreation Center as a launching pad and a basketball breading ground for a ton of young men from Baltimore’s West Side. Organized basketball for boys at a young age, with people like Coach Dennis, helped shape many Charm City boys into good, nationally recognized men. Baltimore will sorely miss, Coach Leslie Dennis, John E. Howard’s, and Baltimore’s WEST SIDE BEAR.

Funeral Notes:

VIEWING FRIDAY, OCTOBER 3, 1:00PM TO 8:00PM @ PHILLIPS FUNERAL HOME 727 NORTH MONROE STREET BALTIMORE , MARYLAND

FUNERAL SATURDAY, OCTOBER 4, 10:30AM @ GREATER HARVEST BAPTIST CHURCH 1617 WEST SARATOGA STREET BALTIMORE , MARYLAND

REPASS SATURDAY, OCTOBER 4, 3:00PM TO 8:00PM @ JOHN E HOWARD RECREATION CENTER 2011 LINDEN AVE BALTIMORE, MARYLAND 410.396.7849