Brandon Ingram has made it in the NBA as a forward for the Lakers, but his beginnings are far more humble.
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Ingram traveled back to his hometown of Kinston, N.C. to meet up with former NBA player and mentor Jerry Stackhouse, who also hails from the same area.
The pair talked about what life was like living in Kinston when they were younger, and Ingram said the local community center is what kept him away from crime on the streets.
"Playing basketball, it took me away from a lot of things that comes with Kinston," Ingram told First Step , a video series created by The Player's Tribune.
Stackhouse has been working with First Step as a way to bring athletes to work with local communities struggling with many social issues, such as crime, poverty and gender equality.
Ingram said he faced many aspects of crime especially, sharing that some of his friends in Kinston were murdered when they were teenagers. He said under Stackhouse's mentorship, he escaped to the community to play basketball games.
"Basketball is kind of a safe haven for me," Ingram said. "My sanctuary where I can get away from everything that's going on in my mind."
Ingram and Stackhouse became close after Stackhouse retired from the NBA and Ingram was just a kid. Stackhouse said he mentored Ingram at the Martin Freeman Rec Center during that time and helped him work on his game, which helped set the foundation for Ingram's NBA career.
Due to Ingram's hard work within the Kinston community, the Martin Freeman Rec Center was renovated with hardwoods floors, new stands and Ingram's name on the floor.
"I remember coming here every single day," Ingram said. "We had a tile floor, chipped paint, no air conditioner. Just to see what it looks like now shows the work that I put in."