The Josh Level Classic
I personally had the pleasure of knowing Josh Level. Being in this business for upwards of 10 years, you get to know players and build relationships with parents and the coaches of these talented young men.
On February 19th, I was at my house and I received a text message from former EPSN Recruiting Analyst Dave Telep, “Is it true about Josh?”, I didn’t know what Telep was talking about but almost an hour earlier Level had collapsed and was taken from this world during a game at New Garden Friends, a private high school outside of Greensboro. He died from what was later determined as myocarditis. This inflames the heart muscle and along with strenuous exercise can cause death. I called his former AAU coach at the time, Kevin Easley (now a Division One Assistant) and asked him if the news was correct, he broke down and told me yes it was.
Josh was one of the most personable and genuinely nice players that I still to this day have ever dealt with and I still think about him daily. He was always a “yes sir or no sir” type of kid. Besides his passion for basketball and his love for the game, he was a great person.
His father Joseph Level, Kenayo Obi-Rapu, Trey Chapman, Christian Hairston, Theo Pinson, JaQuel Richmond and countless others were some of his best friends in this basketball world and they pay tribute to Josh by putting on The Josh Level Classic. The game features some of the top players from North and South Carolina competing in a friendly atmosphere.
The Classic, this year will be held at Dudley High School in Greensboro, North Carolina on May 20th.