by John Reid

Being a championship basketball player doesn’t start with what happens on the court, but what happens in the heart. If ever there was an individual who demonstrates this, it’s Charles “LG” Gill Jr. A career which has spanned from his days in Chesterfield, VA, all the way to Cyprus, he is ready to share both experiences and knowledge in his upcoming camp. Recently, he spoke with the PW Perspective’s John Reid on his journey.

So, how did he get the name “LG?”

“I’m named after my father, so when I was born, they were trying to think of a name, and my mom didn’t want to name me CJ, so they named me after him,” he said. “He was 6’6, a pretty big guy. He was known as Big Gill, so I was called “Little Gill.”

Adapting to the mantra, “When you’re tall, you play basketball,” LG sought to be among the best, and for anyone living in the 804, it meant being at Benedictine College Prep. However, it didn’t go as smoothly as he thought it would.

“I’ve always had the grind mentality, because nothing was ever going to be given to me,” he said. “My freshmen year, I made the junior varsity team, but I got hurt. I fractured my femur bone and turned my quad muscle, so I was out the whole summer. Sophomore year, I got cut, and if you know anything about basketball in Richmond, Benedictine was the school to play at. We had guys going to Duke, and UNC, so for me I always believed I belong there so to get cut, it does a lot to your spirit.”

Ever the resilient, he was determined to see it through.

“I used it as fuel, so my junior year I made varsity, but I played four minutes a game because of reclassification, where guys were two years older than me, and were more acclimated to play at that level. I was about to transfer, and then I hit a growth spurt going into my senior year. I had a really good offseason, played AAU with my teammates. I played with Robert Churchwell, who played at Georgetown, and became our coach. Our whole starting five became Division 1 athletes.”

“I started my senior year at Benedictine College Prep and won a championship in 2013.”

LG talks about the lessons learned from his experience.

“It taught me a lot about perseverance, and I understood how working hard pays off. Unfortunately, I was still under-recruited, and although schools like VCU and Richmond saw me play, I never got the scholarship opportunity to play. Duquesne, who was at the bottom of the Atlantic 10, recruited me. I knew I wasn’t going into a top tier program, but it gave me the opportunity to play against the schools in my backyard. When we played Richmond or VCU, I had my best games [laughs]. I always had that underdog mentality.”

“We had a couple of losing seasons in Duquesne,” he continued, “and after my third year, I was on pace to graduate early. So, once I graduated, I went into the transfer portal, and had about 75 offers from schools like Texas, Florida State, and Florida. It was a testament to working the hard way and God will reward you. I ended up going to Maryland and playing before 18,000 fans. It was a beautiful experience.”

“Afterwards, I wasn’t able to play overseas because I didn’t play as much at College Park, so I was trying to determine the next steps. In those situations, I always lean on my prayer life and trusting God. Even though I didn’t have an agent, I could get a tryout with the Greensboro Swarm of the G League.”

He credited the workout to having a special supporter in the stands, his father.

“I had a great workout, and the best part was having my dad there,” he said. “He passed away three years ago, but he never missed a game. They told him he couldn’t be there, but he found a way to sneak in [laughs]. I had no one but me and my faith in God. I ended up starting with guys which were high caliber players such as Marcus Paige from UNC’s national championship team.”

“Playing on the court and seeing guys like Malik Monk, it was God telling me to just rely on Him. The following year, I got to play for the Iowa Wolves, and I was teammates with Naz Reid, who is the NBA Sixth Man of the Year. Seeing him and what he’s doing now, I am so happy for him.”

As with the rest of the world in 2020, the global pandemic hit, and it changed his course.

“Then, Covid hit, and they shut down the G League season. I ended up getting an agent to play in Kosovo. I ended up getting hurt by straining my Achilles. Didn’t think much of it, but I got an MRI, and I found out it was 75% ruptured. I was told I’d have to get surgery, or I wouldn’t be able to play. And at that time, I lost my father, so it already put me in a difficult situation. I didn’t know what to do, but I leaned on my prayer life and without hesitation God told me to get the surgery.”

To seek the help he needed, LG contacted a well-known NBA star, who could relate to his situation.

“I had reached out to John Wall, who had the same exact injury I had,” he said. “I contacted him via IG and asked him about the Haglund’s Deformity of the bone, where they had to shave the bone and do reconstruction. He took the time to respond to my IG message, and he referred the doctor to me who worked on KD’s ankle and Steph Curry’s ankle. I couldn’t go to him because my insurance wouldn’t cover it, so I called Doctor Joseph Parks at the University of Virginia for a consultation.”

Divine intervention would step in, and he was able to recover quickly.

“I went there to schedule a surgery,” he said, “but he was booked two to three months in advance. He goes back in the office, and found out that someone canceled, so I could get the surgery tomorrow morning. It was an excruciating process, and I had my daughter with me for support, and she was the only light I could see, who gave me so much encouragement.”

“I got through all of that, and after taking three years off, I signed in Cyprus, and then transferred to Hungary. My journey has been crazy, but the main takeaway is to trust that God has a bigger plan than you do for yourself.”

As the expansion of international basketball has come to the United States, LG talks about the differences in the styles of play overseas compared to at home.

“Here in the US,” he said, “the G League is the minor NBA, and they’re trying to emulate everything that Big Brother is doing, from the plays to the coaching. A lot of guys were using their athleticism to score, but they don’t play a lot of defense. There were 6’9 shooting guards handling the ball, it’s so versatile.”

“Now overseas,” he continued, “the defenses are harder to play against. Even Luka Doncic has said it is easier to score in the NBA, and the type of style being played there is a lot of help defense. It’s much more difficult to drive to the basketball. Pack the paint; no drives.”

“For me, playing in Kosovo, we won the championship, and as you level up the defense is much harder. They’re not as athletic but they will play more defense.”

“The team bonding overseas is more united because guys are all passing to each other. You might have a guy come to the G League who is very ball dominant, so you may not see the ball for several possessions. The NBA team will send down a guy who they have an investment in, because it’s a business first, and it is difficult to get playing time. But it helped me to understand what was required to play at that level.”

Understanding what it takes to play at the highest levels is what he will be sharing at his basketball camp, starting next month. In addition to the X’s and O’s, LG will share what he has learned along the way to prepare athletes for the future.

“It’s why I’m so passionate about giving back to these kids,” he said. “What I’ve learned and received from my years of playing, I can show them the blueprint for being a professional basketball player, from nutrition to yoga, to watching film. So many things with my program will involve skills training, but also mentoring, and I can definitely help them. I’ve trained with the New York Knicks in 2019, playing pickup with RJ Barrett, Julius Randle, Taj Gibson, so I understand what the NBA work ethic is like.”

“That’s what I want to promote to these kids; it’s not about having a mundane relationship,” he continued. “Let’s have a mentorship which is to elevate one another.”

To find out more about his program, visit his Instagram page. Interested parties can also sign up with the information in the image above.