The accolades continue for the No. 2 player in the nation AJ Williams.

Just a few weeks ago, Williams was named to ESPN’s 2028 top 25 rankings by basketball analyst Paul Biancardi.

Since being ranked, he has picked up several notable camp invites to high-stakes camps that have some of the best basketball players from all over the country participating. Williams was invited to the FIBA Americas Training Camp in Colorado Springs, Colorado on May 22nd-24th and the U16 FIBA Americup Championship on June 2nd-8th (Argentina). He was also invited to the Nike Elite 100 camp.

Williams is currently running with the flagship program, the Georgia Stars, on the AAU circuit and continues to establish himself as a noteworthy player. He already has several notable performances, including scoring 30 points in an On The Radar Hoops circuit. He was also named a standout in the Nike EYBL (Elite Youth Basketball League) Session 1 tournament in Indianapolis.

When you watch his game, you see a 6’7 athletic wing that can score from anywhere on the floor. He can create space with elite ball handling and also knock down tough contested shots. Just when you least expect it, he will come into the lane and throw it down on you. His athleticism is off the charts, but he is not reliant on it and makes you pay in other ways, showcasing his versatile skillset.

So many young players fall victim to only being offensive stars, but that is not the case with Williams. He is a great on-ball defender and a pest who jarres the ball loose, leading to easy scoring opportunities on the other end. He prides his game on the defensive end to Kawhi Leonard and on the offensive end to Jayson Tatum, he said in an interview with Pro Insight.  To be so young, he already has a deep bag that is only growing every day.

This past season on the hardwood for Dutchtown, he was named Region 3-5A Co-Player of the Year. He didn’t waste any time letting people know how good he was, averaging 18.4 PPG and 12.5 rebounds early on to start his prep career. He has continued to churn out memorable performances on the court and is cementing himself as the next elite prospect.

The Scotland Juneteenth Heritage Festival—hailed as the largest Juneteenth celebration in the DMV—is back for its third year, offering a week of music, cultural events, youth activities, and family fun.

Organized to honor and support historic Black communities across the region, the festival will take place June 15-19 in Potomac. Tickets are now available for several events, with many offerings free to the public.

Week of Events

Interfaith & Father’s Day Brunch

The festival kicks off with an Interfaith & Father’s Day Brunch on Sunday, June 15, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Lakewood Country Club. Dr. John Paul McGee will deliver the keynote sermon, accompanied by a performance from the Scotland A.M.E. Zion Church Choir.
Tickets are $65.

Youth Sports Clinics – Free Admission

Empowering the next generation is a key focus of the festival, which includes free youth sports clinics throughout the week:

• Dance & Cheer Clinic with the Washington Commanders Entertainment Team: Monday, June 16, 6–8 p.m., Cabin John Middle School Gym. Reserve a spot.
• Basketball Clinic led by Coach Eric Smith: Tuesday, June 17, 6–8 p.m., Cabin John Middle School courts. Reserve a spot.
• Football Clinic hosted by Club 480 and the Churchill Bulldogs: Wednesday, June 18, 6–8 p.m., Winston Churchill High School Stadium. Reserve a spot.

Spots are limited; advance registration is required.

Juneteenth 5K Road Race & 1-Mile Family Walk

The annual race invites runners and walkers of all ages to celebrate along 7 Locks Road, passing the historic Black community of Scotland. The event begins at 8 a.m. on Thursday, June 19, at Bells Mill Elementary School.
5K registration is $33; the family walk is $23.
Register.

Family Carnival and Parade – Free with Ticket

The festival’s grand finale, a Family Carnival, features live performances, a parade with marching bands, carnival rides, games, crafts, a petting zoo, face painting, and food trucks.

Admission to the park is free, but attraction tickets are required. Tickets are free through June 1 and $5 per person after.
Register.

How to Participate

Visit Scotland Juneteenth Heritage Festival’s website to reserve or purchase tickets, register for events, and learn more about the full schedule.

The festival’s theme—Celebrate Community, Honor Culture, Embrace Freedom—reflects its mission to bring people together in joy, remembrance, and unity.

Photo courtesy Montgomery Parks

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Memphis Police shut down a sports bar Wednesday morning, deeming it a nuisance, and arrested its manager. 

Memphis Mayor Paul Young, Memphis Police Chief C.J. Davis, and other city leaders spoke to reporters outside of Infiniti Sports Bar & Grill on North Watkins Road and announced the closure just after 11:30 a.m. on May 14. 

Mayor Young called the venue and similar nuisances across the city “hubs of violence.” Young said the bar has been “harboring criminal activity for quite a while now.” 

Chief Davis called the bar, known as Club Infiniti, a hot spot for criminal activity. Throughout the first five months of 2025, Davis said MPD responded to 26 calls at the bar, including four homicides. One of those homicides was the first of the year recorded in Memphis. Over the past year, MPD said officers have responded to 264 calls for service within a one-tenth-mile radius of the business. Fourteen of those calls involved violent crimes, police said. Chief Davis also said that, within the past two years, MPD has responded to 93 calls at the bar itself, including homicides, shots fired, armed parties and more.

RELATED: MPD releases photos of suspect wanted in Frayser sports bar shooting that killed 2, injured 3 others

Most recently, two people were killed and three others injured in a shooting at the venue. That mass shooting occurred less than a week before authorities closed it as a nuisance. CrimeStoppers is offering a $4,000 reward for anyone who has information on the person or people responsible for that shooting. 

“A little over a week ago there was a mass shooting at this location. But the investigation that MPD did confirmed that that was not by any means an isolated incident,” said Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy. 

MPD said the club’s manager, 57-year-old John Curry, was storing and selling liquor without a license. Police charged Curry with possession of unstamped liquor over three gallons, unlawful sale of alcoholic beverages, storage of liquor for sale, dispensing alcoholic beverages without a license, and driving while license suspended or revoked. 

Davis said other closings could be on the horizon. 

“This is not a one-and-done,” Davis said. “There are other properties on our radar, and more actions are coming. Every business owner in this city has a choice: be part of the solution or be held accountable.” 

Both Young and Davis thanked State Rep. Antonio Parkinson, who recently passed legislation to expedite nuisance closures. That legislation goes into effect in July. 

“When we shut down nuisance businesses, it removes the gathering places for criminal activities and sends a strong message to other irresponsible property and business owners: this will no longer be tolerated in our city,” Parkinson said. 

Mayor Young addressed the recent shootings in Frayser, saying his office is working on putting in place protective measures which will tackle gun violence, including solutions directed at young people. Chief Davis added that more arrests could follow in the search for a man who was wearing a green shirt on the night of the mass shooting and captured on surveillance cameras.

If you have any information that could help investigators, you’re asked to call CrimeStoppers at 901-528-CASH.

A Mount Vernon youth basketball coach and official who took to Facebook last week to deny an allegation he had inappropriate contact with a minor has been arrested on a sex charge involving a child under the age of 13.

Dwayne Murray, 62, was arraigned on Wednesday, May 14, in Mount Vernon City Court on a charge of course of sexual conduct against a child, a felony punishable by up to 25 years in prison.

Murray is executive director of the Mount Vernon Junior Knights program, coaching its 7th and 8th grade girls team, and is also a longtime assistant coach of the Mount Vernon High School boys varsity team.

Late Wednesday afternoon, the Westchester District Attorney’s Office put out an advisory saying it would announce the following day the arrest of a prominent member of Westchester’s youth sports community.

They did not identify who it was and a spokesman declined to confirm that it was Murray. But the details of Murray’s court appearance were posted on WebCrims, the state court system’s online court docket.

The charge accuses him of two or more incidents of sexual conduct with someone younger than 13 over a period of at least three months.

WebCrims indicated that Murray had been ordered held without bail but as of 8:15 p.m. Wednesday there was no record of him at the Westchester County Jail on the jail’s online inmate lookup.

He could not be reached for comment.

Dwayne Murray denied allegations in Facebook video

Last week, Murray, wearing a Junior Knights T-shirt, posted a six-minute video on Facebook acknowledging an allegation but insisting it was “absolutely, completely false.” He wrote that he would “not allow those in the ‘shadows’ to smear me or my program.”

“I want to make it crystal clear, I’ve never, ever done anything inappropriate with the players on my team or any team for that matter,” he said.

The video was in the context of his support for a slate of challengers in next week’s Mount Vernon school board election. He called the allegation part of a smear campaign by supporters of an opposing slate that includes two incumbents and a former school trustee.

In the video on May 5, Murray said that one place the accusation was made was in a text message to Mount Vernon Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard by Gregory Bonaparte, the husband of school board President Adriane Saunders, one of the incumbents running next week. Bonaparte’s text did not name Murray but said he had learned of an allegation that a “middle aged close associate of (the mayor’s)” had inappropriate contact with an 8th-grader.

Murray said that the mayor had sent a copy of the text to the Westchester DA’s Office. He said he was willing to speak with investigators and urged Junior Knights parents to cooperate fully with any investigation “should it happen.”

Timothy Allen, a city spokesman, said that the mayor is a mandated reporter of allegations of sexual misconduct, because she is a minister and a social worker, and “takes that responsibility seriously.” He said the context of the text was “vague, suspicious and appeared politically motivated” but that she did not hesitate to contact the DA’s Office “to ensure justice could take its full course.”

Neither Allen nor the DA’s Office would comment on whether the mayor reaching out had prompted the investigation or whether it had begun earlier.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Mount Vernon NY youth basketball coach Dwayne Murray faces sex charge

Dear Editor:

Lately, there’s been some thoughtful conversation in school districts across Colorado about a new kind of high school sports classification—one based on skill level rather than gender. I’ve followed it with interest, especially as a long-time supporter of our public schools and student athletes.

This idea may feel unfamiliar, but that doesn’t mean it’s unworthy of discussion. A performance-based model could create more evenly matched games, potentially improving safety and allowing students to compete at their true level. That might mean more confidence, better development, and opportunities for athletes who may otherwise get overlooked. It’s a change, yes—but one that could reflect how much youth sports (and young people themselves) have evolved.

As a community, we’ve always taken pride in building programs that grow with our students. I hope families, educators, and students will explore this resolution with curiosity and care. Even if it’s not a perfect solution, it might spark new ways to support all our athletes.

Thanks for considering new possibilities alongside tradition.

Matt Gawlowski

Ridgway, Colo