As locals sit on the Rainier Beach bench missing 40% of the season after transferring the "correct" way, an elite prep talent seeks a new place to land after his own behavior closes the door in CA
The kid needs help in life, so he is being mentor. Would you rather the kid to be in jail or lose his life on the streets or play basketball, no harm no foul🤔
He’s got a Nike deal and a $3.2 million NIL value. He’s fine. What’s he doing in a Rainier Beach public school, though? he’s not from here. Your argument infers that we should break our rules to let him play. Why would we do that. If he wants to go to WA public schools then he’s governed by the same rules as the kids who actually live here. Surely you can’t argue with that
In short I’m saying he’s more than welcome to move to Rainier Valley. He doesn’t get special rules though. He can sit out next to Achilles Reyna, his teammate who got the regular rules applied and has to sit out for 40% of the year. And he actually lives here and transferred in the summer as required. So he has to sit. And watch the out of town millionaire who has a problem of his own making (kicked out for fighting) waltz into town, get a special set of rules applied, and start immediately while Reyna sits out. Sorry that’s bullshit. He needs to follow the sane rules of go to another prep school.
To me there’s something sick about a community that will sell out its identity and principles so cheaply. Rainier Beach is a Seattle school. It’s not a prep school. It’s not for agents or short timers. It’s for the people of rainier valley. And he has zero ties to RV. he’ll be gone by June, leaving next year’s class to pay the penalties for his improper transfer. That’s what happened at Roosevelt last year it’s what’s happening here. And it’s interesting that someone defended it so I’ll give you credit for that. But honestly I don’t think you would defend it if you fully understood the details because you seem fair minded and there’s just no good reason to be dishonest or break the rules for a kid who showed up yesterday and has the means to go wherever he wants.
1000% agree… it’s the area I grew up actually and has desperately needed upgrades in the schools, etc for years. I was glad to see Beach get that upgrade in the new building.
He does not need a mentor that is going to break the rules for him or model dishonest behavior. That’s not mentorship.
A mentor would tell him he needs to be truthful in his application and subject himself to the same process that the regular people like his teammate Achilles Reyna is going through. Do you think it’s leadership when he looks at Reyna sitting on the bench, paying a price that he should be subjected to as well, but instead of joining him he walks out to the center circle like he owns the place?
Can you imagine how much respect Stokes would get if he just owned the situation, addressed the violence that got him sent away from Notre Dame, addressed the fact that this is a public school that he hasn’t paid into, and maybe even say “I didn’t understand the situation or rules in WA when I moved here, but I do now. I’m on my fourth high school already, I’d like to have one to call home, so I’d rather respect the legacy of Rainier Beach and observe the same rules as everyone else, the last thing I’d want is games to be forfeited because arrangements were made to take care of me.”
That would be a stand up moment.
Respectfully, you’re aiming far too low if you call what’s happening right now mentorship.
Character starts with honesty and accountability. Winning the battle for those traits is orders of magnitude more important than any basketball game.
I’ve mentored and helped hundreds of kids thru coaching. Not once did it cross my mind to break the rules for them, lie about grades or eligibility, falsify documents or cheat so they could play or succeed. What kind of mentor would do that?
I can say with 1000% certainty that I have never lied, cheated, etc to advance the opportunity of any kid I’ve ever coached or mentored. That also has meant that I’ve had to watch some of them be ineligible due to grades, miss games, etc due to behavior issues, showing up late to practices, etc. It does not serve them well as young people for me to set a bad example by allowing them to not be accountable.
Everybody has lied in their life lol. The deflection by you from the actual issue of Beach coaches and admins essentially lying/cheating to get Stokes eligible is pretty telling. Nobody ever wants to hold the adults accountable, just make excuses for them to continue the behavior… well it’s ok they lie because this kid needs help… 🙄
Thank you for being honest and I apologize, this is about the youth and basketball and should not be a personal attack. I do feel like you and the author of this article is jealous of Rainier Beach success because of the accusations you both been spewing out
This story is getting a lot of notice because of Stokes notoriety but I couldn’t care less about that or the success of the team/school. I care about the bad examples being set by the adults in the situation. I care about holding adults accountable for the decisions and actions they make specifically as it relates to dealing with young people. I’ve had kids that we’ve had to make ineligible due to grades. Could’ve easily had teachers lie about grades to make them eligible (which would have helped our team win). But what message does that send to the kid? How would that help or teach that kid to be an accountable adult with integrity? Stokes will be fine. But most others are being setup for failure by not teaching or being an example of accountability. I don’t know any of the kids or adults in the Roosevelt situation either but it appears that they got everything they deserved. I’m just tired of the lack of accountability in this world in general. People hiding behind deflection and “what about-isms” as an excuse to keep breaking the rules, etc.
I totally agree with most of your points but he needs someone to love him and protect him from himself and others who want to knock him down and the best place for him is under the care of coach Mike and Jamal... Rainier Beach not Seattle prep or Odea or any other prep or private school but he needed to be a teenager at a public school were they will keep it real and honest with him and he will become responsible in his character.
Rev this is a good comment. And I think you’ll notice the stories aren’t harsh on Stokes. At all. He’s a kid how could we be upset at him? This reporting is about failures of adults in power. They aren’t protecting the kids and public schools of Rainier Valley especially. They let anyone in. They put a 44 Holly Crip running a fentanyl ring in charge of school security man at some point this has to be a call to action. I would think? Like screw ideologies and political factions get the selfish and dangerous people away from the kids, for one. And let’s focus on protecting the people and resources we have before we make it open season for every sneaker pimp and pseudo non profit CEO to get their grubby hands on someone else’s child. It’s gross.
This, MetroSportsGuy, is exactly why I’m interested as well. The dishonesty is rampant in all of these stories and at some point a decision has to be made at the district level, at the community level, is honesty not the core value we gotta instill in youth? If so no more of this McKinney Vento bullshit no more of these workarounds and shady deals. It’s either right. Or it’s wrong. It’s the only way out of an environment where a 13 year old girl can get r’d for 7 years with two coaches passing her back and forth and two ADs failing to intervene. The basic values are missing. And a man. Like an old school MAN. Needs to say NO MORE. ***could be a woman but you know what I mean.
I don’t disagree with him needing people in his corner. Bethea and Jamal are fine. I’m sure several other coaches or schools would have been fine as well. But by all accounts and facts that I’ve read or heard, why does he get to bypass rules that others have to follow? The other kid they mentioned is local and had to sit out. I personally know other kids in the area that have transferred in recent years (for athletic reasons) and had to sit out. I also know others that transferred for sports and miraculously were eligible immediately even though I know they didn’t meet those requirements which means an adult somewhere along the way lied, etc. Would love for there to be full transparency and accountability with all this stuff across the board.
Come on man, you know life is not always fair, superstars get superstar treatment, when you are special and unique, doors open that don't open for others.
Honesty is the core component of education. There’s no point in anything else if you think truth doesn’t matter to the education of youth. I realize that’s a popular Marxist way of thinking but I think it’s garbage. Adults should model honesty to children in public school. And SPS voluntarily joined WIAA, they need to keep their word and self report their violations as required. Not to mention the serial sex abuse. I can’t believe you’re defending any of this.
They may be fune people, Bethea and Crossover. But it is hard to believe that Bethea had no idea Stokes was coming in and had never spoken to him… and only seen him once before, three years ago. Ok maybe he installed a layer of insulation and had an assistant talk to Stokes’ ppl. But that’s a workaround it’s not honest. And it’s still a WIAA violation. And unfair to local kids who followed the rules. Why are we selling out integrity for a short visit from a 17 year old wing? There isn’t room for these kind of risks or this kind of borderline behavior when SPS is on probation and a half million ppl read every tweet about Stokes. And for what. A kid that isn’t from here and hasn’t paid into the public school system? This isn’t mentorship it’s more of the same: don’t worry Tyran rules don’t apply to you. Start football halfway through the season. No prob. Sock a kid out and get kicked off the team? We’ll find you a new one. I mean. At what point is any moral behavior gonna be modeled by anyone? In the SPS universe moral behavior comes with a price to pay while immoral behavior yields benefits and — at worst — payoffs.
You sound like an upset parent. If this was an unranked kid moving from California to Seattle last minute, you wouldn’t care. Rainier Beach isn’t playing a normal high school schedule either, they’re playing a national schedule now that they’ve added Stokes, teams from CA, TX, MD. Currently in the LSI in Oregon. You can’t really love basketball if you’re mad that generational talent like Tyran Stokes chose a public high school in Seattle to play his senior season.
I’m upset that none of you have enough pride to uphold a pride in place or in the ideal that values like honesty should be instilled in students. I’m embarrassed for you.
You think it’s great to lie for some out of town kid who’ll be gone in four months? At the expense of local kids who 1. Have to actually sit out when they transfer and 2. Will pay the price for the Stokes transfer violations in the future? Well you’re the problem I’m writing about.
And no there’s absolutely nothing exciting about a mercenary and an agent using you. JJ Crawford is exciting, Will Conroy was exciting, Nate Robinson was excititing. This isn’t. This is just more selfish adults selling out the local
kids for personal gain and modeling a complete lack of honesty and ethics to the kids they’re supposed to be teaching values.
Stokes “chose” Rainier Beach because they broke the rules to let him in after he got kicked out of Sherman Oaks. Further this is public school you can’t choose it you have to move in and observe the rules laid out by the taxpayers. All those games you’re excited about prove they knew he was coming (Bethea pretended to be surprised) and they’re all going to be forfeits anyway,
Back in the 80's kids were being disqualified to play for the Beach because they live to close to the school in their neighborhood and the school district wanted those kids on the buses heading to schools in Caucasian areas, so your thinking to me don't fly, just be truthful and tell us what you are really upset about ?
This could have been a way shorter piece. Half of it is repetitive.
Stop when ever you want.
your comment is two minutes after we published. 🤔
The kid needs help in life, so he is being mentor. Would you rather the kid to be in jail or lose his life on the streets or play basketball, no harm no foul🤔
He’s got a Nike deal and a $3.2 million NIL value. He’s fine. What’s he doing in a Rainier Beach public school, though? he’s not from here. Your argument infers that we should break our rules to let him play. Why would we do that. If he wants to go to WA public schools then he’s governed by the same rules as the kids who actually live here. Surely you can’t argue with that
In short I’m saying he’s more than welcome to move to Rainier Valley. He doesn’t get special rules though. He can sit out next to Achilles Reyna, his teammate who got the regular rules applied and has to sit out for 40% of the year. And he actually lives here and transferred in the summer as required. So he has to sit. And watch the out of town millionaire who has a problem of his own making (kicked out for fighting) waltz into town, get a special set of rules applied, and start immediately while Reyna sits out. Sorry that’s bullshit. He needs to follow the sane rules of go to another prep school.
To me there’s something sick about a community that will sell out its identity and principles so cheaply. Rainier Beach is a Seattle school. It’s not a prep school. It’s not for agents or short timers. It’s for the people of rainier valley. And he has zero ties to RV. he’ll be gone by June, leaving next year’s class to pay the penalties for his improper transfer. That’s what happened at Roosevelt last year it’s what’s happening here. And it’s interesting that someone defended it so I’ll give you credit for that. But honestly I don’t think you would defend it if you fully understood the details because you seem fair minded and there’s just no good reason to be dishonest or break the rules for a kid who showed up yesterday and has the means to go wherever he wants.
Rainier Valley is for everyone who wants to be involved with the community.🤔
1000% agree… it’s the area I grew up actually and has desperately needed upgrades in the schools, etc for years. I was glad to see Beach get that upgrade in the new building.
Finally I agree that he needs a mentor.
He does not need a mentor that is going to break the rules for him or model dishonest behavior. That’s not mentorship.
A mentor would tell him he needs to be truthful in his application and subject himself to the same process that the regular people like his teammate Achilles Reyna is going through. Do you think it’s leadership when he looks at Reyna sitting on the bench, paying a price that he should be subjected to as well, but instead of joining him he walks out to the center circle like he owns the place?
Can you imagine how much respect Stokes would get if he just owned the situation, addressed the violence that got him sent away from Notre Dame, addressed the fact that this is a public school that he hasn’t paid into, and maybe even say “I didn’t understand the situation or rules in WA when I moved here, but I do now. I’m on my fourth high school already, I’d like to have one to call home, so I’d rather respect the legacy of Rainier Beach and observe the same rules as everyone else, the last thing I’d want is games to be forfeited because arrangements were made to take care of me.”
That would be a stand up moment.
Respectfully, you’re aiming far too low if you call what’s happening right now mentorship.
Character starts with honesty and accountability. Winning the battle for those traits is orders of magnitude more important than any basketball game.
I’ve mentored and helped hundreds of kids thru coaching. Not once did it cross my mind to break the rules for them, lie about grades or eligibility, falsify documents or cheat so they could play or succeed. What kind of mentor would do that?
Stop it because you have skeletons in your closet too ( we all do ) we just don't know about them.
I can say with 1000% certainty that I have never lied, cheated, etc to advance the opportunity of any kid I’ve ever coached or mentored. That also has meant that I’ve had to watch some of them be ineligible due to grades, miss games, etc due to behavior issues, showing up late to practices, etc. It does not serve them well as young people for me to set a bad example by allowing them to not be accountable.
Fine, but have you ever lied in your life? Don't lie tell the truth.
Everybody has lied in their life lol. The deflection by you from the actual issue of Beach coaches and admins essentially lying/cheating to get Stokes eligible is pretty telling. Nobody ever wants to hold the adults accountable, just make excuses for them to continue the behavior… well it’s ok they lie because this kid needs help… 🙄
Thank you for being honest and I apologize, this is about the youth and basketball and should not be a personal attack. I do feel like you and the author of this article is jealous of Rainier Beach success because of the accusations you both been spewing out
Your points make no sense Reverend. Tighten up your sermon.
Lol' 😀
This story is getting a lot of notice because of Stokes notoriety but I couldn’t care less about that or the success of the team/school. I care about the bad examples being set by the adults in the situation. I care about holding adults accountable for the decisions and actions they make specifically as it relates to dealing with young people. I’ve had kids that we’ve had to make ineligible due to grades. Could’ve easily had teachers lie about grades to make them eligible (which would have helped our team win). But what message does that send to the kid? How would that help or teach that kid to be an accountable adult with integrity? Stokes will be fine. But most others are being setup for failure by not teaching or being an example of accountability. I don’t know any of the kids or adults in the Roosevelt situation either but it appears that they got everything they deserved. I’m just tired of the lack of accountability in this world in general. People hiding behind deflection and “what about-isms” as an excuse to keep breaking the rules, etc.
I totally agree with most of your points but he needs someone to love him and protect him from himself and others who want to knock him down and the best place for him is under the care of coach Mike and Jamal... Rainier Beach not Seattle prep or Odea or any other prep or private school but he needed to be a teenager at a public school were they will keep it real and honest with him and he will become responsible in his character.
Rev this is a good comment. And I think you’ll notice the stories aren’t harsh on Stokes. At all. He’s a kid how could we be upset at him? This reporting is about failures of adults in power. They aren’t protecting the kids and public schools of Rainier Valley especially. They let anyone in. They put a 44 Holly Crip running a fentanyl ring in charge of school security man at some point this has to be a call to action. I would think? Like screw ideologies and political factions get the selfish and dangerous people away from the kids, for one. And let’s focus on protecting the people and resources we have before we make it open season for every sneaker pimp and pseudo non profit CEO to get their grubby hands on someone else’s child. It’s gross.
This, MetroSportsGuy, is exactly why I’m interested as well. The dishonesty is rampant in all of these stories and at some point a decision has to be made at the district level, at the community level, is honesty not the core value we gotta instill in youth? If so no more of this McKinney Vento bullshit no more of these workarounds and shady deals. It’s either right. Or it’s wrong. It’s the only way out of an environment where a 13 year old girl can get r’d for 7 years with two coaches passing her back and forth and two ADs failing to intervene. The basic values are missing. And a man. Like an old school MAN. Needs to say NO MORE. ***could be a woman but you know what I mean.
I don’t disagree with him needing people in his corner. Bethea and Jamal are fine. I’m sure several other coaches or schools would have been fine as well. But by all accounts and facts that I’ve read or heard, why does he get to bypass rules that others have to follow? The other kid they mentioned is local and had to sit out. I personally know other kids in the area that have transferred in recent years (for athletic reasons) and had to sit out. I also know others that transferred for sports and miraculously were eligible immediately even though I know they didn’t meet those requirements which means an adult somewhere along the way lied, etc. Would love for there to be full transparency and accountability with all this stuff across the board.
Come on man, you know life is not always fair, superstars get superstar treatment, when you are special and unique, doors open that don't open for others.
I’m starting to understand you’re not a reverend.
Honesty is the core component of education. There’s no point in anything else if you think truth doesn’t matter to the education of youth. I realize that’s a popular Marxist way of thinking but I think it’s garbage. Adults should model honesty to children in public school. And SPS voluntarily joined WIAA, they need to keep their word and self report their violations as required. Not to mention the serial sex abuse. I can’t believe you’re defending any of this.
They may be fune people, Bethea and Crossover. But it is hard to believe that Bethea had no idea Stokes was coming in and had never spoken to him… and only seen him once before, three years ago. Ok maybe he installed a layer of insulation and had an assistant talk to Stokes’ ppl. But that’s a workaround it’s not honest. And it’s still a WIAA violation. And unfair to local kids who followed the rules. Why are we selling out integrity for a short visit from a 17 year old wing? There isn’t room for these kind of risks or this kind of borderline behavior when SPS is on probation and a half million ppl read every tweet about Stokes. And for what. A kid that isn’t from here and hasn’t paid into the public school system? This isn’t mentorship it’s more of the same: don’t worry Tyran rules don’t apply to you. Start football halfway through the season. No prob. Sock a kid out and get kicked off the team? We’ll find you a new one. I mean. At what point is any moral behavior gonna be modeled by anyone? In the SPS universe moral behavior comes with a price to pay while immoral behavior yields benefits and — at worst — payoffs.
You sound like an upset parent. If this was an unranked kid moving from California to Seattle last minute, you wouldn’t care. Rainier Beach isn’t playing a normal high school schedule either, they’re playing a national schedule now that they’ve added Stokes, teams from CA, TX, MD. Currently in the LSI in Oregon. You can’t really love basketball if you’re mad that generational talent like Tyran Stokes chose a public high school in Seattle to play his senior season.
I’m upset that none of you have enough pride to uphold a pride in place or in the ideal that values like honesty should be instilled in students. I’m embarrassed for you.
You think it’s great to lie for some out of town kid who’ll be gone in four months? At the expense of local kids who 1. Have to actually sit out when they transfer and 2. Will pay the price for the Stokes transfer violations in the future? Well you’re the problem I’m writing about.
And no there’s absolutely nothing exciting about a mercenary and an agent using you. JJ Crawford is exciting, Will Conroy was exciting, Nate Robinson was excititing. This isn’t. This is just more selfish adults selling out the local
kids for personal gain and modeling a complete lack of honesty and ethics to the kids they’re supposed to be teaching values.
Stokes “chose” Rainier Beach because they broke the rules to let him in after he got kicked out of Sherman Oaks. Further this is public school you can’t choose it you have to move in and observe the rules laid out by the taxpayers. All those games you’re excited about prove they knew he was coming (Bethea pretended to be surprised) and they’re all going to be forfeits anyway,
Back in the 80's kids were being disqualified to play for the Beach because they live to close to the school in their neighborhood and the school district wanted those kids on the buses heading to schools in Caucasian areas, so your thinking to me don't fly, just be truthful and tell us what you are really upset about ?