For Myles Grey, basketball is a full-time job

Myles Grey remembers the day Damon Stern showed up at his elementary school to share his basketball skills. It was a defining moment in Grey’s development.

Stern played guard at Reading High. He teamed with Khary Mauras to form one of the best backcourts in program history, and with Lonnie Walker IV on the first Red Knights team to reach the state semifinals in over 40 years.

That visit, more than seven years ago, still resonates with Grey, a rising senior who, along with Ruben Rodriguez, will form a backcourt combo next season that could rank among the best in Reading history.

“It was very significant,” Grey said of seeing Stern up close. “It was a visual representation of where I wanted to get to.”

Grey got there. As a sophomore he worked his way into the Red Knights’ starting lineup and was a vital cog in their incredible run to a 2021 PIAA Class 6A championship.

Without role models such as Stern, Walker, and later Wesley Butler, he might not have understoodf what it takes to be a top player at the Castle on the Hill.

“I got to see what they’re like off the court, how they really think about the game, how they look at the game,” Grey said.

Now he sleeps, eats and drinks basketball, 24/7. He and Rodriguez, along with their most dedicated teammates, are on the court nearly every day throughout the spring and summer.

They play in leagues in Allentown and West Chester and make weekend appearances at top tournaments throughout the region. They’re back at Philly Live this weekend; Thursday they were at Whitehall High School for the opening night of the prestigious Cedar Beach Tournament, which draws top players and teams from around the Lehigh Valley and beyond.

Reading High is one of seven Berks Conference teams in the tournament, along with Berks Catholic, Daniel Boone, Exeter, Gov. Mifflin, Oley Valley and Wilson.

“Reading High basketball . . . it’s not just a basketball team, it’s your life,” Grey said. “It’s a program.

“It’s gonna take a lot of your life, a lot of your time. If you want to play basketball, it’s just something you’ve gotta do.”

Not that he minds one bit. Grey lives for the game, and he’s darned good at it.

He easily could’ve earned All-Berks honors last season and will enter next season as one of the three or four best players in the league.

He was a critical part of Reading’s back-to-back District 3 championship teams — a feat not accomplished at the school in 45 years.

Grey is a true do-it-all player. He’s a lock-down defender — that how he forced his way onto the floor that first season — but he can also knock it down from the perimeter when needed. He set a program record with 10 3-pointers against Twin Valley in January. No Berks Conference player has ever made more in a game.

Among Grey’s best attributes is that he doesn’t need to score or have to have the ball in his hands to help his team. He’s selfless, a team player to the core, as capable of snaring a rebound and firing an outlet pass to start a fast break as he is to finish one with an athletic move to the basket.

“My role is to do whatever to help the team win,” he said last season. “That can be scoring, controlling the game, facilitating, making the extra pass. Anything it takes.”

Grey’s next assist comes Monday when he and Rodriguez debut their “50 & 10 Basketball Camp” at the Olivet Boys and Girls Club, at 328 Walnut Street in Reading.

Each Monday and Wednesday evening throughout the summer, from 5:30 to 7:30, Grey and Rodriguez will work with local kids interested in developing their basketball skills: shooting, dribbling, passing. Each session costs $20.

“I thought it was a good opportunity to put a smile on some people’s faces, and let them come and have fun and play basketball,” Grey said.

The camp name — “50 & 10” — is derived from their scoring feats of last season. Rodriguez scored a program-record 50 points in a game; Grey’s 10 3’s were likewise a record.

The mission is two-fold: To help local kids learn the game from young men they emulate and to help Grey and Rodriguez learn how to run a business and earn a few bucks in the process.

Reading High coach Rick Perez set up the program; he did the same with Xavier Davis last summer. It’s difficult, Perez said, for student-athletes who train daily and play games throughout the region to hold a regular job.

“You look at their schedules, they’re not available to work at a place like Dick’s (Sporting Goods),” Perez said. “(Management) can’t rely on you to be there when they need you. So, we have to find a way to help them generate some money. We want to use their calling to do that.

“Kids are financially strapped. You want $300 sneakers but you’ve got no money in your pocket. This is just an opportunity to put some change in their pockets.”

It’s more than that for Grey. It’s giving back. It’s seeing things come full circle. He’ll be able to look into the eyes of 8- and 9-year-olds and see himself.

“Every kid in the city wants to play for Reading High,” Grey said. “They all look up to you, so it’s really a blessing. I’m grateful for that.”