Shawn Moss and Jerod Carrier, formerly of the Augusta University men’s basketball team, are now coaching Augusta youth in the sport.
The two former players both graduated with their bachelor’s degrees in May 2021 and have begun coaching for Team Cook on the AAU club basketball circuit.
Local Augusta native Chad Cook founded the basketball club earlier this year and reached out to Moss and Carrier with the coaching positions. Cook’s club has two teams that compete in the 15U and 16U age divisions and feature players from various high schools in the Augusta area such as Lakeside, Evans, Grovetown and Thompson.
[adrotate banner=”54″]
Cook works full time in the sports media field covering all levels of basketball in the Augusta area and was a former AAU coach from 2003-2009. Cook played basketball all throughout his youth and currently has a son who plays on his 15U squad.
“I started the club for my son who is in the 9th grade. I wanted to start a local team that plays strictly in Augusta in the hopes to cut down on the expensive price of playing club basketball,” Cook said. “Teams nowadays will travel all across the country and often it becomes too expensive for parents to handle. I believe this is what makes my team unique.”
Cook sought out the help of Shawn Moss and Jerod Carrier because of the high level of competition they played at, especially under Head Coach Dip Metress. Cook is also heavily affiliated with Augusta University basketball and chose Moss and Carrier specifically because, as recent graduates, their participation does not violate any current NCAA rules.
Moss and Carrier both work together to coach the 16U team, and thus far, they have competed in three local tournaments. While the team got off to a slow start, going 0-3 in their first three games, they have seen more success in their recent outings. They won three of four games in their most recent tournament.
MORE: Augusta University Women’s Basketball Team Eyes Off-Season Improvement
Moss stated that he runs his team very similarly to how coach Metress runs his Augusta team. Moss models his practices after those of Coach Metress, and he preaches similar ideologies to his players.
“I try and run practice just like how it was in college. This way, I can incorporate competition and technique during the two hours I’m with them. I try and teach the kids that winning is a collective effort and that little things do make a big difference in the course of a game,” Moss said.
Team Cook has competed in four tournaments thus far and plans to enter in four more starting at the beginning of July. The month of June is meant for high school players to play with their school’s summer league teams and because of this, AAU ball tends to slow down around this time. Moss and Carrier both intend to continue coaching for Team Cook for the remainder of the summer and said they are excited to be with the team once again come July.
Jack Johnson is a Sports Intern with the The Augusta Press. Reach him at JACJOHNSON@augusta.edu.
[adrotate banner=”49″]
