South Central Los Angeles, 1996. A 10-year-old Energizer Bunny known as April Phillips is walking to ball out with her big bros, Patrick and Erick, who are just a couple years older than her.
They’re just 3 marbles rolling straight down the streets to the local Weingart YMCA gym on Vermont and 108 St where they wring all of the sweat out of the their lil sponge bodies onto the floor of the dry gym.
Patrick would call out to April in the middle of a pick up game, “You got it, take him sis!” Strong shoulders, proud chest out, so humble and hungry, April doesn’t say a word. She just goes to work.
Her nickname nowadays is “A-Phil”, even in 96’ she must’ve had that look in her eye, every day of her life that just says “It’s takeover time.” Other kids at the gym must have been trying to beat up on A-Phil.
April is a fan of former Bulls and Lakers coach, Phil Jackson, a fan of his meditation methods, his Zen techniques, his approach to that search for success.
April? Forever competing, going blow for blow with the boys growing up. How tuff was A-Phil in her youth? By age 14, her freshman year in prep, April had already been offered a scholarship by USC. Dang, Imagine that? Such an amazing feat, Right?
I can imagine April saying in games back then, “No blood, no foul people.” I can also imagine A-Phil’s brother Pat giving the dopest and most hype speeches back in that YMCA gym in 96’ because now in 2020, Patrick, he’s that cool dude, this super inspirational speaker by profession.
With good vibes all the way, look Pat up on YouTube like I did. Imagine his words, “C’mon lil sis, don’t be scared of them boys. They not goin’ to do nothing to you. Just hoop sis!”
https://www.mrphillipsinspires.com/
April’s other brother Erick was more on the reserved side in 96’. The quiet assassin so to speak, he didn’t say much in 96’ but April always knew E had her back. Erick in 2020? He now writes terrific fantasy books for a living, Harry Potter style books.
How tough those games must have been? April broke through the concrete streets of South Central, her rose grew, found its way through concrete barriers, against all odds. As Tupac would say, you can’t hold down a Black Nubian Queen on a mission. April has always been on a mission.
April used her strong frame, fearless mindset and competitive spirit, getting great advice from this legendary prep coach, James Anderson, who also coached many players who played in WNBA. He gets much respect from April. She still seeks his wise counsel today.
If switching from Narbonne to LB Poly was the fit she needed, nothing would hold April back from finding it. That’s her ethos, her genius. What empowered her to find that perfect spot was her unbelievable upbringing by her mom, who is so wise, fun, and off-the-charts supportive.
Her mom is Ms Robbie Mitchell. She reminded all her kids, “Work hard in school, give it your all. Put thought into finding your own fit, in a smart way, choose what makes you happy. When you and your brothers shine, I will shine.”
A-Phil started her college career at prestigious Georgia Tech in the ATL before transferring to Xavier in search of a better fit for herself. April’s Xavier NCAA team? 2 points away from a final 4, because April always, always finds that Cinderella fit. She is that ultimate “come up.”
Just how dope is April, E-Woods?
Let me give her credit and put it in perspective. From all the 88,541 people I’ve known in my 49 years on Terra Firma, April is the most old soul, most grindin, ultra bubbly, swaggest of people I’ve ever met in life.
Is it like that E-Woods? Yup!
How’s her personality? April once told me she liked the movie Sister Act 2. I told her, girl you as dope as Whoopi and Lauren Hill, two of the film’s stars. I told her you born sublime girl, sultry, smooth as The Fugees, you are the epitome of Ready or Not, Here I Come, like TLC was crazy, sexy, cool.
A-Phil never gives herself that credit, that’s just a part of her charm I guess. She has a hard time taking compliments but she deserves any and all coming her way no doubt.
How can you truly know April’s journey in south central LA you may ask, what she felt in that rec center gym on Vermont & 108th in 1996?
Me, E-Woods, I taught 4th grade across the street from her gym in 1996, when A-Phil was in 4th grade. I am April, she is me, I taught 1/4 mile from her house. I’m already knowing how tough the circumstances were that she overcame. 100.
To truly know A-Phil one needs to talk to her awesome mom who April calls her rock. Robbie Mitchell is that next level mom, so highly intelligent. Her career involves helping people that are hearing impaired.
I love talking to Ms Robbie because she is beyond eloquent, it’s like you’re chopping it up with Maya Angelou. I invested much time with Ms Robbie to unlock the code of A-Phil, I spent hours, many hours to feel her oh so dope journey.
Ms Robbie was a single mom raising 3 kids who wouldn’t let her kids get caught up. Oh no, she wouldn’t let them be that statistic coming out of south-central LA.
Robbie gifted April some athleticism, as she ran track at Cal State LA and was proud to compete and set some records in the 400 and 4×4 relays. Robbie told me that her moving to Harbor City and Long Beach were moves that were important for her children.
She was proud to always be supporting her 3 kids and she beams brighter than a 1000 watt bulb when saying, “When my kids shine, I shine.” If April is a blessing to others, Robbie is a blessing to whichever community she raised her kids in, because she wouldn’t expect anything but excellence from her children.
Ms Mitchell says of her baby girl, “April’s goal is always to be able to grasp the mission with not just the intent and purpose but with the ethic of human compassion, which simply put means to treat others the way you want to be treated.”
The truth? It has to do with more than just April helping secure the #7 recruiting class at Cal recently or her incredible track record of recruiting and coaching at Arizona and LMU before that. You have to know and feel E-Woods’ prediction. There’s transcendentalism at play, like a M. Night Shyamalan movie, not all can be explained. It must be intuitively felt, people.
She is only 33 and has been a D1 coach for 10 years, which is freaking beyond amazing. Her secret sauce is that she is a deep relationship person, as much as anyone I’ve ever written about and I’ve done 800 stories in the last 20 years.
But I’ve never done a coach’s story, or felt I was up to it, or found the right one. Does that make sense? But meeting this young takeover coach named A-Phil, now my code was unlocked.
A-Phil has been grindin’, building confidence and experience for more than her nearly 10 years in this profession at Seton Hall, University of New Haven, Georgia Tech, Loyola Marymount, Arizona and now Cal. It’s the fit people, it’s always the fit.
Offer proof you say? In 1992 I’m a student at UCSB, my college alma mater and I had a classmate named Cori Close. I looked deep into her eyes and saw the pupil of her destiny, I saw a John Wooden disciple. Me, just a youngster at age 20, I predicted Cori would go on to be a Bruin torch carrier.
I have the gift of insight, my crystal ball tells me if you have crazy fye, what your destiny could be. Cori turned out to be the dope, dope head coach for the Bruins. In time maybe April too will be a dope D1 head coach. She’s freaking only 33 years old, with a resume that most over 45 year olds never achieve in a D1 hoops coaching career!
A huge part of this story is that April wants it known she is dedicating this story, as well as her coaching career, to a true legend of the game that mentored her, a beautiful person, basketball mind named Anne Donovan, who showed her how to approach coaching in an unbelievable way.
When I look into April’s eye, her pupil, I see the legendary player and coach Anne Donovan, that 6-8 Hall of Fame Coach that, in her time was a super baller of the women’s game in the 80s, like Anthony Davis is now.
Anne went on to be a HOF coach in college and the WNBA. Everyone knows who John Calipari of Kentucky is, right? That’s how respected Anne is in women’s hoop game, a sport I believe is too little appreciated and respected as much as it truly deserves.
There’s a lot of Anne in April, because when A-Phil was at Xavier, Anne invited her to play for the WNBA and her NY Liberty team. Anne knew how great a hoop talent April was. I’m sure Anne also knew A-Phil was more than a player but also this fantastically talented mind and soul.
They talked and shared so often about what April’s next steps should be after her pro overseas career in Belgium, Finland and Israel. April left her pro career to join Anne’s staff at Seton Hall. April had been making that bread overseas at a very early age when she was having the best season of her pro career averaging 15 and 15.
Was Seton Hall now was the right fit? You bet.
Does April know her best fit? Imagine you had a former dope player equivalent to Anthony Davis want to mentor you? A legend HOF that coach like Calipari who would love to show you the ropes, you couldn’t help but be successful, right?
RIP Anne, this story is for you. 100. April was like a daughter to Anne, I can only imagine. You can’t help but pay that love forward, that’s a blessing beyond measure, right?
I’ll let April relate what her mentors growing up mean to her, how they’ve impacted her so, “My career is a testament to Anne, being competitive but also compassionate. My mom taught me to be good to all people. That karma is real, you get back what you put out.
“I have been really fortunate to be able to serve under coaches like Anne Donovan, Ty Grace, Charity Elliott, Adia Barnes, and currently Charmin Smith. I’m just blessed that they have all given me great experiences and opportunity for growth.
“I go into each new chapter with a chip on my shoulder in a sense, determined if you will. When I finally got my first D1 opportunity, there was no off button (at LMU), or at hardly any place I’ve worked. In fact, I have had to coach myself into finding balance and setting boundaries over the years.
“Coming into the profession, I knew I had to outwork the competition. I did my job with the same mentality that I played with. It’s my thing to make authentic and genuine connections with the kids and families I’m recruiting, and everyone I deal with in this profession. I am okay with wearing my heart on my shoulders and being human-like to those I come into contact with.
“I like to say, ‘If there’s even a slight chance at getting something that will make you happy, you should risk it.’ Life’s too short and happiness is too rare. Genuine relationships matter. Take for instance, Elbert Kinnebrew. I have known Coach Kinnebrew for over 15 years. He has been very instrumental in my journey over the years.
“I do not take any genuine support or love for granted. I have had some amazing people invest in me over the years and continue to do so. It is my duty and pleasure to pay it forward.”
Now you see how A-Phil looked ready to be a D1 coach when she was only a player in college. A-Phil as a recruiter? She’s the best. She also knows how to do skill advancement, and her X’s and O’s are on point.
How much talent does she have? Can you handle the truth people, can I tell you all the truth?
When I coached a young DeMar DeRozan, he was just in 8th grade on our SLAM AAU team. My guy DeMar once took off from the free throw line to dunk. Crazy talented in many ways, he was a young prospect but he was also the takeover back then in 2004.
But so is A-Phil in 2020, in her own way. She reminds me of early Arizona phenom assistant coach by the name of Josh Pastner, my guy Josh at age 24. I looked in my E-Woods crystal ball and I looked in the pupil of Josh’s eye, love him like a brother, in 2004. I told him. “By age 32 you will be a head coach of a top 10 D1.”
He took over Memphis at just the age of 32 when Calipari left.
Foreseeing the future of somebody to me is more than just seeing their raw talent. It’s also seeing a person’s drive, seeing the inner core surrounding them, seeing their ability to engage in relationships, and seeing if they constantly challenge and motivate themselves.
I’ve been a talent evaluator for Rivals for like 20 years and I’ve known like 4,351 D1 and D2 coaches, but none have been like A-Phil. Seriously people. None.
How sharp a talent evaluator do I try to be? I like to tell coaches who has next up, who has “bootsie” talent and who is not likely to advance. I even picked half a dozen young middle schoolers not too long ago who I successfully predicted would make it to play at a D1 program.
I got to know them really well, they were more than prospects, these junior high kids were actually like friends of mine. I looked in each eye and told them I believe you’re Kentucky talented. (I see you Skyy Clark)
A-Phil is the first college coach I’ve done a story on because she’s a very special person, as a human being and as a coach. Maybe I should’ve spent more time in this story telling you how A-Phil loves jazz/R&B music, the awesome Charlie Wilson, how she does photography as a hobby, how she loves tech-gadgets.
Also how she’s not a sneaker-head but her fam thinks she is because she has some nice Jordan kicks, how she’s so passionate into the Black Lives Matter cause. She inspires me to tears, she is so dope that way. She loves being an activist for social change.
But I am who I am, E-Woods, I love to detail those who have Next Up. I’m trying to give you readers a reason to follow a coach’s career early, invest in watching a comet start to race across the night hoop-sky. That’s what I do.
That’s what April surely will do in the college ranks as a fye head coach fosho.
I’ve talked to 10 top prospects that have gone all tippy-toe happy after talking and being recruited by A-Phil. Why? She truly cares about them, is a real one to prospects, to her players. She tells them the truth, if and how they will fit best at her program. She releases them to their best destiny if they do not fit best because she has their best interests at heart.
Do you know how freaking rare that is in college hoops? That’s beyond rare; real talk. The word fam is maybe an over-used word in our world, like the word different is, but not when used on April Phillips.
From those 4,351 coaches I’ve known, how many had a nuclear power plant powering them? How many coaches could also be the dopest recruiters and have energy to spare to start and maintain a thriving dope clothing line that inspires?
Just one: her name is April Phillips. Her Hoop Häus clothing brand is meant to inspire, often going viral with many 1,000s, 100,000s of people around the globe feeling her vibe and empowerment.
With Hoop Häus she displays thought provoking messages to be worn, like the one below:
Her brand represents confidence, class, an unmatched work ethic and, of course, a hint of swag. A-Phil doesn’t do the clothing brand just for the bread. She genuinely cares to inspire everyone to wear a message to be proud to display, to spark the convo.
Need more proof April runs on nuclear fusion? She has a powerhouse book that’s being published soon that’s called The Recruiting Blueprint. Yes, no off-button in A-Phil. Where does she find the time to do all this and still be the best recruiter and most dedicated coach that all her players love? I know so many of her players at Cal and they all adore her greatly.
I had a friend in college besides Cori Close at age 21, at UCSB, who I also looked deep into their pupil. I told them you will be an amazing recruiter as you grow, you’ll have a #1 recruiting class later in life. That then happened just 6 years ago, I keep up with a lot of my friends. They have been assistants in women’s Pac-12 for a long time.
April will get a #1 recruiting class like them, no doubt.
She was named to a very prestigious Top 30 Rising Coaches Under 30 list 2 years in a row, because A-Phil is a woman on fire from LA.
I asked April which coaches she wanted quoted in this story and she gave me a list of each coach she has worked for. These were the people instrumental in her journey, like the ever dope Adia Barnes of Arizona. Who is Adia?
Adia Barnes is my fav all time Zona female player and she is this relationship-based coach that cares for people like April does. Adia has her team in the top 10 NCAA convo, she’s THE TAKEOVER. It becomes Adia and she is currently breaking the glass ceiling of college hoops tradition at Zona and might win the whole NCAA dance.
Point is, April worked for Adia, appreciates her. It wasn’t Adia’s words that spoke to me, it was her voice in how she seemed to “miss April” that spoke to me so much.
Hear A-Barnes exact words, “April got the job done here. She really cares about the kids and people truly. She’s a deep relationship person and I miss her. She has a lot to offer the game and we wish her well.”
#drop the mic time
Ultra sharp coach Charity Elliott, head coach of Loyola Marymount in LA, had insights on A-Phil also, “I miss April each and every day. She got the job done, I was proud to work alongside April. The job she did helped us be successful but more she was just a great person to be around. I’m proud we connected for 4 years, it went by so fast and well.”
Are you the reader seeing the magic that is April yet? Me, I gave April some artwork from my own daughter Giselle, who drew some Kobe shoes. It was the same piece I gave Anthony Davis when I did his story. I told AD to give the L a 187, kill it bro, bring home LA a chip. He said, “I got you E-Woods.”
April? She graciously took the artwork and told me, “I’ll frame this Erik.” April is classy, she takes the love that others give her, like the incredible love that Elbert Kinnebrew gives her. My guy Elbert, he knew why the cage bird sings in relation to A-Phil without a dad growing up for April.
With Elbert it’s always more than hoop, it’s sharing one’s heart. So feel Elbert words, he’s more than the director for the Cal Sparks AAU program, he’s a rider, a real one in a world of non-riders it seems sometimes. He says of A-Phil, “I love April, a wonderful young woman. I’m glad you’re writing about her Erik.”
If I recommend one young coach who’s on the rise to go and watch, to talk and connect to, it’d be April Phillips no doubt.
Before I knew her, I had a real one tell me about April Phillips. So I hit A-Phil’s digits and began to feel that, more than any other coach I had talked to, this one has next. She’s the diamond of diamonds to open the cave of wonders.
There’s a revolution going on in the NBA, it’s called small ball, a paradigm shift that will bend the forces of gravity. You evolve or die out, you shoot it from deep or get cut.
Same with new coaches. You become a great recruiting coach or die out. April? Is she that next evolution? She is that small ball to women’s college hoops, she pulls you in like an Event Horizon. Look it up people, because an Event Horizon is the surface of a black hole in outer space, which has so much power that not even light escapes. That is what A-Phil is.
Can I share a dope secret? Come get in close, I’ll whisper in your ear. Who are some of dopest of dope coaches I’ve talked to in-depth recently? I’ve in recent past talked in-depth to coach Adia Barnes of Arizona, coach Kelly Graves at Oregon, Niele Ivey of Notre Dame, Cori Close at UCLA, Charmin Smith of Cal, Tony Bennett of Virginia, I could go on.
These stellar coaches know the secrets of recruiting and coaching. The secret to be the best is to simply BE REAL, nothing more or less.
I see what makes them so fantastically successful because I talk to them in depth for like an hour, sometimes hours, we chop it up for real. They share some realness with me, and April Phillips has what they have, in the pupil of her eye, warmth and tough love.
Will she will ascend to those great heights? Only time will tell. She’s only 33 years old people, but she has more energy than anyone I know. Yup, that’s crazy.
She talks of how she loves her players, her mom, her brothers, the game, writing books, her clothing brand, her dogs. She makes time for everyone, even to a fault.
Feel A-Phil’s lifetime vibe on YouTube, an inspiration vid I watch when I need a boost, it’s pretty dope. (View it below at bottom of article)
In coaching she got next. A-Phil is that old soul on fire, goofy in the coolest way imaginable, fun, bubbly, so many incredible gears.
Her star shines, her mom Robbie’s star shines like a super nova, just go see her April’s twitter page:
@AP_Cali
April is worth following, worth engaging, truly worth knowing because she is different, BIG TIME, a humble old soul, hungry, and she’s writing her journey as we speak.
Wherever that takes her, you can bet the farm she’ll find the right fit. 100.
