It’s 2002. I’m chilling at The Colonia Rec Center in Ventura County, located in South Oxnard. Nice gym but the surrounding neighborhood is just a gang whistle hoot away from a turf style killing.
Over what? Blue, red, seems like sometimes, sadly. The local police have used gang injunctions to protect the populace, it’s that rough.
A spark plug of energy walks through the gym door, we’re all watching Skip to My Lou dribble endlessly on TV, his And 1 Mixtape vid plays in the office.
Spark plug has a name, it’s Amber Warren, caramel skinned, petite young middle school thing, maybe 90 lbs dripping wet, but prominently featuring an 180 LB chip on her left shoulder.
You could tell she could “go” as a player because she had that walk, fit as a gazelle.
I’ll never forget telling my guy Sergio, RIP, the gym director, who ran also ran the El Rio Knights AAU team, “You should try and have that girl play for your squad bro, she’s about that hoop life. Can’t you see it in her green hazel eyes?
A-Warren 02’, zip around twitchy 5-6 guard, couldn’t be stopped on court.
17 years later? Same talent but now channeled into being one of SoCal’s best trainers.100. If you’re lucky to hang with Amber, like I have off and on over the years, you’ll find she’s self confident and a little quiet with you at first.
Her demeanor might remind you of Kawhi Leonard, but meet her once and you’ll likely see as I have, she has that “something to prove” look in her glance. To be clear, Amber is as calm, analytical, polite, articulate, just that cool and mellow person as you will meet.
But make no mistake about Amber, she’s a revolutionary. She’s grindin’ to show that women deserve respect. Look under that calm exterior of hers, it’s all there.
If you were able to meet Amber before she blew out a knee in a women’s league a few years back, before that, she was that killer on court. One time, I made the mistake of saying to her that a few other girls I knew were the best locally at street ball.
That triggered her. I was probably better off just playing Russian roulette with myself. Amber told me point blank, “Erik, street ball is what I’m about. I’ll ball up any dude up in the street, that’s my lane, there aren’t any girls that can mess with my game.”
2019? Now A-Warren is that next level trainer. She blossomed into a beautiful woman inside and out. She coaches the local Oxnard High girl’s varsity team, pushing them to be their best. They win lots and lots of games and you can tell she was proud of going 10-0 in league recently, as her team embraced the team concept.
She’ll tell you she uses coaching to start a ripple effect in the world, “If I impact others’ lives by sparking their fierce passion, that’s a life well lived. I look into each person that I train or coach and say to them, put in the work for each play.”
Amber said If I wanted to really know her, I should ask her childhood friend Brandon Johnson about her. He’s been a high school and college coach. “He knows my heart from our childhood in Fort Knox, he’ll tell you when I started being this way.”
Good advice. I called up Brandon who told me, “In our neighborhood, Amber, even that wiry kid, barely 10 or 11, was the coldest baller in the neighborhood. Kobe death stare and that one player you wouldn’t take lightly. She cut up people in games, I’ve never seen anyone so driven to flat out prove she can will herself to win. But off the court she’s so warm, just loves people for peoples sake with all her heart.”
Amber? She grinds daily, training people, extraordinary trainer that also spends summers in France helping dudes get paid from working them out in a system so unique. I just couldn’t believe a trainer would dedicate that energy per each client.
I’ll let A-Warren explain, “My method is to write on paper for each session a plan of goals. I’ll spend like 45 minutes to an hour minimum to prepare for an hour session. I’m obsessed to flush out the exact details that a client needs to succeed, be it a young kid preparing for try-outs, or a pro baller elevating their skills to rearm a big contract.”
That’s insane commitment. No other trainer I’ve ever heard of strategizes in written notes, analytically and brainstorming for an hour before training a client for an hour on court. Amber gives her life to training because she feels in her own words, “A woman can be every bit as good at training than a male, even better.”
Me E-Woods, I believe in her so strongly, I recommend that girls look into playing for Amber’s varsity program at Oxnard High. I’m lucky to be on the inside to see the inner workings of top girls’ basketball programs like Sierra Canyon, Windward, Mater Dei.
Ventura County doesn’t have as many talented kids around as at those places but it isn’t always the biggest names that maximize development.
Amber gives amazing attention to detail. I’ll let her explain what she’s about, “I’m not just a trainer, not just a coach. This is not something that I do on the side for fun or for money. This is my passion. My creative outlet. My contribution to society.
“I am constantly looking to expand my knowledge and employ innovative ways of teaching basketball concepts and skills, and life philosophies for mentorship. I won't be content until i know everything, which is an unattainable goal and the reason I will never stop trying to get better. That same mentality goes for the players that work with me consistently.”
#now you see
How much do I think of Amber? Her approach reminds me of my guy Shea Frazee who guided NBA’s Stanley Johnson’s development as a youngster. Now Shea guides top 10 guard rising junior guard phenom Devin Askew at Mater Dei.
I’m blessed to know LA prep legend Charisma Osborne, who’s headed to UCLA. Her moms, Chaka, love Chaka to death, she’s like my sister. I was going to suggest a dope trainer to help take Charisma take her game to a whole other level of performance, make the Olympic squad, bring home the gold.
I thought of 2 names, Amber and Olin Simplis. Olin is LA based and was logistically the easier choice because he lives next to Charisma. Amber services Ventura County based clients.
Point being, either Amber or Olin would’ve been a good fit to effect such incredible development, both truly elite in my book.
Which leads me to the man in the title, Drew Hanlen. If the reader doesn’t know, Drew is quite possibly the most famous trainer in the world.
He has a site that features cartoon characters of all his NBA clients. I was asked once, how did he get so big? Drew grew up in Missouri next to Bradley Beal, who made the NBA, stayed a client and referred him to other talented guys like Joel Embid, legions of pros.
Drew videotapes and does cutting edge body work in his session but nothing that other trainers I’ve seen also employ. Is Amber the next Drew Hanlen? Maybe. She just hasn’t had NBA players to network her to other famous talent.
I’ve noticed the most famous trainers in LA grew up at Inglewood’s Rogers Park, grew up with guys that went to the NBA. But guys don’t often respect a woman’s touch as an elite trainer, which is a shame because a woman can be every bit as good at training as a male in this world.
One day, Amber might reach Drew’s level of fame, but that’s not why she’s in the game.
Me, E-Woods? I recommended Amber to train a cool kid I know who has super upside but I want to retain his privacy so I’ll just call him JD. Why recommend Amber? She can help develop JD to be at least a top 10 freshman.
Amber was a bad a** player, I’d rather juggle razor blades than play around with A-Warren on a court. Why is Amber great at working with the 6-4 guard JD? Amber doesn’t treat JD like a 9th grader; she expects him to give a grown man effort.
I’ve seen them in the workshop. She’s like a blacksmith, wearing an apron from all the sparks flying around, pounding her trainer’s blazing hammer. You see golden embers flying, she’s super heating JD's elite potential, morphing, sharpening his steel, shaping him to be more than a 6-4 point guard.
She’s helping to hammer a weapon, a sword that might just cut open all of boys prep basketball next year. JD had the vaunted Ryan Silver and Dino Trigonis ask him to ball out on their top 17 and under AAU programs.
He just might be one of the best 9th graders in the West and is playing for a super respected school in Orange County.
What do Amber and JD do in sessions? Well, JD is already a skilled shooter, has court vision, is a good passer and is able to impact games. His potential from my talent evaluator’s assessment is like Windward’s soph 6-3 guard Dylan Andrews.
With continued work with Amber, JD might garner many PAC-12 offers in his freshman year like D-Andrews possibly. My point? Amber brings out the best in her clients, she’s getting through to this ultra humble kid. He’s willing to work as hard as Amber pushes him.
Hear from JD about their relationship, “Amber is the best trainer I’ve ever had. She goes step by step to tweak my shooting and improve it. She cares, and her dribbling exercises have given me more confidence and ability. We just grind in the lab and her ability to connect to me mentally, it just makes me want it that much more.”
Amber tries hard to keep JD humble and works him extremely hard. She knows he could be special. What makes her a special trainer is her interaction to break down minute details. Her notebook is never far from her hand.
She’ll talk him through the best body position, “JD, use your upper body to align and manifest a tight cross over, opposite hand leaning out.” I’ve seen JD devour knowledge, work his tail off, share a laugh with Amber.
Love this dude because he will accept whatever challenges come his way, and Amber has a lot to do with that. Why? She’s getting deep into his head, unlocking his vast potential by being human and real with him.
Hear Amber speak on JD, “I am excited to continue to assist and guide his development, along with the great program he is at in Orange County and the great basketball mind of his father. I’m happy to be part of his journey and 100% positive that we can make sure he reaches his full potential, which is looking like it has no ceiling.”
Amber even caught the eye of JD’s older brother, who starred locally in the LA area, won a NCAA championship, and was drafted into the NBA. JD’s older brother jumped into sessions with JD a bit, as Amber keeps sessions poppin’ and methodical.
Now do you see? Athletes at the highest level take notice of Amber’s unique approach, simply, because she gets results. Here’s her website to check out:
https://www.iqbasketballacademy.com
I know of shoe companies that realize the immense ability that Amber has, seen them ask her to head to their AAU team, direct this or that for us please. But Amber just wants to focus on her Oxnard High girl’s squad.
I’ve seen her coach and it’s breathtaking. She goes out to hoop seminars and brings back that knowledge to develop her local Ventura County players and clients, even the ones in Europe to succeed.
Example? Amber worked out Luis Cervantes of Oxnard High, she got him buff, as he became the Pacific View MVP, trained his skills to make him ready to star at Oxnard College.
What Is Amber’s measure of success? - How many NBA players might she someday train? Does a kid have to be a star to feel validated? No silly rabbit. Her best validation is if a kid is moving his/her game well and as a person.
She services Elementary age groups, maybe 5 of them at a time. If they smile, grunt, just learn to live healthy, that’s success. Success is also achieved if they look at themselves in the mirror and say, “I got this. Amber believes in me, so I will believe in myself.” Amber trains many clients of all backgrounds, to help them stay active and mobile.
#Amber is a real one, friend to many
Amber even travels out to train with pros in France. Some good ballers play ball overseas, like Jehvon Clarke who balled nice for D1 Bowling Green a few years back.
Jehvon said this of his time with Amber, “She goes all out to get you ready, physically takes you to another level, mentally makes you think of what you do in games. I wouldn’t have got to where I am, making good money, if she hadn’t come to France, work me and so many other pros out. She’s a blessing to me and the game, thank God I met her.”
Hang with Amber like I have, you learn to share some comfortable silence with her. Drink a latte at Starbucks, you feel her chill spirit, feel peace in her silence. She can speak to you with her eyes, with an almost Zen like tranquility, but her gears are constantly rotating in her head.
I got her to finally tell me what shoes she likes: Red Jordan 11s. She has layers, but I’d rather hang with her, than a chatterbox who says too much.
Michelle Santizo is a dope trainer living in Monterrey, California. She used to ball vs. Amber in high school, go at each other’s heads.
Michelle also used to be the heaviest baller I saw in prep 2000’s, but she amazed me by effecting the most incredible body transformation.
I asked Michelle to speak on what makes Amber dope, “She has this unique ability to make you feel uplifted.
"We talk shop on how to help clients but when I need to reach back and have someone remind me on the past and to remind me what the future could be, Amber does that for me, like nobody else.
"She’s special in being real, to see what life is all about. She just makes you smile inside.”
