From superstar athletes such as basketball phenoms Kevin Durant and Len Bias to 1980s “Boxer of the Decade” Sugar Ray Leonard, Prince Georgians have made a noted impact across sports.
DMV native Jimmy Jenkins, co-founder and co-owner of GoldStreet Productions, has made it a personal mission to document the rich athletic history of Prince George’s County, both to inform and inspire rising generations of athletes.
“Some of the best athletes in the world have come from our county, in every sport. Frances Tiafoe in tennis, we have success stories in football, soccer, basketball; we just had a track record broken this week by a local,” Jenkins told The Informer.
Jenkins has a number of film and stage directorial credits including the film “Sinners Wanted” (2018) and the plays “Black Boy Blues” (2016) and “Poor Man, Rich Soul” (2023). For his sports documentaries, Jenkins was heavily inspired by “The Last Dance” and ESPN’s “30 for 30” series.
“I have a plethora of documentaries, including ‘Basketball County: In The Water,’ (2020) on Showtime and ‘Comeback Kids,’(2023) available on all platforms. I’m also working on a documentary about Alabama’s football team,” Jenkins told The Informer. “What inspired them is being able to tell true and authentic stories that can inspire our communities to action in their lives.”
His first documentary, “Basketball County,” outlines the history of Prince Georgians in basketball leagues from the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), to the highest levels of the NBA. Jenkins’ second documentary, “Comeback Kids,” is about a Prince George’s County Public School’s (Thomas G. Pullen) middle school boys basketball team and their pursuit for a 2018 championship.
“On my high school team, we had five guys make the NBA”, says DeMatha alum and professional basketball player Quinn Cook in “Basketball County: In the Water,” which he co-produced. “I always had KD (Durant) and Jarrett Jack, Nolan Smith, Michael Beasley, Jeff Green to watch growing up. I always had these guys to remind me of the goal.”
More Prince George’s Talent Making Waves in Sports
This pipeline of local talent is only continuing to gain steam and national attention.
Bowie native Caleb Williams was drafted by the Chicago Bears as the first overall pick in the 2024 draft, only the sixth Black quarterback to be taken first overall.
DeMatha alum and former No. 1 overall NBA pick Markelle Fultz, whose career started with injuries and unmet expectations, has resurrected his career with the Orlando Magic by assisting the team to their first division title appearance and first winning season since 2019.
Green, who Cook noted as someone he looked up to growing up, says: “Prince George’s packs a lot of power, and a lot of character,” in the trailer for Jenkins’ 2020 documentary. His notion on the power of athletes in the county goes beyond basketball.
Morissa Hall and Maize Wimbush continue to achieve in horse racing and competitive bicycling respectively. Hall has won countless awards, including first in the Washington International Horse Show, and Wimbush aims to be the first Black woman to compete for Team USA’s cycling team in 2028.
Further, lobbyist Juwan Blocker has taken to social media to spread a message of physical fitness and accountability to one’s health.
Beginning May 13, Blocker will launch “Movement Mondays,” demonstrating several quick and easy workouts that can be done within 30 minutes before the workday in the comfort of one’s own home.
“I knew I needed to be healthy to live long enough to raise my kids,” Blocker told The Informer. “My advice to busy parents is to try to get in at least 30 minutes of some type of cardio in and do other calisthenics exercises at home if you can’t make it to the gym. Turn your home into your gym when you can’t physically go to a gym. It’s a hard journey, but it’s not impossible, and your results will be so well worth it.”