Meet The Directors.
Lamont
Tory
Stapleton
Tory comes from the East Coast, Rahway, New Jersey to be exact, where he honed his skills on the court. A graduate and member of Gill St. Bernard’s School’s Athletic Hall of Fame, Tory was a catalyst that helped grow Gill’s program into what it is today, a basketball powerhouse. He’s played with/against many of the East Coast’s most elite players of his day. AAU basketball took him all over the country, exposing him to the nations very best and allowing him to build relationships with players from all walks of life, many of whom have or currently play professionally. Following high school he did a post-graduate year at St. Thomas More and played under New England Basketball Hall of Fame coach, Jere Quinn. This experience grew him in a number of ways as ball player and as a young man. Following a brutal knee injury during a tournament at the close of his post-graduate year, his dreams to play Division-1 basketball were derailed. He lost a handful of scholarship offers, but found the perfect home under the guidance of Stan Spirou, former head coach of Southern New Hampshire University’s Men’s Basketball team, who offered him a full-scholarship at the Division II level. He redshirted his first year and played the following four seasons, leading the team in points and rebounds every year and finishing with a total of 1,383 points scored. Following college he moved to Los Angeles to start his company, I’m Just Different: A social movement aimed at inspiring individuality, understanding and acceptance of differences. The company fuses media, events and fashion to spread a positive message. Basketball has been and still is a major part of his life in LA. He’s made many connections on the court, playing in countless leagues, tournaments and open gyms around the city. He’s the go-to-guy in the city, and beyond, for many of your favorite hoopers. His extensive network extends across the spectrum of sports, music and many other industries. Tory can be best described as a Lifestyle Entrepreneur and a Dot Connector. His upbringing, genuine love for all people and passion for giving has led him to create this program.
Darren
Duncan
Darren comes to the program from Long Island, New York. He was introduced to the game of basketball from an early age and has been rooted in the sport ever since. Darren attended Christ The King High School a well known basketball powerhouse in New York City which graduated NBA players such as Lamar Odom, Erick Barkley, and more recently Rawle Alkins. Post high school Darren attended Merrimack College where he became a Three Time NCAA All- American, Freshman of the year in the NE-10 conference, and finished Top-10 in Scoring for Merrimack College with over 2,000 points. During his time at Merrimack College Darren also honed in on his academic abilities graduating with a degree in Psychology and minor in Sociology. From College Darren went on to have an extensive professional basketball career playing in countries such as Austria, Canada, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Finland, and Greece. During this time Darren has always had a passion for giving back and providing others with the knowledge and experiences this game has afforded to him. He started Gold Level Sporting Events a non profit company rooted in providing under privileged kids opportunities to learn from some of the top players in the game. He’s worked with Kelly Olynyk (Miami Heat), Ish Smith (Detroit Pistons), and Danny Green (Toronto Raptors) After seeing the impact the company was having in the event space Darren sought to expand into providing an elite level high school basketball showcase in New York City called the ‘Battle in the Apple (BITA)’. BITA has since become the top high school showcase in New York and has seen the likes of top recruits from NC State, U of Cal, Texas, Louisville, and Ohio State. Basketball has always been instrumental in his life and has given him the opportunity to travel the world, basketball has created lifelong friendships, and through basketball he's been presented with countless business opportunities. He believes that through basketball we have the ability to unify, and change the way people see the world and this is the mentality he brings to the “Between the Lines” program.