Streetball legends draw upon past experiences to forge bonds with Surrey students
Joey 'King Handles' Haywood (left) and Jonathan 'Johnny Blaze' Mubanda (right). (Image: The Notic)
Growing up in Metro Vancouver during the 1990s, Surrey Safe Schools liaisons Jonathan Mubanda and Joey Haywood didn’t see a lot of kids like them.
Hailing from Black immigrant families, they were often the only Black kids at local youth events and activities. The experience was sometimes isolating and made it difficult to feel a sense of belonging.
But once the pair found basketball, everything changed.
The two met during a chance encounter at a youth basketball program.
“We were coming up in a time when there were hardly any Black people, so we kind of had to grab onto each other and support each other,” said Mubanda.
Their circle grew as they connected with other first-generation Canadians and immigrants through social circles and other programs. Haywood and Mubanda took on the monikers “King Handles” and “Johnny Blaze” and, along with the others in their group, founded one of the most legendary streetball crews in the world known as the Notic.
Named after the hypnotic bouncing of a basketball, the team brought a new dynamic to street-level basketball, playing in tournaments and traveling the world to showcase their skills.
Twenty-five years later, a documentary about the group recently introduced to classrooms is creating new avenues of inspiration for at-risk and marginalized youth in Surrey Schools.
Handle with Care: The Legend of the Notic Streetball Crew details the group’s rise as legends of the sport, exploring how members turned to streetball to find a place for self-expression during a time that saw many young immigrants struggle with integration and discrimination.
“It truly changed our lives,” said Mubanda. “We faced racism, gangs and had many opportunities to go down the wrong path, but because we found each other and this sport, we were able to turn that into something positive.”
Mubanda and Haywood: Then and now.
(Image: The Notic)It’s that lived experience that provides Haywood and Mubanda not only with the knowledge of how to approach a situation involving an at-risk youth, but with the approachability that makes many students comfortable reaching out.
“They’re able to connect with us in a way that they don’t feel comfortable doing with their teacher or other adults in their life,” said Haywood. “We went through a lot of that when we were young and so they know that we can help them out because we know that struggle.”
Building and maintaining those relationships, said Mubanda, has been key to prevention.
“The more relationships you build with these kids, the easier it is to prevent things from happening, whether it be drugs, fights, gangs or whatever,” he said, noting that they are often the first point of contact for students wanting to reach out.
“Relationships equal prevention.”
As for the pair’s legacy, students are frequently surprised when they find out about their history as streetball royalty. Haywood, who has over 250,000 followers on Instagram, often hears from students who look at him as a celebrity figure due to his large social media presence.
“They are surprised to see that I’m just a normal dude,” he said. “They might have some elevated idea of something or someone because they’ve seen it on social media but at the end of the day, we’re all people and we’re just here to make connections and be real with each other.”
With the documentary now providing an additional, engagement tool for staff to open conversations with youth, Haywood and Mubanda are excited to see students take something positive from their story.
“Kids get inspired by seeing others like them making a difference,” said Mubanda. “I think it’ll be a great resource for the classroom.”
“We’re just happy to be where we can help these kids and point them in the right direction,” said Haywood. “Sometimes all they need is someone to talk to, and sometimes all it takes is someone who had that same experiences for them to open up.”
