Washington’s Peters giving back, achieving goals through annual basketball camps

Alec Peters talks to attendees at his basketball camp in Washington on June 16. Jonathan Michel/Clutch Sports Media

WASHINGTON — Alec Peters remembers his favorite part of summers as a child. 

“All the Washington camps, I remember being a part of and those players, and they were like my heroes at the time,” Peters said.

Now, many young basketball players in Central Illinois will look up to Peters as their hero.

Peters’ basketball journey has taken him around the globe, from Washington, Illinois to Valparaiso, Indiana to Phoenix and to Greece. But the former Panthers’ star hasn’t forgotten his roots and is helping pave the way for the next generation of basketball players in the area with his annual camps.

The Alec Peters Basketball Camp, which just finished its sixth year, had been a goal of his since he started playing professionally.

“I think I had so much pride in where I came from and how I developed as a player and as a human being and a lot of it came from here,” Peters said. “[It came] from coach [Kevin] Brown, it came from my parents, and that's why I always wanted to have something like this.”

Dozens of campers took part in the camps this week at Washington Middle School, challenging themselves with drills and games that emphasized fundamentals, teamwork and applicable skills. 

Campers celebrate winning a game during Alec Peters' basketball camp. Jonathan Michel/Clutch Sports Media

Games of dribbling races and Knockout led to high-pitched cheers, new friendships being forged and current friendships being strengthened.

“I want them to have the best memories that they can have as basketball players and with their friends too,” Peters said. “I just remember as a kid, these were some of my favorite memories, spending it in the gym with my friends and I'm hoping that I can kind of recreate those same memories for these kids.”

Peters oversees each day of camp but has an experienced group of coaches that help teach and coordinate it, including former Washington standouts Devon Vanderheydt and Lou Griffith, current Panthers Colt Craghead, Luke Kamienski and Dean Davidson and Peters’ brother Austin, who is the men’s basketball head coach at Taylor University. 

Each year, Peters says that something is new and improved, whether it's the number of kids attending, drills and games that they do or who the coaches are.

“Each year, there is an element to it that continues to get better, and it surprises us every year, “Peters said.

The group effort helps significantly for Peters, who just returned to the U.S. a week ago after winning the Greek Basketball League championship with Olympiacos B.C., one of the winningest teams in the league’s history.

Peters says the legwork to prepare for the camp begins six months beforehand, with his wife helping send out emails, taking care of registrations and coordinating the camp’s website and social media. 

Future goals include having camps during several weeks in the summer and an idea from his wife to do a 3-on-3 tournament.

Alec Peters talks to attendees at his camp at Washington Middle School. Jonathan Michel/Clutch Sports Media

“There's a lot of good ideas where I think we can go from here,” Peters said. 

“My family does a great job of doing all the things that people don't see, organizing, setting, setting up the camp, it's all family effort,” he added. “And I wouldn't have it any other way.”

Peters turned 30 in April and still has gas left in the tank of his professional career, which has also taken him to teams in Russia, Turkey and Spain. But the camp has helped him realize that whenever he hangs up his shoes, coaching very well may be next.

“I think that that's exactly where I'm headed in my life as a basketball player,” Peters said. “I got a lot of knowledge and experience to pass on someday and I'm not going to keep it all to myself.”