McNeil alum Armoni Brooks hosting third basketball camp

AUSTIN (KXAN) - When Armoni Brooks was in high school at McNeil, the Mavericks basketball team had a lot of success including a trip to the regional semifinal. Brooks looks back on his time as a Mav fondly.

"I haven't been back to McNeil in a while," said Brooks. "Everything is looking like the same. It's great to be back in this building. We used to have a lot of fans at the games and have it rocking."

Brooks began the first of his three-day basketball camp Monday at McNeil. To be able to put on a camp like this is special for the Austin native.

"I grew up coming to camps like these. A lot of them were in different cities so to be able to host one in my own city where I'm from ... at the same high school I went to, it's great."

After a standout career at Houston, Brooks went professional. Going undrafted in 2019, Brooks bounced around with a couple of teams. He's now coming off a season with the Brooklyn Nets and their G-League affiliate the Long Island Nets.

"It's great to be able to go on this journey," Brooks said about his NBA career so far. "The journey has ups and downs but you try to stay as level as possible and impact as many lives as possible."

There is a focus among a number of successful basketball players from Austin on making sure the area isn't overlooked. With Dallas and Houston getting a lot of shine, Brooks knows Central Texas has a lot to offer.

"I feel like we have enough professional athletes and high-level college athletes where we can really help them grow," he said. "And get some more Austin players on some bigger stages and get the city out there."