Detroit — With the NBA Draft a little more than a month away, projected lottery pick and Detroit native Darius Acuff Jr. returned last week to the place where his basketball dreams first took shape.
Acuff was back at the America’s Community Council Youth Center on Detroit’s east side, just blocks from where he grew up. Years ago, he anxiously waited for a chance to run with the older kids on these courts. On Monday, he had the gym to himself, but the competitive edge remained the same.
Few words were spoken before the workout began. Acuff simply laced up his shoes and got to work.
Now, younger players look up to him the same way he once looked up to the older players in the gym. Before the workout, a younger player reintroduced himself to Acuff after previously competing against him at King High School. The 19-year-old point guard already has begun giving back, hosting a free youth camp at the same gym in December.
Acuff’s old-school mentality — from the baggy jersey and long shorts to the cornrow braids and cutoff shirt beneath his uniform — was shaped inside the ACC gym. Acuff, who declined interview requests from The Detroit News, credits much of who he became as a player to the people who coached and mentored him there.
As a child, Acuff would get dropped off at the ACC gym after school while waiting for his father to finish work and begin basketball training sessions. During those hours, he often was watched over by Virgil Phillips, ACC youth director and Reach Youth Program founder.
Even with Acuff winning the Bob Cousy Award and earning first-team All-American honors following his freshman season at Arkansas, Phillips still remembers the younger version of Acuff walking into the gym in freshly pressed school uniforms with uncommon confidence.
“When he was little, he would walk in this gym like he owned it,” Phillips said. “He had a little strut to him and would look at guys like, ‘Get off my floor.’ His dad would have to hold him back. It would be high school guys in there and he’d walk almost right onto the court.”
Acuff roots run deep
During those early years, Acuff spent hours experimenting with dribble moves along the sidelines while constantly asking Phillips questions about the mental side of basketball, often while eating snacks in Phillips’ office.
Basketball runs deep throughout the Acuff family. Nearly everyone played the game at some point, and Phillips became a guiding figure for multiple generations of the family. Over time, the ACC gym became almost sacred ground for them.
“The Acuff family should have had a prodigy,” Phillips said. “That’s how good they were. A lot of them got overlooked. If I put together a basketball team from this neighborhood, 50% of it would’ve been Acuffs during their time.”
Acuff’s father, Darius Acuff Sr., played at Detroit Pershing and later at Eastern Kentucky after playing for Phillips on the Reach Legends AAU program alongside former Detroit Mercy standout Rashad Phillips, Virgil’s son. Acuff Jr. now honors his father by wearing the same No. 5 jersey.
Phillips also remembers competing against Acuff’s mother, Dureese Owens, and her twin sister, Doreen.
“Darius Acuff Jr. can really defend — he gets that from his mama,” Phillips said. “She was an excellent defensive player.”
Despite the structure and training around him, Acuff’s fearlessness came naturally. When his father coached an under-11 team, Acuff desperately wanted to play even though he was only 7 years old.
Once he finally got his opportunity, he dominated.
From that point on, Phillips believed Acuff was different. Having coached six Mr. Basketball winners and one Miss Basketball winner in Michigan, Phillips immediately thought Acuff had the potential to become the next great player from the state. Virgil and Rashad Phillips thought Acuff had more potential than almost any young player they’d seen. Rashad Phillips said he believed Acuff was better than he was at that age
From there, Acuff’s development became a collaborative effort between his father, Virgil Phillips and Rashad Phillips. Acuff Sr. taught him film study, decision-making and efficient scoring. Rashad Phillips worked extensively on ball handling and shooting drills. Virgil Phillips continued mentoring him mentally, helping him understand the psychological side of the game.
Because his mentors came from different eras of basketball, Acuff developed an old-school approach. He studied film of Stephon Marbury, Allen Iverson and Chris Paul while sharpening his game through increasingly advanced drills modeled after professional training camps.
The best competition often came from his own family, including older cousin Tyson Acuff, who starred at Cass Tech before playing collegiately at Duquesne, Eastern Michigan and Rutgers.
‘Hit the ground running’
Eventually, Acuff followed Tyson to Cass Tech, where head coach Steve Hall immediately recognized how advanced his game already was.
“He played so much basketball by the time he got to high school, he was ready to hit the ground running,” Hall said. “He may have been the youngest, but he had more basketball miles and more hours in the gym than most.”
As Acuff’s basketball miles continued to increase, so did his confidence. He flourished in big moments and could always be counted on to pull his team out of a hole or step up when challenged by Hall.
Acuff averaged 16 points per game during his freshman year, helping lead Cass Tech to a 22-4 record before falling 47-45 to Belleville in the quarterfinals.
The loss fueled Acuff and Cass Tech heading into the next season. He took a major leap during his sophomore year, averaging 22 points, five assists, and 2.2 steals while shooting 40% from 3-point range.
Hall watched as Acuff helped rally Cass Tech from a 15-point deficit with 4½ minutes left in the city championship game. He also hit a buzzer-beater to force overtime in the Division 1 state semifinal against Grand Blanc. Cass Tech went on to win its first boys basketball state championship during Acuff’s sophomore season, with a 78-63 victory over Muskegon in the title game.
One of a kind
After his sophomore year, Acuff began receiving national attention, including from former IMG Academy basketball head coach Sean McAloon. McAloon first heard about Acuff after seeing Rashad Phillips rave about him on social media.
Phillips, who has a scouting background and was nicknamed “Yoda” by his late friend Julian Taylor because of his teaching and predictions, once posted a photo calling Acuff the top fifth-grader in the country. He said Acuff had all the tools to become the nation’s top point guard and an All-American one day.
McAloon was impressed after watching Acuff at a Nike camp. IMG needed a point guard following the loss of Jacoi Hutchinson, so McAloon called Rashad Phillips, who had served as a player development coach during McAloon’s first two years at IMG.
While Acuff’s support system was initially reluctant about uprooting him to Florida, the decision was easy for Phillips.
Phillips compared IMG to Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters from X-Men because of the talent Acuff would be surrounded by and the level of competition he would face. Phillips was also in the area and able to continue helping with Acuff’s development.
Acuff transferred to IMG before his junior year, with his family moving to Florida to help ease the transition.
McAloon has coached NBA players such as Keyonte George, Jarace Walker, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Armando Bacot, and Josh Green, along with college players like Jaden Bradley, but he saw something special in Acuff. McAloon recalled a conversation with assistant coach Travis Lyons comparing Acuff to some of IMG’s former players.
“Travis was like, ‘That little one might be the one, though,’” McAloon said, referring to Acuff. “Travis said, ‘Have you ever seen anyone do this?’”
McAloon believes what separated Acuff from many players he coached was his lack of fear of failure and his feel for the moment on an even bigger stage than he was used to.
“There were times he would just do things in games, and you would say to yourself, ‘I don’t know if a normal person could do that,’” McAloon said. “I’ve seen games where he dropped 40. I’ve seen late shot-clock situations and late-game moments with the ball in his hands.”
Acuff averaged 20.4 points and 5.5 assists during his junior season as IMG finished 20-9. He continued to develop into one of the nation’s top players.
After his junior year, Acuff was named the 2024 FIBA Men’s U18 AmeriCup MVP and earned All-Star Five honors after leading Team USA to a gold medal. He averaged 17.8 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 4.0 assists during the tournament. In the championship game, he finished with 26 points, nine assists, six rebounds, and three steals.
During his senior season, Acuff continued to shine while proving he was Detroit tough. Late in the season against Link Academy, Acuff suffered a hairline fracture in his shooting hand but still finished the game with 34 points, including nine in overtime.
When it came time to choose a college, the decision was easy. Acuff committed early to Arkansas head coach John Calipari, with whom he had built a strong relationship.
He grew up studying the point guards who played under Calipari, including John Wall, Derrick Rose, Tyrese Maxey, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Acuff even wore a Rose jersey as a kid after Virgil Phillips gave him that comparison early in his career.
Acuff wanted to become the first point guard drafted from Arkansas under Calipari’s tutelage.
Acuff shined during his lone season at Arkansas, averaging 23.5 points and 6.4 assists while elevating his play down the stretch in SEC competition. The Razorbacks eventually fell to Arizona in the Sweet 16.
While Acuff is expected to be one of the first guards selected in the NBA Draft, to be held June 23-24 in Brooklyn, Rashad Phillips believes he should be in consideration for the No. 1 overall pick.
“He had a better college season than all those guys,” Rashad Phillips said about the players projected ahead of him. “The only thing people can use against him is that he’s 6-foot-3.”
McAloon also believes height is the biggest factor after watching Acuff compete against many of the players projected above him.
“If Darius was 6-6 and did everything he did, he’d be the No. 1 pick,” McAloon said.
Calipari also told the media in March that teams would regret passing on Acuff.
While Acuff cannot control where he is selected or what team drafts him, he can control who he spends his time with. Acuff chooses to spend it with the people who helped shape him.
Acuff takes his family with him everywhere he goes. During one workout, his older sister — who helps with his marketing — was in the gym shooting a basketball while his father continued helping him prepare for the NBA.
Virgil Phillips wears Allen Iverson Reeboks as a tribute to Acuff eventually signing a signature shoe deal with Reebok and to the many kids, including Acuff, who idolized Iverson growing up. The same office where Acuff once ate snacks is now filled with his trophies.
No matter where basketball takes him, Acuff always makes time to return to the ACC gym when he is back home, giving back to the people who poured so much into him.
Tarohn Finley is a freelance writer.
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Darius Acuff Jr. keeps Detroit as he reaches NBA’s doorstep
Reporting by Tarohn Finley, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
