Former NBA Player Josh Huestis Holds Clinic in Malta

Over 50 youths gained knowledge from Montana basketball legend and NBA player Josh Huestis on Tuesday, August 1, and Wednesday, August 2, at Malta's Old Gym.

"The turnout was amazing," Huestis told the PCN. "I have always known that Malta lives and breathes basketball but this is awesome to see firsthand."

Huestis, a Charles M. Russell High School Graduate in 2010, went on to play basketball collegiately at Stanford. He was a first- round pick for the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2014 and played professionally until 2022.

Growing up in Great Falls, and having family on the Hi-Line near Havre, Huestis is very familiar with Malta basketball.

"Of course. Everybody knows about Malta basketball," Huestis said. "Malta is a basketball hotbed. I've got family from the Hi-Line near Havre, so I have spent time on the Hi-Line and the Hi-Line as a whole loves basketball. They are obsessed."

Driving straight from his current hometown, Bozeman, Huestis didn't see much of Malta, but he did hit up Malta Dairy Queen prior to the clinic.

"Small town Montana, I love it," he said. "I spent a lot of time in small towns. I have been to places like this. I love it and I think that this is where basketball is so pure. We are in an old gym, literally Old Gym with no air conditioning, doors open, flies buzzing around. This is basketball at its purest form. This is fun."

Thirty minutes before the clinic began during the boys segments and girls segments, those attending were at the gym, getting shots up. This caught Huestis' attention.

"It speaks for itself," he said. "When I am here 30 minutes early and there are already kids here getting work in and getting a sweat up, that says something. These kids want it. There is a lot of talent here and beyond that, even if there wasn't talent, if you can get a group in here that just plays hard, you are going to win games.

"They clearly love it," he continued. "They clearly want to be here and work hard. It is not required of them to be here today. It's August 1, it's hot outside, some of them have football or whatever commitments they have, but they are all here because they want to get better and that just speaks to the culture and what's going on here in Malta; specifically with basketball."

As far as why Huestis is hosting camps and clinics, it is something that he wanted to do after he was done playing professional basketball. He wanted to teach things that he had learned throughout his career.

"There were a lot of things that I didn't learn until I was a pro," Huestis said. "Things that could've helped me out had I learned at an early age. The game is constantly changing."

He said that he loves the state of Montana and Montana basketball, but in terms of the game, Montana has been behind in the game's evolution.

"Since I was a kid, it has been ten years behind," Huestis said. "I am just doing my part to help catch it up, because there is so much talent here, but they just need to be taught how the rest of the world is playing basketball and how they can catch up."

He believes that once the state catches up with the rest of the world in basketball, the sky's the limit.

At the camp, athletes focused on the fundamentals, as well as some technical aspects of the game. Initially, students were taught dribbling exercises and combinations.

"We tried to hit everything," Huestis said. "Fundamentals are important. The difference between winning teams and losing teams are the ones that work on those little things. They are boring but the boring things win games. Ballhandling, footwork, and defense. Those are things that make a difference in a season."

He asked the campers how many of them worked on ballhandling every day, and no one raised their hand.

"But what do you do more than anything else offensively in a game?" Huestis asked. "You dribble the ball the most. So if you are a liability and you can't put the ball on the ground in a game, you are not going to play. If you can't make a layup, you are not going to play. Those aren't the fun and sexy things to work on, but those are the things that make great players."

He said that kids look and see Steph Curry pull up from half-court making long three-pointers, and say "oh wow, that's basketball." But there is more to it.

"The kids don't see the hours and millions of shots that he puts up five and ten feet from the basket to get good enough to be out there," Huestis said. "So I am just trying to pass that on and teach that thought process behind it."

At his clinic, Huestis taught the importance of switching up tempos on offense and the importance of players doing their job defensively.

"Know your role, play in your role, accept your role," Huestis said. "Not everyone is a scorer. Teams don't need five scorers on the floor. They need scorers, they need passers, they need rebounders."

He used defensive greats like five-time NBA Finals Champion Dennis Rodman and one-time NBA Finals Champion Ben Wallace to prove his point.

"These guys are hall-of-famers," he said. "Legends in the game and scored five or six points a game. But they rebounded, played defense, and did the intangibles that made their team win. They made Michael Jordan's life easier. They made Rip Hamilton's life easier by being those guys that they can rely on to do the dirty work."

There were a few counselors helping at the camp including Malta legends Sophia Stiles and RJ Tollefson as well as Gildford legend Jake Stuart. The idea of the clinic was brought forth by Malta's Jeremy Brenden.

Huestis has been around the state hosting camps as well as his annual Montana Elite Invitational, an exclusive three-day event that features some of the best freshman, sophomore, and junior athletes from within the state of Montana. Malta's Bodhi Brenden and Lady Mavericks Teagan Erickson and Paige Wasson attended the 2023 Montana Elite Invitational earlier this year.

These events are hosted by the Josh Huestis Foundation, which according to its website is on a mission to positively impact the lives of youth in Montana. The Josh Huestis Foundation is a registered 501(c)(3) and donations can be made at https://www.joshhuestisfoundation.com/.