Who We Are
The Firm Foundation of Lions Basketball Club
At Lions we are very passionate about our biblical convictions and our basketball philosophies. Below is a video expressing our God-centered convictions that shapes how we run the program. We also have provided a video explaining our basketball philosophies and the approach we use to develop players and help them take their game to another level.
The Basketball Philosophies of Lions Basketball Club
In this video listen in as Coach Reggie explains our philosophies on player development. He explains why we love positionless basketball and train players the way we do and he also gives an overview of the culture of Lions.
The Christ-Centered Biblical Foundation of Lions Basketball Club
At Lions we do not require parents or players to be Christians in order to play for us. That said, we are very passionate about our beliefs and we live out our faith. Lions is an outreach ministry that provides optional Bible studies and the opportunity to be part of a faithful local church. Lions is a very competitive club, and yet in no way shape or form will we ever have our players missing church on Sundays in order to play basketball. Listen in as Coach/Pastor Reggie explains these things.
What We Believe
Mission Statement
Philosophy of Basketball
Offensive Philosophy: We are Lambs
Defensive Philosophy: We are Lions
We Are Competitive With an Eye Towards Development
We Do Not Play Sundays nor Are We a Substitute for the Local Church
Lions Basketball is a basketball program run by Christian leadership who seek to bring glory to Jesus Christ through the quality of our basketball program as well as through our lives and beliefs. We do not require that the kids or their parents involved in our program hold to our Christian faith. However, we are very up front about the fact that the vision and direction of this basketball program is Christ-centered.
To learn more about what we believe, take a look at our Statement of Doctrine
We use basketball as a means to bring glory to God through Jesus Christ by coaching high quality basketball while proclaiming God’s Word and living out our faith that the next generation might know Christ and love him with all of their hearts.
We approach our basketball program with the long-term good of the players we are developing in mind. We focus on Gospel-driven character development, building real basketball skills, and developing a strong basketball IQ, so that we can help players achieve their goals whether it be making their high school varsity team or playing beyond high school at the collegiate level.
In keeping with the humble and servant nature of Jesus Christ who, as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29), gave his own life for the salvation of sinners by dying on the cross, we seek to play fundamentally sound, team-oriented offensive basketball. We believe in making the extra pass, we believe in cutting and screening in a manner that involves the whole team, and we believe in laying down our lives and agendas for our teammates so that each player functions in way that blesses them good for the team. We believe in adjusting our offenses to fit our personnel, rather than forcing them to play in schemes that may not be suited to their specific strengths.
Lions are smart, they hunt in packs, and they are ferocious! Similarly, on defense we seek to play smart, we play with intensity, and we emphasize good team defense. In playing this way we seek to imitate, not only the majestic lion as can be seen in nature, but also we seek to imitate the one Great Lion of the Tribe of Judah – Jesus Christ. With all of his divine authority and majesty he created the universe through his spoken Word (Hebrews 1:3). He is also the one who will return in great glory with a final, ultimate, and unstoppable victory over his enemies and there is none who can thwart the conquering purposes of this great Lion (Genesis 49:8-12; Revelation 5:5; Revelation 19:11-16). Defensively we seek to image forth his ferocity.
On defense, though we seek to excel, compete, and win, we do not do so at the long-term detriment of our players. Therefore, we do not play any zone defenses in youth basketball, which at that level merely preys upon the developmental deficiencies of kids and usually promotes poor defensive habits. Our youth teams focus on good man to man team defensive concepts and we will only allow our players to play some zones once they reach middle school age. Our high school teams will employ a variety of schemes suitable to our personnel.
Playing smart, aggressive, and physical defense is a staple of all of our programs from the youth level through high school. Good defense consists of great communication, assignment discipline, constant focus and intensity, a strong IQ, mental and physical toughness, and strong sports character that cares more about winning than looking fancy on offense. Players who do not buy into the defensive end will not fit with our program.
When we train and play at Lions, we are doing so with the deliberate purpose of getting better, competing, and winning. This is not a recreational program. That said, whenever we take a player on our team, they will play a minimum of 20-25% of the game minutes. If we do not feel we can play a player that much, then we will not place them on a team, as we believe playing is essential to development. Our goal is to help players develop and progress while training them to play to win and develop winning habits. At times people think that because we have a Christian foundation that this means we are soft or not competitive. At Lions nothing could be further from the truth. God commands us to do all things for his glory and to do them with all of our hearts (1 Corinthians 10:31)
At Lions we refuse to ask our players and our families to play games for us while forsaking the local church. God commands us in his Word not to forsake gathering in church (Hebrews 10:23-24) and so as a basketball club with Christian roots, we are not going to violate this command.
At Lions we offer optional Bible studies and prayer before our practices. We teach verse by verse through books of the Bible before our practices and it is very solid and serious teaching. However, just because we offer this, in no way are we a substitute for the local church. The local church consists of many different types of members (1 Corinthians 12) and all are essential for the believer as the church is a God-ordained institution designed to bless and grow each believer (Ephesians 4:1-16). Furthermore, it is at the local church where the sacraments of the Lord’s Table and Baptism are operative, which is something we do not do at Lions. Lastly, the local church is led by qualified pastors, the office of deacon is operative to fulfill its design, and the blessings of corporate praise and prayer are also taking place in the gathering. We encourage all of our players to have meaningful membership in the local church. Gospel Community Church in Highlands Ranch, CO is the church that oversees Lions and all are welcome to plug in there, but whether it is with us or not, Lions encourages all of its families to have meaningful church membership in a faithful local church.
Coach Reggie - Director & Head Coach
Reggie Sanchez lettered in 4 sports in high school and was an all-conference award winner in multiple sports. He won a state championship as a player his senior year. Reggie has coached for 13 years and currently serves as Director of Lions Basketball Club and is the Head Varsity High School Girls Coach at Ascent Classical Academy Douglas County. Reggie has led his teams to many championships in club leagues and tournaments. Reggie has also developed many youth, middle school, and high school players who had outstanding high school careers and some who play college.
Reggie is most passionate about building strong relationships and making a permanent impact on a player's character through Gospel-centered ministry. In addition to coaching at Lions Basketball Club and Ascent Classical Academy, Coach Reggie also serves as a pastor at Gospel Community Church. As a former atheist Reggie has a deep knowledge of how destructive sports are when they are your god, which is why Reggie is passionate about helping players know Christ so that they use basketball as a tool to grow in Him. Reggie enjoys worshiping God, studying and teaching the Bible, playing and coaching basketball, fishing, and spending time with his wife Julie and his children Alivia, Noel, Naomi and Levi.
Coach Quentin Gardner
Coach Q aka Quinten Gardner was born and raised in Littleton, Colorado where he attended Arapahoe High School and lettered in basketball. He was 1st Team All-Conference and All State during his time there. After he graduated he attended Hastings College as a true freshman, where he and his team finished the year winning the championship. He then moved back to his hometown to pursue his true calling as a servant of The Lord Jesus Christ in which he has dedicated his life to serving/honoring. While back he was blessed with the opportunity to begin coaching at Lions Basketball Club where he's able to pour all his love and knowledge of the game and of The Lord Jesus Christ into the future generation.
Ephesians 2:1-9
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