As professional basketball players, the Charlotte Sting play in huge arenas in front of thousands of screaming fans. It wasn’t always that way though. To get to the level they are at today, each Sting player had to put in hundreds of hours of work. Some of the work came at basketball camps where they learned and honed the skills that would take them to the next level.

On Monday, July 24, Sting players Kelly Mazzante, Tasha Butts and LaToya Bond visited the girls at the Queens University Basketball Camp hoping to inspire and teach the next generation of basketball players.

At the camp, Mazzante, Butts and Bond with the help of Bobcats/Sting Youth Basketball Manager Jonathan McIntyre worked with the girls on defense, shooting and dribbling, as well as some post-up moves.

The visit to the camp brought back memories for the players who remembered having special guests come visit them when they were attendees at basketball camps.

“This actually took me back to high school when we would go to camp and special guests would come,” said Butts. “I think when you know a special guest is coming, it makes you want to work that much harder for that person. You want to show off for that person and work a little bit harder.”

Butts was in charge of the defense station where she made sure the girls were in the proper defensive position.

“We were just trying to incorporate the defensive stance, defensive slide and why it’s important to play defense,” she remarked.

Mazzante instructed the girls on proper shooting method using the BEEF acronym -- Balance, Eyes, Elbow and Follow through -- while Bond demonstrated several different dribbling drills.

The kids also got a chance to learn from the players during a question and answer session in which they asked insightful questions such as “How do you balance basketball and school?” and “What is the transition like from high school to college?”

The Sting players responded by encouraging the girls to put academics first and to continue to work hard in everything that they do.

“It was good to see these young kids out here in the summer working and getting better,” said Mazzante. “This was a good opportunity for them to see that there is a professional level for them to work towards.”