After draining a state record 11 three-pointers in a game against Jupiter, Port St. Lucie High School junior Chris Young was congratulated by his mother, Ann, who told him he was, "The true baller of the family."
That's when Chris, now 26, became the very same Tru Baller who's become recognized as one of the most dominant street basketball players in the world. With a new mix DVD on the market, "Return of the King: Tru To Da Game Vol. 2," Young hopes to gain the attention of promoters interested in backing his own And1/Harlem Globetrotters-style tour, as well as youth camps.
"There's nobody in Florida doing that," Young said from his mother Ann's Fort Pierce home last week. "Kids would love to watch that stuff. I could make a lot of things happen around here basketball wise. I know it...."
With his international name recognition in streetball circles, Tru's confident he can launch such a streetball tour.
Locally, Tru is probably best known as the Port St. Lucie High shooting point guard who, as a senior, helped lead his team to a 30-4 record and a trip to the state Final Four. Averaging 25 points a game, he was named to the high school All American team.
Later, he was named freshman of the year, then player of the year during his two seasons at Daytona Beach Community College. There, he was also named a junior college All American. When he transferred to the University of South Alabama, he was named newcomer of the year. During his senior season, he led the Jaguars to the postseason.
From there, the 6-foot, 2-inch, 185-pounder played pro ball in Canada, but wasn't satisfied. He still lives in Canada most of the year, but entertains the masses on the street instead of on the court, playing for the DIME team.
Whether he's shaking opponents out of their shoes or simply trying to come up with new moves alone in the yard, for nine hours a day, every day, Tru is playing ball.
That much practice has given Young, who has "Tru" tattooed on one arm and "Baller" on the other, time to perfect some signature moves.
"I don't like to bite off other people," said the father of 2-year-old Jaida Young. "When somebody does a move, you want them to say, 'That's Tru Baller's move.'"
Tru has 19 of those moves now. His best known, "See No Evil," can be found all over the Internet.
"I was dribbling the ball and put it in my shirt. My pants were kind of big, sagging, so I said, 'alright, let me put it in my shorts,'" Young recalls of how he came up with See No Evil.
That evolved to him putting the ball down the back of his shorts.
"I called my mom out and did it on her. She was lost," Tru said. "Then I went to the court and did it. That was it. Everywhere I go I do it. It just took over."
In games, Tru has also used "Blankman," a move where he's dribbling, turns sideways, pulls his own shirt over his head, then either brings the ball behind his head, or tosses it up behind his opponent, who can't see his face, and goes around him.
With moves like that, Tru started filming himself every time he plays. After watching some footage, Young told DIME owners T-Mill and Ayo he wanted to make a mix tape. They gave him the guidance he needed to produce the film, and Tru's video editing experience from South Alabama made it possible. The DVD features guest appearances by And1 star Hot Sauce and rapper Mike Jones.
"There's demand for this mix tape. I had to put it out," said Tru, an admitted self-promoter. "I've got fans everywhere.
High school coaches always try to break players of performing moves like Tru's, said Rick Tinsley, who coached Young at Port St. Lucie. But Tinsley, now Westwood High School's head basketball coach, admitted those moves not only keep kids interested in basketball, but also improve their game.
Tru credits Tinsley as one of the main people who got him involved in the sport. Tinsley, who was Young's gym teacher at Southport Middle School, remembers Tru taking to the game right away.
"We built a special relationship," the coach said. "We spent a lot of time practicing moves and shots. The more he practiced, he saw the better he got."
The middle schooler turned into one of the top three players Tinsley said he's seen in this area in his 17 years of coaching.
"If there's anybody that's a true player and has an outright love of the game, that would have to be Chris," Tinsley said. "His work ethic is unquestionable. He loves the game. Basketball is his life."
The coach best remembers Tru's performance in a regional semi-final game against Hallandale High School. Late in the game, with Port St. Lucie down by three, Young, who then wore No. 23 (he now wears No. 3), hit a three-pointer from the corner, drew a foul and turned it into a four-point play.
"That put us up and kept us on top," Tinsley recalled.
Tru's awards from those playoffs, awards from his two appearances in the illustrious Five-Star Basketball Camp, as well as every other award he's earned, fill his mother Ann's house on 17th Street.
Ann said the talent that earned those awards belongs strictly to her son.
"He gets that from within himself," the proud mother said. "He makes it look so easy. He was born for this. He loves the game, truly."
Tru Baller's 40-minute DVD, featuring hot handles, crossovers, ankle breakers, freestyles and more, is available online for $10 at www.truballermixtapes.com. Tru can be reached at
He also welcomes instant messages at AIM, where he goes by TheManTru.
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After draining a state record 11 three-pointers in a game against Jupiter, Port St. Lucie High School junior Chris Young was congratulated by his mother, Ann, who told him he was, "The true baller of the family."
