We Are United highlights

Check the individual and team highlights as We Are United goes undefeated at the Heartland Prep Invitational.

This past weekend, some of the nation’s best prep programs gathered at Evangel for the Heartland Prep Invitational. The results were as expected - fireworks galore. We Are United turned some heads, though that was expected, at least by those familiar with this year’s squad.

We Are United faced off against Kennedy Prep, Florida Coastal, and finally, Montverde CBD. Battling injuries in addition to elite programs, WAU went undefeated.

The legendary Rob Yanders was a big proponent of getting his players deserved media exposure. His guys are still in place, bringing game highlights and individual media to continue elevating the players beyond what you see with many other programs.

Please follow along on Twitter and especially Instagram and YouTube to continue supporting Rob’s vision for these athletes. We appreciate you!

The Basketball Movement signs Chrystopher "Tow" Jackson

The Basketball Movement is starting off the year stronger than ever, signing Chrystopher Jackson to a one-year deal.

As many of you know, The Basketball Movement is much more than just an explosive training facility. In addition to numerous other offerings, The Basketball Movement has established itself as a producer of premium hoops media. A big part of that movement is thanks to Chrystopher Jackson or “CJ” for short.

CJ is a videographer that caught the eye of The Basketball Movement’s Owner, Robert Yanders.

“Rob reached out maybe three years ago,” Jackson says about his and Yanders’ first interaction. “I was working with another local trainer at the time, so I had to turn him down out of respect for the other trainer.” CJ moved to Houston for about a year before returning, no longer affiliated with the other trainer.

“I did a video of Zach Howell last summer at the Nixa Shootout,” CJ says. “Rob reached out again and we have been talking each day since. We have been working together consistently since September; I took the opportunity and we both ran with it.”

The Basketball Movement announced at the end of the year that Yanders was committing to working with CJ full-time for the duration of 2021.

If you have been following along with our Facebook stories or particularly our Instagram, you have already been taking in the visual feast the CJ is bringing to the table. With high school basketball in full swing all across the country, The Basketball Movement has been capturing top players in ways Southwest Missouri has not seen before.

As much as The Basketball Movement has benefitted from CJ’s work, he seems equally as pleased to be a part of the family. About creating a long-term relationship with Yanders, CJ says it has meant the world. “Rob is a great person to work for,” CJ says. “He is intense and a motivator, but it is all-loving. It makes me want to work hard for him. When you are working with Rob, you have to have the mindset of constant improvement, which is just what I need.”

Along with his pal JBandz, CJ says that their consistent style is what will set the media apart. They are capable of going outside the box, but the consistent, powerful tone is what lights The Basketball Movement’s Insta on fire. He does mention one other difference-maker…

“Honestly, Rob is our x-factor,” CJ says. “His vision is big and beautiful. He sees things going together in a way that empowers athletes. Working together, brainstorming, and being creative is what sets this partnership apart.”

CJ played football at Evangel University and says he feels like he’s back on a team with The Basketball Movement. “It’s amazing, man,” CJ says. “The family environment, being involved… I’m ecstatic to be a part of a place that lifts athletes up so much. These guys are so open to their athletes; they’ve got kids coming to the gym right after games, breaking down film… Rob is giving these guys 100 percent on AND off the court.”

When asked what The Basketball Movement athletes and fans can expect to see going forward, CJ said they will see someone that works hard. “I’m going to work hard to make the athletes I capture feel worthy,” CJ says. “We are going to be giving them new, better exposure than what you may see on Hudl or other sites.”

With the help of The Basketball Movement’s elevated media exposure, Big Tow aims to extend the reach of the media beyond the Midwest. “We are going to capture with video what is really happening here in Southwest Missouri,” CJ says. “Our platform only stands to expand after COVID. If the athletes know what they are doing on the court, we will make sure it translates to video; they can use that to help them make it to the next level.”

The Basketball Movement and Rob Yanders want to congratulate CJ on joining our team. We also want to pat ourselves on the back for landing such a great teammate. You can follow CJ and see his work on Instagram. To keep up with his collaborations with us, the best place to follow is our Instagram. Let’s start 2021 with a bang.

One-on-One with Yazoo Motif

The Basketball Movement has been collaborating with photographer and visual art mastermind, Yazoo Motif.

Robert Baker (better known by his artist name, Yazoo Motif) is a man on a mission - using his cameras to capture the versions of others that they most want to see. Always improving, always wanting to make his family proud, Yazoo is simply creating masterpieces whether it is at The Basketball Movement or in NBA arenas.

Originally from Yazoo City, Mississippi (yes, obviously that is where his moniker comes from), “Zoo” has been moving around for much of his life. “I moved to Atlanta when I was 12,” Yazoo recalls. “From there it was Lexington, Kentucky, where things sort of took off.”

Kentucky is where Yazoo linked up with friends of Kentucky Wildcats center, Willie Cauley-Stein, who now plays in the NBA for the Dallas Mavericks. Yazoo, Cauley-Stein, and videographer/editor “iburks” became a tight crew, working together to propel themselves to the top levels of their respective crafts. Check their hashtag #SHIFTeverything on Instagram to see all the collabs between the three.

Willie Cauley-Stein started his NBA career in Sacramento in 2015, taking his stud media duo along for the ride, allowing Yazoo to shoot an abundance of NBA talent (see below). WCS began the 2019-20 season in Golden State before being traded to Dallas last January to provide rebounding and explosiveness in the paint.

“Everything you see on Willie Cauley-Stein’s page is either me or iburks,” Yazoo says. “Getting to go with him, I’ve had the opportunity to see greatness through a lens and study every detail. I don’t take being in those situations for granted.”

Motif cites his access to the Golden State Warriors media day being one of his favorite opportunities so far. “Getting to shoot Steph, Klay… that really hit home as far as where I was and the greatness I was surrounded by,” Yazoo says. One of his other favorite subjects is recording artist, Yoku Naru, who he also linked up within Kentucky and has been working with for several years.

“(Working with) Yoku Naru is great because we have excellent back and forth,” Yazoo says. “It’s the same thing with Rob Yanders.”

Yazoo Motif at The Basketball Movement

On collaborating with Rob Yanders and The Basketball Movement, Yazoo says the experience has been “refreshing.”

“Rob has been great,” Yazoo says. “He is honest and speaks his mind. He gives you full creative control, but his suggestions are still highly relevant. It really improves upon the process.”

Yazoo says that the back-and-forth with people like Rob is what allows him to bring out exactly what people like to see. “My main goal is to work with people and bring their best version to life,” Yazoo continues. “Everyone has a vision of themselves and they want to see themselves in the best version of that, so understanding that and bringing that out is how I set myself apart as an artist.”

Motif often goes by “Zoo,” which he says works well because he sees as himself being able to work with all different “animals” or all the different looks he can create based on the subjects.

“For Rob, he is intense and attention detailed. I think I have been able to capture that for him.” (He definitely has - see below video)

Asked what drives him creatively, Yazoo Motif says it is the desire for constant improvement. “I’m my own worst critic,” Motif says. “I want to improve on every detail from piece to piece. Another motivator comes from my wife and my one-year-old son - I want to keep growing and make them proud.”

The Basketball Movement asked what is next for Yazoo Motif: “Working with bigger and bigger brands,” Yazoo says. “Figuring out how to do that is part of the adventure. My main thing is not stealing ideas and being original. I don’t want to become mainstream; I want mainstream to be me.”

Please go check out Yazoo Motif on Instagram, Twitter, or yazoomotif.com to see his work. His creative mind deserves exposure and The Basketball Movement has been fortunate to have him around. Check out some more of his stuff below and follow along for more visual poetry!

Media and exposure for our athletes

The Basketball Movement caters to numerous age and skill groups. For many upper-tier athletes, we offer media exposure to help in their careers.

There are plenty of reasons for The Basketball Movement to try as hard as we do on videos, photography, interviews, and more. The bread and butter of the facility and its coaches is skill development. Individual and team workouts are our primary tools to facilitate the growth of our athletes. There is more to basketball than skill development, however.

As players improve, it will show on the court - many fans, coaches, and recruits will see this. However, not everyone is going to be around to travel to your games. The more media you have, the more visible you will become. The more visible you are, the more likely you are to get noticed by people that can aid you in your career as a player.

Aside from being more visible as an athlete, the media can also help with confidence. If we throw up a cool video of players putting in work at our facility, that is going to make that player feel good and want to build upon what others are now getting to see. The importance of confidence on the floor cannot be understated. When you look good, you feel good, so we hope that our media clips can help athletes maintain the swagger required to stand out.

Simply put, all the pictures and videos are fun too. Having professionally created videos and images is a blast for players and guardians, and we have a good time putting it together as well. At our clinics, The League, invitational camps, what have you, the players have a blast lining up to get headshots at The Basketball Movement. The younger players in particular eat it up.

So, don’t have any delusions about the reasoning behind our media. Understand that everything we do, we do it for the benefit of our guys and girls.

Exposure is important as players near the collegiate level of the sport. Confidence is a key to hoops, and this can help with that. Also, remember that it is all in great fun as we continue to highlight many of our hardest workers.

Most of our full-length clips are over on our Instagram, but all media is distributed across our Facebook and Twitter as well. Thanks as always for tuning in to what is happening here at The Basketball Movement!