Rock Island Today

The first Chasson Randle Classic is set to run over the summer in Bettendorf at the TBK Bank Sports Complex.

Randle, a former Rock Island star and NBA veteran, was recently on hand for a slew of weekend games featuring 35 teams of 4th through 9th graders.

“It’s amazing to see the tournament and all of the kids,” he told the Dispatch-Argus. “Plus, there is some really good basketball. To have my name on this tournament, I can’t put it into words.”

Tournament founder Kedric Prince said the idea to name the tournament in Randle’s honor came from his daughter, who noticed Peoria High grad and Golden State Warriors star Shaun Livingston has a tournament named after him and thought Randle deserved a similar honor given all he’s done for the Quad City area.

At Rock Island, Randle sparked his 2011 squad to the Quad-Cities first-ever state championship, before taking off for Stanford, where he led the Cardinal to an NIT title in 2012 and to the Sweet 16 in the NCAAs in 2014.

From there, it was on to the Czech Republic, where he helped Nymburk win the 2015-16 National Basketball League championship. In the NBA, Randle has spent time with the Philadelphia 76ers and New York Knicks,  and more recently starred for overseas champion Real Madrid, averaging 2.6 points and a rebound in 23 games.

Through all his vast travels and experiences, Randle said one part of his career still clearly stands out most to him. 

“The high school championship is probably most special,” he said. “It was a first for me and a first for the school. I learned a lot about leading and helping the team. Plus, I did it with my best friends.”