- Kinston (population 21,000) has the highest per-capita NBA draft rate.
- Since 1972, 1/52.7 Kinston High School basketball players has made the NBA (national HS rate is 3/10,000).
- Notable talent includes Brandon Ingram, Jerry Stackhouse and Cedric Maxwell.
- Locals and scouts attribute the success to widespread recreational leagues, constant pick up games, and a once-stable, supportive community.
- Children regularly play men 10-20 years older.
- While factory closures (poverty, crime spikes) have hurt Kinston’s basketball supremacy, UNC coach Roy Williams would take a player from Kinston over NYC.
