PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — In 2010, a young man put together an anti-gun violence basketball game to calm tensions in Germantown’s Brickyard neighborhood. More than 400 people showed up.
Three years later, Garry Mills decided to put his thoughts into action, founding Shoot Basketballs NOT People (SBNP). It started with just 13 kids and no financial support.
“We didn’t have any grant writers, and I didn’t know how to write grants,” he recalled. “We just started selling hoodies out of my trunk. I was selling hoodies on Instagram. I was selling hoodies on Facebook — like, whatever it took.”
After the 2022 release of the documentary “Bad Things Happen in Philadelphia,” which highlighted the work of the organization, things took off. Mills has since partnered with the Eagles and the Sixers on anti-gun violence initiatives.
“I love my Black boys. I get lost in words and kind of get choked up a little bit when I think about my boys, because they don’t have the examples no more, and so many absent fathers, uncles are missing from some beautiful young men’s lives.”
Mills said there is a multi-pronged focus to ending gun violence, and it starts with funding organizations that have their boots on the ground with year-round programming.
“Sustainability. We can’t have programs or cohorts for six to eight weeks on a quarterly basis, or even a biannual basis, and expect to see results on a qualitative and quantitative aspect of it. More investment in youth sports,” he said.
SBNP is about using basketball as a vehicle to change and save lives. Mills likes to give young men exposure to fields on and off the court to show them what their future could look like.
“I want to drop the ladder,” he said, “because a lot of older guys in business didn’t drop the ladder for me, and I want to lead by example so they know this ain’t no fluff.”
During Black History Month, KYW Newsradio’s GameChangers honors individuals or organizations that have made a significant, positive impact in communities of color in the greater Philadelphia region. View the 2026 honorees here.