Bound by Basketball With Omaha’s Finest, Tra-Deon Hollins and Tre’Shawn Thurman Continue Their Hoops Odyssey Together
Tra-Deon Hollins (left) and Tre’Shawn Thurman Photo: The University of Nebraska-Omaha & OMavs
by Leo Adam Biga
Tra-Deon Hollins and Tre’Shawn Thurman might as well be biological brothers for how closely bound they are by basketball. These local hoops stars trace a decade-plus journey together of courts, rims, backboards and sneakers. After being teammates in high school (Central) and college (UNO), and then with The NBA G League’s Grand Rapids Drive, they’re now trying to revive pro basketball in their hometown with Omaha’s Finest.
Their joined-at-the-hip basketball odyssey seemed like “crazy” coincidence in school. But after they signed contracts with the Detroit Pistons within 24 hours of each other, Hollins said, “That’s when I was like, I know this is fate.” Thurman agrees destiny seems to be at work. The new TBL (The Basketball League) franchise Omaha’s Finest, whose 24-game regular season tipped off in April, is owned by Hollins. Thurman was to have been an anchor player until an April injury put him put of commission for the rest of the season. That bad luck spoiled this latest chapter in the tandem’s bound by basketball odyssey, but their history suggests this won’t be the last time they team up together. Other roster spots are filled by players from various colleges and pro leagues, both here and abroad. Most share a dream of making it to the NBA. Some are veterans of its developmental G League. Thus, the TBL is where prospects go to stay sharp, biding their time for bigger opportunities. For some, new chances will come. For others, it marks the end of the line.
Hollins is eager to make Omaha’s Finest a way stop and catalyst for those moving up and beyond. “The reason why I got into it is to help the guys get into better situations,” he said. “A lot of these guys haven’t played a real game since last year. So just to have some type of structure organized around basketball, which everybody loves, is nice. I’m excited to help get that going.”
The new TBL (The Basketball League) franchise Omaha’s Finest, whose 24-game regular season tipped off in April, is owned by Hollins. Photo: Omaha’s Finest
Hollins and Thurman’s old Central teammate, Akoy Agau, is director of operations and an assistant coach. The trio played major roles in the last years of the Eagles’ seven Class A state title teams from 2006-2013. Agau led Central to four of those championships (2010-2013). Hollins and Thurman were part of the final three with Agau. Eric Behrens was the head coach during that glorious, talent-rich stretch.
“Coming to Central I had to earn those guys’ respect,” Thurman said. “I came to a place that had just won a state championship. These guys looked at me like I’m just a young kid.”
Hollins skeptically eyed the fresh meat. “When Tre’Shawn first got to Central I didn’t really think he deserved to be on varsity from the jump. When a new guy came in Behrens always went to ask the better players (if the newcomer was varsity-worthy). ’Tre’Shawn, yes or no?’ he asked. Deandre (Hollins-Johnson) and Akoy said yes. I’d been knowing Tre’Shawn the longest and I didn’t think he was ready. I thought he was too goofy, so I said no. His first game he scored like eight or ten points, he dunked and everything. I was wrong.”
Hollins heard about Thurman before he ever saw him back at Nathan Hale Middle School, where they competed on different squads. A relative of Hollins worked security there and watched the various school hoops teams practice, and thus became the first to note these young-bloods were meant to play together. “Uncle Larry is the mastermind behind it all,” Hollins said. “He just knew our games fit each other. He would always tell me about Tre’Shawn.
I’m not the type of guy to get too high or too big on somebody, so when he was telling me I was kind of brushing it off, like, okay, whatever. Who would know he would be a lifelong brother.”
Doing Omaha Proud
Until Hunter Sallis this year, Agau was perhaps the most sought-after Nebraska prep player in the new millennium. The South Sudan native grew up in a refugee camp before moving with his family to Omaha. After Central he played at Louisville, then transferred to Georgetown, then again to SMU, before returning to finish his collegiate career at Louisville. A book, Citizen Akoy, details his much-traveled American Dream. Other Eagles from that dynasty run went on to play juco, NAIA, mid-major and major college ball. But perhaps the two best careers were had by Hollins and Thurman. With the exception of Agau, local players then were not highly rated or heavily recruited the way this current crop of phenoms is. That lack of recognition created a chip on the shoulder mentality Hollins and Thurman used as motivation.
“When we were coming up we didn’t get the respect we deserved,” said Thurman, “and that embedded in us at a young age that whatever we want we’re going to have to take.”
“When we were coming up we didn’t get the respect we deserved, and that embedded in us at a young age that whatever we want we’re going to have to take.”
That I’ll-show-you mindset is evident in other Omaha athletes,” Hollins said. “Everyone who comes out of Omaha has some type of edge or grit about them and it shows in an Omaha way. Look at Terence Crawford (the world boxing champion) and the way he fights, and the passion he brings with Omaha. I feel like that’s why people get behind him.” Hollins said that same us-against-the-world approach is shared by Omaha’s Finest.
“Everyone who comes out of Omaha has some type of edge or grit about them and it shows in an Omaha way.”
Tra-Deon Hollins Photo: Omaha’s Finest & Grand Rapids Drive
Representing goes with the territory. “It’s a responsibility to show the younger generation here and everywhere, this is Omaha. We’ve gotta show you what it means to be raised up here,” said Thurman. While he went right from Central to the University of Nebraska at Omaha, Hollins took a circuitous route. Thurman advocated for his old mate because he knew that in addition to rad skills and athleticism, UNO was getting a winner. “When I knew we had a possibility of getting him,” Thurman said, “I was all in. I wanted him real bad. He has that winner DNA. I’m a winner, too, and he brought that with him.” Hollins appreciates how Thurman championed him after being being forced out of Chipola College in Marianna, Florida for alleged disciplinary reasons.
“It wasn’t roses and red carpet for me to get to UNO. There were obstacles,” Hollins said. “I had to build relationships and earn the trust of those guys and I feel like Tre’Shawn helped that. Without him I don’t know if I get the opportunity at UNO. So I have a lot of respect for him for that as well.”
Once rejoined, the dynamic duo helped UNO legitimize its transition to Division I. Hollins was a senior and Thurman a junior when they led the Mavericks to the Summit League Tournament final in 2017, coming up just short in the closing seconds to South Dakota State, 79-77.
A sturdy yet fleet 6 foot 2 point guard known for his defensive prowess and passing ability, Hollins was twice named the Summit’s defensive player of the year, He led the nation in steals as a senior. Also a capable scorer, he was UNO’s vocal, fiery leader. Thurman, a physical, 6 foot 7, 230-pound power forward, filled the enforcer role while being versatile enough to control the boards, score inside or out and run the floor. Together they were the heart and soul of teams that enjoyed consecutive 18-14 seasons.
From Omaha Central to Omaha’s Finest
When Hollins used up his eligibility, he pursued pro basketball options. Meanwhile, Thurman transferred to Nevada, where he helped the Wolf Pack to an NCAA Tournament appearance. Hollins, who’s still chasing his own NBA dream, wound up with Thurman in Grand Rapids before Omaha’s Finest gave the pair a new venture to feature their together-again act.
The hardest part of the job for the 25 year-old Hollins is sitting and watching on the sidelines. “I feel, just like Tre’Shawn that I’ve got a lot left. Personally, this is my first time on this side of the fence. Usually I’m like Tre’Shawn suiting up. I’d love to get out there and play. I feel like I’m still in my prime. I feel like I could help, too.” Indeed, Hollins earned G League’s defensive player of the year laurels with Grand Rapids. Last winter he played with the Westchester Knicks (White Plains, NY). Before the pandemic he led an all-star team, also named Omaha’s Finest, that competed in an ESPN tournament.
As an owner, not a player, with this new incarnation of Omaha’s Finest, he concedes his job is more about marketing a product. “We have to find different ways to get the community engaged and to come out and support us.”
“We have to find different ways to get the community engaged and to come out and support us.”
Tra-Deon Hollins
Photo: Omaha’s Finest & NBA G League
Assembling a roster of basketball vagabonds with disparate styles and backgrounds, Hollins said, “was like playing a video game in real life,” adding, “I started with guys I had the closest relationships with, so the first person I came to was Tre’Shawn, our best player with arguably the biggest name. He’s the first person who committed. I kind of used him to leverage other people, and then went from there. Everybody on our team has some type of relationship with Omaha. We’re athletic, we’re big, and we compete. That’s what I feel basketball is about.” He and Thurman say fans can expect high-flying dunks and mad shooting range.
Building a fan base for a new team is challenging anytime, let alone during a pandemic. It’s a work in progress thus far. Home games at Millard North and Millard West have averaged a few hundred fans in the stands with a few hundred more watching online. Social media word of mouth is the team’s main marketing ploy. “We’re working with a beer budget on champagne taste.” Hollins said.
The team conducts youth camps and shows out at public venues in an effort to generate awareness and interest. “We’re getting out into the community, so it’s not just basketball with us,” Hollins said. He and Thurman know what it’s like to be taken under the wing of older players. Before they came along, Agau was already ‘The Man’ and even though only slightly older, Hollins said, the 6 foot8 center “was mature beyond his years” with swag galore and entrepreneurial strategies for building his brand beyond Nebraska. “When I got to high school, Akoy was this massive guy,” Thurman recalled. “He’d just won a state championship his freshman year and I think he saw some similarities in me. And I took some stuff from him on how to carry yourself with charisma and confidence when you’ve got this kind of attention on you.”
Confidence reigned supreme on those Central teams with their strong personalities and games. Before Agau’s arrival, the Central dynasty had been jumpstarted by Deverell Biggs. As a kid, Hollins said, “I was watching Deverell Biggs when Central played. When I finally got there and interacted with him, I competed differently against him because I idolized him so much. He respected that. He didn’t back down and showed me the ropes.”
In turn, Thurman got schooled by another former Central standout, Josh Jones, who was at Creighton University when Thurman was at Central. “He would give me feedback here and there,” said Thuman.
Trying to Make Pro Basketball Stick
As Thurman and Hollins have discovered, this is not Omaha’s first intersection with pro hoops. None of the previous experiences proved long-lasting. As far back as 1968, Omaha annually hosted a small number of games for the NBA’s Cincinnati Royals. When that franchise moved to Kansas City and became the Kings, Omaha continued as a satellite home market, even bearing the Kansas City-Omaha Kings name for a time. By the end of the ‘70s that twinning ended. The next brush with high level hoops came with the Omaha Racers of the CBA (Continental Basketball Association) from 1989 to 1997. In 2017 the semi-pro Omaha Chargers lasted one season in the National Basketball League of America. Otherwise, Omaha’s been an occasional landing stop for NBA exhibition and Harlem Globetrotters games.
Tre’Shawn Thurman Photo: Ryan Stubbe
Despite a spotty track record for the staying power of pro ball here, Hollins is optimistic the TBL, now in its fourth season and having expanded to 35 teams, is sustainable. “We’re in a very good situation and the league is doing a very good job of being smart,” said Hollins, who raised the franchise buy-in fee from the Omaha community.
The league’s owners are a married couple. David and Evelyn Magley. He played in the NBA and previously ran a league in Canada. “So it’s not his first rodeo,” said Hollins, who’s also impressed with Evelyn, the first Black woman to own a professional male sports league in the U.S.
“I’m beyond confident,” Hollins said. “I feel they’re doing it in a way to where they keep the money close. Like we’re not flying to road games. It’s four different conferences and then divisions in the conferences. We’re in the Central Conference (whose Houston Push and Enid Outlaws rule the roost). Our furthest game is in Arkansas, which is 13 hours. The guys cry a lot, but we’re going to be in vans all season (for road trips) until we make the playoffs, and then if we have to go to California or wherever, we’re going to fly. The league helps with that.”
The regular season closes at the end of June.
Hollins has surrounded himself with a hoops family beyond Thurman and Agau. “My general manager (Ryan Stubbe) was my head coach in AAU when I was 14. I met our assistant coach and head strength trainer (Grant Eberly) at Central.” He’s also long known head coach Brian Hoffman, whom he said has “put in a great offensive system that the guys are thriving in.” “We all have a sense of wanting to continue this and make it as big as possible. I feel the staff does a really good job of making it feel like a professional environment. I’ve played at some of the highest levels and we’re bringing that to Omaha.”
“It’s been exciting,” Thurman said before his injury. “I see a bunch of familiar faces in the crowd. People are calling me and asking what times the games are and how do I get tickets. Hopefully, Omaha will come out and support us. We’re going to play hard for y’all.”
Hollins emphasizes the entertainment quality of the fast-paced, high-scoring action featuring “some of the best athletes in the world.” “They’re not just somebody you can go watch down the street. This is the real thing. They’re professionals. They’re skilled. You have to come see it.”
Through Thick or Thin, Brothers to the End
Whatever happens with Omaha’s Finest, Hollins and Thurman have each other’s backs. Said Thurman, “Yeah, this is my guy. He’ll call me or whatever and we’ll just talk about stuff. I ain’t going to lie, Tra-Deon is not the easiest guy to get along with, but I think we’ve built that relationship. He respects my opinion. We’ve both been with each other enough that he knows how I think and I know how he thinks. He knows I’m going to give him a real honest answer – that he should think about it a different way.”
Hollins appreciated having his wing-man alongside for this new adventure. About their symbiotic ride, he said, “It’s not planned. It’s just genuine. It’s through God, honestly. I met Tre’Shawn at about 12-13 years old. played against him, and from there a relationship was built. He was the best player on his team, obviously. And I was one of the best players on mine. We were just competing, That respect was grown from there.”
Whether they can continue this partnership indefinitely, nobody knows, but don’t bet against it. After all, Thurman said, “We’ve played together everywhere, so it’s possible. Hopefully. the next thing for both of us is we’re on the same NBA team or one of us is on an NBA team because I feel like we’re both NBA-ready players.”
“Obviously, he’s good enough and I’m good enough,” Hollins said. “We have to do the little things to get us through that door. Whether it’s on the same team or on different teams, it’s gotta be in the NBA. That’s what I feel like I’m trying to manifest for both of us.”
The final two home games of the season for Omaha’s Finest are June 25-26 at Millard West.
For ticket and schedule information, visit https://omahas-finest.com/.