Gophers great Al Nolen carries Clyde Turner’s legacy of giving back to Minneapolis

Al Nolen was barely removed from playing for the Gophers and pro basketball overseas in 2013, when he was hired as dean of students for seventh grade at Anthony Middle School in Minneapolis.

Sitting in his office to start his new job, Nolen received a surprise visitor. It was fellow Gophers alum Clyde Turner, a former Big Ten champion and longtime humanitarian with his Twin Cities youth camps.

Nolen, the new Gophers men’s basketball radio analyst this season, learned then how to use his platform to make an impact in the community. The Al Nolen Foundation has helped to continue Turner’s legacy of providing training and educational opportunities for inner-city youth after his death in 2022.

“Clyde was integral in helping guide me,” Nolen said. “He played a huge part in my life as far as being able to see somebody — a role model that I can follow once I was done with basketball. Someone to show me how I could figure out ways to give back.”

Nolen, a point guard for the Gophers from 2007-11, joined more than 50 former men’s basketball players and staff during an alumni celebration Saturday at Williams Arena.

Among the Gophers alum on the raised floor, Nolen wasn’t the most accomplished as a player.. But he did reach the NCAA tournament with the Gophers in 2009 and 2010 under then-coach Tubby Smith.

Voice of the Gophers Mike Grimm, who worked with ex-player Spencer Tollackson for 13 seasons, admired Nolen from his playing days. Grimm remembers Nolen, a former Minneapolis Henry standout, carrying the Gophers to a win vs. Rick Pitino’s top-10 ranked Louisville team in 2008.

“He’s one of the better perimeter defenders Minnesota’s ever had,” Grimm said. “But they couldn’t stop him from penetrating. He would penetrate, dish, and get to the line. I think he had 18 points and that stayed as his career high. That win was probably what got them in the [NCAAs]. Louisville was the No. 1 overall seed.”

The Gophers were ranked 16th nationally with six weeks left in Nolen’s senior year, but they failed to reach a third straight NCAA appearance after he broke his foot.

This season, when the Gophers played at Michigan on Jan. 4, it was Nolen’s first time back at Crisler Arena since he injured his foot there in the final game of his college career. It was an eerie feeling, but he was excited about the new chapter in his basketball life.

“It was a full circle moment,” Nolen said. “To see the gutsy road win they had and to see the great guard play from [Elijah] Hawkins, [Mike] Mitchell, [Braeden] Carrington and [Cam] Christie was really a sight to see. And to be calling it there was a dream come true.”

Nolen said Grimm has been patient with him as he develops his in-game analysis, since he’s still a rookie, but their on-air chemistry is blossoming.

“I’ve been really enjoying it a lot,” Nolen said. “This is an exciting team. Coach Johnson is doing an amazing job coaching and managing his whole program. Working alongside Mike Grimm has been really good. He’s teaching me a lot.”

Turner taught Nolen a lot, too. Nolen’s father remembered when Turner was a 6-7 forward who started with fellow legends Dave Winfield and Jim Brewer on the Gophers’ 1972 Big Ten championship team.

Decades later, Nolen’s parents sent him around the corner from their North Minneapolis home to Fairview Recreation Center to attend Turner’s summer basketball camps that ran for more than 30 years.

“[Turner’s] sports playing career even kind of got lost in the background,” Nolen said. “Because all the kids in the community knew him from Clyde Turner Basketball Camps.”

Nolen started a basketball training business with his first clinics at St. Croix Prep in Stillwater in 2014, but he eventually moved to his hometown of Minneapolis. Through donations and fundraising, kids would attend his clinics for free. His foundation started at Northside Park in 2019, the same year Turner’s camp ended.

Turner’s outreach strived to empower youth through education as well as basketball. Nolen’s foundation hopes to keep that idea going strong – and help at-risk youth tackle other challenges, too, such as mental health, financial literacy, social justice and wellness and nutrition.

“Trying to follow in the footsteps of Clyde Turner and continue to support our community,” Nolen said. “That’s really been huge for me to pay it forward and mimic what our greats and alums have done.”

Five Minnesota ballers who stood out:

Cam Christie, Gophers

The 6-6 freshman guard backed up the Big Ten freshman of the week honor Monday by scoring 19 points in Tuesday’s win against Michigan State. He has 51 points combined in the U’s three straight wins.

Lauren Jensen, Creighton

The 5-10 senior from Lakeville has scored at least 17 points six times during Creighton’s nine-game win streak, including 19 in back-to-back games vs. Marquette and Butler last week.

Isaiah Johnson-Arigu, Totino-Grace

The 6-7 senior and Miami recruit had 26 points and 12 rebounds for the No. 1 Class 3A Eagles in a win last Friday at No. 1 Class 4A Park Center. Junior Chase Watley also had 27.

Kyle Jorgensen, Washburn

The 6-9 senior and Colorado State recruit had 24 points and 19 rebounds in a win Monday vs. Minneapolis South. He has scored at least 20 points in nine of 10 games.

Amy Thompson, Stillwater

The 5-11 senior and South Florida recruit erupted for 92 points and 15 threes combined in back-to-back wins last week, including a career-high 48 points for the Ponies at Forest Lake.

3,000 Career points milestone for Providence Academy sophomore Maddyn Greenway, the second-fastest girls player in state history to achieve the mark.

500 Career assists for Elijah Hawkins, reached Tuesday vs. Michigan State. Hawkins leads the nation with 7.7 assists per game.

50 Points reached in back-to-back games for Duluth Marshall’s Brooks Johnson, brother of star eighth-grader Chloe Johnson. He has five 50-point games in his career.

30 Points scored in back-to-back games for sophomore Amber Scalia during St. Thomas women’s three-game win streak.

13 Three pointers made by Annandale junior Emerson Helget, tying the state single-game record last week in a win vs. Dassel-Cokato. She had 19 attempts.

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