Isaiah Prince Making Most of Humble Beginnings

Steel City Yellow Jackets guard Isaiah Prince came from humble beginnings and has turned it into a professional basketball career in the city he loves. He was a star at both Imani Christian Academy and Edinboro University and is now staring in the American Basketball Association

The basketball courts on the east side of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania are the stomping grounds for many Pittsburgh natives every year. Thousands of players have found the sport of basketball here and turned it into a professional aspiration. Isaiah Prince was no different. He would always admire the older kids as they played the game and it pushed him to be the best player he could be. He was always the younger kid on the court and he tried to use that as motivation to better his game to get on the same level as the older kids he was competing against.

Through this experience, Prince found the sport of basketball and has been playing it ever since. A self-taught basketball player, Prince would work tirelessly at the sport always being the youngest on the court. In his third grade year, he was already playing on the fourth grade basketball team showing what skills he had.

“[My basketball career] really started when I was around third grade playing on the fourth grade team,” said Prince. “I grew up on the east side of Pittsburgh and I started on the basketball courts outside Collinwood. Just seeing the older people play, some of them boys inspired me to play.”

He took inspiration from many players on these back courts with him throughout his childhood and into the high school years. Prince played his high school basketball at Imani Christian Academy in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In his senior season with the Saints, Prince would lead the Saints to a 19-3 record. He ended up scoring 1,136 points over his four years with the Saints as well as earning all-conference honors in his junior and senior years and was the conference MVP as a senior.

Despite all of the success he was having at the high school level, the college search was no walk in the park for Prince. Coming from a small school he had to work from the bottom up to get his name out there. He spent two years at community college before he found his perfect fit with the Edinboro University Fighting Scots.

“Coming out of high school the college search really wasn’t there for me because I came from a little school,” said Prince. “I really had to build my own foundation. I did two years at community college, Community College of Butler County, and then Edinboro found me. I left my print on every program that I left.”

Edinboro would be no different. He played for two seasons with the Fighting Scots and accumulated a career 874 points, 225 rebounds, and 140 assists. He lead the team in scoring in each of his two years with the Scots and twice won All-PSAC honors. He also ranked third in the PSAC in steals in his junior season with 53 and averaged 32.2 points per game for his career.

Edinboro is also where Prince made his first connections with the Steel City Yellow Jackets. Prince and current Yellow Jacket Gilmore Cummings both played for the Fighting Scots and Cummings was one of Prince’s good friends. After the Yellow Jackets first season, Cummings gave Prince a call and set him up for a tryout.

“[I made my first contact with the Yellow Jackets through] Gil Cummings,” said Prince. “We went to Edinboro together and that was one of my good friends up there. When he started the team the first year I wasn’t around because I was overseas. The second year I came back and got in contact with him and you know the rest is history.”

Prince, Cummings, and current Yellow Jacket Antonio Reddic had all played against each other before growing up in Pittsburgh. Because of the age difference they would never be playing on the same team, but Prince relishes in the opportunity to play with them today. He continues to learn the game of basketball from them and he says that it helps him grow as a player every single day.

“It’s been a good experience because you know we always played pick-up ball together and they were older than me so I never really got the chance to play with them,” said Prince. “After it all came together it’s a good experience I am happy to get on the court with them. They teach me a lot of things because their older and wiser, so I might be young and athletic but them boys teach me a lot.”

Prince has learned valuable lessons both on and off of the court with the Yellow Jackets. On the court he learns from the teammates around him and the competition. However, off the court he has a great mentor as well in Head Coach Averill Pippens. Prince praises Coach Ace’s efforts both for the team and for the community in general and it has helped him earn a respect for that as well.

“Coach does a lot for this whole team,” said Prince. “He really impacts his community as well, and his heart is full of gold. You know I can’t ask much more from that guy.”

Being from Pittsburgh, Prince loves having the opportunity to go out and represent the city on the basketball spectrum. He moved around a lot throughout his college career and it caused his friends and family to not be able to come to his games as much. However, now here in Pittsburgh they don’t miss a beat and can come see him night in and night out while he represents the city.

“It means a lot [to represent this city],” said Prince. “You know my friends and family they might not have been able to make it to one of my games because I played far away in college. For them actually to be able to come out and see me night in and night out is a moment to cherish.”

Prince comes from humble beginnings and those humble beginnings have turned into a great professional basketball career that turned into a trip overseas and now a stint in his home town. No matter where Prince goes or what he accomplishes he always brings it back to that beginning playing on the streets with the older kids and what it taught him about playing smart and playing hard.

“It’s tough on the streets,” said Prince. “The competition level was there and I was playing against the athletic kids and everything like that. Then you know we just had that go getter mentality on the streets and it just carried over.”

That go getter mentality has been a driving force for Prince throughout his playing career and he uses it now to help the Yellow Jackets succeed. He has worked his way up to one of the starting five on this year’s team and has played a big role both offensively and defensively for this team. With his determination and intensity, he looks to help take the Yellow Jackets to the American Basketball Association playoffs for the third season in a row.