Inderkum High School student Anthony Williams remembered

Youth Basketball Academy coach Chris Collins remembers the time he taught high school student Anthony Williams how to ride a motorcycle in March 2020 when he was a Whitney High School sophomore in Rocklin. Williams kept telling Collins in 2020 that he wanted to learn how to ride. "His legs were shaking and you got to imagine he's 6'8'', his big frame shaking on a motorcycle," Collins said. "So it was pretty hilarious." With practice, Williams "got really good" at riding a motorcycle, Collins said. "Then I caught him trying to do wheelies and stuff" and Collins stopped him. Collins was remembering his time with the late Williams on Thursday. Williams, 18, died at Sutter Roseville Medical Center the night of March 19 after a driver hit him while he was walking in the street on Lonetree Boulevard and Adams Drive in Rocklin, according to Rocklin Police. Rocklin officers are still investigating the incident and the driver cooperated with officers, said Rocklin Police Department Sgt. Neil Costa. Collins was Williams' coach at the Youth Basketball Academy until Williams' senior year this year at Inderkum High School. Collins was like a "father figure, brother, family member and guardian" to Williams. Collins knew Williams since he was about 12 years old and taught him how to play basketball. "He was really raw at the game, didn't really know it, but he had a lot of potential," Collins said. "I took him under my wing and we trained and we worked hard and I coached him for years." Since his parents died when he was young, Williams moved through the foster system for years, Collins said. Williams stayed with his sister in his early childhood and also stayed with his other Youth Basketball Academy coach Ken Gee for three-and-a-half years when he was older, Collins said. Williams lived with Collins from May 2020 until he turned 18 in April 2021 and moved out, Collins said. Collins said Williams was a "goofy kid" who loved to joke around and make TikToks and was passionate about rapping, designing shoes, music and people. "He was overall a fun-loving kid, but on the basketball court, he was a competitor," Collins said. "He hated to lose and always wanted to do what he could to win." Williams' sister, Queenisha Wade, said on Facebook that he was a star athlete with three scholarships. Williams planned on going to college and getting his own apartment at the end of the month, Wade said. In 2020, Williams' Youth Basketball Academy team played against the high-level Oakland Soldiers at a private invitational event. Collins said Williams performed the best he had ever seen the student play in that game. "I was really proud of him and I told him that," Williams said. "I believe he was one of the best players on the court, if not the best player on the court, because he just played phenomenal basketball. It was like watching a culmination of all that hard work, all the training, everything we had worked for in that moment seemed to come together." Collins said he wants the community to remember Williams' smile and how he cared about people. Williams was not perfect just like any other person, Collins said, but he cared greatly about people. He gravitated toward helping little children and was always that teammate who assured other team members that it was OK if they missed a shot and to just keep shooting, Collins said. "He was somebody who was invested in people very much like myself," Collins said. "That's why it feels like for me, I lost a son, because he cared about those around him even more than himself." Support Collins said a public celebration of life for Williams will be held at 3:30 p.m. Sunday at the Youth Basketball Academy (YBA) facility on 1091 Tinker Road in Rocklin. Whitney High and Inderkum High School are working together to start a scholarship and foundation named after Williams, according to Collins. The schools have already selected five children to receive the scholarship, which will be announced at the memorial Sunday, Collins said. "So if another Anthony Williams walks through the door of YBA, money and resources won't be a reason why this kid can't be helped or play basketball," Collins said. Collins said he is working to set up a GoFundMe for the Anthony Williams Foundation, but in the meantime, donations can be made to the foundation through Venmo to "CoachCCollins," through Cash App to "$phenixfitness23," through Zelle to phenixfitness23@gmail.com or through PayPal to sonics082@gmail.com. Collins can be contacted at 510-435-8873 or through his Instagram at "hoopstariam" for more information. Collins encouraged anyone to come by the Youth Basketball Academy facility and talk to him and other players about Williams. "I just want people to understand that we're hurting and we're trying to heal but I want the community to know that we're hurting together," Collins said. "We can heal together."