Oscar Jimenez Coaching Beyond Basketball

In 1985, Oscar Jimenez founded the Mission Rec. Rebels AAU girls basketball program, which over the years has earned its reputation as the Bay Area s premiere basketball program, winning more district championships than any other club, and is considered one of the nation s elite. In December of 2010, Oscar died of lymphoma, leaving the thousands he coached throughout his three-decade career completely devastated. After his death, Oscar was honored citywide--major Bay Area publishers chronicled his impact on the community, he was recognized by city officials, and the Pacific AAU Girls District Championship tournament was named after him-- but yet there was still a significant group of individuals who have not been heard: his players. This book is a collection of letters, stories, and anecdotes written by generations of Rebels soon after Oscar's passing in 2010. Oscar is regarded as an icon in the Mission District and a basketball guru but to us he was more than that: he was a mentor, an internalized driving force, and a second father. He coveted and praised collective execution, growth, and fire--characteristics that he deeply instilled in each of us without us even realizing it. Oscar leveraged the sport of basketball simply as a platform to coach us as human beings and although this book is a tangible representation of Oscar's remarkable impact, his true legacy lives on through the daily manifestations of the values we learned through him.