“Everybody tells me he was the best out there at anytime, anywhere he was,” Anderson said. “They told me how fast he was and how his jumping ability was and how sometimes they see that in me.”
Then Anderson got to know “The Blur” as more than a basketball legend. “From that first day I saw him, we clicked and I meshed with him,” he said.
Now Dayjaun Anderson is working to carry on the legacy of his late grandfather. Anderson, a senior at Ponitz, announced Tuesday his commitment to play college basketball at Wright State, the first school to offer him a scholarship.
@trice_travis @CoachNagy @AllenSpears14 @WSU_MBB #committed 🐺💚 pic.twitter.com/L5UyYzI56j
— DayjaunAnderson (@Dayjaun25) July 6, 2022
Anderson said playing close to home was a factor in his decision because he wanted his mother, Lamarrla Henry, his father, Dwight Anderson Jr., and many other family members to be able to see him play most of his games in person.
Dayjaun played more football than basketball when he was younger, but when he got to middle school and got to know his grandpa his focus shifted. For two years he spent a lot of time with his grandpa learning about basketball and life. Dwight Anderson, who had recovered from years of drug and alcohol addiction, told Dayjaun to focus on school and be careful about who he associated with.
The lessons on the court were not confined to instruction. Dwight was in his his late 50s when he got to know his grandson and was still in good enough shape to play and teach by example. They played together on Sunday mornings at Riverview Park because Dwight knew his grandson would get better playing against older and experienced players.
“Yeah, he could still play, and with me and him on the same team it was hard to lose,” Dayjaun said. “I liked playing with him. I wanted to be around him more, I wanted to learn the game, I wanted him to teach me. Then next thing you know ... it happened so quick.”
In September of 2020, Dwight Anderson died at 61. His grandson was devastated. They had talked about the future and how Dayjaun wanted his grandpa there watching him play, teaching him and helping with college recruiting.
“I didn’t want to believe it,” Anderson said. “Because the night before that, I literally had just talked to him. And next thing I go to sleep, wake up and hear all this bad news. It was tough. I ain’t gonna lie — I didn’t know if I was going be able to play basketball no more going through that.”
But Anderson thought about the legacy of his grandfather and kept playing. People started calling him “Baby Blur.” He’s been a three-year starter at Ponitz under Allen Spears and was the city league player of the year as a junior after averaging a league-high 19.5 points a game and shooting 48.9% from 3-point range. Like his grandpa, Anderson is 6-foot-3.
“Honestly, offensively, he doesn’t really have any weaknesses,” Spears said. “He can shoot at all three levels, and he can pass the ball. His biggest strength is that he’s offensively gifted, and he’s very athletic for a guard his size.”
Credit: Dayton Daily News Archive
Credit: Dayton Daily News Archive
Anderson wants to carry on his grandpa’s legacy by playing in college and making it to the NBA, where Dwight played briefly during the 1982-83 season for the Denver Nuggets.
“I want to bring his name with me and carry him along as I go and mention his name because I want him to still be in the process of what I’m going through,” Anderson said.
Hard work is part of that legacy and something Anderson remembers his grandpa for. Dwight asked his grandson about college interest when he was a freshman. Dayjaun said no coaches were talking to him yet. So Dwight told him to keep working hard and his talent would be discovered.
“His legacy, it pushes me to work,” Anderson said. “Anytime I’m in a gym, it pushes me to know that I’ve got a name above my name that I’m fighting for. So I just I appreciate the fact that he has a legacy and that I have the ability to carry that on.”
Spears didn’t want to overburden Anderson as a ballhandler his freshman season and risk hurting his confidence. The last two seasons Anderson has handled the ball more and developed into a combo guard with versatility the Raiders like.
“They could see clearly how he could fit into their system based on how we utilized him,” Spears said. “So they never talked about whether you’re going to be the one for us, or you’re going to be the two. I think they look at him as a basketball player.”
That’s a legacy Anderson wants to leave at Wright State.
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