Rasheer Fleming hopes his camp inspires Camden kids

Former Saint Joseph's standout and Phoenix Suns forward was back at Camden High on Saturday

Former Camden High star Dajuan Wagner (left) poses with Rasheer Fleming and Fleming's mom, Dana White, at Fleming's basketball camp on Saturday. (Photo: Aaron Bracy)

By AARON BRACY

June 27, 2026

Bracy Sports Media Newsletter

[Author’s Note: This story also appears at Big5Hoops.com. Click HERE to read it there.]

CAMDEN, N.J. – Rasheer Fleming returned to Camden High School on Saturday for a basketball camp—and for much more.

Fleming, the Camden native and Saint Joseph’s product who just completed his rookie season with the Phoenix Suns, wants the kids here to learn more than just driving, dribbling, and dunking. He wants them to be inspired, too.

“Let them know, ‘Look, they can do the same thing that I did.’”, Fleming said prior to the five-hour session that featured about 60 youngsters ages 10 through 16. “We all want to pursue the same goals. Just keep trusting in your work. Just keep trusting in God. At the end of the day, His plans for you will prosper.”

Sponsored by the Rasheer Fleming Foundation, the camp featured some of the area’s best youth and high school coaches. Also on hand were Camden legend Dajuan Wagner, 76ers reserve Justin Edwards, former Hawks teammate Anthony Finkley and assistant coach Chris Flegler, and many others. Fleming’s mom, Dana White, who oversees the foundation, and father, Rashee Fleming, proudly looked on.

“It feels good,” Fleming said of being back in Camden. “Just coming back home in general and being able to see my family and people I grew up around, it’s always a good feeling to come back.”

A Late Bloomer

Unlike Wagner, who is New Jersey’s all-time leading high school scorer with 3,462 career points, Fleming was not earmarked for stardom while playing on the court here. He transferred to Camden High from nearby Gloucester High for his final two high school seasons. After COVID-19 washed out his junior season, Fleming was just a reserve as a senior on a strong Camden team that was coached by Rick Brunson and starred Wagner’s son, Dajuan Jr.

The Hawks recruited Fleming on Brunson’s word and were convinced to offer him just by seeing him in a layup line, Flegler said.

Fleming went to Saint Joseph’s with a chip on his shoulder, his father said, eager to prove that he was more than a benchwarmer.

“That chip on his shoulder was everything,” Rashee Fleming said.

Wagner saw that determination when Fleming played on the AAU circuit with the NJ Scholars, a program in which Wagner was heavily involved.

“He put in all the work,” Wagner said. “He’s a great kid. He wanted it. He was a worker.”

Prospering on Hawk Hill

Flegler said the Hawks recruited Fleming with the thought of redshirting him for his first season, only to quickly change course when watching the talented, but raw prospect during summer workouts. Flegler described one memorable play where Fleming made a closeout block on a three-point shooter, going from the lane to the three-point line with ease and quickness.

Fleming showed promise as a freshman in 2022–23, averaging 5.8 points and 5.0 rebounds. But he needed some work on his shooting after hitting just 29.7 percent from long range. Always confident, in part because he drilled as a guard with his dad from the time he was four years old, the Hawks staff helped Fleming develop more consistent footwork and an elbow-high release on his long-range jumper. And Fleming’s intense work ethic took over from there.

He prospered as a sophomore and junior, improving in each season. He averaged 10.7 points, 7.4 rebounds, and hit 32.4 percent from long range as a sophomore. Pro scouts were even more encouraged when Fleming averaged 14.7 points, 8.5 rebounds, and made 39.0 percent as a junior in 2024–25. At 6-foot-9, 240 pounds and with an elite wing span of 7-foot, 5 1/4-inches, along with high character and the necessary NBA athleticism, Fleming was selected No. 31 overall in the 2025 NBA draft.

A Solid NBA Start

Playing on a very good Suns team that would finish 45-37 and make the playoffs, minutes were limited for Fleming. But he made the most of the time he got. In 12.2 minutes per contest over 55 games, Fleming averaged 4.3 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 0.4 blocks in his first NBA season. Though most of his rookie highlight reel features dunks and chase-down blocks, Fleming displayed the ability to connect from the NBA three-point line, making 34.6 percent (45 of 130) from long range.

“I think it went pretty well for the amount I played,” Fleming said of his rookie season. “I think obviously I can better. Excited for the next season to see how things are going to go. Overall, I think it went well.”

Secure with a four-year, $8.7 million deal that includes about $6 million guaranteed, Fleming appears to be in a good spot with a good organization to build on his first season. Asked what he wants to improve, he responded, “Literally everything.”

He did not have plans to stay in Camden for long, as Fleming was returning to Phoenix to prepare to play for the Suns’ summer league team for the second consecutive season. He wants to use this time to continue to get NBA-level reps while working on areas of his game that he wants to improve.

“Just reps with playing in general will help me,” he said. “I should be more comfortable out there, just doing a bunch of different things. While I’m out there, I want to do things that make me feel uncomfortable so I can kind of get used to it.”

Giving Back to Camden

Fleming intends to make the basketball camp an annual event in Camden. It is a chance not only to give back to the community but also recognize the support of everyone who helped him get to this point. That includes Mo Clark, who began training Fleming when he was 14 years old.

“Just trying to be a strong male figure in his life,” Clark said. “He’s already a great human being. Being the high-quality person that he is. He carries himself in the right, correct light as a good Christian. He’s just a phenomenal human being. He’s quiet and reserved. Once you get to know him, you see that vibrant person, that vibrant human being.”

Clark, like Fleming, hopes the camp can inspire kids from Camden and the surrounding South Jersey area.

“You’re trying to give these kids another outlet, another source to fall in love with the game and build strong core values as a person,” he said.

Wagner also sees the camp as an opportunity to positively influence youngsters.

“Show them they can be him,” Wagner said of the camp’s importance.

More than Basketball

The camp is more than just basketball, too.

White, Fleming’s mom, is a breast cancer survivor and is happy that the camp and the foundation help to support breast cancer awareness. Fleming and his family also want the foundation to impact beyond basketball. To that end, they awarded a pair of $1,000 college scholarships to two Camden teens who are talented musicians. Janiyah Whitfield, 18, attended Creative Arts High School in Camden and will be attending Berklee College of Music in the fall. Fatima Dickerson, 18, is headed to Tuskegee University after also prepping at Creative Arts.

“It was a huge surprise,” Dickerson said. “I am extremely grateful.”

Gratitude seemed to be an overwhelming theme here on Saturday, both for the campers, Fleming’s friends and family, and Fleming himself.

Fleming always has been a grounded individual with a strong faith, something a year in the NBA clearly has not changed. White said much of that comes from Fleming’s upbringing and some challenges that the family had to overcome. In addition to surviving breast cancer, White, a military veteran, came home safely after serving overseas.

“He’s seen what God can do,” she said.

Now, Fleming is passing along his gifts to the next generation.

“I’m so excited,” Rashee Fleming, his father, said, “because of the kids.”

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Aaron Bracy has covered sports in Philadelphia for nearly three decades for various publications and as a freelancer for the Associated Press. His first book, A Soaring Season: The Incredible, Inspiring Story of the 2003–04 Saint Joseph’s Hawks (Brookline), can be ordered HERE. His second book, Are You Kidding Me? The Incredible, Inspiring Story of Allen Iverson and the 2001 Philadelphia 76ers (Brookline) is scheduled to be published in February 2027. You can preorder it HERE. Follow Bracy on social media HERE. Contact him at bracymedia@gmail.com.