Many coaches are caught up in the championships and awards, but Kevin Sutton is more concerned with his trophies – “living trophies.” Kevin describes these living trophies as the human beings that you pour into that have mobility and a voice, and along way they try to touch as many people as possible. Kevin’s number one objective as a coach is to create these living trophies, due to his belief that investing in people is more important than winning championships and awards. The idea of living trophies comes from his strong faith. He believes that God put him in this position not only for his coaching abilities, but for the greater goal of pouring into others and positively affecting as many lives as he can.

Sutton has built very strong relationships with many players and coaches over the years. One of his living trophies that he now has the opportunity to coach against is Nate James. Their relationship started back when James was a young teenager. Sutton was extremely impressed when he saw James playing in a competitive men’s league. After watching James play, Sutton approached him with the intent of recruiting him to St. John’s Prospect Hall, where Sutton was coaching. From that point on, they built a strong relationship that still lasts today. James went on to become a McDonald’s All-American and play for Duke University, where he is currently an assistant coach.

Sutton’s ability to pour positivity into his players has greatly impacted many of their lives. One of those players is Cameron Dollar – another player Sutton coached at St. John’s Prospect Hall. One of his most memorable moments with Dollar was when they were on the bus coming back from a late game. Dollar was a senior at the time, and they had been attending church together. On the way back from the game Sutton told Dollar that he likely would not be going to church the next morning due to their late return. After some convincing words from Dollar, Sutton finally caved. The following morning, Dollar gave his life to Christ. Sutton described it as “truly one of the most moving experiences I’ve ever had to be a part of.” Sutton’s investment in others has led to the blossoming of many people’s faith.

Sutton’s faith blossomed from a young age with help from his family. He grew up surrounded by family members who were strong in their faith. He and his family attended a local church, where his aunt directed the choir in which Sutton and his cousins sang. Though he had a strong foundation, going into his teen years, he started to stray away from his spirituality and focused more on basketball. During this time period his “praying grandmother” was praying that he would come back to Christ. Her prayers were answered when Sutton realized “what I really wanted to do and wanted to become I had to have Christ in my life.”

People who meet Sutton can clearly see evidence of his love for Christ. Though they can see that Christ has a strong presence in his life, Sutton believes that it is more important to live out his faith rather than force feed it on to others. Sutton shared, “I try to live my life in such a way that glorifies the Lord. I don’t set out to say I’m going to show everyone that I’m a Christian. I just try to live it out.” Sutton wants others to connect to him as a person first, which he hopes will lead to others being interested in Christianity. He uses his Christian lifestyle to help grow his players into men and women of God that they have been called to be.

Kevin Sutton uses his platform as a basketball coach to positively impact as many lives as possible and bring glory to God. Luke 12:48 “to whom much is given, much is expected” is Sutton’s favorite Bible verse. This verse undoubtedly relates to Sutton’s lifestyle and who he sets out to be. Sutton wants to give back to the game of basketball as much as he can, whether that be through his coaching or developing relationships with others around him. Though he is a great coach, he wants to be known for more than just his coaching. Sutton wants to be known as “a leader who used the game of basketball to touch and impact lives.” Kevin Sutton is well on his way of achieving this legacy by creating his “living trophies” who continue to pour into others.

Thank you to Kevin Sutton for taking the time out of his busy schedule to talk to me and my family and allowing me to conduct an interview. Thank you to him and his family as well for allowing us to watch his coaching in action and talking to us after the game. His words of wisdom have greatly impacted my life and my family’s lives as well.