Imhotep's Beatty to appear on HBO's Vice
When South Carolina shocked the college basketball world and busted brackets across the globe last weekend, Dave Beatty cheered loud and proud from his mother's home along the outskirts of West Philadelphia.
When South Carolina shocked the college basketball world and busted brackets across the globe last weekend, Dave Beatty cheered loud and proud from his mother's home along the outskirts of West Philadelphia.
The No. 7-seeded Gamecocks upset Florida last week to earn the men's team its first ever Final Four berth.
The No. 1-seeded women's team, coached by Philadelphia native Dawn Staley, also advanced to its second Final Four in the last three seasons. South Carolina became just the 10th school to send its men's and women's teams to the Final Four in the same season.
"It's been pretty amazing to see both teams make it to the Final Four," said Beatty, an Imhotep senior guard and South Carolina commit. "Hard work pays off, man. They've been working hard all season and kicked it up a notch in the postseason to get to the Final Four."
Friday at 7:30 p.m., Beatty will appear on HBO's Vice, which looked into the NCAA and the pay-to-play conversation surrounding college athletics in an episode entitled "End of Amateurism."
Beatty, a 6-foot-3 guard known for his feisty defense and thunderous dunks, was interviewed by reporter Gianna Toboni last summer about the sneakers that help him take flight.
The Vice crew spoke with Beatty at an Under Armour event in New York last summer while he played for the AAU team Philly Pride. Later, they traveled to the home of Beatty's mother, Deirdre Warren.
"Holy [crap]!" Toboni exclaimed during the episode while inside Warren's home as Beatty displayed more than 40 pairs of Under Armour sneakers.
Toboni then asked Beatty why he wouldn't just sell some of the sneakers, potentially worth thousands of dollars.
Beatty, who hadn't yet committed to South Carolina, explained that even though his family needed the money, selling those sneakers for profit would be a violation of NCAA rules.
Via phone this week, Beatty said he thought college athletes should get paid for their hard work that makes copious amounts of money for the NCAA.
"I think we should," he said. "I would say all players should get paid for what we do because the NCAA is bringing in billions and billions of dollars off all these college athletes, and we're not getting a dime for it. We're just working hard and just trying to get to the next level when, really, we're at a level where we get the same media attention as the pros do. But we don't get paid like the pros do, and we're just basically working for the NCAA without any pay."
Among others interviewed during the near-30-minute segment are Michigan State basketball coach Tom Izzo, sneaker pioneer Sonny Vaccaro, Texas Tech University athletic director Kirby Hocutt and one of Beatty's Philly Pride coaches, Antoinette Bennett.
During the HBO episode, Beatty was still a member of St. Benedict's in New Jersey. He later transferred to Imhotep. He had also previously played for Archbishop Carroll.
Beatty, who helped Imhotep finish No. 5 in the nation as ranked by USA Today and No. 2 locally behind Westtown by the Inquirer, also helped the Panthers clinch the Public League and PIAA Class 4A championships this season.
For now, Beatty is focused on watching his future teammates compete for a national championship this weekend and making sure he's ready to contribute next season.
"It just gives me a different feel for next year and how I'm going to get ready and how I've got to be ready next year," he said. "It just motivates me to get better every day because I know I'm going to be on the big stage. So I've got to perform."
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