Ephraim Sloan (Navajo): A Dedicated Basketball Coach and Trainer in Arizona

By Dan Ninham

Ephraim Sloan is Navajo, 32 years old and is originally from St. Michaels, Arizona. 

“I have two teams that I coach, an All Native Girls Varsity travel basketball team called RUN n GUN and 12U boys basketball team called Wolfpack,” said Ephraim.

“I began coaching in August of 2015, starting with a group of girls that just wanted to learn the game, who had fun playing. It was something I’ve often thought of doing about a year after I started training players in the Phoenix area.”

“Growing up I played basketball and football in high school, eventually received a basketball scholarship to play for Scottsdale Community College (SCC) in Scottsdale, AZ for two years. After my freshman year at SCC, I red-shirted the following season as my wife and I were expecting our first son. I began working part-time and going to school part-time along with doing team activities such as practices, weight training, study hall, etc.”

“Out of all my athletic accomplishments, at the top of the list, would be when I finished my sophomore season at SCC,” said Ephraim. “During that time I was a full-time student, while working part-time as a Sports, Fitness & Recreation Coordinator at the Boys & Girls Club and being a father to our son who was a one year old at the time. That was probably the toughest eight months of my life, balancing everything out. The schedule was 5-8 am practices and weight training, 9 am-1pm classes, 1 pm-7pm working, and with family for the rest of the evening. Doing homework sometimes from 10 pm-1 am or 2 am in the morning, then doing it all over again. Being able to do that, it brought a different sense of accomplishment opposed to any athletic awards I accumulated over time. Any athletic accomplishment I ever received, I shared that honor with my past teammates, coaches and parents. We all get help from somewhere. So finishing my sophomore season, I had the support of my wife who was my girlfriend at the time. Without her, I doubt I would’ve lasted past the first semester.” 

“My tribal core values that define me as a coach are pretty simple,” said Ephraim. “To be proud of who are and where you come from and knowing your culture and language, and being proud to be Native American. I understood at an early age how much natives were often overlooked because statistically we don’t do well away from the reservation. Native athletes often leave college in the first year to return home to the rez. For me, I never wanted to be a part of that statistic, and it’s something that fueled me in high school. Anytime we faced a non-native team, I was out to prove natives could play and run with anyone. It’s something I have shared and did my best to instill in my past and current players I have coached. To this day, when I play in city leagues and tournaments, I still have that same mindset. With my teams, I try to have them keep that perspective in mind when they are playing as well.” 

“I give the credit to my dad talking about being a mentor and who influenced me,” said Ephraim. “The way he cared, coached, mentored his players and taught the game that’s pretty much what I do. He’s the one that first put the ball in my hands when I was about five or six years old. I wanted to be a ‘rez kid’ and play outside all day but he had other plans for me. My dad was someone players just gravitated toward, he kept our team close nit, never was one to go out getting the best players. For him it was about developing players, because he just loved teaching the game. He’d treat all his players like they were his own kids, which made his impact greater. That’s a coaching/mentoring trait that I am grateful to have.”

“Then there’s my mom, she kept me in line and level-headed throughout my high school career and all my life,” said Ephraim. “When I became a ‘star’ on the ‘rez’, she was the one to make sure all the attention didn’t go to my head. Not only that, she’s a strong woman in Christ and she was always there to make sure I prayed, read my bible, was thankful for the talent I had and to remain humble, and she still does to this day. Next would be my older brother. He helped toughen me up as a lot of older siblings do. He told me ‘when you are chillin’, someone else is getting better’. I never did like it when he said that but he did it for a reason. Having that kind of support system has definitely played a huge part for the coach/trainer/mentor I am today.” 

Pete and Laura Sloan, dad and mom, talked about their leader son: “Ephraim Sloan, a husband, a father, a son, a coach and a friend to many.  Our son ‘E’ short for Ephraim, has been a successful basketball player since about the age of five years old.  As his parents and coaches since early on we taught ‘E’ how to respect, have sportsmanship, trust and wellbeing.  But most importantly we raised him to love God and to always value God’s love for him.  We made time for ‘E’ to develop his skills, we traveled thousands of miles with him and the team we organized.  Our team played in hundreds of basketball events.  This is one of the ways as parents we were dedicated to ‘E’, his brothers, and our team.  ‘E’ always worked hard to accomplish his goal to earn a basketball scholarship and he did in 2007 at Scottsdale Community College (AZ). His father and brother combined coached him for many years the skills he learned on the court and how he was coached he’s now sharing with the youth.  His love for the game is exceptional and his desire to share his talent.  With this passion he’s been giving back to the community that he lives in.”

“He began his basketball training with the youth in 2014 whether it was on an inside or outside basketball court he trained youth of all ages,” said Pete. “Training the fundamentals of basketball to any youth that had the desire to learn and take their basketball skills to the next level.  He’s very committed to his training that he holds sessions on a weekly basis and he always makes time for the youth.  His trainees look up to him as a coach, a friend and sometimes as a parent.  His leadership skills on and off the court are amazing. He takes responsibility for his actions, motivates his team, and promotes a strong work ethic when training. He instills in his players to display the same leadership while they’re on or off the court.”

“I believe his positive attitude inspires his team to be successful. He began coaching his own girls’ team in 2015.  His team name Run N Gun had numerous successful players, with at least 12 of them earning scholarships for basketball at the collegiate level.  Some of the colleges his players earned scholarships to were Pima Community College, Scottsdale Community College, Benedictine University, Chabot College, Eastern Nazarene College, Azusa Pacific University, Chandler-Gilbert Community College and Mid America Bible College,” added Pete.

“To this day we still support ‘E’ in his basketball commitment and to help the youth and at times we travel with him for his team events,” said Pete. “His son, and our grandson, is now at the age of playing basketball too and ‘E’ has been training with him as well.  Again, also continuing the legacy his father started with him.”

“Over the years, I’ve seen my younger brother Ephraim dedicate his training to the next generation of native student athletes,” said Emery Sloan.  “He always made time to train players to bring them to the next level of basketball.  Those 5 am wake ups to opening the gym or finding a court outside, nothing stopped him or the dedicated players. At any age he would have the skill level to make you the player you want. His talent is something he never talks about but let the game do it for him, ever since summer Pee Wee tournaments, to high school going into college basketball. He set the role model for younger generations, and since then his passion was to help native students excel in basketball.”

“He gave opportunities for native players to experience what he did through the life of basketball. My parents always stress to ‘E’ to give thanks to God for his ability to play and teach. You keep him first in everything you do and he will direct your step. ‘E Hoops Academy’ represents two of his favorite bible verses. He’s a blessing to his family and his students,” added Emery.

“Since the start of the pandemic, I know it took an emotional toll on a lot of gifted athletes in Indian Country,” said Ephraim. “Most losing spring and summer sports, especially for 2020 graduates to compete one last time. For my players, I tried my best to remain in contact through phone calls, texts or social media. Checking in on them and their families often. That was probably the best thing I could have done at the time, showing support through all this especially to the ones who have been hit hard by the pandemic.”

“At times, trying to remain positive seemed like a constant effort. When I could, I would share a word of encouragement or a bible verse. Keeping them in my prayers daily, because prayer is a powerful weapon. When I felt that they were okay spiritually, mentally and emotionally, then I would check if they were ready to work out or train. Each of my players were different. I talk to each one differently, some the same, some not. Some needed that physical activity to help with their emotional, mental and spiritual state. Some need a nice training session to clear their minds while some need to do the opposite. Either way, I never forced them, and it was my job to be patient and supportive.”

“To help with their physical performance, I’d send workouts for them to do or use FaceTime to do skill work when social distancing was mandated. Throughout the summer, I would hold morning conditioning workouts and 1-on-1 skill sessions while practicing social distancing to keep them in shape. The perks of social media, it helped me to stay connected with all my players to assist however I could,” added Ephraim. 

“I attend Westwood High School and I started training with Ephraim Sloan a couple years ago when he would host skills sessions for anyone who wanted to be better,” said Kalayna Johnson. “He didn’t care if they were elementary, middle school, high school or college kids, he knew what they were all capable of and continued to push them to become a better version of themselves from when they first showed up.”

“He treated everyone equally, gave the ones who needed help extra attention, challenged higher skilled players, he knew what he was doing and it all eventually paid off,” added Kalayna.

“When I first started with him, my handles weren’t the greatest, my shooting wasn’t consistent, and I was a very shy person,” said Kalayna. “I eventually started playing with his team Run N Gun that he started many years ago and I was very lucky to become a part of it early. After being coached by him and learning, my all around game improved. My senior year this year is when I really started to realize how much I have improved since freshman year. I have gotten more confident with the ball, I shoot and attack the basket more, my free throw percentage is high, and I learned to communicate with my teammates a lot more on the court. He taught me how to be more confident and patient during the game.”

“It wasn’t until this year is when I really got close with him to the point where he became family,” said Kalayna. “He knew my strengths and weaknesses on and off the court.”

“Off the court, he works hard, has a nice family, and checks in making sure I am doing good in school, practices, and if I am injured,” said Kalayna. “He makes sure I take care of myself and really pushes me to do good in life. He is one of the people in my life that I can truly trust and call family. Personally, he is one of the biggest impacts on my life in the past year because of how hard he works to make sure I can be the best version of myself in the end.”

“On the court, he knows how to coach, how to help athletes improve their skill work, and knows the game very well,” said Kalayna. “Ephraim does not care about winning, he is the type to learn from the losses and continue to improve the next game.”

“He still does training and workouts with individuals including myself,” said Kalayna. “Over the summer he did early morning conditionings starting at 5 am, 6 am, 7 am or 8 am lasting about two hours. It consisted of running/sprinting up hills, band work such as defensive slides, verticals, and running, hurdles, and by the end of every workout your legs were toasted. He also did individual skill sessions. Those consist of dribbling warm ups, different combo moves, into different types of finishes, shooting from midrange to outside the 3 point line, post moves, working on handles, free throws, and just an all around game. All of the moves I use during the game are what we work on during practice and not many people get to see the ‘behind the scenes’ aspect of what he does.”

“Ephraim is a very good person, coach, father, mentor, and idol that many people know and love for all the work he puts in for his players,” added Kalayna.

Photo Credit: Ephraim Sloan