Photos by Jewel Webber
For loved ones of the late Brandon Hendricks, Tuesday, July 7 was known as “Brandon Day.”
In memory of the rising basketball star gone too soon, friends and family gathered for a basketball tournament and vigil at Cortlandt Avenue and East 157th Street in Melrose at the same courts where Hendricks perfected his game.
Hendricks, just 17-year-old was shot and killed just a week after he graduated from James Monroe High School. On July 6, cops arrested his alleged killer, 22-year-old Najhim Luke, who was charged with murder, manslaughter and criminal possession of a weapon.
Those who knew Hendricks remembered him fondly as a “charismatic, humble young man” who News 12 reported would have been playing basketball at West Hills Community College in California this fall.
Hendricks’ uncle, Noel Ellison, told News 12 that a memorial where teams play basketball was the “perfect sendoff” for his beloved nephew.
