612 Project builds basketball players and people

Marshaan Johnson, left, and Terez Van Pelt, right, offer free strength and conditioning, basketball training, financial literacy workshops, mental health awareness, and nutrition education to 13 North Minneapolis athletes ages 12-14. Photo by Azhae’la Hanson 

By Azhae’la Hanson, Reporter 

Marshaan Johnson wasn’t the star basketball player in high school. Still, basketball changed his life. Today, he’s paying it forward with a new program at the V3 Center to offer free basketball training to local youth ages 12-14. 

The longtime Northsider and former Polar player and coach created Project 612 to give back to a neighborhood that was instrumental in his sports career. He hopes this is an opportunity to provide the resources that helped him overcome challenges growing up. 

“I’ve had a vision for something like this since I was 16,” Johnson said. “North Minneapolis helped develop me into the man that I am. I’ve always wanted to go and learn what I can come back and put it all back in the neighborhood.” 

Johnson said he didn’t have access to athletic training as a young athlete in North Minneapolis. 

“I wanted to make it big, but a lot of my basketball stuff early on, it was just me,” Johnson said. “Nobody ever worked with me constantly on my form or conditioning. It was also expensive, and we didn’t have consistent access to facilities. I figured it all out on my own. I watched YouTube and searched online to learn.” 

His first experience with high-level training was in college. There, he met a trainer named Ted Johnson, who inspired him to look at his future in basketball differently. He graduated with a degree in exercise physiology. 

“Basketball has always been my North Star,” he said. But by the time I graduated, I wanted to help kids that I saw myself in; I wanted to help kids where basketball is their whole life, but maybe they didn’t make the team or aren’t playing like they want and show them that the dream doesn't have to die there, there is so much more to the sport besides the court.” 

He met Erika Binger, V3’s founding director, who said it was exactly what the center needed. 

“The V3 Center was developed to provide space, programming, and opportunities for young people and families in our community – as members, entrepreneurs, and leaders,” Binger said. “Both he and his business partner, Terez, have a passion and heart for the young men in our community. This enables them to do even more with families while still expanding their business.” 

Johnson designed the 612 Project to be a comprehensive growth experience for the youth involved. The program offers strength and conditioning, basketball training, financial literacy workshops, mental health awareness, and nutrition education. Johnson aims to build "whole people"—not just basketball players through this program. 

“Our goal is to bring kids in through basketball, but we want to make them better, stronger individuals, not just on the court, but off the court too,” Johnson said. “I want them to learn discipline, handle stress, manage their finances, and understand their mental health. It’s about building character.” 

He said North Minneapolis challenges you to be the best version of yourself. 

“I feel like there's a lot of, like, hard-working people here, and there's not always opportunity for those people,” he said. 

Johnson is partnering with Terez Van Pelt, another trainer who runs TVP Academy in Burnsville. The two met and clicked immediately because they shared the goal of making high-level training accessible to inner-city athletes. 

“You have to have the means to participate in what we do,” VanPelt said. “A lot of kids don’t have that luxury.” 

The 612 Project currently serves 13 athletes, with each participant receiving a full year of training and a paid membership to the V3 Center. In addition to the thirteen athletes' admission into the training program, all thirteen of their families will also receive a year-long membership to the V3 Center. 

“When I was a kid, I used to live five blocks away from where the V3 center is today,” Van Pelt said. “I can’t even imagine how amazing it would have been to have access to the center. It's empowering to be able to give that to these kids.”