Before there was Flint Southwestern vs. Flint Central, before there was Michigan State vs. Michigan, there was
another rivalry game that helped develop Charlie Bell’s competitive instinct.
“As a little kid, my backyard was one of the hot spots,” Bell recalls. “A friend of mine used to live around the corner. It
used to be street against street. We played three-on-three, four-on-four in the driveway or in my backyard. Usually it was
Winona against Brownell. In Flint, it was a way of life.”
And Bell didn’t want to lose one of those neighborhood battles. Back then, it meant as much as winning a city
championship would in high school or an NCAA championship would in college.
“It was mostly just about bragging rights, going out and proving you’re the best,” he said. “Then you had to do that every
day, because if you don’t do it one day, the next day somebody who beat you is going to be talking junk to you. You may
win nine out of 10, but that one time is something people are going to bring up. Every day was super competitive. You had
to play hard. You can’t be calling ticky-tack fouls. It’s tough. It’s physical. It’s Flint basketball.”
To the nation, it became known as Flintstone basketball, thanks to the accomplishments of Bell and fellow Flint natives
Mateen Cleaves, Morris Peterson and Antonio Smith at Michigan State.
