When it comes to preparing kids for the future, every opportunity counts.

Just down the road in Shelby, Gabe DeVoe's name is synonymous with basketball, but today that story isn't about the points he scored.

Instead, it's about a different kind of win.

"Carolina Impact's," Dara Khaalid and videographer John Branscum have our story.

(screen whooshes) (upbeat music) - [Dara] It's a friendly but kind of intense game of basketball.

Sneakers squeaking on the gym floor, a little trash talking here and there, but lots of fun and laughter.

- Just like old times.

Just like old times.

That's what he could do.

He's behind that three point line.

Make magic happen.

- [Dara] Professional basketball player Gabe Devoe has played on courts across the country and now the world, but nothing compares to being back home in Shelby playing some ball in his old high school gym with the same kids who grew up watching him play.

- All throughout my high school career, they were here on the sidelines cheering me on and to know that the impact I put on their lives from a basketball perspective and it's been pretty surreal getting back in here with them.

- [Dara] The same fire you see now is the same one that burned inside Gabe in 2014 as a senior point guard dominating the court, eventually becoming North Carolina Player of the Year and helping lead his team to three conference championships.

- I'm sure he was asked by many people to transfer and go to different places, but he didn't.

He was loyal to Shelby High School.

He wanted to, you know, he wanted to put his names up on the wall.

He wanted to make his mark here.

- [Dara] He didn't stop there.

On a full ride basketball scholarship, he went on to Clemson University where he played his heart out until 2018, when he signed a deal to become a professional baller overseas.

Gabe now plays for Sella Cento and calls Italy home.

But every time he's back home.

- [Gabe] Which one you want?

Here you go.

- [Dara] He wants to make an impact and not just with the basketball.

- This is something that I had planned years ago and finally see it come to fruition has been very cool and rewarding.

- [Dara] He's talking about the book giveaway he's hosting at Changers Church in Shelby through his nonprofit, the Gabe Devoe Foundation, where they're giving away 400 books to kids in the community.

- That some of 'em don't get at home and so we try to, you know, motivate them from here.

- [Dara] Which is needed because according to the North Carolina Department of Public Instructions Report Card, 54.3% of students in Cleveland County schools are proficient in reading.

That's about five points below the state average.

- How are you all doin' today?

- [Dara] Local mom, Brianna McCluney says her daughter Chloe is doing well in reading but she knows the stats tell a different story for many students.

That's one of the big reasons she keeps bringing Chloe to the educational events, the foundation host.

- It actually encourages the kids 'cause now they have books and they'll say, "We got these books from Gabe and want to read 'em."

- She perks up a little more when she looks outside.

- [Dara] And as Chloe sits on the bleachers listening to Gabe read a book, she's full of excitement because he's an athlete just like her but also because he's inspired her.

- Make me feel good 'cause I know I can push myself to do better like he is.

- [Dara] It's a nostalgic feeling for Gabe, flipping through the pages of a children's book.

It reminds him of when he was their age.

- Growing up there was a lot of fiction, fantasy books, all the "Harry Potter" books, "Charlie Bone."

What's up, everybody?

- [Dara] Whenever he wasn't playing basketball, his nose was always in a book.

- School was very important to me and just as competitive as I was on the court, I was off the court as well, so I was always the guy that wanted to read the most AR books.

- [Dara] And just because he grew up doesn't mean he's outgrown his love for reading.

- And as I got older it's become more self-help books finances, things like that.

- [Dara] Which comes in handy because even though he's not a student in the classroom anymore, he is a student of life.

When he explores Italy and his free time, and as he's discovered there's a learning curve.

- [Gabe] Definitely the food.

Trying to figure out what you like.

Just even going to the grocery store and trying to shop for items and it being in a different language.

- [Dara] Despite a few adjustments that come with having a career abroad, Gabe tells me there are perks that come with it too.

And not just for him.

- My dad had never been outta the country and for him to be able to come to France, come to Italy, my mom being able to come to Lithuania, some place she never would've been to, been very rewarding.

- [Dara] All of this is just his way of saying thank you for their sacrifices over the years and for instilling in him the importance of excellence and academics.

- I think in a household it was like never questioned.

Reading was a huge part of their lives.

They did it every day after school.

- [Dara] And as they all reminisce at the Shelby High Trophy case, his parents also taught him the same standard for excellence applied to sports.

- Oh, you said a lot of records, you've broke a lot of records here, and a lot of records you've set, they still haven't been broken as of today.

- [Dara] Gabe's international career doesn't leave much time in Shelby, but when he is home, he makes it count using basketball and reading to build a legacy that'll last for generations.

(Gabe claps) For "Carolina Impact," I'm Dara Khaalid.