As San Diego Police Department Officer Amir Adieh was leaving the scene of a reported house fire in the Nestor community Tuesday morning, a few boys playing basketball in the street caught his eye.
Officer Adieh stopped his patrol car, walked over to the boys and joined them for a few minutes of shooting hoops.
"They seemed a little shocked at first, but they were more than welcoming," said Adieh when asked by NBC 7 about the kids' reaction to him wanting to join the game.
Teannia Crawford posted a video of Officer Adieh playing basketball with her sons and nephew to social media Tuesday afternoon. She captioned it “SDPD balling with the boys."
Crawford's sister, Ayana Ibarra, also shared the video to Facebook, adding "with all the craziness and injustice constantly rearing its head, just wanted to share some positivity. My son and nephews playing basketball with an officer from San Diego Police Department."
Crawford later told NBC 7 that "It was just nice to see that this happened," adding that the game left "good vibes" for her and the kids.
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The officer is assigned to the Juvenile Services Team at SDPD's Southern Division and has been with the department for more than four years.
Juvenile Services Team officers are responsible for a variety of roles relating to the safety of youth in and around the city of San Diego, including school Safety Patrol.
"Usually we are going to the schools, and more often than not, it may be for negative situations, so I like to have that positive interaction with the kids outside of school grounds," Officer Adieh told NBC 7.
Vincent Ibarra, one of Officer Adieh's opponents confessed that the officer was pretty good at basketball, and that it was fun to play with him.
