Montville — Before the concept of scouting services from every figurative Tom, Dick and Harry, there was Tom. Just Tom. A man whose concrete handshake could floor Vin Diesel, but belied the gentle soul whose words and deeds were sacrosanct.

Indeed, if you knew the great Tom Konchalski, you always walked away from the man feeling better about yourself. His hallowed HSBI Report — his life’s work that helped kids on their path to finding their life’s work — was required reading for college basketball coaches, an almost biblical breakdown of a high school kid’s game that ultimately found the right fit in the right program.

Konchalski died of cancer in Feb. 2021. But his memory lives on through the Tom Konchalski Foundation, celebrating his 50-year career that placed thousands of high school athletes. The Foundation is dedicated to raising funds to provide need-based scholarships and financial assistance to students who embrace Konchalski’s values.

And now our corner of the world gets to help.

The first — and hopefully not the last — exhibition series to benefit the Thomas C. Konchalski Foundation comes Tuesday to St. Thomas More. The Chancellors play NBA Africa at 4 p.m. before Putnam Science Academy plays the NBA Academy at 6. There is a $10 donation for admission to the gym.

“I bet Tom helped 400, 450 of our kids over the years,” T-More coach Jere Quinn was saying Friday in his office. “A wonderful man.”

Quinn, a fellow graduate of Archbishop Molloy High School in Queens, was one of Konchalski’s many friends. Konchalski was a frequent visitor to the pastoral province by Gardner Lake that’s only among the best college preparatory experiences in the country. Quinn and Konchalski share more than Molloy heritage. Their passion to help kids — mostly by telling them the truth — is why both have been Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame nominees.

Konchalski is a nominee for the Class of ’23. Put it this way: There are already inductees in Springfield whose paths became clearer because of Tom Konchalski’s recommendations. His induction is a bigger no-brainer than, “gee, do you think we should give the ball to Kareem here?”

Quinn and the Chancellors will play an NBA-sponsored team of African players all born between 2004 and 2006. They hail from Senegal, South Sudan, Chad, Nigeria, Mali, Angola and Egypt, among other countries. It may be the best game we see here all year.

“We want to do something in Tom’s memory,” Quinn said. “He never had a (cell) phone. Never had a computer. All he had was his word. And that meant everything.”

In the old days, before there were the self-proclaimed “talent evaluators” of today, there was Konchalski. He would see thousands of players and neatly type his thoughts. If Tom said you could play, you could play.

“There was just something about him,” Quinn said. “There was never anything phony. He was just an honest, decent man who clearly knew basketball, but wanted to make sure the kids he was evaluating found the right fit and the right place.”

The industry isn’t the same, of course. Social media allows a freer exchange of ideas, perhaps exposing some mammals for everything they don’t know. Konchalski might cringe at the idea that some more modern “talent evaluators” are happy to discuss the vagaries of a sixth-grader’s game now. What’s worse: Parents actually fall for it.

Konchalski’s memory — and the foundation in his name — doesn’t merely honor a good man’s name. It also recalls a time when scouting services were bigger on facts than hype.

Quinn hopes this becomes an annual thing. No reason why it shouldn’t. If you can’t make the event in the gym whose floor bears Quinn’s name, you can donate by visiting the St. Thomas More web page (https://stmct.org/donate/) and simply write the words “Tom Konchalski Foundation.”

Quinn and former Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski have written letters of support for Konchalski’s Hall of Fame case. There is overwhelming evidence out there sustaining the man’s character. Now we get to remember him this week, knowing that your $10 is going to help a kid somewhere. Exactly the way Tom would have drawn it up.

This is the opinion of Day sports columnist Mike DiMauro