Connor Basnight is a pickleball instructor, facility manager, and community builder based in the Kansas City area. He currently manages programming at KC Pickle Club and operates D3 Pickleball, having helped grow the sport across multiple facilities throughout the metro.

His entrepreneurial roots run deep. Connor started young — mowing yards, washing cars, selling things at swap meets — and eventually owned and operated a landscaping company for over seven years. That chapter shaped everything: how he leads, how he builds culture, how he shows up for people. He also learned something that stuck — he's not for everyone, and everyone's not for me. And he's completely okay with that.

Today those same instincts drive his work in pickleball. But if you ask him what he actually does, his answer is pretty simple: he helps people get out of their own way, have more fun, and connect with each other. The sport is just the vehicle.

Connor believes most of what holds people back isn't skill — it's the noise in their own heads. His coaching is positive but direct, focused on building real confidence and genuine connection. He measures success not by scores or ratings, but by the relationships built and the growth people experience on and off the court.

He is actively involved in the Northeast Johnson County Chamber of Commerce and is eager to continue growing his presence in the local business community through leadership, collaboration, and showing up for the people around him.