Family and friends of standout basketball player Brandon Hendricks-Ellison said their final goodbyes Wednesday. 

They gathered at First Baptist Church of Bronxville for a private viewing of the 17-year-old who was killed just days after graduating high school. 

Hendricks-Ellison's family says they’re still coming to terms with the devastation and grief that he is no longer here. However, they tell News 12 that within their tremendous pain, they want people to remember him as a promising young man. 

 

They say he was a standout athlete who inspired those around him. 

Many tell News 12 they’re remembering him not by how he died, but how he lived his life - on and off the court. 

Those close to Hendricks-Ellison say they are still trying to make sense of why a young man with a bright future was taken from them in an act of random gun violence, which continues to plague the city. 

Family members say Hendricks-Ellison weighed several college scholarship offers and had big dreams. His teacher says the 17-year-old was an example to his fellow peers. 

Police have arrested 22-year-old Najhim Luke. He is believed to have shot Hendricks-Ellison and has been charged with murder, manslaughter and criminal possession of a weapon. He is due back in court next month.