Why I Love This Game...
The first sporting event I remember watching and really understanding was the 1979 World Series, a classic between the Pirates and Orioles. I was aware of baseball and football before that moment in time, but it wasn't really a part of my world. It wasn't until later in life that I began to watch and play basketball. I use the term "play" very loosely, because I was awful. I would panic every time I touched the ball, resulting in an embarrassing sequence of wild passes to players standing out of bounds, majestic three-point shots over the backboard, and generally glaring ineptitude. As a result, my playing career in organized basketball was short-lived, and I really didn't learn much about the fundamentals of the sport.
Still, I kept playing. One thing about football or baseball, it's hard to get pickup games going. As you progress in age, only serious players have a chance to play in any real way, organized or pickup. But anybody can play basketball, even if it's just four spastic geeks with no skills. You learn the game in your own way, at your own pace, and you have fun.
As I have grown older, I have continued to play. I have been fortunate enough to find a group of friends who have a regular game where my unique "style" isn't a total buzzkill. I'm still a Human Turnover waiting to happen; my movements on the court are as unpredictable to my teammates as they are to me, and that's not exactly a recipe for success. Still, we play, and we enjoy it. And, at age 33, I continue to try to learn as much as I can. Surprisingly, as my considerable physical talents gradually deteriorate into the abyss of middle age, I have been able to compensate by slowly learning how the game should really be played. Most of this learning comes in the form of helpful suggestions or exasperated looks from teammates, but it eventually sinks in.
Basketball has become a life sport for me; by the time I die, I might actually understand how to play the game, where and when to cut, how to run a break, etc. I don't think baseball and football have that same power. I still love those games, but my connection to them is a more academic one. I can learn the histories, I can learn about pitching patterns or how to recognize a zone blitz, but I'll never really be able to put those into play. I'll never play those games competitively again, even in a pickup setting. Any connection to actually playing those games is a connection to my adolescence, to nostalgia. Not so with basketball.
There's something about still being able to play the game and competing and learning. I can be 60, and hitting a three-pointer or delivering the ball to somebody making a back cut is still going to feel great.
Part of my learning process involves coaching a 14 and under girls team with my friends Katy and Brad. None of us are exactly Pat Riley, but we know and care enough that the girls get something out of it. It's a blast. During a search for rebounding drills yesterday, I came across this site: http://www.bbhighway.com/. It's packed full of educational material, with a coaching bent. Reading about the various plays has changed the way I watch basketball. Unfortunately, those changes have been slow to translate to my own game, but like I said, I'm a work in progress.
As a parent, I'm always conscious of not trying to push Linus in any given direction that he may not want to go. I don't want to force him to play a certain sport, or any sport at all. But if he were to choose one to play, I would hope he would choose basketball. There are a lot of reasons, but the most important one is this: Someday, we might be able to play on the same court together, and teach each other about a great game. By the time he's old enough, I might even know how to properly run a pick and roll. We'll make all the right cuts, switch on D, drive and dish, nail the three. Linus and I will rule the St. Luke's Sunday Morning Game with an iron fist.
Uh...not that I want to push him in any given direction...
11:45:18 AM 
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