What is Success?

     What is success? people interpret success  in many different ways. My perception of success has changed drastically over time. when i was young i was told no matter what happened if i just try my best i would be successful. win or lose i just had to give it 100%. At the time that was fine with me as long as i got my Gatorade and snacks at the end of a game. even if it was a blowout loss. but as i grew older Gatorade and Granola bars were not enough anymore. i grew hungrier and the only thing that could satisfy my hunger was victory. Every game from that point on was a must win. That motto of give it your all and you will be successful wasn't good enough for me anymore. so with that being so i formed my own idea of success. for me success was winning the game in the sense of the team and performing well for me to be successful. but in saying that success can only be achieved if you know failure. Michael Jordan put it best when he said, " i have failed over and over again, that is why i succeed. life is full of success and failure. it takes one to know the other. in the sense of my basketball career i have failed many times but i also have been successful.

What is beauty?

     What is beauty? beauty to me is the game of basketball. The greatest game in the world. just everything about it is hypnotizing. the beautiful silky layups, the smooth crossovers, the powerful jaw dropping dunks. ya you know its true. basketball is a beautiful art that only a few master in there life times.
     For me it is a trill. the joy of just been on the court and performing in front of hundreds of fans. dribbling, shooting, passing that round wonder we behold as a basketball. what is beauty. Basketball is beauty in my eyes.

music analysis

Music is like a key in basketball. not key to the game but like a literal key that opens doors. many people say music is the key to the sole and i agree. music can awaken a lot that is within you. i use music to hype me up before games and to make my self mad. not mad to the point i explode but a rage that can b controlled. when you are out on the court the other team is the enemy and you have to go out there and beat them. the type of songs i listen to before games have an up beat tempo with a lot of base. any song to pump me up and get the blood flowing in my body and the adrenaline racing. here are a list of songs below that i listen to personally before a game.

Lose my mind- by young jeezy
we ready- by Archie
cant be stoped- by roy johns jr.
remember the name-  by fort minor
forever- drake, Lil Wayne, eminem
mostly hip hop songs with the right beat and lyrics

Personal Philosophy

" hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard"
                                                                                          Tim Notke

     The buzzer sounded and the perfect season had come to an end with a heart breaking lost. I layed there in tears thinking why had this happened? How could this have happened? After all we were 22-0 and had been the favorites to win the tournament. so why did we lose to and average team with a bunch of average players.
     All this happened during my 8th grade year at the gold crown tournament. my team was compromised of prime basketball players from different schools. we had cruised through every game destroying every opponent we faced. Now that the playoffs had started we were four wins away from being tournament champs. But our chances had disappeared before the game even began, we just didn't know it yet.
     When we first got on the court and saw our opponents we were all smiles. they were short, slow, and looked nonathletic. we started goofing around and not taking warm ups seriously. When the game started we got blitzed and were down instantly. ?But we didn't care because we were more talented and continued to play lazy and with no effort. near the end of the game we were down and things started to get serious. We started hustling and working hard. we got it back to a two point game but there was only time for one more play left. the play wasn't designed for me to take the shot but somehow the ball got to me and i heaved up a prayer. as the time expired the ball bounced off the rim and we had lost. I was devastated.
     From all this i learned a very important lesson, you should always work hard no matter what. since that day i work my hardest at all that i do. weather its in games or just practice.

Another year of could've,would've,should've

     As i sat in the locker room after the last game of the season i began to reflect. all kinds of questions were running through my mind. Had i accomplished my goals? how did the season go despite all the loses? was this it? was my high school career come to an end?
     The 2011 season was a long season. it actually started at the end of the 2010 season for us. We had finished 4-19 and everybody was determined not to let it happen again next year. but once again this year was a disappointment. the team finished 8-15 and missed the playoffs by one game. we could've made it if we had won one more game, we would've made it if we had been more focused at different points in the season, we should have made it because this was suppose to be our year. But this happens every year. you hear the same could've would've, should have. Thinking and reflecting made me ask myself what happened to Hinkley. not just the basketball team but sports in general. what happened to the power houses of the 70's, 80's, and 90's? were did the state champion caliber competitiveness go? How can such prestigious programs just disappear? maybe we took a break for a decade. hopefully Hinkley will return to its former glory or at least compete at a high level once again.