Blog Post: What We Can Learn From a NBA Hopeful

Yesterday Pursue the Passion dropped by the Long Beach Summer Pro Basketball League, a league designed for basketball players holding onto the dream of playing basketball professionally. Players that take the court have literally traveled the globe to realize their dream, playing in far off countries ranging from France to Bangladesh. We figured that if you could go to Bangladesh to play basketball, you had to be passionate.

Growing up these players lived and breathed basketball. It was (and still is) their life. All day long they would watch Michael Jordan and imitate his moves on the playground, imagining one day they would rock a NBA basketball jersey and get paid to play the game they love.

But something happens along the way of chasing hoop dreams. Players begin to do the math. One thousand colleges multiplied by twelve players on a team with only sixty annual NBA draft picks made by thirty teams equals a better chance at winning the lottery than being a lottery pick.

Once a player does the calculation they have two choices. Players can hold onto their dream of playing basketball professionally, or they can quit because they won’t make the NBA. It’s as simple as that. More often than not, the player quits his pursuit because of one reason…he doesn’t know about the possibilities.

“I’ve played in China, Bangladesh, Israel, France, Saudi Arabia, and Las Vegas, man.” said Antoine Broxsie, a six eleven power forward who graduated from Oklahoma State in 2002. “I just love basketball, and if they’re paying me, then I’ll go anywhere to play the game I love.”

Artis Grant, a level headed Long Beach State guard going into his junior year, was asked if he thought young players were aware of the possibilities to play basketball professionally.

“Most young players have their sights on the NBA, and have had them there since they were kids. Once they realize they can’t make it, they’ll quit and go do something else.”

“Are you going to quit if you don’t make the NBA?” I ask.

“Naw man. Obviously my goal is to make it to the NBA, but there are other ways of playing professional. Overseas and stuff. I’m not going to quit. I will play basketball professionally.”

Artis is averaging 1.3 points a game. Not your typical professional basketball player numbers. But Artis’s reply is our lesson learned.

As a young person in the workforce, the biggest obstacle we face is that we don’t know what is possible. We have our sights set on one goal, whatever it may be, and we see one way of getting there. If we don’t make the goal and things don’t go as we planned, then we begin to give up on the pursuit.

Narrow mindedness is our biggest shortcoming.

But just like we had no idea Bangladesh plays basketball, we have no idea about the endless amounts of ways we can make a living with our passion. There are many different paths you can take to do what you love. There are possibilities are out there, and it doesn’t matter if you are averaging 1.3 points a game or never attended an Ivy League school.

You don’t have to make the NBA to make a living in basketball, just like how you don’t need to work at the New York Times to be a writer. If Artis can find a way to play professionally in some foreign country because he loves to play ball, then we can find a way to do what we want, too.