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I'm your host out there. If you're looking for a spot to hear all the great stories at the Athletes of St. Xavier University have to offer, then this is the right place to be. Today's athlete is Jordan Streeter, telling from Chicago, Illinois he is a card on an S-X-U men's basketball team.
Alright, I spent enough time in the back ward. Let's get to this interview. Jordan, thank you so much for taking the time out to come and do this interview, man. No problem, any time.
So, basketball. Take me through what got you into the sport. Man, I've been playing basketball since I can remember. Probably started the ball when I was three years old, watching LeBron growing up.
He was drafted the same year I was born, so I was all I was here and growing up was a LeBron James. That was my favorite player since. That's just how I started just being open. Oh, you were two thousand three kids, too.
Nice. I'm a two thousand three kids who, man, old three squats, and I'm saying. Yeah, three. But, yeah, I mean, obviously, you've been accustomed to the sport all your life.
You grew up playing it. But, you know, at what point did you start to feel like, alright, this is something that I seriously want to do. I want to try to join a team or something. I would say, it was really my fifth, sixth grade year when I really started playing basketball.
So, that's really when I was there. I really started getting into it. But when I was at KX to play, like, Park District, Beaglin, Too Crazy, by the same time, I was at the fifth, sixth grade, but I really started getting into it. Okay.
So, obviously, you know, this is a city that craves basketball. You know, and this is a city that, you know, takes its basketball very seriously at every level. You get from the Bulls to the high schools. And obviously, you got a chance to play at Whitney Young in a school, literally Daphne, Chicago.
Yeah, middle Chicago, right, right. Five minutes from Madison, Madison, there's that. Yeah, dude. What was that like, man?
What was the atmosphere like just being around that environment? Man, when you, when you young was a, it was a great school to play for, especially like basketball being one of the top, we were at top 25 in the nation. So, I feel like that gave, that gave me a lot of experience, especially through practice playing with a lot of, a lot of good guys. We had a great group, my junior, and senior, even with COVID, we had competitive practices all the time.
So, I feel like that just sets me up for it, especially now in college, being around the atmosphere. It was great. Your freshman year was the 2019-20 season? I came in 2018.
So, 2018-20-19. Oh, okay. So, yeah, you, you've had a lot of experience. Yeah.
Obviously. And if I'm not mistaken in 2020, it was a 21-22 season where you guys made that run down the, down the state. I know it probably didn't end the way that you wanted to, but how fun is it to just go on a deep play off run like that, man? It's, it's, it's just something, you really can't just ride like feeling of having practice, knowing that you're about to go down the state, going down the state, playing, running like your whole school, basically.
It's, it's, it's, it's unmatched. Yeah, dude. I mean, and not only that, but you've had some, you've had some close games along the way. And obviously, you know, those are moments that basketball players, you know, they think about, you know, and they dream about being, you know, you know, close game, kind of do or die environment, doing, you know, this, if we, if we clutch up, we move on, if we don't, we go home.
I mean, what is that, you know, what is that, you know, pressure like and what is, you know, what are those moments like when you know you're in that situation? Honestly, I really, I really try to, I really try my best not to have the pressure around you, but I know it's there. But I feel like as a Hooper, I feel like all Hoopers can relate to just when you're just not really thinking about hooping and you're just letting, like, the game come to you, I feel like that's when you're playing at your best and you're really not trying to force anything, you're just letting everything come to you. So I got to ask you, because obviously since the Barrington game was a close one in this, it was the state semis.
I mean, 51 to 47, that's, that's a close game in my book. And if you, if you ask me for high school basketball standards, that's a pretty defensive, that's a pretty defensive score. You know, what do you, what did you think about, you know, going into that game and going out of it? Like what was the experience like to, you know, go through a game like that and, you know, give literally one of the biggest wins of your life on that night?
Honestly, I feel like when we came out, I feel like we kind of underestimated them because we thought they didn't have like the guys we had in the town we had. So I feel like when we went into the game, knowing we kind of thought that we had the game one before we actually won it. So I feel like that's a close game. But being able to come out with that victory, that that was definitely huge for us.
Yeah, I know, man, it's, it's sometimes you come on the right side of it. Sometimes, you know, you don't. And obviously when you guys tried to run it back, ran into a pretty good downers growth more team that was upset minded. Knowing that that was, you know, that was kind of, you know, it for you, you're seeing you here.
You know, obviously you had to think about where you were going to school next. What made St. Xavier the place to be for you? Honestly, a lot of it came from my sister because she had, she went to the school as, you know, you know, I feel like just like that friendly environment and like also the coaching staff made me feel very welcome to here.
So I feel like, I feel like that's really what it was. It was just the coaching staff, like they were being, they're all good people. I knew them previously. So I feel like just building that connection with them and that bond really made it somewhere I wanted to go.
So you were already very familiar with the SSU basketball program. So you came here. How often had you came to your sister's games? I can't almost probably every home game I could do because my mom, she was always going as I was like, I might as well go if I had a game, I was in that practice.
I was, I was here. So I feel like that really just, it just furthered further my connection with it with SAC one and come here. Alright, so then I can finally ask someone this. Can you, can you verify for me that those teams were always having fun?
Yeah, they were always having fun. My sister, she made it seem like it was the best plan for SAC. Oh man, I'm telling you, bro. I'm sorry.
I've been covering like the team for a couple years now, bro. They are energy is like, like when they were at their best, bro, energy is crazy. Their energy was nuts through the roof. Every game is through the roof.
Good, good competition games every time. It was, it was awesome, bro. And as somebody that like covers the sport and even someone that just watches the sport, it's just like the way that they played basketball, especially on the defensive man. It was so much fun to watch watching the play.
So much fun. Yeah, I mean, the grit and the grind was always, you know, you always saw it within them. And it was just like, it was so cool to watch them. Obviously they're in a completely new era now.
Yeah. But you know what, they still have fun. They're still having fun. And obviously you have, you know, recent former players is, you know, some of your coaches, you know, some of that carries over.
But obviously you came here and, you know, you want to hoop here and you earned yourself a starting position as a freshman. I mean, how's the season been going so far? You know, we're only a month in, but you know, what has been your first impressions of college basketball? Honestly, it's a lot different from any basketball that I've played.
I would say it's a lot different from, perhaps a lot different from high school, especially high school. I feel like I feel like it takes a lot to win in college. I feel like you have to have five guys that buy into what a coach is saying for you. You can't just have one or two really good players and they can just carry the team throughout the whole season.
I feel like you have to have different pieces and you have to have that. You have to have the discipline to win basketball games. I would say. Yeah, discipline is a big thing that, you know, gets stressed a lot and basketball on any level nowadays just because of how fast pace the game is becoming, you know, how decision making can really make or break a game.
I mean, how much advice do you, you know, take in from your coaches and even from your sister from time to time about how to succeed at this level? I feel like it's a lot of coach based driven boss. I feel like it's a lot of peer based driven as we have a lot of you have a senior. I'm pretty sure you might be senior junior, but we have a senior, I said to Johnson, I feel like I really, I really look at a lot of stuff he does because I feel like he's been playing for so long.
I feel like he has a lot of knowledge. I feel like listening to those older guys. I'll be a people like Sando and Dre who are juniors on the team. So I feel like really listening to them and like, because they've been where I've been and I'm trying to get to where they've been because they've been producing a lot.
So I feel like just taking the advice and just taking as much knowledge as I can so I can better my game. Yeah, you bring up a good point with, you know, the veterans on the team because for the second year in a row and even before you came here, the team last year was completely different from the team the year before that. And this year's team is, you know, it's obviously, there's a lot of new faces including you. Yeah, a lot of freshmen, a lot of transfers.
But Cedric Johnson is one of the veterans and obviously you brought up how, you know, you kind of look at what he does and you know, you see, you know, how it's done, just like that. You take in the knowledge, man. That's all it is. It's just gaining knowledge.
It's just gonna be better. So obviously, we're a month of this season, you see, you know, you've had some rough ones, you've had some good ones. What do you feel like the team needs to do to, you know, be a real championship contender come March? Honestly, I always say playing as a team.
So I feel like we have a lot of great pieces individually. And I feel like if we can make making more of a team oriented and be like simple things like passing the ball around getting people over shots, getting a great shot every time down. And I feel like that comes with those extra passes, those, those one more passes, passing up a good shot for a great shot. I feel like we can get a great shot every time down and we can be buying on defense.
I feel like we have a great chance of making a run. Yeah, I can agree with that because a thing that has always been a focal point with, you know, at least the men's team has been consistency. Like we always have, you know, good pieces. That's, that's, that's almost a given.
Right. But obviously, every team is different. And you know, different players have different tendencies and different instincts. But Jordan, I got it.
I got to ask you, man, as we, as we go along the season individually, what do you feel like you want to improve on as a player? And how do you feel like you want to, you know, develop as a player? I feel like a big thing for me is just confidence just having the confidence to go out there every night and just know what I'm capable of and doing that to my greatest ability every night. So I feel like I feel like if I can just stay confident, especially last night's game, I feel like was the, was the most confident I play with, I career high at 13 points, I feel like I can just keep that confidence building.
I feel like I can even, I can do more than I did last night. Yeah. And you know, let's talk a little bit about last night. It was a big game.
Obviously, you know, had to get rid of a phone, get out of a phone. And obviously it was the first conference hole in game of the year relatively early, but yeah, it was when it was when it was, but you guys come out and you get, you get a W wired wire. And you know, you guys, you guys played a complete game, you know, a real complete game. I mean, is that kind of like the formula to, you know, success, playing a complete game and, you know, playing good, good defense and still generating good shots on the offensive end?
I always say that I feel like putting two, two, 20 minutes, half together in college basketball is very hard. We have to, I feel like competing. I feel like that's the main thing competing on defense for the whole 40 minutes and good and great shots is how you doing the game. So I feel like just going out there with high energy to especially start off the game because we have bad some games, we come out kind of flat.
So I feel like coming out with that, with that same good energy that we had last night is what's going to, is what's going to contribute to a lot of Ws overseas. Yeah. And you guys got a lot and I mean, a lot of open looks throughout that game. I mean, is this something that you guys, you know, game plans about going into the Judson game or did it just so happen that you guys just got open shots?
I feel like it's one of those things that since it's such a new team, we haven't been playing together for a while. I feel like we haven't like really had that in-game chemistry to like kind of start. So I feel like now we're kind of getting the flows or trying to, we're getting used to people's strengths, people weaknesses where to find people. So I feel like we're just, we're kind of starting to click a little bit.
Yeah. And that's what we expected when you have a new team, right? I mean, you know, you're not going to just, you know, run the table all the time. You know, sometimes you have to, you know, get better as a team.
Yeah, you got to build that chemistry. Not really, you can practice all you want, but chemistry and practicing chemistry and games is completely different. So I feel like just getting that experience with each other and just building that chemistry on court is a great key for success for us. Yeah.
And obviously, I don't know what it's like in the locker room, but you know, outside the locker room with, you know, with us on campus, a storyline is, you know, outside of, you know, said and Andre, you know, who else is going to be able to contribute. And that question was answered a lot last night, you and Sando and, you know, James, you all contributed in a complete effort. How good is it feel to, you know, you know, have your teammates back and, you know, give them the support you guys need to win games? It feels great, honestly, because I feel like that's something that I should have been doing, but I can't be mad at myself for not doing it because I am a freshman in the day.
So I feel like I have to get more acclimated to especially a new team and new program on that. But I feel like I'm just finding my way and just trying to do my best to help the team win. So going down the road, you know, we're heading into December. You guys have all your guys already, you know, your six games of the season, you're digging into a little bit of your conference schedule.
Just a little bit over the winter, of course, you'll be traveling a little bit. But you know, as a student athlete, you know, how does it feel to, you know, have to, you know, juggle college basketball with, you know, being a college student, have you gotten adjusted to the college life? Honestly, I'll say I'm adjusting pretty well. I feel like it's more of just, it's really just time management.
I know that sounds kind of cliche, because that's like one says is you have to manage the time well, this and that, but I feel like that's really down to close. I know me personally after practice, homework is, is it the struggle? So I feel like what I really try to do is I try to get all my homework done before practicing the day whenever I can so then I can take that time, like relax it. I can mentally, I can mentally refresh myself and not have to worry about all the things that comes to college.
Yeah, I know a lot of student athletes talk about that exact same thing, just being able to manage the time properly. It may be a cliche, but it has true fine. Yeah, because if you, if you miss one thing here, miss one thing there, the next thing you know, you're up till 2 3 a.m. time, you homework, and then that carries on to the next day, you're tired of practicing this.
That's just a plan for failure. Yeah, I mean, we've talked about the athlete side of it, but obviously you are still a student. So I want to talk about what you're doing out here besides basketball. You are a business management guy, yeah?
Yeah, sorry, business management. I'm trying to, I'm really trying to get business management and I'm really trying to get my MBA after college. So I might be looking into grad assistant options after college if that's possible, trying to make that money for. I was just about to ask, what about business management?
What is it about business management that intrigues you? What makes you passionate about pursuing this major? It's really because ever since I've really been a kid, I've always kind of been interested in new ideas and coming up with my new thing. So I felt like I really want to form that into having my own business and running a business.
So I feel like with business management, I'm really trying to get internships and work in business so I can see what the business side of it is without going headfirst into it, making all kinds of mistakes that I wouldn't make if I had that experience before going into it. Do you have any business people in your family? No, I'm not that I know of, in my immediate family know, but in my cousins and my uncles and all of them, I don't think anyone else does business. I can relate, man, because I'm a, I mean, it might be plain and state to some people, but obviously I'm a sports guy.
I like talking about sports. I kid you and I broke my family, like growing up, my mom thought that I was going to be a pharmacist and my dad thought I was going to be a mechanic. It took completely different things. And I'm just like, I'm just like, a yo, I don't want neither of these.
And I'm like, and the reason why they thought is this is because they thought that I had the brains to do it, which I'm not saying I don't have the brains to do it, but I'm like, dedication. Right. Yeah. I mean, me personally, I don't know about having the fate of people's lives in my hands.
Yeah. Like, that's why I said no to pharmacy and then being a mechanic, I got the fate of a person's vehicle in my hands, which is ultimately their life too. It's a completely different ballgame. You're dealing with, you know, other people's lives and other people's belongings.
Yeah. I'm like, I don't know. I don't know. I don't know.
I may one suite if I make one slip one wrong thing, following you. Oh man. And that's the worst feeling, bro. I've seen some people from a bag like that, right?
I don't want to go down. I don't want to smoke with that, bro. But I'm like, let me just ease into this little sports talking industry. See if I can get anything out of it because I ain't gonna lie, man.
I mean, I tried to, you know, be a hooper like you, you know, be a hooper like you know, you and the guys and stuff like that. But I, you know, it just didn't work out. I got beat out. I know it happens.
It happens. Yeah. So, but I just thought of the idea. I'm like, oh, well, if I can't be an athlete, I might as well talk about it.
You're still around this. Yeah. As close as you can get. As close enough.
Right. And it's been fun. And it's like, it gives me a different perspective. And it kind of kind of makes me, you know, get a second hand, you know, visualization of what it's like to be an athlete.
Right. Because, you know, I've obviously been in camps and stuff like that. I've never really been on a legit, you know, full-time team. And it's just like, you know, getting that, you know, getting that second hand experience, that second hand account is like, man, that's what it's like.
Yeah. It makes you look at things different. Yeah, for sure. Yeah, dude.
But obviously when you're not, you know, pursuing business management and you're not on the hardwood, you have life. So, I mean, what are your hobbies, man? What do you like to do? Honestly, man, love playing game.
Love playing PS5, Madden, 2K. I fly. That's really what, where I find my, my mental relaxation is doing playing video games. It's just the way for me to chill.
I'm off my feet. So I'm resting. Other than that, probably sleeping. I love sleeping.
I take a lot of naps. Love sleeping. I go to sleep early. I love being in bed.
So really, if I'm not school, basketball, I'm either on the game playing virtual basketball or sleep or doing homework. I really don't do too much, honestly. Over the course of, you know, your college life, man, you are going to find a lot of people that are in the same boat because a lot of people love sleeping. Yeah, I have to.
Yeah, I'm like, oh, yeah, I have to. If I don't get my sleeping, if I'm tired, I can't get a nap in. The rest of the day is just down the hill. Oh, man.
It's, it's, that's, I've never been in those situations where it's like, man, I didn't get, I didn't get a good night's sleep. You get like five, six hours. Then they, then they got a whole day in front of you. You're waking up and you just, you just feel tired again.
I'm like, I feel as tired as I do when I went to sleep. I'm still tired. I'm just like, and I got practice. And I'm like, I know I'm not gonna have energy for practice.
So it's just like sleeping is key, especially for recovery, sleeping is key. Yeah, dude. And we talked about a little bit of this off air, but obviously it's a difference between being a high school student athlete and being a college student athlete. It's, it's vastly different night and day for sure.
Bastly different. And I mean, I mean, I, I mean, have you been, have you gotten accustomed to how good it feels to have more free time than you did in high school? I'm loving it. It's so much better.
Not being, not being stressed or having to stay at school for eight hours a day and have two, three hours of practice afterwards and have to come home and do more homework versus college. I can just, not necessarily chill, but I have more, more free time throughout my day. I would say to do give food, to chill, play the game, do homework, there's so much more time management I can do, makes it so much easier. Yeah.
And I always tell, tell the athletes that I come on the show. I don't know how you guys do it sometimes because I look, I look at these schedules and I look at the workloads and they tell me all these tall tales about how many practices and how long they are. And I'm like, how do you operate? I was like, I mean, obviously anybody that's not a current student athlete will say, oh, I can never.
And it's just like, it's like, bro, it's like, I mean, I got to give y'all credit because y'all, y'all got some good time management skills. Because I mean, I don't know if I'd be able to juggle a sport and school at the exact same time at full force. It definitely does get difficult, but that's just a sacrifice you got to make for something you love. And I feel like anybody loves something they're gonna make time for.
So something's gonna make time for us all this. Yeah. And obviously the love of basketball is strong. Yeah, for sure.
It's strong. And it's, and for me personally, I'm grateful that it's an easily accessible sport. Because it's like, a lot of people are turned to basketball, because you don't need, you know, a baseball bat in a glove, you don't need a helmet, you don't need a helmet. You don't need a ball and a hoop and you can have some, you can make a lot of good memories.
I mean, you can literally draw up the dimensions of a court and you're on back. Are you good? I don't know. Some people, they could, you know, use a chop, you know, make a whole court on concrete, this off memory.
Oh, man, in the days of sweet, I mean, you have any memories of like, you know, playing basketball and casually, whether it be in the park or backyard or anything like that. Yeah, especially my, my hoop at home, I thought about my friends come over, you said, play two, one, two, three, Porsche Pig, anything can name it. Just, just having fun with basketball. Oh, man, I know this is gonna be a hard question to ask considering, to answer, excuse me, it's not gonna be hard to ask.
But I mean, what are some of your favorite basketball memories in general? I mean, I know there's gotta be a lot of them. I know. That's hard.
I know, I know, man, but I had to ask, bro. Honestly, my, one of my top memories, I can, I can, I have the video too, but it was my first ever dunk. I was in eighth grade and it was, it was right, it was right before game was my first ever dunk. I remember how it took me like 20 attempts.
I was in there trying to forever. And finally, I got that one. I was so happy with, I was so happy. I remember my afterwards, my dad promised me, he said, if you dunk right now, you $50.
So I was like, I'm gonna sit here and try to, until the game starts, I don't care. And I finally got afterwards. I paid. Oh man, $50 done.
$50 done. That's awesome, man. That was probably one of my top memories of basketball. Yeah, that's definitely going into the description on this one.
Jordan Street, the $50 done. But yeah, dude, that's awesome, man. To get, that's a cool little bet right there. It's like, hey, son, you get $50, you give me, you plus that month.
I was sitting there so long. I'm, I'm sitting at time like, I have to. I have to. Finally, I got it.
I mean, did you, did you have a fear that, you know, like coaches would stop you from doing that or? Honestly, my coaches, he was like, hey, do it every once. You got to do what you got to do. Get that $50.
I was like, say no more. I'm gonna do it. Exactly. I have to do it.
I was like, I knew exactly what was up. Oh, yeah, he knew. He knew. He knew.
Especially my, my, my, my middle school coaches, named Mr. Rides. He's one of, he's probably one of my favorite. He was also my gym teacher from my school.
He was probably one of my favorite teachers of all time. He was, he was such a cool dude. Great guy. I miss Jim, bro.
Yeah, Jim. Jim, grammar school. That used to be the best. That used to be so much fun.
I mean, did you ever feel like you had to kind of take it easier where you just always, you know, tell me. Oh, no. Always, because especially from my school, we had, we had a really like talented group. We had a good six, seven guys who were good at like all sports.
So really be us kind of competing because we were always guarding each other. We always, if it was basketball, football, handball, soccer, whatever it is, we're always guarding each other. So we always trying to, we're always trying to do one another. So we always competing.
There was so much fun. Man, that is awesome. And I, that's, that's like the most experience I have with, you know, team sports. And it's like them, Jim class is really, really, you know, got the competition out of people who weren't able to get on those teams and all I'm saying, it was just like, man, it was always fun.
It's so much fun. I know back in middle school, this is one of my, you know, iconic moments on the market. I know I was in, I was in middle school. It was a great, really a week before graduation.
It was the last like, Jim time, it was the last free time session. And it was just playing two ball. And I'm like, Hey, let me play two ball. And he was like, Oh, and I'm like, Oh, it was like, bro, you can't who even though I had been playing basketball, you know, with them literally entire year.
And I'm just like, I mean, on and off, I'd be they back in middle school. It was like, I was the kind of guy you picked last. And it was like, I'm like, and I take it personally, because I'm like, I ain't that bad. You know, like, I'm better some of these people.
Yeah, it's just like, you know, it's like, you know, it's like, you any part of a click, right? It's like, they don't know what to make it. They don't know what to do about. Right.
Yeah. Yeah. It's like, you got to climb your way up the totem pole. It's like, I, I bet, I bet.
All right. I'm gonna show y'all, you know what I'm saying? And it got to a point where the gym teacher was like, what's wrong? I'm like, they want to let me play, man.
And I was like, all right, I'll change that. I said, really? Yeah. And then there was another dude that wanted to play.
He was, you know, more so hard to click than I was, but he wasn't, you know, known for being as good at basketball. Right. And so, coach, not coach, the gym teacher, was like, Hey, guys, loser gets off and just replaced by a jotham and this guy. It was like, Oh, bro, come on, man.
Man, you get, why, why, I'm trying to play a bro? This ex-witted kid. And I'm like, and I'm just, I'm just standing, I'm intimidated. Like, it was mad, bro.
They was like, actually mad that I was actually fun to get to play. And I'm like, dang, it's like, right, like, I hate me that much. I'm like, what'd I do? I just, I was the nerd that wants the hoop.
I'm just trying to hoop, man. He was trying to jack up some shots, make the net go swoosh. All right. That's all it is.
Yeah. So, I get a chance to, you know, play, you know, to ball, you know, you know, I goes, you got to start with, you know, under the basket, ball, throw it out, freaking smoke the layup. And they exploded. They're like, Oh man, this, this ex-witted, bro.
And I was like, man, get this ex-witted, off the court. And I was like, man, that was a person that was vicious, bro. And I'm like, dang, so I'm trying to keep my composure. I'm like, all right, let's just start by getting my make this layup and letting this dude get his breeze off.
Right. All right. And I make the layup. I'm like, all right.
So I'm just like, all right, rebound a dude. I get to settle in, get a feel for the ball, whether he makes it or misses it. And by the time that it was my turn to shoot my threes, because I'm a second, you know, I, we were both at the same spot as my opponent. And I was going up against the dudes that were actually on the basketball team, dude that was actually a good player too, if I'm not mistaken.
Like one of the starters I've been, um, it's been a long time. But I'm like, he was on the team. So I'm like, I'm like, okay, so I'm going up against this dude that has that rep. Right.
And I'm like, I'm like, I can't miss this opportunity. I'm like, I got to prove myself. Right. But for whatever reason, after the other cool dude, my teammate at the time, he got through his breeze, they're all started to be like, all right, I'm gonna see what you got, let's see what you got, man.
And I'm like, oh, now y'all want to, y'all want to be some boy positive. Right. Right. Now this is, I'm like, I mean, I'm a little late to the party, but I'm glad you're doing it.
So I, uh, I didn't hit my first shot. I missed a couple, but eventually I hit the corner shot. All right. All right.
I'm going. Okay. Okay. Okay.
Joplin. And we went back and forth, um, throughout the perimeter. It was like, I made one that he made two and I made two and he made another one. And all of a sudden we're both at the lap.
We're both at the second corner. And I'm like, I'm like, all right, come on. And we both just started breaking from that corner, bro. I was, I was tired so much adrenaline through my pain.
I was like, Oh, man, just take a lie out of me. But I got to get shot through. I got to hit the shot. You got to do stuff, bro.
And I just remember, I had missed like five in a row and I just stopped and I just took a breath. I closed my eyes and I took a breath. And even though I let the dude get up another shot. So I heard someone say, bro, what are you doing?
And I looked up and do him as the shot and I just laced it up. Just for this. And I just, and it's like, yes, bro. I will never ever forget the gym was so loud.
It felt like I hit an actual bus. And he gave final game seven types of rock. It was so hype, bro. Like I remember running to the middle of the gym.
Everybody was chasing me. Everybody was chasing me in the dude, my opponent. He was standing there at the corner. He was, he was, he was, he was salty.
He was, he was, but he was happy. He was like, he was like, he was like a happy salty. He was, he cracked a smile. He was like, dang.
He said, dang, he really just did that. And everybody's a dog piling on me. I literally had a dog pile on me at day four. And I just remember looking over the gym, teaching a smile.
And I just remember, I was all the girls are sitting at the bleachers. You know the girls are like, man, we ain't trying to be trying to talk so fast. I just remember, they just all looked at me like I was a wild man, man. Like caveman.
I'm just screaming. I'm like, they just don't understand it. They just can't fathom how good that dude. No, they, they couldn't understand it at that moment.
But it was like, what, what's going on? What's going on? What's going on? What's happening?
And I was like, Hey, folks, just hit that boy. I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I was so happy, bro. But then it was like, bro, you got to get back out there, bro. You want you get, you get next?
I'm like, Oh, I gotta play. I'm like, I'm like, okay. So same procedure, you know, two ball layup guy, make his threes. And I'm going to begin another respectable duo.
And I had some ground to cover because I was trailing again. And I was at the top of the key. I was at the, you know, top of the key. And the dude was already at the last corner.
And I'm like, all right, I gotta do something. And I hit the top of the key shot. I was like, oh, it ain't over yet. Dude, break the corner shot.
And I went to the wing. I was like, Oh, no, they ain't over. Everybody's already yelling. I mean, yelling, bro.
And I'm like, this is, in my mind, I'm like, this is so hype. If I can make this last shot again, bro, I have to. I'm like, Oh my goodness. But dude ended up making a shot before me.
And I remember just hanging my head. I was actually sagging. I'm like, Oh man, but then everybody came around me, even the guys that beat me, I was like, Hey man, we were spectrum and that guy ended up that was my, even though I lost. I'm like, that's taught me a life lesson, bro.
It was like, you know, all you need is a chance to prove yourself. That's all it is. Just need this need, just need the opportunity. Yeah, no matter how vicious the opposition may be or how, you know, how negative the fans are, in this case, classmates, how negative the other people can be.
I mean, if you can just get a chance and capitalize, man, it is like, Oh man, it feels so good. It feels great. It feels so good. And I graduated the next week knowing that I really walked out of there with a signature moment, right?
Because it was like, ended up with a bae. Yeah, because everybody had known I had tried out for seven grade team. I didn't make the first cut tried out for eighth grade team didn't make the first cut, but I had some skill. Right.
You know, I just wasn't in the, you know, in as good of a physical shape as, you know, some of the other guys like we taught like, you know, how do you know how we're mutants now? Yeah, yeah, we got we got these six foot eight graders, six foot 13 year olds. I'm like, bro, I'm crazy stuff. I'm like, I'm just like, you're a little kid you are you are not even a teenager.
Yeah, I'm a teenager. You're a six foot six to bro. I was like, I mean, I was having that tried. I was exhausted after the workhouse because I'm like, I'm like, obviously this is a trial.
Right. You know, it's trial with 90 kids. You know, they're going to make those cuts and they're going to make sure they got the right players on team stuff like that. Right.
But I'm just like, I'm just like, man, I like, I like recreation, you know, recreational hoop because it's like, even if you, you know, you're not, you know, pursuing the NBA, it's still fun. Right. Something to do. Like, you know, a lot of kids talk about dream, you know, talk about, you know, dreaming of, you know, the opportunity to get in the game winner or, you know, making the big plays and or even, you know, thunking on somebody, you know, stuff like that.
I mean, you don't need to be on, you know, a real actual organized, like, part knows team to be able to experience those feelings. And I never thought it was possible at that time. But that showed me that, yeah, it's possible to get those, you know, get that experience like that. And it was like, oh, man, the adrenaline.
Oh, man, it's, it's like, it's not a bad feel. It's unmatched. It's one of the things you just, you have to, you have to feel it to understand. Yeah.
And that's believe when I got the high school, I wrote that way, bro. I wrote that way. I had to start back and square one because, you know, a lot of people didn't know me. I went to a middle school that wasn't around the area.
Like, am I like at HF, most of the people came from two middle schools. It was out of James Hart or was Parker. And those two schools had a nasty rivalry for a middle school. And it was like, for a middle school, for a middle school, I'm like, what type of a rival?
Middle school rivalry? I'm like, okay. So I had to get used to the James Hart Parker rivalry. It's so Jordan.
James Hart Parker is such a big rivalry in a home with Baltimore area. They actually played their games against each other at HF. Dang, it's bad. It's like that.
Wow. Like, I'm like, excuse me? Because I know sometimes, I see, you know, I look at the James Hart basketball schedules. This is, this is the show up, even though I never, I never, I was not a student at the school, obviously, but number one, my sister went there and number two, I literally live right next to it.
So I can just walk up to there and just, you know, catch a game or two, which I do, because I'm like, you know, it's like $2 admissions, $2 not shows. I'm like, oh yeah, not shows. I think I'm not just. You know what I'm saying?
That's my life. That might be cheaper than the lunch I pay for at HF. But yeah, dude, the rivalry between those two middle school basketball teams is so big that they play at the local high school. Yeah, that's, I'm never ready to that poor.
It's crazy. Never ready to them for it. And that's saying something, because you, you're a city dude, man. Like, that's saying something like, like, these are suburbs, man.
This is a suburban middle school we're talking about. And they got bad blood like that, bro. On and this, and they didn't even just afford the two schools, like they just hate each other. They literally do not like each other.
I got the customers, I'm like, dang, like, I see high schools. Yeah, high school beef. Yeah, for sure. Even at our low rivalries, we're already starting teams in high school.
Yeah, middle school. Bro. And especially with you guys, there's so many Chicago schools. There's so many of them, like you get into a close couple games, you know, when you get competitive with the right.
All right. Yeah. And the student sections are going at it talking to each other. Right.
We have rent. That's exactly what it's for us. We can do it. That's our way.
Oh, school. Going back and forth talking to social media, our boss through page, counting on their boss through page, just going back and forth. And rivalry. Damn.
Man, I mean, what was it like? What is it like to be daft smack in the middle of a rivalry, man? Man, this is the energy. You hear, you hear, you hear, that's student section.
Crazy. They be saying crazy stuff. All type of things calling you. This calling you to have blah, blah, blah.
We still got the championship over them. So, oh, man, got that. I got that city championship over Kenwood. It's always good to flex.
It's always this guy. And then after it's always done, we should have been a dolphin. Should have been a dolphin. It's like you say to him.
Oh, man, that's hilarious, man. But yeah, like you said, that's high school energy. And yeah, I mean, high school energy is one thing, you know, saying like, I can under like, I can fathom it. Right.
I can understand that. Yeah, because we have rivals that we really don't like at the high school level. Right. We're getting, we're knocking on the doorstep of real adulthood.
So it's like we can understand it, bro. You know, we can understand. But to see a bunch of 11, 12 beefers, like bro, and the fact that the school is acknowledging, like, even like, the school like teachers, all like, all of them know about it's not just like the kids, like all of them know that. And it's crazy.
Because it's like, ain't no way the administrators are saying it. Yeah, let's play our games at the high school. We like these middle school gyms ain't big enough. Right.
It's not big enough for how many people are going to have for this rivalry game we got coming up. And it's like, bro, it get crazy, man. It get crazy. I'm talking seven and eight great teams pulling up to H.F.
I'm like, it ain't even just eight graders. I'm like, y'all got to bring the seven graders into school, bro. I'm like, that's different. Yeah.
Now that middle school rivalry is different, bro. And then best believe when they because, you know, both schools branch into H.F. When you graduate from James Hart or Parker, you go straight to H.F. And bro, they take the middle school rivalries into H.F.
Even though they all stay in the same school now, they still be. Like, I'm like, bro, the rivalry is like that. Y'all go to the same school now. Y'all on the same side.
Same team. Why do you fight against each other? I'm like, bro, and then even then I hear stories about how, you know, there are, you know, there are physical altercations with people just because of the middle school rivalry. It's like, it's like, bro, let's settle this from two years ago.
You know what I'm saying? Like, I'm like, it's like, that's the rivalry is like that on and off the court, bro. It's crazy. It's middle school.
It's not, it's never that serious. You ain't never go, it's rare to, you ain't never go here. Nothing like that, bro. I'm never going to go to school.
Yeah, middle school. Yeah, middle school. High school is okay. Middle school's.
What's next? We don't get grammar school. We're gonna get third, fourth grade rivalry going on. Bro.
Hey, bro, hey, bro, we meet me on the hardwood. We're gonna be on the hardwood. You know what I'm saying? I'm right like seven o'clock.
Seven o'clock, four grade. Hey, bro, if I ever, if I ever come across a grammar school rivalry, I'm hitting you up and I'm saying, bro, we've made it there. We've made it there. We've gotten to that point.
But yeah, dude, it's always fun to be competitive. I just thought that the rivalry was great, especially because I had no idea about it. I'm just coming in neutral. I knew, I knew nobody.
I knew nothing. And then I just come straight into this rivalry. And it's just, all right. So I'm looking at it from the outside, looking in.
It's like mayhem. Right. Oh man. I can only imagine how the volleyball schools do it too, because it's like even the volleyball teams, you know, find a way to play at H.F.
And it's just like, okay, football and basketball, that's like one, and that's like one A and one B in terms of school sports. Right. Yeah. Volleyball.
But you mean to tell me that the volleyball teams are like that too? Right. Can be like that? Bro.
There's not even any like physical alter k like there's not like regarding somebody regarding. There's a net literally like like there's really a net dividing like there's no reason for you to be like beefing anybody. Exactly, bro. It's what I'm saying from like the all the, the all the, it's the right, the right?
I saw like I say, I don't know how many times I'm gonna say it, but I'm just saying libraries like that. But that's, that's a sad point, man. When I got to high school and I, you know, we got to play in gym class basketball and stuff like that. That's when I really started to see, you know, the cadence take off and I carried that moment I had a middle school over that and I had me some good moments there too.
I remember I will never forget the best moment I had in high school wasn't definitely one better than the two ball at middle school, but I remember, you know, once again, I was one of the last picks. It was five on five. All right. And I obviously wouldn't get the ball that often because you know, balls.
Right. And I know when I would get the rebound, you know, I'm not really a point guard kind of guy. I'm more of like a forward, you know, in my eyes, like, I'm, you're not going to see me, you know, sauce anybody up with the handles too often. But you know, I can stretch floor.
I can have a little post game. So I'm like, I see myself as a forward. So I just remember them double team and dude at one of my teammates at the top of the key. And I just remember the defender pulling the sandal heels saying this thing is like, yeah, you ain't got nothing.
You ain't got nothing. You ain't got nothing. You ain't got nothing doing. You ain't got nothing doing.
You saw me wide open on the key. And I said, but y'all from dust and I was wide open. I was talking while I was in Super Motion. And I put that mug up.
That'd be the best. And bro, it ain't even like I made this out like the net smacks so hard. And I was like, oh, I didn't expect the net to smack that. I was, I just hear everybody screaming.
I just walked to the other side. And I just, I just, while I got you didn't know that I was just used to it, but in my mind, I'm cracking the smile. I'm like, I'm, I'm, I'm like, I'm, I'm like, I do this, but no, I'm like, that was, that was kind of nice. Oh, yeah, dude.
I had some, I had some wild moments in just sports. I remember, um, there's just one girl bad, just one girl on a basketball team. She's literally like five one from like, she must like four dudes. And she scored a touchdown directly after that.
I was like, a yo, I'm like, I'm so glad she's on my team. Right? Cause I would have been embarrassed. Yeah, I was just like, bro, I just see a see a hands, bro.
Like it's just that one hand is just just grabbing. She like, she pawned that. I was like, I was like, wait, who caught that? And I see, she, I see her laying on the ground.