Some people think that I just played basketball so I could compete against other schools and win, but there is more to it than just that. Playing basketball at Gal has helped me become a better leader and teammate, and helped me make friends for life.
During my freshman year, I thought of myself as a good teammate who would help other teammates regain their confidence whenever they felt like they weren’t performing, even though I wasn’t a captain. Meanwhile, I also met great teammates and coaches that I would be with for the next 4 years.
During my sophomore year, I wasn’t a captain again because I was on a varsity team as a sophomore, and I was one of the younger guys on the team who didn’t know much. Since I didn’t have a big impact on the team then, I found other ways to make myself more useful on the team, since I was watching from the sidelines the majority of the time.
Instead of being silent and watching from the bench, my teammates who also didn’t receive much playing time and I would be the loudest on the bench, and help energize the players in the game whenever they do anything good or bad. As a younger player, I learned a lot from the seniors who were ahead of me, and they gave me advice on how to become a better teammate and leader for the program.
When my junior year season started, I was named team captain along with 2 seniors. During that year, a big group of freshmen joined the basketball program, and since our team was short on players many times throughout the season, we had to practice with these younger players.
Playing with these younger players helped me develop as a better leader and teammate since I was able to teach them my experiences and how I could make them better players. I also taught the underclassmen some of my shooting techniques that could help them in the game, and I felt deeply impressed when they left Kezar with a city championship.
Approaching my final year playing for Galileo, I was captain once again, but the varsity team had many sophomores who had just come out of a championship. Since I was captain, I was also responsible for contacting the players and getting them together and reporting to the coach who was missing practices or games.
After I injured my shoulder on senior night, I was extremely frustrated since I didn’t get to play for the rest of the season, but that didn’t stop me from cheering on for my teammates and being one of the loudest on the bench. I would also encourage my teammates to take the shots that they’re the best at and show up to practices even when I was injured.
Our coach, Mark, once mentioned in practice that he enjoys practices more than games since he gets to spend time with the players and help them get better and grow together as better friends, and I completely agree with him.
This was the most memorable four years of my life since I got to be a role model for many younger players, and I know in the future whenever I decide to coach my players, this has shown me that anybody can make a difference on a team.
