My Saturdays quite often consist of no less than 3 sporting events and usually consume all of the daylight hours. That might sound like a lot to some people, but it's alright with me. I love this stuff. I must admit that watching is a little more difficult than playing but I'm pretty easily amused so I manage.
This morning it was the rematch of Redwood Heights Recreation Center vs. Burckhalter Recreation Center. Redwood definitely had a score to settle after getting crushed in the previous contest 3 weeks ago. The little fellas from Burckhalter play the game like they mean it, exhibiting a much higher basketball IQ than the deer-in-the-headlights Redwood Raptors. My 8-year-old son would have to step his game up a little bit since his 10-year-old sister would miss her third consecutive game due to an ankle injury.
"It's going to be a long game," I leaned over and said to her as it was getting under way. Burckhalter's team has several little players that re pretty decent ballplayers , but one is particularly exceptional. Actually, exceptional might be putting it a tad lightly. He might be the second coming of Jason Kidd. I can't recall seeing too many kids with not only the court vision and awareness of all of the other 9 guys on the court, but also the skill and physical ability to make his body do what he wants it to do. His ball handling is always quite impressive, going between his legs quickly and precisely as he changes directions. All of his movements are with a purpose. He passes in a way that suggests he's one of those Kidd or Nash or Stockton types that see the potential opening before it actually opens up and hits his man right in stride. He anticipates so well on defense that a quadruple double is surely in his future.
Behind his personal blitzkrieg, the boys from Burckhalter jumped out to an 8 point lead in the first minute and a half and it was never close after that. I don't know his name, but I'm sure I'll see him again and that he'll really be something to see by the time he hits high school.
From there it was on to softball as the mighty Bandits started the 2008 campaign as the defending champs, not having lost a game since May of 2006. Wearing the boot to protect her ankle, my daughter couldn't play today, but she was more than capable of cheering for her teammates. Learning the value of good sportsmanship can never start too early . It's still fun rooting for the other kids on her team that I have come to know pretty well over the years. In addition, I never fail to be amused by her energizer bunny of a coach. With all of the enthusiasm and animation of Yosemite Sam, The Tasmanian Devil, and the Roadrunner all rolled into one there is never a dull moment with him around. The kids love him. He's very excitable, but very positive as well. We had to dip outta there after just 2 innings because my son had his second basketball game of the day to go to.
When I was out of town last week, I was told over the phone about how he had put on a heck of a show at Jr. Warriors and that the coaches told him to "stop scoring so much" and let somebody else score. You could tell that he was looking forward to going again this week with his new found confidence. Actually, though, he was bordering on cockiness. In fact, he was almost like a little 8-year-old Terrell Owens practically telling us to "get our popcorn" and "enjoy the show". Unfortunately, his little rant must've made it on to the other team's bulletin board as they really stuck it to him today. He had lots of rebounds, hustled up and down the court, and even blocked some shots, but he just couldn't find the range offensively. He was getting very frustrated and it was showing. In fact, late in the game, one particularly annoying kid on the other team started to taunt him loudly after he and another boy trapped my son near the baseline. In a move that would've made Zidane proud, my son pulled the ball close to his chin and gave this kid a shoulder to the chest that sent him flying. All at once I was surprised and trying to conceal my laughter. The little fella's got a mean streak. I couldn't even be mad at him for that one.
After the game, I gave him a high five and complimented him on all of his rebounds and the hustle he showed. I didn't mention his little frustration foul. The rest of the day I've tried to conceal my prideful grin every time I think about his antics.
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