When I came to college, I didn't want to stop playing the sport I've always known and loved. Some would argue I could just go shoot around in the gym alone, or maybe play some pick-up games. I did this for the first week of college—I was the lone girl on the court as my team took on Marquette Men's Basketball Alumni from 1992. I even got dunked on and knocked over, but that's beside the point.
I decided to try out for club basketball a week later in search of possibly finding some girls who also love basketball as much as I do. Thank God, I did. I learned a lot through club basketball—here are just seven of the things I learned in my first go-around.
1. If you still have passion for it, you don't have to give it up.
People think that when high school sports end—and you don't have an athletic scholarship locking you in for the next four years—that sports stop. But who says they have to? If you love something enough, don't give it up. Keep at it. This doesn't even just apply to club basketball, but any sport; any hobby; anything you love enough.
2. You'll meet people who also have a passion for it, and they're worth meeting.
Joining any club gives you the opportunity to find people who have similar interests. I found one of the greatest groups of people through club basketball—people who not only care about the sport, but about each other. There were girls from different majors, cities, and religious backgrounds who all came together under this common passion. I would've never met or gotten the chance to become closer to some great people without club basketball.
3. You don't need to be on the D1 team to compete.
My team literally played against a school who had a girl that played four years at the Division I level, and then decided to play club while she attends graduate school. Some of the top high school players who just didn't play at the collegiate level also wind up on the Club Basketball scene. At Nationals, there were three-point and dunk contests... and even a dunk contest for women. So yes, there's definitely some competition if you like to compete.
4. Anything that comes with the perk of traveling is a positive.
Speaking of Nationals, my team attended them at the Ohio State University last weekend. I'd never been there, and don't know anyone that goes there—why would I ever visit there then? I probably wouldn't have if not for club basketball. It gives the opportunity to get off campus in a way that isn't just going home for the weekend. Oh, and by the way: Ohio State is a just a tad different than Marquette.
5. It's a workout without thinking about it being a workout.
Rather than dragging yourself to the gym, you mindlessly work out while playing basketball. The practices, scrimmages, games and tournaments all provide the opportunity to get and stay in shape (you run up and down the floor far more than you realize). I definitely prefer playing club basketball to the alternative, aka forcing myself to run on a treadmill in an overcrowded Rec Plex.
6. Being voluntarily committed is worth the long-haul.
It's hard to find people who are willing to lock themselves into something completely by choice. But being committed to something although you don't have to be is actually a beautiful thing; you dedicate your time and energy to something you care about, because you care about it.
Which leads into my final point.
7. You won't regret it.
Because you don't regret doing the things you love, solely for the reason that you love them. Period.
So thank you, club basketball. Thank you for teaching me these seven things, and probably 7,000 other things I didn't realize or put into list form. In the words of Kevin Durant: "You da real MVP."
