Josh's Coversheet

What an Adjustment:

The day has finally arrived to either put up or shut up. It's indescribable the way I feel right now. I’m so nervous but still anxious at the same time. I'm so nervous because it’s finally time to prove myself, not only to our opponents but also to my fellow team mates. I’ve been doing this for years, but it’s been ten years since I’ve played organized ball. Over the years I’ve sharpened my skills by playing ball in the streets playing pickup games at recreational centers and on outside courts on double rimmed goals. All this time my love for the game is what drove me to be better, and if I failed to play to the best of my ability I would only be letting myself down. Now things are different. If I don’t step up to the plate I’m letting the whole team down, my coach down, and lastly myself down. I always considered myself to be a talented player, but I had never been in this environment before. All eyes are on me when I touch the ball. My coach’s eyes watch me to overlook and critique every move that I make, whether good or bad. The public watch to be entertained, watching each move, every cross over, every jump shot. Lastly there are my opponent’s eyes, watching for one reason and one reason only. These eyes watch me and my every move to try and stop me, to try and defend me. They watch to steal the ball, contest my jump shot, and get a rebound over me, anything that may help them get a win over my team. I learned quickly that playing on a playground for fun and on a court in an organized basketball game are two different worlds entirely. There’s the most intimidating factor of the event, the referee. If I keep him pleased and contribute to the points on the score board, everything should be alright. I think to myself, “No fouling Josh, No traveling Josh, make sure you stay in bounds, don’t do anything that will give the other team the edge.”

The second half is almost up. For almost forty minutes I’ve gave it my all. When I was on the court I did everything to my ability to put my team on top of the opposing team, whether it was taking the shot, selflessly making the assist, or causing a turnover. While I was off the floor and on the team bench, I made sure I encouraged my team mates that were playing. The final moments are dwindling down, the buzzer finally sounds. What’s the score? Was my best good enough? Did we win? NO… We lost by four. As my adrenaline rush reaches an all time low, I feel like my best was insufficient. I look into the faces of my team mates as they smile and congratulate me. “Good job freshman, you played your ass off out there.” Strangely enough the final score of the game no longer matters to me. I’m content with realizing that I proved myself to my team. I finally feel as though I belonged to this University of South Florida St. Petersburg Basketball team.

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