Leaving it All on the Court will Help You Achieve Your Basketball Dreams
There’s 5 minutes left in the fourth quarter and you’ve played practically, if not every minute of the game up to this point. You’re exhausted and drained from your efforts, but it’s such a close game that to let up now might mean that your team doesn’t get the win.
So, what will you do? Do you begin to play half speed, slacking on defense and giving up easy points to the other team? Or, do you light a fire within and begin pouring every bit of yourself into the game playing obviously harder and smarter than anyone else out on the court?
What you choose to do in the game of basketball during these moments, despite the score and whether it looks like your team is going to come out on top, determines your level of heart that you possess for the game.
To play with heart means to give so much of yourself physically and mentally during the basketball game that by the time that buzzer goes off and the last shot has been taken, you can confidently go within yourself as you walk back to the locker room and be proud of your efforts regardless of a win or loss.
This is what true leaders possess, that inner fire inside their gut that ignites right at those moments when diving for a loose ball or boxing out to get another rebound seems physically impossible, yet they somehow seem to always find the strength to give 150% every time that they set foot on the basketball court – refusing to let anyone else out hustle or show more heart than them.
As you enter into or already are in your high school basketball years, college prospecting becomes a big part of your summer camps and seasons. It’s important to understand that sometimes, college coaches and recruiters aren’t always looking for the most talented players, but rather the ones that they see play with heart, are coachable and can be sculpted into more skilled players once recruited.
So, rather than just focusing on your skills, although this is obviously vital, don’t forget to work on your inner character and lead by example to rally your team during those tough moments when things might seem impossible.
A good place to start showing more heart is in practice. There are certainly those practice days that the team seems a little off and there’s a low, sluggish energy amongst the team – this is when the players with heart will step up and make a big play to get the team energized, focused and playing better overall.
As you begin to focus on giving your all every time you lace up your basketball shoes, you will notice that this level of commitment is contagious; pour it all out and watch as your teammates respond and begin to do the same right alongside you.
Strive to be the inspiration, the motivation, the leader, and the one that gives their all every workout, practice and game by playing with so much heart that it spreads like a wildfire!
When you become this player, your dreams of playing at a higher level of basketball will become more vivid and real since having this quality is very impressive and noticed by everyone.
