Being a kid from the projects growing up wasn't so easy. Everyone had dreams or life was cut short trying to fulfill there dream. Basketball wasn't really a dream that I had but I knew growing up it would make things easier for me and my family growing up. Playing basketball then wasn't so much a hobby for me but it was job that had levels of challenges. The challenges that come with the game can only be hard if you make them hard. Well if you didn't know, these challenges came very hard for me and getting in trouble with the law didn't make it any easier. When I was younger I used to run around with my cousins and get into trouble because we felt it was fun. Our fun soon turned into violence and led to me loosing some of my close friends. Many of my friends and family didn't want me participating in illegal events that could lead me to trouble and risk my chances of being successful in basketball. They wanted me to make it out of the streets so I could conquer their expectations as well as mine.
Basketball has changed my life in more ways than I could ever imagine. Playing this sport made me realize that there is more to life than running around getting in trouble. Basketball made me want to set goals for myself such as graduating high school and being the first of my mother kids to go to college. Also it helped me become more mature in handling business, because being talented made people want me to play for them and always made promises that would never come true. When being a basketball player you will always see a new face that can be a helping hand or hurt you in the long run. When it comes to me I let my family make my decision because I felt they knew what was the best for me. I was never mad about them making decisions for me because being a young adult my one wrong decision could hurt my career. I often think daily about how much I appreciate that I was blessed to be talented in this sport because I could easily be like