It was the summer of 2011. My days were spent in the gym and the basketball court preparing for the moment I had dreamed of my whole life: my senior year on the Men’s Basketball team at the University of the District of Columbia. Basketball came easy for me - I stood 6 feet, 6 inches tall, ran faster, and jumped higher than most people. Basketball opened the doors for me to attend college. This was the year my aspirations of becoming a professional basketball player were to be realized.
The night before the first day of class, I left my apartment for my usual jog expecting nothing but to return later that night. Instead, I awoke surrounded by doctors and police officers in the Intensive Care Unit at George Washington University Hospital. I learned that I had been robbed, and in the process had sustained a fractured skull. Everything that I had worked for broke down before my eyes. I was told I would never be the same student again, nor would I be able to play competitive basketball.
Reeling from this irrevocable change in my mind and identity, I resolved to redefine myself. My injury left me with a permanent learning disability. However, even though my friends, family, and University administrators advised me to go home, I was determined to go from being pitied and pitiful to becoming powerful. I searched for ways to fill the empty void that was now in my heart. I committed myself to learning new things, more importantly to try things that intimidated and frightened me. While doing so, I searched for and found a way to make a change in the lives of others and those who needed help the most: I became a community organizer for a Workforce Development Project in Washington D.C.
My first assignment was to teach a GED preparation...
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...with the opportunity to help those in the community and around the world. The Juvenile & Special Education Law Clinic will give me an opportunity to put to good use my passion to help others. My acquired skills working as a community organizer, as a teacher in the correctional system, and my fluency in Arabic, can only benefit other students at the Law School. I hope to make it my life’s work to represent, assist, and defend those in need as a civil rights attorney.
As President Obama stated, “Success comes with opportunity.” I look forward to the opportunity of learning the fundamentals of the law from Professor Lisa Geiss, and Joseph Tulman. When I got knocked down, I picked myself up and rebuilt my life. In the process, I helped those around me become better as well, and that is the same attitude I will bring as a student at David A. Clarke School of Law School
Your dreams of being someone may not turn out the way you think they will. The documentary Hoop Dreams is a story about two boys from the ghetto that want to play in the NBA. Arthur ¨Man”Agee goes to Marshalls and William Gates goes to St. Joseph’s which are both situated in Illinois, where their dreams of becoming a pro basketball player vanished. Both of the boys face obstacles that are outside of themselves. Arthur´s family struggled with money, education, and pressure from others hurts him. Also, William struggled with balancing his family with basketball, the pressure from others, and education.
Although many youngsters fail in the NBA, there are a few high school players who have had, or do have a successful career in the NBA. Some of these are, Moses Malone, Kobe Bryant, Tracey McGrady, and this year’s most valu...
Tryouts came and went, along with freshman year. Jesse did his normal thing - rack up rebounds, block lots of shots, score point after point. Sophomore and junior years went much the same. They had won a state championship in his junior year; Jesse had twenty points, seventeen rebounds, six assists, and four blocks. Finally, Jesse had reached his senior season, his last at Harwood. He’d shot up to six-foot ten and was benching 400 easily. He took a moment to duck into Coach Paterson’s office.
The scariest thing that I have ever experienced was dislocating my knee during my high school basketball game. While attending Forestview High in 2013 the second game of the season, I acquired my knee injury against Highland Tech. I was very excited about the game because I worked very hard to take a senior spot and was finally getting the opportunity that I was waiting for. Everyday during practice, I gave my all, all the blood, sweat, and tears that I experienced I just knew it was my time. Tuesday, November 22 we get to Highland, warm up, and finally it's time for tip-off. The first quarter I get off to a rough start getting all the jitters out. Second quarter arrives, then I began to get the feel of the game. As I penetrated down the lane after hitting a mean crossover, I came to a jump stop
While growing up I had many ideas of what professional career I wanted to obtain, although until recent years, occupational therapy was not even a thought. It was not until my grandmother had a stroke that I even knew what occupational therapy was or entailed. I watched my grandmother participate in therapy leading her to learn how to tie her shoes again, and the things I thought were so simple as to dress herself again. It was during that time as high school graduation was approaching that I realized I wanted to be apart of that. I wanted to have a role helping others learn and exceed as she did because I seen how much joy it brought her. This experience opened my eye to the things we so often take for granted, that some people lose the ability of doing or lack the ability of doing. Throughout her journey of facing and overcoming these problems, it led me to a yearning to pursue this
“The odds of a high school basketball player making it to the “next level” to play college basketball (DI, II, or III) is slim. In fact, only 3.4% of high school players go on to play college basketball. Taking it even further, only 1.2% of college basketball players go on to get drafted in the NBA” (Winters, 2016). There are two types of players in the game. There are the kids who play basketball because they are athletic, and all they are seeking to gain is the recognition and awards. They want to be known. Those players are self-centered, they do not play for the team, and generally don’t play because they love the game. These are the types of players who don’t usually go on to play at the next level. On the other hand, there are the players that absolutely dedicate their life to the game of basketball just because they love the game. That is what coaches are looking for in a player, and that is the kind of player I am striving to be.
I set my goals high because I fully dedicate myself to achieving the goal at hand. It is with this same determination that I apply to law school, aspiring to advocate for those who do not have a voice. I hope to address specific injustices impacting vulnerable groups, such as (…I have to add something). I look forward to acquiring essential skills in law school that will effectively prepare me to make the changes I long to see a reality. Olivia showed me what determination and resilience looked like. Though I will never be able to repay Olivia, the lessons she taught me that have become an integral part to who I am today. Like Olivia, I am determined to make my dreams come true, with, of course, a smile on my face the whole
I have throughout my whole life been playing sports. I still play basketball competitively and now it’s at the university level. Basketball though was not my first love when it came to playing sports. It has though become my true focus since junior high school. Coming from Canada everybody plays hockey. Its almost as if as soon as you learn to walk you learn how to skate. Whether it is at the recreation centre or at the shinny rink around the corner everyone plays. Eventually I abandoned hockey to play basketball which I have done so for the last twelve years of my life and hopefully a few more years into the future.
One of my passions is basketball. Basketball is my main passion because when I grow up my goal is to become a professional WNBA player. My other passion is reading. I love reading, anytime I have a chance I always read my favorite genre of books to read is Non-Fictional.
Ever since I was a little boy, about eight years old or so, I had an extreme passion for the sport of basketball. On weekends, I would wake up in the morning, eat a bowl of frosted flakes or cheerios, put on basketball shorts and then go in my driveway to shoot around. I would be out there for hours just shooting around or playing with some random kids that I would occasionally see walking around my neighborhood. This was satisfaction to me, but even better was playing on multiple public teams and not just playing in my driveway every day. In elementary school, I played in a recreational league, just like almost every other kid who tries out basketball when they were younger. This was fun and all but it was nothing too serious. There were never any practices, it was just one or two unorganized games per week. I never took
I've learned a lot things in my breif time being alive, but only ne of those ideas really stands out to me. It is something that I try to live by and think of all the time. I've leaned that whatever you do, you need to have a passion for it. Without that passion you will never try hard enough.
I had always heard playing basketball at a high school level was always the first step in order to become a professional. Though I only played once throughout high school I was still interested in how one could become a professional at basketball. For my senior project I chose to research about it and found out many interesting things I didn’t know about it. My knowledge for basketball grew even more.
When you look at a basketball what do you see? Most would see an orange, sphere, shaped rubber ball. There are black lines and real leather. If you look closer, you would even see the size of the ball in which you are playing with. A basketball could be just a toy for many, or even represent a release for others, but for me, it means a lot more. A basketball represents my blood, sweat, tears, passion, sacrifice, and most of all, a sense of belonging, like a family. At this moment in my life, there are only three things I devote my life to- family, friends, and basketball. Basketball has shaped my life probably more than anything else. Basketball has instilled in me a vicious will to achieve and embrace my ambitions instead of fearing them. Basketball gave me an open opportunity to try something new. New opportunities and experiences are not such a big deal anymore. From academics to personal matters, the lessons that I have learned from basketball has impacted my life.
Basketball is a team sport which has enormous admiration and frolicked with the aid of a ball that is shot into a basket placed horizontally. The objective to shoot the ball that is scores which are increased by resulting definite rules of the game. The game is played by 2 teams establishing 5 players each who play on a noticeable rectangular floor with baskets on mutually ends. The game of basketball was invented by James Naismith in 1891. James Naismith was a physical education teacher at McGill University and later at Springfield College (then Y.M.CA.) at Springfield, Massachusetts. Under the guidance of physical education specialist, Luther Halsey Gulick, he invented basketball as an indoor sport. Basketball is the world’s popular sports
When you think of basketball you think of a pretty simple sport. The game has its sets of formal rules and regulations that are governed by the AAA, NCAA and NBA. No matter what level you play, the game will be relatively the same. In a formal game or even just a pick up game in a gym, the game is the same. That’s not the case with pick up basketball at a city park though. Depending where you live, every court has its own guidelines. You wouldn’t think that a game of basketball could change so drastically but it can. Park pick up ball is rougher, less honest, gets done faster but has a much slower pace. Park ball isn’t even really about basketball; it’s about feeling apart of something, feeling young and feeding your ego.