There are times in life where your so called “life long dream” begins to feel that it is separating itself farther and farther away from what we call reality. We now live in a society where it is almost instinctual for others to judge the life decisions of people around them. I’m sure we just escaped similar circumstances as we recently made a college decision that changed the trajectory and outlook on our lives. Our closest friends and family were the firsts ones to congratulate us, but whether it was to you personally, or to someone else, I’m sure we heard the mumbles.
“Why are they staying so close to home?”
“They are just going to that school to party.”
“Why are they going to a Division 3 Liberal Arts College just to play a sport.”
It’s the ones who don’t care about what others think who propel themselves at a faster rate to where they want to be. After all we live our lives for ourselves, and not for others, right? These criticizing words might have been heard by a small kid on a small island in New Hampshire named New Castle; however, those words only helped him.
Let me introduce to you Duncan Robinson.
A 5 foot 7 inch high school Freshman who saw himself playing in the NBA. That is laughable considering the average height in the NBA is a foot taller. Through his high school playing career he struggled. After his freshman year he underwent a massive growth spurt, and for the next two years he struggled to grow into his uncoordinated body. Because of this he received less playing time his junior year than his sophomore year, but he was only getting started. His senior year he averaged 18 points per game but found himself with no division 1 offers so he decided to attend a Prep School.
Despite leading his Prep School team to a 28-1 record, he still had no division 1 offers so he decided to attend a division 3, high academic school named William’s College in Massachusetts. After just his freshman year at the college, Robinson averaged 17 points per game and led the team to a National Championship while grabbing the attention of Michigan University’s head men’s basketball coach, John Beilein.
At first Robinson’s spot on the team was a walk on offer, but it wasn’t long before Beilein knew that his talents warranted him a full scholarship. After 3 seasons with the wolverines, Robinson developed into one of the country’s best 3-point shooters at a 42% clip; however, was still short of making an NBA roster. In 2018 we went undrafted, but was signed to a G-League deal within the Miami Heat organization. After a year thriving in the G-League, he was called up to the NBA earlier this season.
Now Duncan isn’t just one of those fairy tale stories where making the NBA was the end of the story. The 25-year old is now one of the NBA’s best shooters and averages 11.8 points per game for the Heat. Even superstar teammate Jimmy Butler acknowledges that he has “…just never seen somebody with as pure of a shot as his, to be honest. … He’s probably the best shooter I’ve ever played with.”
There were many times where Duncan seemed to have his back against the wall, but kept going. These moments where you feel like you aren’t going anywhere, or even feel like you are taking a step back from the end goal, may just mean that you really are just a step closer. It’s one of those things that makes sense when you look back. The only person who can tell you that you can’t do something is yourself, so be your biggest fan and keep working towards what you have always dreamed of.