One of the things I enjoy most about the White building and the atmosphere is how spontaneous everything is, especially when it comes to basketball. I can walk into the gym, start shooting for 15 minutes, and the next thing I know, I am surrounded by a group of guys trying to play a game. Rudeness aside, it’s a nice way to get me into the game because once they start, my options are either:
- Play with them and just run around OR
- Leave
This is exactly what happened yesterday. I finished up my homework and decided to go shoot around for a little bit to remind my muscles of what it means to throw a basketball. The gym was somewhat busy and I ended up sharing a basket with one other guy who was also just shooting around. I put in my AirPods, turned on my basketball playlist, and got into a zone. It wasn’t long before a wave of guys walked in, holding shoes of all colors and sizes, with a pair of bright green Nike’s grabbing my attention the most (see image below):
Kyrie Flytrap 4 “Barely Volt” Shoes (Image from KicksCrew).
A pickup game was inevitably going to take place. For those of you that are not very familiar with a pickup game, this is a good place to pick up some of the key points (see what I did there?) Basically, it’s a game for fun. Points are probably going to be counted differently, fouls will likely not be called as normal, and the idea of running a set or a play is pretty much out the window. Some people hesitate to join a game because they don’t know who they are going to be working with or against. However, a game like this is the perfect way to boost self-confidence, communication skills, and exercise the notion of exploring the unknown.
This is why I decided to join the 15 other guys who were going to start this pickup game, without knowing any of them and accepting the fact that this may be a great experience or one of the worst days in my life.
Once everyone started, we split into two teams of eight, with subs for each team. Being the only girl, I was picked last and sat out as the first sub… you know how it is. In the beginning, my team was doing poorly. We weren’t hitting our shots, the other team was really fast, and they could not miss. When I got into the game, it did not get better. My shots were either flat (not enough arc) or airballs (not enough power). It was embarrassing and confusing. I was just shooting yesterday and knocking down 80% of my threes, what happened? Then I looked at the ball. 29.5. Men’s size.
For reference, here are the different ball sizes:
Various basketball sizes and weights (Image from Anthem Sports).
There are many reasons why different basketball sizes are used, such as gender, skill, game level, and more. Regardless, it is important to use the right size based on all of these characteristics. So, you can understand my poor performance when I was shooting with a ball that was an inch bigger and two ounces heavier… it makes a big difference! If anything, this game taught me to be aware of what’s going on and encouraged me to practice with a men’s size basketball from time to time.
February 24, 2023 at 2:34 pm
I think it’s very cool that you can push yourself to join a pickup game and one with all guys playing on top of that. The fact that you kept playing even though you were at a disadvantage because of the ball size also takes a lot of courage. I have not played basketball since I was middle school, but the way you described the feeling of playing a pickup game makes me want to pick up a ball again. I’m excited to see what your next post will be about!
February 24, 2023 at 2:30 pm
I had no idea that there were different sizes of basketballs, but I suppose that makes sense! Also, I think it’s nice that you stepped out of your comfort zone and played basketball with a group of guys. I probably would have been too intimidated, but also I don’t have much basketball experience (and I stand at 5′, which is not ideal for a sport like basketball…). Even though you faced a challenge, I hope that you continue to play in pick up games just for fun from time-to-time!