Edmonson 1

Jack Edmonson

Hailie Bryant

RC 1000

September 9, 2020

Literacy Narrative

I remember it like it was yesterday, I was six years old and I was outside skateboarding

with my brother. My mom came outside and asked me if I wanted to play basketball in the local

recreational league. Not even knowing what I was agreeing to, I said okay and went about my

day like normal. It was that decision that ultimately altered my life and shaped me into the

person I am today.

A few months later, the basketball season started. I had never played before, but it felt

like it came naturally to me. I could do certain things that other kids couldn’t and I enjoyed

playing. After that season, I fell in love with the sport and I wanted to play all the time. I quit

skateboarding and started playing basketball. I started watching games on television and started

going to summer camps at Davidson College. This was the same time that Stephen Curry was

playing at Davidson and they had just gone to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament. He

quickly became my favorite player.

As the years went on, my love for the game fluctuated. There would be times where I

would practice all day, and then there would be times where I would go weeks without playing. I

still enjoyed playing, but I lacked motivation. My parents didn’t want me to play AAU

basketball, which is a travel basketball organization that allows you to play against different

people from other cities and states. I feel like playing AAU basketball would have helped me
 Edmonson 2

greatly improve my skills and my basketball IQ at a faster rate because I would have played a lot

more games. Because I was never able to play, I feel like I wasn’t given the same opportunities

to test myself against better competition.

Even though I wasn’t able to play AAU basketball, I was still able to play for good

coaches that were knowledgeable about the game. One of those coaches was Nathan Johnston,

better known as Nate. When I was in sixth grade, I was playing in a recreational league and Nate

was my coach. But he wasn’t just an ordinary coach. He pushed all of us to get better and he held

us accountable for everything. He never let us take shortcuts and it helped me improve. I also

started doing personal training sessions with him. He pushed me to my limit and it made me

more determined to improve. Every time he would give me a new drill and I couldn’t do it, I

would go home and practice endlessly. I remember one specific drill, he had me dribble two

basketballs up and down the court while he would tell me to change directions or go between the

legs or behind the back. And at first, I couldn’t do it and it bothered me. So I would go home and

practice it every day until I could do it. And that’s just one example of many.

Nate changed my mindset and helped me develop a stronger passion for the game.

Without a doubt, Nate had the biggest impact on me playing basketball. And even though I am

done playing, I still talk to him to this day.

These habits carried over into high school where I had to overcome other challenges that

I was faced with on the basketball court. Coming into high school, I was skinny, unathletic, and

not very tall. I had the skills but I lacked the confidence to show them. Combine that with my

below-average athleticism and I ended up getting very little playing time at the start of the

season. But it was also during this time that I met another person who had a large impact on me
 Edmonson 3

while playing basketball. My ninth-grade basketball coach, Kevin Canevari. Kevin had played

college basketball at Mercer University and he had a lot of knowledge about the game. He would

always tell me how I could improve and he would tell me why I was or wasn’t getting playing

time. He helped give me more confidence in myself and it showed over time. As the season went

on, I was playing better and better and I ended up getting moved into the starting lineup halfway

through the season. It was after this season that I gained the confidence to show my skills and I

owe all of that to Coach Canevari because of the way he coached me during my freshman year.

As I got older, I became more self-motivated. Every day I would get up and go play

basketball. I would work on my skills almost every day. Sometimes I would practice with one of

my friends, but most of the time, I was by myself. I learned a lot about myself during these

times, I forced myself to practice and try and improve, even on days that I didn’t want to. From

these experiences, I developed self-discipline and understanding that sometimes you have to

force yourself to do things on certain days when you aren’t motivated because that is how you

get better.

The last few years of my basketball career went well. During my sophomore year, I

played on the junior varsity team again but I had a much better season and I led the team in

scoring. We had a good season and I was excited for the next two years

My junior year I made the varsity team and had a subpar season, I knew I could do better

and I wanted to have a greater impact. I knew I needed to work harder and get better if I wanted

to have a good senior season. This motivated me throughout the offseason to improve in all

aspects of the game.

 Edmonson 4

My senior year was by far my best. I led the team in scoring and made the all-conference

team as well as the all-county team. Our team also made it to the playoffs for the first time in

three years. And even though we lost in the first round, I felt like all the hard work paid off.

There were a lot of times that I questioned myself and I didn’t know if all of the practice was

going to pay off. But it was during these times that I remembered the things I had learned from

Kevin and Nate and it was those things that pushed me to keep going.

But like anything else in life, it came to an end. I loved playing basketball and I even

thought about trying to play at the collegiate level. However, the negatives seemed to outweigh

the positives when I had to make a decision. I opted for the traditional college lifestyle instead.

Even though I don’t play on an everyday basis anymore, I am still able to apply those same

principles I learned from Nate and Kevin into my daily life. Playing basketball taught me how to

be determined, self-motivated, and to never be satisfied with where you are because you can

always improve. These are the things that made me the person I am today.