Currently, I’m sitting on my couch watching game 7 of the NBA Eastern Conference finals. I’m not really a huge basketball fan, but I figured I should tune in and cheer the Heat on a little bit.
As I sit here and watch, I’m reminded of my short stint as a basketball player. Yes, I played basketball in my younger years…for half a season. You see, I was more of a baseball girl growing up and played for eight years in an all girls league. Over the years, baseball was something that I eventually became pretty good at. Basketball was something I signed up for because all my friends were playing. In my silly head, I thought baseball skills = basketball skills. Umm…not so much.
I think a couple of things led to my ultimate defeat.
- My coach was mean. He wanted a winning team. I did absolutely nothing to help him achieve his goal. And his lackluster coaching efforts did nothing to turn me into a basketball player.
- I was slow. Running back and forth over and over again was not my thing.
- Basketball requires a kind of aggression I just didn’t have in me. Literally clawing the ball away from other girls was not my idea of fun.
- I’m short. If I remember correctly, the other girls had a 3+ inch advantage over me
- My aim sucked. I couldn’t do a layup. And my middle name may as well have been “air ball.”
I really should have thought the whole basketball thing through. Well, five games later, I realized the obvious. Basketball was not my thing.
I remember the moment quite clearly. My friend Meagan had the ball. Two players from the other team had her covered. I looked her way, and before I knew it, she passed the ball to me. I panicked. I did the only thing that made sense to me. I faced the basket and tossed the ball towards it. Swish. I scored!
You’re probably wondering how this turned into one of my most embarrassing moments ever. Just wait…
After I made that shot, EVERYONE cheered. My team and our spectators. The other team and their spectators. EVERYONE. No one expected me to actually score. And did I mention that I grew up in a really small town?! My 13 year old self was humiliated.
And then I did something I’m not proud to admit…I quit. Yep, that was my last game. In all fairness, I think my coach and teammates were happy with my decision. Ha! But in my defense, at least I tried!
You live and you learn, and when you realize it just ain’t happening, you quit. 
What’s your most embarrassing moment?!
Haha go 13-year old Parita..even I’m cheering for her :)! For what it’s worth, I was the least athletic person ever in elementary school. We used to have to run “The Mile” once a month and while everyone would be done within 10 minutes or less, I’d come strolling in close to the 20-minute mark…obviously running wasn’t my forte back in the day!
I’d be cheering for you too! Although your basketball career to stardom was short-lived, I know how you feel. I played basketball in 5th grade and only lasted two games. I was just too short. I tried other sports and wasn’t having it, so I turned to music. Yes, I was a marching band nerd and damn proud of it lol! Trying to think of my most embarrassing moment….hmmm… Probably when I admitted I didn’t know what the two different seats were of a toilet. I thought one was for kids and the other adults. Whoops. My friends found it hilarious 😛
Haha, we’re all still cheering for ya. 🙂 I don’t know if I have a “worst ever” embarrassing moment, but I’ve definitely had my fair share of awful ones. (Truth: I’ve probably blocked it out of my memory!)
Lol aww but that’s the sweetest story ever! I’m sure I have countless embarrassing stories, but the one that comes to mind first happened last summer. I was in the store picking up a DVD or something, and wearing -really- high heels. I was on my way to the register when one of my heels slipped on the freshly-washed floor and I ended up coming down hard. Lol oh man. Just thinking about it makes me embarrassed all over again, especially because so many people were watching…
I hear you P I am not athletic at all and sports not really my thing besides a reason to go watch a game mainly eat pizza and drink beer 😛 I have too many embarassing moments and one of them involves going to a wrong apartment, thought the apartment office changed the lock on me and freaked out when a guy opened a door.
I was SO bad at basketball (and most sports in general) and a lot of my most embarrassing moments revolve around having to play and making a fool of myself. I dreaded someone suggesting we play basketball, especially around boys. I was such a spaz! I have a million other embarrassing moments too. It’s just in my DNA 😉
Ha, that’s actually pretty funny! I was always scared to play sports due to lack of hand-eye coordination. It must be great to live in Miami during basketball season. I have a feeling were going to see them in the finals for many years to come…
OMG.. I hated basketball. I know what you mean, once I scored a home run in baseball and everyone cheered and it was so embarrassing cuz I sucked. In basketball it was the worst, cuz I couldn’t dribble, I always traveled with the ball.
Your mom told me to read this. I just had to post a LOL! Other than that, GO SPURS
Haha! It’s a pretty funny story that i’m sure my mom remembers all to well!
And GO HEAT!!