BWW Blog: 100 Hoops

As more and more of my auditions come back with the dreaded "Thank you for your submission, we will contact you if we need anything further", I am reminded of my Basketball "career" in the 4th grade.

Yes, basketball.

During the summer, my best friend had signed up for a two week-long "Basketball camp". My parents insisted that I sign up as well. I knew it was because I needed the exercise, but I was fine with that because it was an opportunity to spend more time with my BFF (and we are still best friends to this day) and that was enough to convince me to go without a fight.

As a kid, I was the least athletic person you could ever meet. I lacked the standard coordination of young kids. That's why when we did our daily "100 hoops", I didn't make a single shot.

The premise was simple: try and get the basketball into the hoop as many times you can out of 100 from a stationary position. Sounds easy enough, right?

Wrong.

After the first day of camp was over, it was obvious that I lacked the natural athletic talent of the other kids there. (And, as a slap in the face, I was last picked for many team games we played that day).

I went home upset, then thought about it. If I just kept throwing the ball over and over, one would have to make it in eventually.

Of course, you can't just throw the ball with no rhyme or reason. With each failed shot, you make a slight adjustment to what you thought went wrong - your form, aim, knees, etc - and then try again.

I'm not going to tell you that the next day I was shooting free throws to rival LeBron, because that would be a lie. And, to be honest, annoyingly cliché.

It was only towards the end of the two weeks that I made one shot into the hoop. Even through I absolutely bombed everything else, I met the goal I had set for myself - and that was good enough for me.

Later, I would go on to decline a spot to play in the NBA.

Just kidding. That also didn't happen. My basketball career was short-lived. But, in the moments where I miss the hoop in auditions, I remember that one's bound to make it in if I just keep throwing the ball.