Isaiah Thomas: His Big Heart

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It has been too long since my last post… so with that being said let’s dive right in.

As you all may know the NBA Playoffs have commenced and teams are now battling for that NBA Championship and bragging rights.

Of course I am a Wizards fan and wanted to see them do well which they did, but round 1 of the playoffs wasn’t about basketball as I observed a young Isaiah Thomas grieving over the loss of his sister. I saw the pain in his eyes and immediately knew how he was feeling. If you have ever lost someone close to you (sibling, parents, grandparent) then you know how Isaiah was feeling, at least I do.

As the Celtics prepared for game 1 against the Bulls, I could just feel all of the emotions and I began to wonder how he was going to play through so much pain. Then I remembered, his sister would want him to go out and play with his heart and for her. That is exactly what he did, watching the first three go down, the building erupted and I was just happy to see him on the floor.

The biggest observation I made during the first two games the Celtics loss, was the amount of emotion and heartfelt resilience the entire team showed. They rallied behind their star and tried their best to help ease the pain. I just loved how the team supported him through his difficult time.

Fast Forward to game 6 in Chicago, No Rondo at this point, the Celtics put on a shooting clinic and played for Chyna Thomas. I know she is watching from heaven proud of how strong her big brother was for.

I wanted to shine a light on Isaiah and his strength and how big his heart is. He did what he needed to do on the court and it paid off. They are now heading to the second round against the Wizards which will be a lot of fun!.

Lastly, To the Thomas Family,

My Thoughts and Prayers are with you during this difficult time.

 

Thanks everyone for reading and as always you can comment below your feedback or tweet me @bballmypassion.

*Pics/Videos courtesy of Google*

Madness that is March!

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As we all know March is the month teams make their push towards the playoffs and solidify their rankings in their respective conferences.

We see teams come alive and bring the spark night in and night out.

One of those teams has been the Washington Wizards! Since January they have gone 24-9 and having one of the best records in the NBA. It is good to see them come into their own and win games.

The Eastern Conference top spot race is tight and up for grabs. With a lot of games left to play it will be interesting to see who finishes #1 come playoff time. I am really excited to see how this season will end.

On the Western Conference side of things the quiet assassins San Antonio Spurs are now tied with the Golden State Warriors. The Warriors have lost their last few games, no panic for them, they have been in this situation before, but they know once the playoffs begin everyone’s record is 0-0. With Durant sidelined due to injury, the eyes will be on the Splash Brothers and the bench. The Warriors have already clinched a playoff spot becoming the fastest team to do so in NBA History. Losing a couple games here or there won’ hurt but they don’t want to lose too many.

March is the considered the finish strong month as the plunge towards the playoffs, NBA finals continues. I definitely will be watching and keeping my eye on the East and West :).

On the flip side, in college hoops March Madness towards the Final Four and National Championship begins March 16. Have you filled out your bracket yet now that the match-ups have been released. Who did you have in your final four?

Let me know and Comment Below!!

Tournament Season, Playoff Season best part of  basketball is among us and I couldn’t be happier!!

I appreciate all my readers and as always if you have any suggestions or topics you want to read about tweet me @bballmypassion.

I’m back blogging like regular 🙂 so next week will be a freestyle write on a player that has definitely made a name for himself: Isaiah Thomas from the Boston Celtics.

*Pics/Vids courtesy of Google*

 

 

 

 

Passion, Perseverance

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Hey Guys!

So it’s been a minute since my last blog but I’m back!

I’ve been so busy with my new job that I sometimes I forget to blog but I will try to set aside a day a week to blog, so if you have topics you want me to write about sport related let me know 🙂

I was sitting in my kickoff 2017 meeting with my staff and co-workers and the person presenting gave us 3 P’s.

  • People
  • Passion, Perseverance
  • Product

The P that stuck out to me is the title of this blog, Passion and Perseverance which then made me think about athletes who had to overcome some sort of obstacle to get them where they want to go for their career.

I  began to think about Michael Jordan, who as we all know was cut from his high school team but ended up becoming one of the greatest basketball players to ever live. Then was Stephen Curry, who is a dominating scorer in the league right now and almost unable to guard. I think about how people criticized his size and weight and doubted him from the beginning of his career. Curry has now silenced his doubters by winning a championship and two MVP Awards one of which was a unanimous vote by the league which says ALOT.!

I was at work all day dealing with some clients who were ultimately testing my passion and love for people as well trying to steal the joy I had. After dealing with my 2pm appointment, I was ready to just give up and go home for the day. Something on the inside was like Mariah you got this just go take someone else. My manager comes and grabs me and I’m with someone else and that experience was good. Although I didn’t sell anything, at the end of the day I didn’t give up or throw in the towel.

I used Michael and Steph as my reminders in my head that they didn’t achieve the success that has come to them overnight, it took practice, repetition, faith, and just belief they can be the greatest players they can be. It also takes time to get where you need to be so today just was a test for me. I am sure I will have more tests along the way.

So I leave you all with this, whatever difficulty you may be facing day and day out, don’t forget the reason you started the career path you are on. Always remember the passion driving you and that obstacles may try to stop you but as long as you persevere, you will see success on the other side! 🙂

Thanks so much for taking the time to read and as always if you have comments/suggestions you can comment below or tweet me @bballmypassion.

*Pics/Vids Courtesy of Google*scurry-780x520

40!!!!-My Top 10

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Soo!! It’s my 40th blog post and I am super excited to share my all time top 10 NBA Players.

Before I do that, I just wanted to thank all the readers who have read my blog 🙂

For those that are new this started as a college project for my Social Media Marketing class and this was my Passion Project. Basketball is one of my favorite sports and different aspects of the game have impacted my life in some way shape or form. (Those are discussed in earlier blog posts beginning in Feb.2015). I decided to write about it and once the class ended I kept writing. It was actually quite fun for me. Anyway here we go!

Honorable Mention

  1. Kevin Durant
  2. Lebron James
  3. Shaquille O’neal
  4. Russell Westbrook
  5. Damian Lillard
  6. John Wall
  7. Bradley Beal
  8. Kevin Garnett
  9. Tony Parker
  10. Anthony Davis

Now those mentioned above are legends in the making or Hall of Famers already, and I wanted to at least mention them. You may not agree with my choices but I respect them and their game.

AND here is my top 10 nba players of all time. Coming up with the list was harder than I thought it was going to be lol but I was able to narrow it down with some ties.

10. Tim Duncan

9. Dwyane Wade

8.Patrick Ewing/Alonzo Mourning

7.Vince Carter

6.Doctor J-Julius Erving

5. Allen Iverson

4.Magic Johnson

3. Stephen Curry-you may argue with me on this one lol

2. Kobe Bryant 🙂

1.Michael Jordan/Kareem-Abdul Jabaar

When I did my top 10, I based it off my fandom, so who I’ve watched, admired the most during their careers with the exception of Patrick Ewing and Magic-their primes were before I was born or I was too young to remember.lol. But now I want to hear from you guys!

You now know who my honorable mentions are and my top 10, let me know yours!

Comment below or tweet me @bballmypassion!

As always I appreciate the feedback and support

40 blogs is alot and January 30th, 2017 it will be two years since I started, I will definitely be posting on that day, topic TBD. Again Thank You! and Happy Reading 🙂

*Pics/Videos courtesy of Google*

Assassin on a tear: Russell Westbrook

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NBA: Oklahoma City Thunder at Phoenix Suns

This season Russell Westbrook has caught many by storm but not surprise with his breakout triple double season. Russ has been an assassin on the court causing high praise and often times speechless moments in that you can only say so much about a phenomenal player.

I wanted to highlight Russell for his successful season because he really sparked my interest as to how he was able to accomplish such great achievement game in and game out. For instance, in a Thunder loss Russ would still post his nightly triple double. I was in awe at how he was able to do it like it was easy. At this point it has become very natural for him.

Russ reminds me so much of a young allen iverson in the way he attacks the basket and wills his way to score each and every time.A lot of teams have a hard time guarding him just because he is very fast and most often if not will get the foul call.

Russell is still on pace to have an amazing season and be the only guard other than Michael Jordan who had a triple double streak from March 25 to April 4 , 1986 & Oscar Robertson who held a active triple double streak during the entire 1961-62 NBA season.

He is such a fun player to watch and makes the game very entertaining in a way that keeps you watching the game start to finish just to see if he will reach the triple double plateau.

Continue to keep an eye on Russell and the Oklahoma City Thunder as they make a push for the playoffs as we are nearing the All-Star Break. 🙂

In regards to the All-Star break 2017, this year’s festivities will take place in New Orleans, LA and voting is now underway.

You can vote for your favorite players by tweeting, commenting on facebook with the player’s first and last name with #NBAVOTE; visiting NBA.com/VOTE until January 16,2017 11:59pm.- happy voting! 🙂

Thanks so much for taking the time to read this blog post and be on the lookout for my next post coming next week! It will be my 40th post and I will be announcing my All-Time top 10 players!-Be on the lookout for that!

If you have any suggestions on blog topics please feel free to comment below or tweet me @bballmypassion

*Pics/Videos courtesy of Google*

 

I love my team:)

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In my last post discussing my concern with the Wizards and their progress, I was wondering should I be concerned at all about the way in which their season was going.

They proved me wrong with winning 6 of their last 7 games with their only loss coming to the Pacers on December 19,2016.

Their record now is 13-15 after winning to the bulls and time and time again I see the strategies and advice that Coach Brooks playing out on the court in regards to using John’s speed as an advantage.

I also love the progress of the second unit which includes: Trey Burke who is getting his confidence and making better decisions while on the court, Jason Smith who from the perimeter is a very good shooter, Marcus Thornton who attacks the basket or makes a heads up play for himself.

The team as a whole is doing what they need to do night in and night out and finally seeing the success of their hard work. I am so proud of them and ready for the next game.

This post is short and sweet!

Thanks for reading and as always if you have any suggestions please tweet me @bballmypassion or comment below on this post- Mariah B.

*Pics/Videos courtesy of Google*

Washington Wizards: Should I be concerned? A fan perspective

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For as long as I could remember, I have been a Wizards fan. I will go far back as the year 2001, the last season Michael Jordan played, I got to see him in person but he didn’t play. Fast forward to 2006 the Gilbert Arenas era and I experienced wins and playoff appearances and playoff losses. Then fast forward to 2008-2010 alot of mess and turmoil and changes. John Wall was drafted in 2010 on the tail end of the Arenas era and now the organization would build around their #1 draft pick. Now 6 years later, The Wizards have added key pieces such as Bradley Beal and Paul Pierce (who was only here a year or so) and others who have helped the Wizards succeed and see playoff success the last couple of years.

December 6, 2016 The Wizards now see themselves with a record of 7-13 after their loss to the Orlando Magic where John Wall scored a new career high of 52 points.  I began to look back and analyze the losses and tried to see where the Wizards have fallen short.

  1. Turnovers- in the losses the Wizards have suffered they have committed 20+ turnovers with their opponent scoring off those turnovers. Imagine if they would try to limit turnovers and play smart how good they would be and not to mention confidence.
  2. Defensive Stops- in times when the wizards loss close games, they would either have a small lead and not close out the game or on defense make a costly mistake costing them the game, and saying the same thing we messed up on defense and not executing once the stop is made.
  3. Confidence- Are the Wizards lacking confidence or am I reading too deep into this? The opportunity to win games come every night but I notice when the Wizards have a somewhat comfortable lead and the second unit comes in, they can’t build on that lead or shot don’t fall.
  4. Changes- I know the players on this team love what they do or they wouldn’t be in the position they are in to be successful. But then I think about this whenever Washington would go through a coaching change: Eddie Jordan, Flip Saunders, Randy Whitman, Scott Brooks the first season it would always take the entire team a few games to get adjusted and mesh. Maybe this is what is happening this season, Coach Brooks is the new coach, you have new players who are still getting adjusted to him and his system but at the end of the day this game is about trust, communication, confidence, and achieving the goal that is set in place win games, make the playoffs, win championship.

So I ask myself should I be concerned for my team in the long. The NBA season is a long grueling process and I know the Wizards will be successful and hopefully make the playoffs. It’s still to early to talk about the playoffs as the Wizards are currently 12th in the east. I love this team and I am rooting for their success but should I be concerned that the outcome of this season may not be what I want it to be? I will continue to cheer on my guys and push for their success but something has to give. The will to Win games and work hard has to be there. I can’t speak for the players but if that love isn’t there then concern starts to float in.

Washington plays Denver tomorrow night at home, I hope the lost to Orlando fuels some fire and motivates them to fight to the finish. It is a long season but it’s time for a Wizards win streak! 🙂

Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy

As always if you have a suggestion for me please comment below or tweet me @bballmypassion

*Pics/Vids courtesy of Google*

Western Conference Surprise!

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We are almost a month into the season and it has already been a season of shake ups and scoring spree.

Anthony Davis has been on a tear scoring wise scoring over 100 points in his first 3 games this season.

Russell Westbrook was no surprise this season due to the fact he would basically be running the floor, only thing would be the team adjusting the people that left and the new editions to the team. Russell has almost if not triple doubled in every game. I can’t deny he is a beast on the court, it’s fun to watch him play.

The Golden State Warriors have been clicking and finally looking like the team we wanted to see with the edition of Kevin Durant. The sequence of threes from Steph, Klay, and Durant has been amazing to watch and I’m sure more fantastic plays are coming.

The rest of the western conference is stacking up nicely. I would be remissed if I didn’t mention Houston Rockets player James Harden. He is un-guardable right now lol. Harden has been on a scoring tear making it impossible for teams to get past them for wins. Houston will definitely  be one to watch as the season goes on.

The biggest surprise to me this season is the Los Angeles Lakers! It was beginning of the Kobe free era and it was interesting to see how this young team with  a few veterans would do this season. I have a renewed faith in this team to do very well and they have proven it. With a record right now of 6-5, the Lakers are holding up nicely and with the confidence they have going into each game, it makes watching them so much fun because they find numerous ways to finish games. I will definitely keep them on my radar throughout this season!

I hope you enjoy this quick read! NBA is back and in full effect 🙂

Thanks for reading and as always if you have any comments or ideas feel free to comment below or hit me on twitter @bballmypassion. 🙂

*Pics/Videos courtesy of Google*

My NBA Eastern Conference Preview

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With  the NBA Season just days from tipping off now, I wanted to give my preview on the eastern and western conference and my pick for who will be top team in each conference this season. Let’s get started with the east!

As you know each conference is represented by 15 teams.

  1. Boston Celtics
  2. Atlanta Hawks
  3. New York Knicks
  4. Toronto Raptors
  5. Miami Heat
  6. Milwaukee Bucks
  7. Charlotte Hornets
  8. Indiana Pacers
  9. Detroit Pistons
  10. Washington Wizards
  11. Chicago Bulls
  12. Orlando Magic
  13. Philadelphia 76ers
  14. Cleveland Cavaliers
  15. Brooklyn Nets

The 2016-2017 season will be one to watch just because of players who have left and relocated teams.

For example it will be interesting to see how Miami deals with the absence of Dwyane Wade now that he is in Chicago and trying to get Chris Bosh back in the lineup for Miami.

Trey Burke signed with the Washington Wizards and hopefully if everyone stays healthy they have a opportunity to do well. I have to continue to pull for them since they are my home team. (I live in VA :)) I’m glad to see Wall and Beal back on the floor, that back court is something dangerous when healthy and producing.

The rest of the teams stack up pretty well in the east with the exception of Toronto and Cleveland. Toronto has definitely solidified themselves as a powerhouse team with the dynamic duo of Kyle Lowry and Demar Derozan. They gave Cleveland a run for their money and will be one to watch this season. I’m excited to see how they are going to do.

Lastly, the defending champions Cleveland Cavaliers. It was a real surprise how their series against the Warriors played out but they were able to get it done and finally bring a championship back to Ohio. I was proud for my hometown city and for Lebron for keeping his word. I respect them as a team. The big three of Kyrie, Kevin Love, and Lebron will be able to score but I think for them this season it will be the consistency of the supporting cast around them (Thompson, JR Smith,Shumpert).

All in all, I think once again the top spot at the end of the season before the post season will be yet again Cleveland. The Eastern Conference is a good conference but still needs some strength and depth to beat Cleveland.

I would love to hear you guys feedback! Please feel free to comment below or tweet me your thoughts @bballmypassion :).

Next Post will be on the Western Conference

*Pics/Vids courtesy of Google*

Thanks for reading and stay tuned!

Kevin Durant:Strength, New Chapter

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Kevin Durant!

A dominant force in the NBA, with over a 7 foot wingspan and raw talent. We saw him flourish in OKC and bring that city to life. He was there for 9 years and even won the 2014 MVP award and help lead the Thunder to a championship run in 2012 but losing to the Miami Heat. Kevin gave his all while he was with the thunder team but over the summer he had a decision to make. No one ever thought he would leave OKC and then his decision came.

July 4, 2016…Independence Day, I remember I was still lounging in my room and checked twitter and all I could see was KD and Warriors. I was like did he leave OKC and join Stephen Curry??..Parts of me didn’t believe it at first and then it was confirmed to me, he was about to start this new chapter of his life with one of the best teams in the West.

After reading comments and people’s opinions and how critical they were of him, I began to put myself in his shoes. I understood Kevin took awhile to come to this decision mind you he was receiving free agency questions 2-3 years prior to his free agency which was crazy. I also understood his loyalty to Oklahoma and the people and building that city and his love for where he was. But then I took into consideration his feelings and how he must have felt on the inside from a business standpoint as well as an emotion standpoint.

From a business standpoint, he wanted to see if OKC could really push to keep him and work hard for him to stay or give him the option to leave and really make that decision. We won’t really know Kevin’s true feelings on why he chose to leave and that shouldn’t be of our concern and that is the emotion side to it. Kevin is already successful and probably wants to be happier playing the game.

In my opinion, I feel as though Kevin Durant made the right decision in what was best for him and his family. He will continue to flourish and be successful and I don’t understand why he received so much terrible backash because no one said anything bad when Lebron, Chris Bosh, Dwade joined forces- we won’t speak on that but you know where I’m going with it. Kevin is a phenomenal player and he loves the decision he made, you can tell by just looking at his facial expressions. He is happy.

I wish Kevin all the best in this new chapter of his life with his new team. 🙂

The west will be fun to watch this season!

I’m so glad to be back writing to you guys! It has been awhile but I’m back and here to stay!

Next blog will be a break down of the Eastern Conference, so stay tuned.

As always if you choose to submit feedback you can to my twitter @bballmypassion or in the feedback section!

*Pictures/Videos courtesy of Google*