Towards the end of the boys’ basketball season at Beckham, the Bengal beat got an insight into how the players felt about the sport. The main goal was to determine whether the payers aimed to pursue basketball as a career or utilize their skills in college. We also interviewed the head coach, Coach Glover, who informed the Bengle Beat that he began his coaching career when he was 21 years old in 2017. He states that he always wanted to be a coach since both of his parents were coaches and basketball was his favorite sport since he could walk. He hopes that the kids he coaches improve daily and learn how to do things correctly. He tries to keep his players motivated by building bonds with them and ensuring they believe in what they can do. When asked what a motivational quote of his is, he said,” Always focus on making today the best day because to have success, you have to win every day.” We also had the boys take a quick survey to extend our knowledge. We asked if they wanted to continue basketball once out of high school and their answer changed as they got into their junior and senior years of high school. The freshmen say they want to continue playing basketball once out of high school. Sophomores are in between decisions, while Juniors and Seniors are saying no except for a few of them. Though they may want to continue basketball, more than half of the respondents said they have not started looking at colleges even if they want to continue basketball. About 70% of the team plays basketball willingly, while the remaining 30% do it both voluntarily and for others. All of the participants have reported that playing basketball has allowed them to make close friends, which is quite common in sports. When asked for advice for upcoming basketball players, many responded with ”Have fun with it”, “Don’t lose confidence”, and “Work hard”. Someone once said, “Take advantage of the time you have, and use it to better yourself each year, especially if you’re on the team.” This is a valuable piece of advice, encouraging us to learn from our past experiences and carry that knowledge with us as we continue to grow.
