College Admissions Essay: How Basketball Changed My Life

One of the activities that I took part in that I feel has shaped me as a person, was basketball. I joined the Sea Point High basketball team in the tenth grade, in South Africa. Now basketball was not very popular in South African high schools, as such we lost our coach in my junior year. The choices that were given to the team was to either end the program or to continue without a coach. As team captain I rallied my teammates and we persevered through without a coach; we showed up for intensive training and competed against other schools. At the end of my senior year I was presented with the basketball player of the year; however I feel that award did not necessarily celebrate my skill in the sport, but it acknowledged the determination and

I have been playing basketball ever since I can remember. My family has always been very athletic. My siblings played basketball as well as my parents. My grandma told me a story about how I used to shoot a little basketball into a 10 foot hoop and I would make it. I play in the point guard position. I work very hard at what I do so that makes me advance in my skill for the sport. When I really started to realize I had a passion for it was in 6th grade. We had a lot of new people therefore our team didn't blend great. But even with my team being the way it was I still put everything that I had into it. Two things at the end of the season happened to me that made me realized that if I worked at it I could do great things. One parent on the

Basketball has been more than just a game in my life, it has always been a big part of my life, but it has been a part differently than what it is to others. I love everything about basketball. I have done everything from keeping the official book for a men's and women's collegiate team to washing a high school team's practice clothes and even making sure everyone has their uniforms and shoes before leaving for an away game. You don't have to be on the court, you don't have to be the one taking the winning shot or calling the play to be part of the team. I want you to think about this instead of feeling sorry for yourself because you didn't make the cut. I hope by the time you finish reading this you will realize

I began to play organized basketball in 5th grade and have continued all the way through my senior year. Throughout my career I have grown tremendously each year, earning several improvement awards along the way. I had always struggled to assume my role on the team, but throughout my senior high career I learned how I best contributed to my team, earning several hustle awards and assist awards. I have learned through athletics how to be team player, and understand that not every player has the same role, which is also related to everyday life and life in the

One thing I have a strong passion for in life is sports. My favorite one was volleyball. It taught me a lot about life and myself. My sophomore year I made varsity, but was upset when I sat the bench more than I played. However, I still pushed myself every practice and never gave up hope. This payed off because the next season I was a starter and a team captain. Being a student athlete has been an incremental part of who I have become in the future. I did not realize it at the time, but my participation in sports has affected my life in more ways than I thought. Consequently, sports have had a major influence on the career path I have chosen, and have also been a significant part of bringing my family together.

Basketball was my favorite sport growing up. I’ve played since I was little and I still play the game today. I played basketball at my elementary school, St. Cecilia, from Kindergarten till 8th Grade and also played AAU basketball for about 2 years before entering High School. Going into my freshmen year of High School, the first sport I played was basketball. Tryouts began in about the start of November and ended about 2 weeks after. I had made the Freshmen A team. I was excited and as the season progressed, we didn’t win many games but I still had fun playing. Nearing the end of the season, golf was another sport coming up that I also wanted to try and play. I say “try and play” because at the time, I was also going to play AAU basketball. I had set in my mind that I was going to play basketball for all of my four years of high school, but my parents pushed me to tryout for golf. When the basketball season ended, golf tryouts started. Tryouts lasted for about 2 weeks, and I made the JV team. When I found out I made the team, I was very surprised. I hadn’t put in the hard work as others before tryouts came around, but the coach saw potential in me and that I can become a great player. The coach saw so much potential in me, that every week, I kept progressing in skill and fine tuning my mechanics. Halfway through the season, about 4 or 5 weeks after I made the team, my coach gave me the chance to play with the Varsity Golf team for a couple days. I was excited and eager to

When I was younger, basketball was all I wanted to play, it just looked like so much fun. In fifth grade I had my parents sign me up for CYB, then in sixth grade I tried out for middle school basketball and played all the way up until ninth grade. In middle school when I was in eighth grade I was awarded the captain position and that helped me build leadership and responsibility. All of the players especially the younger ones knew they could always come to me at any time if they needed anything or help with anything. High school basketball was a lot different than middle school. In middle school I was one of the star players so I played a lot but in high school that changed. I sat the bench a lot that taught me patience and understanding even

My entire life, I have lived and breathed basketball. When I was only three days old, I was being passed around in the stands of a basketball game while my parents coached my older sister. In first grade, I was begging my parents to let me play. I couldn’t, however, because in my town kids don’t start playing basketball until the third grade. They let me join an Upward basketball league that was near my area, but Upward wasn’t competitive enough for me. So the next year, I went a couple towns over to join their city league so I could play. From then on, basketball was my passion.

Some people think cheer is not a sport, to me it is my life. There is school cheer and competitive cheer, some prefer one over the other or they do both. School cheer is the yippie, go, go, go sideline chants. Competitive cheer is when a team of five or more create a two and half minute routine and compete against other teams on the same level. Both sports take huge dedication to the coaches and teammates.

I attended all training sessions and spent a great amount of time playing basketball since the thrill of winning games, of becoming better pushes me forward. I believed my efforts are worthy, since I had the advantage over other players in speed and keen awareness, and I trained harder than others every day. Basketball was the only thing on my mind. Then the time came to assemble the official school team to participate in formal basketball games. I thought for all my efforts

After walking onto the field at seven years old, I found my passion, my strength, and my world. Softball has been in my life for the past ten years, and I intend to play in college if I’m given the opportunity, nevertheless, I am going to fight to play. Playing softball has changed my life; I do not know where I would be without it. It has given me the best experiences in life, and I have made long term friends while playing. I hit my first homerun at 12 years old, and have been a power hitter ever since.

Basketball saved my life. Basketball gave me the opportunity to learn that I have self worth in life. After I finished my freshmen year, I was faced with the question many young people are forced to deal with. What am I going to do now? Although I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life at that moment because I was still immature in many ways , I knew that basketball had taught me lessons to become successful and had steered my life in the right direction.

Last year I played on the freshman team without much prior experience. I went to two basketball camps which helped with my autonomy and discipline (getting up at 5:00 to work out), I also went to the vast majority of conditioning sessions throughout Spring and Fall of last year. This year I tried out and made the JV team which was a great achievement that I was really proud of. As the year went on though, I realized that I wasn’t going to be given the chance that I think I deserved and wasn’t going to get many benefits out of the amount of stress and work I was putting into the sport. This was difficult to realize and deal with but I feel that I finished the year well and without too much worry. Next year I have decided to play rec basketball and enjoy myself with more friends and less stress.

I never liked playing with dolls, painting nails, pretending I was a teacher or even acting like I was baking with fake food. All that girly stuff sounded boring to me, so the one thing that kept me busy everyday was going outside and playing whatever sport was on for that day with all my neighborhood friends. We played everything from kickball to football in the streets. Ever since I was a little child, playing sports was my passion. In my free time I played every sport you can think of, but sports that I actually was on a team for was baseball, hockey, soccer, and I ran track. Being an athlete is how people knew me, I guess you could say I was and still am a tomboy. Being involved in a sport ever since I was four years old, has really taught me a lot about not just playing the sports itself, but at life as a whole. Being apart of a team, can teach someone many skills, and life lessons. Because there are uncountable reasons why one should be involved in a sport, the main skills, and lessons include learning how to work together, and developing communication, and organizing skills. Additionally, one could develop a good work ethic, and learn how to control body language/temper.

The sight and sound of watching the basketball swish through the net are second to none. For this reason and much more, I have fallen in love with the game of basketball and all the sport has to offer. From an extremely young age until now I have played the game and I hope to be either playing or involved with the game as long as I live. I have tried many other sports including soccer, football, and lacrosse but none can compare to the pleasure and passion that I have for basketball. This has become more than a sport for me, it has become a passion and something that I have dedicated my time, energy and hard work into.