Another Season in the Books

The first sports experience she can remember is accompanying her dad at the track to watch the horses.  It wouldn't be long, however, until she was dribbling, catching and trying to shoot a basketball.  From the land of chocolate, waffles, fries and beer, Jana Raman speaks Flemish, French, English and is now improving her Spanish.  She plays for Belgium's national team and helped them qualify--for...

Walking down the street in her hometown of Lisbon, Portugal, Luiana was recruited to come on over and try her luck on the basketball court.  She was only 11 years old at the time and probably hadn't reached the beautiful 6'3 she is today, but whoever that coach was saw potential.  Lu's knack for basketball took off running and it wasn't long before she was suiting up with the different age categor...

She grew up on a farm, country style in the midwest, Custer, Wisconsin to be exact.  She didn't start playing basketball until the 6th grade which was fairly late even for the early 90s.  Her passion for the game of basketball, her touch around the rim, her pin point passes and her feet--especially her feet--have taken her around the world (Spain, Slovakia, Russia, Turkey, Poland, China, Italy and...

La deportista de Tres Cantos se fue a jugar al Movistar Estudiantes con 14 años y ahí es cuando cambió el chip.  Ella misma decidió a cambiar su actitud y a dar lo máximo de sí en cada repetición y cada ejercicio.  Este cambio le llevo a disfrutar aún más en la pista y le llevo a los EEUU con una beca donde triunfaría en las pistas y las aulas de sus clases.  Carmen Grande gozó en el extranjero gr...

From a hobby farm in the small town of Albany, Australia, Zoe Harper made the five hour move north to Perth where she'd be adjusting to a city of one million plus habitants and attending a high school which specialized in basketball.  Two years later she'd be crossing various time zones and landing in the city of Minneapolis where she'd spend the next four years of her life studying and playing Di...

With thirty years of Division 1 basketball coaching under her belt, Barb Smith shares her story as a young player, then college coach and now as a self made entrepreneur.  From the 70s to the 2020s, Barb Smith has seen it, heard it and experienced it all from a player's and coach's perspective.  Almost ten years ago she launched a consulting and motivational speaking business called Courtside Lead...

Temeka Johnson never stopped believing in herself.  She didn't listen to the naysayers, but instead, followed the little voice inside her heart.  That little voice took her all the way to the WNBA where she became the Rookie of the Year in 2005, won a WNBA championship in 2009 and played professionally in places like Israel, Russia, Turkey, Poland, France and Spain.  That little voice allowed Teme...

Una deportista de Asturias, España jugando en el prestigioso Ivy League (Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Brown, Dartmouth, Columbia, Cornell y la universidad de Pensilvania),  de los Estados Unidos, estudiando una carrera doble de Neurociencia y Psicología ademas de estar ejerciendo en el equipo de baloncesto.  Jimena Abejon nos cuenta como es la vida de un Student Athlete dentro del campus de Dartmouth...

The basketball world is very small, so when I met Coach for the first time I wasn't expecting him--a guy from Belgrade, Serbia-- to tell me he had coached for the Minnesota Timberwolves and lived in Minneapolis.  In September of 2005 Aleksandar Džikić was the second European to be hired as a full time assistant coach in the NBA. At that time I was starting my sophomore year of college just across...

Veterinaria y deportista de elite, Bea Royo viene de la preciosa ciudad de Zaragoza y ahí es donde se hizo la universidad y donde desarrolló su pasión por el baloncesto.  Siempre dispuesta a trabajar y echar horas, Bea iba compaginando su carrera con su vida como deportista.  Y cuando ya tenia su diploma en mano, aprovechó para mejorar su ingles, yendo a sitios como Inglaterra y Australia para jug...

This week’s interviewee speaks multiple languages, was a two sport athlete growing up and might have become a CIA agent if it weren’t for his more than 6 foot 8 inch frame blowing his cover.  Duje Dukan was born in Croatia, but just two months short of his first birthday he was crossing the Atlantic with his parents, embarking on an adventure that would shape and mold him into the bilingual Badger...

La deportista de élite de hoy ha viajado por muchos sitios distintos del mundo, y como no, sus libros de psicología también.  Desde  Pamplona hasta Barcelona, luego a Oregon en los Estados Unidos, a Argentina, a Portugal y a muchas otras ciudades Españolas.  Su camino ha sido enriquecedora, completa con algún que otro bache pero al final, de todo se aprende.  Amaya Gastaminza Ganuza es una entrevi...

Ya verás la fuerza mental que tiene ésta maña, la que decidió irse a los Estados Unidos tan solo 13 días después de haber sido operada del cruzado.  Cogió sus maletas y muletas y se fue a embarcar en una aventura deportiva y académica.  Aterrizó en la desconocida  tierra de Fargo, North Dakota.  Manos a la obra, Raquel Terrer van Gool se puso a rehabilitar su rodilla, a ir a sus clases de ingenier...

Como todas y todos que se van a estudiar y jugar a la Blume, Georgina Bahí se fue de casa con tan solo 14 años.  Durante su primer año fuera, los padres de Geo venían a menudo a ver a su hija jugar y a llevarla a casa para pasar el fin de semana.  Desde entonces el baloncesto ha estado siempre presente en la vida de la gerundense, convirtiendose en un estilo de vida.  Entrenos, partidos, viajes y...

"Let's not talk about who spilled the milk, let's talk about who's going to clean it up."  Phillip Pressey is a positive, proactive leader who likes to get stuff done and move on.  He doesn't dwell on the past but looks towards the future, thinking about what he can do better the next time around.  Ever since the 6th grade Phil has been a competitive and passionate basketball player.  The walls in...

Near Champaign Illinois there’s a small town of less than 10,000 called Mahomet.  Growing up in Small Town USA, Nick Washburn played multiple sports, basketball, hockey and American Football.  However,  after many hours spent in the driveway with his dad and after growing into a 6 foot 10 inch frame, Nick decided basketball was his passion.  He  accepted a full ride scholarship to a small, private...

Desde pequeña empezó a vivir lejos de sus seres queridos, todo para poder llegar lejos como deportista.  A día de hoy, esta niña de Manzanares dice que jamás imaginaba que su carrera deportiva le iba a llevar a jugar en un equipo de Euro Cup o que pelease para liderar la clasificación de la Liga Endesa.  Pico y pala, pico y pala, hasta que un día, sin querer, se dio cuenta que había llegado.  Y no...

Adel Georgia is a town of 5,300 people, complete with fields and country roads.  When Jazz Covington grew up in Adel the town had one stoplight, everybody knew everybody.  As a young girl, Jazz spent her time playing outside with the boys and eventually picked up a basketball because it was something else to do.  Little did she know she'd turn into an athletic phenom who would attract hundreds of...

Sebas, un base que deja que su juego habla por sí mismo.  Fuera de la pista es bromista y le gusta charlar pero él diría que como persona es más reservado.  Le gusta escribir y se sienta cómodo y capaz de poner sus pensamientos y sentimientos en una forma tangible, como en una carta de cumpleaños, por ejemplo.  Sus buenos amigos lo saben y estoy segura de que muchos de ellos aún guardan las palabr...

From a small town in Minnesota, Mike grew up learning how to have quick feet as he constantly escaped the grasp of his bigger and older brother.  Those twinkle toes would carry him on a college scholarship to play for the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he would spend four years as a Badger.  Upon graduation, Mike signed his first professional contract to play overseas in Israel.  For the pa...

Desde los 12 años Alonso sabía que el baloncesto era lo suyo y que se iba a organizar bien para poder seguir jugando y estudiando a la vez.  Después de un año compaginando la universidad con su equipo de LEB Oro en Oviedo, le surgió la oportunidad de irse a los EEUU a la Universidad de Springfield en Illinois.  Su año se ha quedado corto por lo que estamos viviendo todos ahora mismo con el Coronav...

Motivation√ Positive attitude√  Ready to put in the work√ Nick Novak was somewhat of a tweener, on that rift between being a top D2 point guard or being a backup PG for a D1 school.  In the end, Nick decided to accept a D2 scholarship to the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown where he proceeded to forge a name for himself.  Four years later Nick graduated with a diploma in Marketing and a desir...

Desde muy joven Vicky tuvo que organizarse bien y hacer todo lo que estaba en su mano para poder con todo.  A veces pasaba hasta cuatro horas en el pabellón haciendo doble sesión, entrenando con su equipo y luego echando una mano al equipo de las mayores.  Con la energía y felicidad de una niña deportista y las ganas de una competidora, Vicky gozaba en la pista con sus compañeras y daba igual las...

Her older brother went to VCU (Virginia Commonwealth University) and was a scout guy for the women's basketball team.  One day the coaching staff asked him, "Do you have a younger sister named Robyn?"  Once he confirmed with a yes the staff proceeded to shout back, "WE WANT HER!"  Robyn played Division 1 basketball at VCU for four years, graduated with a degree in Criminal Justice and upon complet...

Sixteen years old, 6 foot 4 and 140 pounds, Mike Carlson was the weakest guy in the weight room; he fell over trying to do olympic lifts.  He had no college scholarship offers at the end of his senior year, but even so, he knew he wanted to play and was willing to do anything to make that dream a reality.  He played division III basketball his freshman year on the JV squad at Hope College in Michi...