Call me KyJamaliel Gibfording
By David Vertsberger (@_Verts)
Here’s my game in a nutshell: I’m unathletic as can be, I shoot a lot of threes and shoot them pretty well and my defensive/dribble-drive ability is completely dependent on my opposition’s athleticism. My ball-handling and passing are okay. That alone is enough to label me as a certain player and get away with it being somewhat accurate. However, in my head, it’s never one player. Not for a month, not even for a week.
I love NBA basketball. I watch a ton of it. Because of these things I find myself admiring a new player above all others almost everyday. After a Thunder game I might spend the next few hours appreciating Russell Westbrook’s basketball. After watching the Hawks I’ll probably be reminded of just how quietly good Kyle Korver is and attempt to sear that into my brain. Even after watching a few highlight clips on YouTube I could suddenly attach myself to Carmelo Anthony or Stephen Curry or Kawhi Leonard, etc.
My mind working this way translates to the court big-time. While I don’t necessarily change my playstyle, (“Just watched some Dwight Howard, guess I’m going to grab rebounds and anchor our defense today!”) I do pick up on certain nuances. For example, the way Stephen Curry releases the ball under pressure – how he flings it up and quickly draws his hands back. I may go out and try and pull off Carmelo’s one-dribble in one direction, spin in the opposite move. If I watched Jamal Crawford play recently I will almost certainly get way more flashy with my dribbling than usual.
At this point, you might be asking yourself, “so does implementing all these different player traits make you better, or more of a threat on the court?” Of course not. But it’s a helluva fun time.