When it comes to basketball, fans and bungee jumping, nothing beats New Zealand

By Jeremiah Boswell

Great weather and amazing landscapes run rampant in New Zealand (remember the movie “Lord of the Rings”?). But the movie fails to reveal the kindness of the Kiwis (people from New Zealand) and their love of sports. “Hey, I’m Jeremiah Boswell. I’m from Georgia. I played at Columbia University and am now going into my fourth professional basketball season.”

And so went the introductions. I was meeting my teammates for the first time.

This team, representing Athletes in Action, was a hodgepodge of professional and high-level collegiate players. The task at hand was to compete with the New Zealand Breakers, probably the best team in the Oceania region, having four former NBA players and numerous Australian and New Zealand national team veterans.

Coach Morris Michalski only had one week to prepare our group of relative strangers to compete. So every practice and every drill had a sense of urgency and was filled with energy, enthusiasm and encouragement.

After training camp and an almost comical amount of time in an airplane, we unloaded, ate and watched an exciting rugby match.

Back to the court, we were traveling the north island playing games and conducting promotional camps and clinics with the Breakers. The circuit gave them an opportunity to add to their fan base, and gave us time to share our lives with a great variety of people. It allowed time to – drum roll please – bungee jump. I nervously prepared to take a literal 123-foot plunge out of a crane down toward planet earth.

Just another day in the life of playing basketball abroad.

“When the door opens, walk to the edge, I will count to three, then have fun,” said the voice from the side.

The door opened. But because of the way my legs were strapped, I could not walk to the edge, and was forced to baby-step forward. He also forgot to mention that as I moved forward, the rope would unravel over the ledge and give me a solid tug, creating yet another jolt of adrenaline. I let go of the door, forgot to listen to the count and jumped.

Back on Earth

With both feet back on the ground, our team was taking some time to come together and had not quite gelled. Still sweating, disappointed in defeat and most likely not smelling too great, we sat in the locker room. It was our second loss in a row to the Breakers. It wasn’t easy to swallow. An assistant coach reminded us that we were required to go sign autographs for the kids after every game.

“What’s your name? Did you have fun at the game?”

I always tried to make each autograph personal by talking to and looking at each kid.

“I’m Jon. The game was sweet as mate.” (They say “sweet as” basically to mean fun or cool). “Will you sign my shirt?”

“Of course. I’m glad you had fun.”

A sweet little girl answered simply with “Abbey…”

"Sometimes we get so caught up in wins and losses that we forget the little things that are important. Losing a basketball game is not nearly as significant as impacting the life of a young person."

Some kids were shy, some were outgoing, but they were all enthralled and pure of heart. They were respectful, innocent and always smiling. Immediately after a disappointing loss, the faces cheered me up.

Sometimes we get so caught up in wins and losses that we forget the little things that are important. Losing a basketball game is not nearly as significant as impacting the life of a young person.

Athletes are role models or at worst, influential. So to all the young ballers out there, even your friends pay attention to how you act and listen to what you say. Remember to present yourself appropriately on and off
the court.

After the last game, I wished I could tell the kids how much I had benefited from meeting them, even though it was me
giving the autograph.

Photography by Jim Brown.

---

Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites