Playing College Basketball
Written By Charles Brakes iii (CB3)
The picture above was taken in the summer of 2012. I believe it was July, a month before my first college semester of school started. How was I feeling? Anxious, Scared and Nervous lol. Luckily, that was on the inside. On the out… I felt proud and accomplished. You see the look on my Moms face? “We” did it. This was my route to the NBA.. So I thought. My Pops, well, he knew how long this road would take. He knew we were just getting started. He also knew what happened with him. Amongst me was also my little sister Jordyn Brakes and my best friend and business partner CJ (Christian Michael Jones).
To keep things quick my journey started lovely. Outside of this, the only real look I had was UNT. They wanted me to play, had a way bigger campus and university, just no money to pay for me to come. Coach Sigona at Collin County did, so I went there. He was an interstineting coach to play for. Very fiery and a long track record to prove it. It’s interesting that in that same office right behind me is where my basketball career would end. At least that’s what I thought.
I’ve always been a phonomanel basketball player. Not beucse I was gifted. Because of my hard work. I mean look at me know, I’m even the one typing this. Long story short, I had the opportunity I was looking for and I was more ready then ever to fight and learn and that’s what it was. A grind everyday just like summer cap. Workouts everyday, playing everyday, working out in the Texas sun running hills. It was fun. I also had my local gym to train at when we were done.
We had a really great team that first year. Some guys that were wayyyy bigger than me and even better talents. Yet, I never backed down. I eventualy ended up having to sit that first season do to knee pain that would later been described as a bone spur from the team doctor. This injury really set me back, espicalyy in the eyes of the coching staff. Even though I was red shirting I feel like the coaching staff didn’t trust me anymore. Like I was faking an injury. They never really had my back and form that day on things changed.
When school started for that second semester coach brought me back. I was feeling good and more ready than ever to prove what I can do! Once agin I was outworking everybody, including the new recruits. That’s why when the first tournament came around I was surprised I wasn’t starting. I also learned we couldn’t use the gym whenever we wanted I like I thought we could. That forced me to go to my local 24hour to train. Luckily I had a car, the gym was a few miles down the road. That put another struggle on my career to get better but I still suck with it.
College was more so a mental game. After Red shirting my first year that’s what I was taught. That’s I couldn’t understand why busting my ass my sophmore year I still was not starting over these Freshman I was better than. Maybe it was a family curse. My dad actually went through the same thing. I had fun. I had opportunities after but I chose me. Who Knows. at 28, you might look up and I pull a J. Cole.
There is a lot more I can say but for this time i’m going to cut it short. I just wanted give a brief story of what went own. This picture brought back memories so I wanted to share.