the end of an era.

it's 12.25 am.

i had a great game of basketball last sunday night. it's been a while since i've had such a good session. and it got me looking back at this sport - my 1st real love (in terms of sports lah).

i was also watching a nba game the other day and i realised that it's the end of an era. i mean - everybody knows about michael jordan. but i'm talking about all the other guys too. charles barkley, patrick ewing, hakeem olajuwon, larry johnson, john stockton, scottie pippen ... and so many more.

shit, when i first started watching the NBA proper, SHAQ was just a rookie starting out. he was just some really BIG guy who was clumsy and careless but had potential. now he's a freakin' icon of basketball - just like beckham is to football (even non-football followers know him) - everyone knows who SHAQ is. in fact, now SHAQ is looked at as somewhat of a veteran.

i remember when Kobe was touted to be the next Jordan and now he's freakin' 27 (28 or 29) ?

it's the end of an era fellas.

but it's all good. as long as the game goes on.

i don't even know what it is about basketball that i love so much. i started with badminton. and then i went on to play everything else from football to squash, to swimming and even to golf. not forgetting everything else in between ... i used to highjump, run 100 meter sprints, 200 meters, 400 meters...

but nothing has ever struck a chord in me the way basketball has. i didnt fall in love with bball from watching the NBA. i fell in love with bball PLAYING bball. it's a pity i only started playing at the age of 14. but i'll never forget the Sultan Abdul Samad court. nothing but tarmac and white paint but damn it i miss that court. that court where i used to play under the blazing sun in the middle of the afternoon where if i fell down - the tarmac wasn't exactly very gentle to ya. and i've got some scars to show for that.

shoes never lasted long. i went through 5 to 6 school shoes a year. getting basketball shoes was pointless because nothing lasted long on hot tarmac. but heck - it was worth it.

these days, i just go to public courts all over PJ every now and again. it's really cool if you think about it. you don't know anybody but you can just walk on to a court - say you wanna play - wait your turn and play. if you win. you stay. if you lose - you walk off - wait your turn and then try again. generally you don't need names, no-one gives a shit what colour skinned you are or whatever religion you practice, it's alright if you don't really have any friends, it doesn't matter if you've got a lousy sense of style, or weird, or whatever. if you were there, and you wanted to play the game the way it's meant to be played. that's all there is.

it's not as perfect as i depicted it to be in the paragragph above ALL the time. but hey - sometimes it is.

i'm talking about 'playground' basketball - the real shit outside all the glitz and glamour of the NBA. just like the poor kids playing football in the streets of brazil barefoot and sometimes not even with a proper ball ... the real shit. where it's not really all about just winning, making the money, the fans or whatever... the real shit is about playing the damn game.

ah well. this is just some nonsense rambling. sorry to have wasted your time. :)

later.

signing off - the commonjack.