Reece Slater

I have played basketball ever since I can remember and it has shaped me into the man I am today.

I first started playing at my local South Florida YMCA around the age of four or five. I’m not sure if you can truly consider this “playing,” as it mostly consisted of running with the ball like a running back and scoring four points per game as a team. I don’t remember much from it, but I’m sure it helped me build the foundational skills needed to advance.

I did this until middle school when I was old enough to play on the school team. I didn’t play much, but I provided the necessary emotional support from the bench in order for our team to win. At least I hope.

Then high school came, and this is where I started to take it a bit more seriously. I was never good, by any means, but I began to value my coach’s teachings, relationships with my teammates, and gametime moments much more. This, of course, doesn’t include my freshman year when I quit after the first practice, but that’s a story for a different day.

During my sophomore and junior years, I was as average as it gets. You could trust me to make smart, consistently average plays, but I would never do anything out-of-this-world. I had lots of fun, played for two different coaches in these two seasons, and had a blast with my friends in the process.

Then came senior year, my final year of eligibility. In previous years, I always had the older guy that I could look up to and count on to make the plays and take the heat when we lost. This year was much different: I was the only senior on the team. The team consisted of one senior (myself), one junior, one sophomore, sixfreshman, and one eighth-grader. It was sometimes tough as I was a bit too old (so I’d like to think) for their jokes, but it worked out in the end, and this made me realize I was pretty immature. As you can see, this team lacked experience, but my coaches entrusted me in leading them and we had a very successful season.

Going to college, I didn’t just want to abandon this sport that I’ve dedicated my life to, and I didn’t see myself walking onto the Georgia Bulldog basketball team. So, I decided to pick up the game from a different angle: refereeing. I started refereeing basketball of all ages during the summer leading into my senior year. I worked over eighty games all across my local area and intend to referee intramural here at the University of Georgia.

Without basketball, I’m not sure I would be the man I am today.