Natalie Williams. Jab Step. Teresa Weatherspoon. Pump fake. Katy Steding. Crossover. Jennier Azzi. Spin. Sheryl Swoopes. Shoot. Yep, those are the women I’m gonna be when I grow up. I’m ten years old shooting hoops in my driveway, sweatin’ up my Rebecca Lobo jersey and dreaming of my first game as starting point guard for the American Basketball League (ABL)‘s Portland Power. Oh, you wanna see my autograph collection? Okay, we’ll have to go inside real quick, but don’t take them out of the plastic sleeves. They’re over there on the wall next to my bed. Yeah, by the end of next season I should have enough tickets signed to fill up three sheets of computer paper. I waved at coach Lin Dunn last game, and I think she recognized me from the Oregon City High School summer camp because not everyone gets the Ms. Hustle Award three years in a row.
Fast-forward. 1998: ABL folds – a fourth consecutive Ms. Hustle award does little to lift my spirits. 2000: freshman year of high school tucks a couple of Varsity games under my belt – I nearly puke on my shoes out of nervousness. 2002: possibility of growth spurt deemed highly unlikely – sneakers reluctantly retired in order to focus on soccer. 2004-2008: high school and college intramurals pepper my late teens and early twenties with a nostalgic taste of my peach-basket glory days. 2008-2010: Chicago women’s basketball league offers a gateway to a more promising social life.
2011. I’m still doing my best to nurture my inner ten-year-old. I might have neglected her dreams, but I certainly won’t crush her spirit. Just last week I rode my bike up to 66th and Prescott and joined a pick-up game with a gaggle of female strangers. I wasn’t the best player on the court, but if a maroon face doesn’t scream Hustle Award I’m not sure what does. I wasn’t nervous, but I did discretely dry-heave out of exhaustion once or twice. And, although I didn’t make any fast friends, I did hear about a potentially new place to find some: the Human Rights Campaign (HRC)‘s 3rd annual Women’s 3×3 Basketball Tournament in Portland, Oregon. Oh, you haven’t heard? Okay, I’ll have to quote from the website real quick: “… a tournament for ALL women no matter what kind of baller you are: league champion, gym rat, college hoopster, short, tall, young, old – even if you haven’t played in years – dust off those sneakers and come play some great basketball and meet some wonderful women!” Sounds like a good fit for a mediocre 5’3”er with a wrinkled Lobo jersey, right? And a good fit for you too. Whether you’re a local or an out-of-towner, bike or fly on over to Irving Park on July 23rd and relive some glory days – whether they’re yours or someone else’s.
To buy tickets and support a great cause, check out the HRC’s online listing of Events in Your Community.