Good workout yesterday at Kahala Park with our KAC and CAL League combined teams. Eleven players in all, including Sharazz, who is not officially part of the Thunder. He works hard on defense, takes every drill to heart and his weak spot — shooting — is improving rapidly. Sharazz, you're welcome to join us at practice any time. Well, almost any time. (There's the KAC playoffs in less than a week and we might play his team.)
Blake and Elliott continue to show their skill level at practice with our older kids. They've got a lot of skill, but what I like best is their focus and concentration. They're fully committed to basketball and it shows during practice.. They push hard and I think it's had a positive effect on the rest of our team.
Last week, we reached 10 players on the roster, which is a healthy number. But with no-shows to practice, I have to be realistic. We are entering a tough league and I'm not willing to play kids who refuse to come to practice and work hard. This isn't KAC, where playing time is mandatory. So, right now I can count on just seven players. The others who have attended practice sporadically, they're also on the roster, but I'm not expecting them to be consistent and reliable.
With that in mind, I've added another player to the roster. Brandon Oda is a former teammate of Blake and Elliott, a point guard who's an eighth grader, but comes highly recommended. If Brandon is as tough and reliable as Blake and Elliott, that gives us eight players I can count on.
Welcome to the Thunder, Brandon!
The rest can come and go, still welcome to practice with us. I can't guarantee anything, though, as long as they're not showing up without reason. So, we have an Elite Eight of Thunder players. I count four others as possibilities. It's a good problem, not a bad one. I want all 12 to become better players by the time CAL League is done. That will come only through practice and game experience. Repetition and commitment. In the end, it's the ultimate form of fun: turning sweat into results.
Practice this week is on Tuesday (4:30 p.m.), Thursday (4:30 p.m.) and Saturday (TBA).
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