13U: Unbreakable

13U, be ready for the challenge on Sunday (tomorrow). We'll be short handed, but you're used to that by now. We'll be fatigued at some point with the two games (13U and 15U), but you've endured through that since we started in June. We'll be gasping for air while we need defensive stops, but you have gutted out close games and won almost every time.

You even play older teams to help out our 15U and 17U without complaining. You just want to play. You love this game. That's what I'll remember about you guys when this fall season ends.

But for now, be focused and ready. You'll have fun tomorrow. And when we move on to next week and next month and next spring, next summer, we'll have an opportunity to travel and play great teams from around the country, God willing. And you'll remember all of it. The injuries. The drills. The boiling-hot afternoon sun at Makiki Park.

You'll wonder, one day, what drove you to be there every time, working on this sport. Then you'll remember, there's almost nothing as fun as working and playing with your teammates. That's why you dive for that loose ball headed out of bounds. That's why you love it when your mom and dad watch you play. Because there's pure love when it comes to this game. And it will not be the same three or five or ten years from now.

Now is now. And it's a good time to be loved by your Thunder brothers. You love them back. Everybody's a basketball fanatic. It's all good. You'll keep standing there next to your brother in hoops, and the fun will almost never end. No matter what changes or what challenges block the path.

That's why I don't worry about change. We gain great people. We lose great people. We move on. The spirit endures. And we got lots of spirit.