It's All In The Family

I always wondered what it would be like to come from a basketball family. Or should I say, I always wanted to be a part of a basketball family.

Coach Borelli at QU

Here I am throwing around this term "basketball family" and maybe some of you don't know what it means or may have a slightly different meaning than I do. In my opinion, a basketball family is a family that has produced at least three generations of basketball players or coaches. I am talking about the Millers and the Waltons of basketball. I think a basketball family could also be when you have 3 brothers and 2 sisters and all of you play basketball. It doesn't have to be that specific number, but you get my point. The best is when you have siblings that play/played, parents that played, grandparents that played, and aunts, uncles, and cousins that play/played. Now that, right there, is basketball family!

Growing up the majority of my life in Connecticut, I have been a witness to such great basketball gurus, and I have even  become really close with a few of them. I have been coached by Megan Borelli, a Rooney, from Guilford, who played at Guilford, then went onto play for Quinnipiac, and now has been coaching for roughly nine years, whose three sisters play/played (one for Quinnipiac, one for Wesleyan, and one still at Guilford High), and whose dad, Jim Rooney, coached Guilford to 3 consecutive state titles and earned coach of the year in 2003. The Rooney family has not only created a legacy in Guilford, but in the state of Connecticut. And I just-so-happen to be 

Jasmine (2nd from left) SCC All Conference Team

 really good friends with Jasmine Claxton (plays for Career & one of the state's best post players), from West Haven, the daugther of Geary Claxton Sr. and Michelle Claxton, whose brother is Geary Claxton Jr. (first player in Hill Regional Career High school history to score 1,000 points & dominated at Penn State, being the 12th all-time in scoring), and whose aunt is Tracy Claxton (legendary player at Wilbur Cross & a two-time All-American at Old Dominion). The Claxton family lives and breathes basketball. They are the biggest supporters and always willing to help out and assist you on and off the court. 

New Haven County alone has its fair share of legends that have evolved generation to generation. What does it mean to be from families like those? You all have a common love. Every family bickers and argues, but when you have that one particular activity that can bring the family together and settle all tempers, all differences are set aside and you just do what you enjoy best. I yearn to have a family like this. When it's March Madness time, I want to watch all the big games with my family and actually talk about them. I'm not saying I can't now, but it is different when you have people that really know the game better than you do. They provide insight that can be crucial to both the mental and physical part of the game.
 

Dad in his "Glory Days"

I come from a family where there is not much basketball in it. My mom, Allyna Heath, was really into sports as kid. She had a dying passion for baseball, and even organized a baseball team around her neighborhood, where she was the only girl. The closest she came to a basketball though was in gym class, where, as she would say, she was the "free-throw queen". I have to give it to her, her form is quite nice and she rarely misses from the free-throw line. Maybe she needs to give me some pointers (lol) I could use it. Needless to say, my mom is a huge Lakers fan and has been since the Magic Johnson days. She still has some of the posters that she hung up in her room, till this day. And being an alum from Hillhouse, it was hard for her not to love basketball because some of her best friends were a part of that historic dynasty on the 1985-1986 guys' team. Then you have my dad, John Heath. He was definitely a major influence in me playing basketball. I was more of a soccer player growing up. Then in elementary school, I loved playing basketball in gym and I was actually good at it. I was also the tallest person in my grade (yes, boys included). Whenever I went to my grandmother's house, I would see all the newspaper clippings of my dad dunking and driving to the hole. Literally, the whole wall was covered with his newspaper clippings. I was fascinated by my dad's fame and I wanted to be just like him.

My dad was what you would call a “late bloomer” as it relates to basketball.  Unlike many of his peers he didn’t start playing early in Recreation or AAU leagues, he first played organized basketball as an 8^th grader.  He was thin and he was just coming into his coordinated stage. 

After living on the playgrounds of Hartford, as a junior at South Windsor High he started varsity and began to gain attention from college scouts.  During this time he garnered the nick names “Never Nervous Purvis” because of his resemblance to Louisville great Purvis Ellison and also “Big Money” because there were days where he was like money in the bank!  Entering his senior year he was among the Top 40 prospects in the state and the kid who every one said who would go nowhere was now being flooded with mail from coaches around the region.  My dad says that his head “blew up” and as a result he didn’t go to class and complete his work and was declared academically ineligible!  This was devastating in that his team was 6-2 and off to their best start in decade.  As a result schools backed off and his dream of playing college ball seemed dashed.

He went on to attend Eastern CT State and there he would hone his skills against UCONN greats Cliff Robinson,Tate George, and Chris Smith.  In the summers he played in the major Pro-Am summer leagues with the likes of NBA greats Rick Mahorn, Marcus Camby, and Michael Adams.  Tate George and my dad became great friends and he and others encouraged my dad to give basketball another try!  At an alumni game against the Harlem Magicians at his High School, my dad played the game of his life against the Magicians who were formed by Hall of Famer, Marques Haynes, the original Harlem Globetrotter.  Mr. Haynes was so impressed he asked my dad to join the Magicians on their New England swing, however my dad expressed that he was trying to land a scholarship, and Mr. Haynes got my dad signed sight unseen to his alma mater Langston University.  Again the dream was alive but then my dad accepted a bigger dream and became a minister and left his "first love" basketball!

My Brother and I

Now I am trying to get my brother, Langston, to jump on the bandwagon. This year he had a tremendous growth spurt, and is now almost 6'0. He just started playing basketball last year. He has potential to be a dominate force inside once he develops more strength, coordination, and just an overall passion for the game.



For the future, I intend to have a basketball family. I hope the Heath's can create a legacy in the basketball world. Maybe I will marry someone who loves basketball as much as me (ya know like Love & Basketball *favorite movie ever*). Maybe I will have lots of kids and encourage them to play basketball too. Either way I want basketball to stay in my family. I want my children to love the game and for my children's children to love the game and so on. I won't force it upon them because that wouldn't be fair to them; they can involve themselves in as many other things besides basketball, I will always support them. I just plan to decorate their rooms with basketballs to remind them to live mommy's dream (hahaha). 

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