Bringing the Heat on the Court

By Michael F., Big Brother, University of Pennsylvania

For a taller than average 6th grade male in Philadelphia, basketball is likely at the front of his mind. When I met my Little Brother Kaleel during my junior year, it became clear after a few meetings that a good portion of our time would be spent on the basketball courts. Given that the last time I picked up a basketball was in middle school gym class, I was a bit nervous. Fortunately I still had a foot of height over Kaleel and enough muscle to hurl the ball from the three point line instead of attempting to bypass his defense and trip over myself going in for a layup. During my first year with Kaleel, I would visit during lunch so we could share a meal, talk and play cards or other games before dueling on the courts. I thought I’d at least be able to hold my own in Connect Four but it turns out he’s better than me at that too.

Over the weeks, thanks to frequent demonstrations and help from Kaleel, my dribbling and shooting improved. In the process, Kaleel became more talkative; our conversations shifted from single word answers to debating the superiority of the Redskins over the Eagles. Ok, maybe he would argue in favor of the Eagles but I’d like to think I imparted some knowledge on him with respect to the awesome Redskins.

At the end of the school year I assured Kaleel I would do my best to keep up with basketball practice over the summer so we could start off the fall semester running. When we met up in September and resumed our weekly basketball sessions there was something noticeably different. One-on-one games would end in landslide victories for Kaleel; normally I would only lose by around 10 points in a 20 point game. I wasn’t surprised because the 7th grader was almost as tall as me.

Luckily this year we meet after school, allowing Kaleel and me to team up and dominate the other Big Brothers with their Little Brothers in two-on-two games. One thing I can do is pass, and frequently. Our dominance on the court is a team effort and our momentum is growing. Even Joy, the BBBS SEPA Match Support Specialist, witnessed a stellar three point shot from Kaleel last week and noted it must not be hard to win with him on my team. I confessed my abilities were confined to passing, cheering and throwing out high fives, essential to the spirit of the game.

Surprisingly he still likes the one-on-one games because at the end of the day the score doesn’t matter. Kaleel is a sharp, taller than average, 7th grader. He’s aware my skills are sub-par but that doesn’t stop him from greeting me each week smiling and eager to head to the courts.