Floor plan for the Arena

This is what our floor will look like.. Pick out where you want to sit and hit me for the tickets!

Media Day

We had our formal introduction as The Richmond Rockets last week. It was a great event and I was glad to be a part of it. I was surprised at the attendance that was present to greet our team. Lights, cameras, interviews, the works. My hat goes off to the City of Richmond for what they have done for this team and I'm extremely appreciative of the Richmond Rockets organization for letting me be a part of their inaugural season.

Media Day

My Introduction

Never camera shy

Flashing... Lights

Cheerleaders are on point!

From right to left: Eric Marquis; CEO, Team Doctor; Dr. Karis, Asst. Coach; James Roach, Head Coach; Lamar Baker, Pres. of Basketball Operations; Keith Hazell.

The Richmond Rockets

Quick highlight from the news reel

And so it Continues...

As promised in my introduction at the top, this page will serve as a way for you all to follow my career in world of basketball for as long as its going. I'm proud to say that after playing collegiate basketball, I have found an organization that will pay me to play for them. No, it is not an NBA or a D-League team. Although my agent has been contacted by many teams abroad, I will not being playing outside of the U.S. borders. In fact I'll be playing for a team that is based nearly in my own back yard; Richmond, CA. That's right ladies and gentlemen, I have received a contract offer from an expansion organization called The Richmond Rockets from the American Basketball Association (ABA). For those who don't know, the ABA was a basketball league founded in 1967 that merged with the NBA in 1976. The NBA absorbed four teams from the ABA, the San Antonio Spurs, Denver Nuggets, New York Nets, and the Indiana Pacers. The rest of the ABA folded in '76. The ABA today is once is again functional. For more information go to abalive.com. Our first game is scheduled for November. 4, 2011. I'm very excited but most of all, I'm grateful. I'm grateful that god has answered my prayers with the blessing of being able to continue my basketball career. I am now able to call myself a professional basketball player. Is it the best level of basketball? No it is not. There are better levels of basketball in various places around the globe. Would I like to improve to one of these higher levels? Of course I would. The truth of the matter is that the NBA lockout has messed up things for a bunch of players who want to compete at certain levels nationwide. I know a decent amount of players who are all capable of competing at those levels and not a single one of them has landed a deal anywhere because of the NBA lockout. So I consider myself to be extremely fortunate to have this opportunity. Plus, I'll still be competing at high level. The athletes in this league are some of the most desperate and under appreciated athletes that you can find and they are every bit as hungry. There is no doubt in my mind that the Richmond Rockets will serve as a great organization to kick off my professional career. Stay tuned in for the schedule and frequent updates during the season. Thank you to all who continue to support me on my journey, wish me luck!

Sports Without the NBA

For me, the end of the NBA season has always been a sad time for me. Obviously a major reason for that is because I have been a basketball player since I was a young child, but its also because I am an avid basketball fan. I'm even beginning to see myself as a coach once my playing career is over. My favorite sports are basketball and football at both the college and pro levels. So when the NBA season ends, I don't get excited about sports until the NBA Draft and the NBA summer league starts. I support the San Francisco Giants, San Jose Sharks, Tiger Woods, and the Williams sisters, but I have never been able to sit down and watch the PGA Tour, Tennis, the NHL or the MLB. You can probably imagine that NFL going on lockout was a big blow to me because until they resolve their issues, I'm left with just one pro sport to watch. Being that basketball is my favorite, coping with nothing but the NBA was not going to be difficult at all. However, a blow bigger than the NFL lockout has been dealt to me and other fellow basketball fans; the NBA has joined the NFL and gone on strike. Its been going on for about a week now and its one of the most terrible things I've ever seen. Although there wouldn't normally be anything to watch at this time of the year in NBA, the uncertainty of not knowing if the league will return after such a wonderful season is killing me and its killing thousands if not millions around the world. Sports is just not the same with this lingering uncertainty. Have you watched SportsCenter, Around the horn or Pardon the Interuption lately? They have nothing to talk about. I don't even think a baseball fan could watch show after show of nothing but baseball, because other than the status of the two lockouts, they only talk about baseball. Suddenly, SportsCenter is not so exciting anymore. Kornheizer and Wilbon aren't so enlightening when they talk day after day about Cliff Lee and Pablo Sandoval. Even they will tell you, Sports just does not have its usual kick without the NBA being active. Athletes from the other sports, come to NBA games when they are not participating in their own sports. They too know that there is nothing like the game of basketball and it isn't played better anywhere else than it is in the NBA. Owners and players of the National Basketball Association, you both are blessed to be able to make millions of dollars and live life styles that so few ever get to live. This should implore you to get a deal done so that fan like myself and others don't suffer. You should all be ashamed that you're all rich and yet you still find a way to argue about money. I'm not going to voice whose side I'm on or who's right and who's wrong in all of this. If I was David Stern, I'd get Obama to step in and end this foolishness by either forcing everyone to deal with what was the collective bargaining agreement or kicking everyone out of the NBA who has a problem and bringing in athletes and owners who actually appreciate the blessings of being in the league. The president would surely agree that millionaires arguing over money is ridiculous. End the lockout!

After Valentine's Day Thought: Does love without Conscious Exist?

I have a question; does love without conscious or logic and reason exist or is it a fairy tale that we all have been brought up on for generations? The reason why I have this question is because it seems to me that it is widely believed that love happens unconsciously and that there is no thought or logic behind the madness. You can always picture how you want your love to unfold, but you truly have no control and when that love bug hits you, your mind will aimlessly spiral out of control. I disagree. I believe that it is possible to fall in love on accident with a person you weren't expecting to fall in love with. On the other hand, I think it is much more likely for you to meet a person who you are physically attracted to and begin to explore that person. After a few dates, you then start to like the person for who they have turned out to be over the past two or three weeks. As you continue to figure this person out and you become closer, the weeks that are passing by turn into months and in these months, you've begun spending nights together, seeing each other nearly everyday, and becoming much more intimate. At this point, three to five months into your exploration, attachment and emotions are strengthening and then, it might make sense for you to be love struck. Maybe a few months later things are still going strong and you move in together and you attempt to co-exist in the same space. Meeting the parents is understandable at this juncture as well as long as things are still headed in the right direction. Another four months or so goes by and now its been roughly year and you're really falling for this person. You announce to this person, your girl/boyfriend that you love them.

That to me seems to be very normal and realistic. Is there too much thought behind all of that? I know I'm not a love guru by any means, especially when so many people around me believe in love at first sight and the one and only soul mate. I am told that I don't give love a chance because I think too much. Is it unwise to think that "Beauty and the Beast" or "Cinderella" isn't reality? "Cinderella" is even a far cry in sports if you factor in the statistics. Using your sense when your emotions are running wild sounds like a smart move to me. I can't see myself "letting love take over". Maybe after I'm sure in my mind that the love I feel is legit and is felt equally by the party I'm so hung up on.

I acknowledge the fact that being too analytical will not help you find love, but I also believe that you have to make choices and decisions that will lead to you being in love or having love in your life. I can't recall any fairy tale love affairs that I've ever seen. Yet there is this stupid world-wide notion that everyone will fall in love and that everyone will be swept off of their feet when they least expect it. I do not believe in that at all. The irony in that theory is that the divorce rate will continue rapidly rise if its true because there are thousands of marriages that transpire for reasons other than love. And if you think that majority of people are married out of true love, then you aren't living in the real world.