Don’t Miss Out
June 5, 2008 @ 12:39 p.m. by jlongBy Jonathan Long
In the big business, media circus atmosphere that has become professional sports, it’s easy to forget that all of the pro athletes you see today started out as youngsters. There’s a special feeling about seeing young people grow up as players before your eyes — not as in you watched them mature from their rookie year superstardom three or four years later. I’m talking about seeing them before the world really knew who they were.
One of the biggest regrets that I have is not going to see LeBron James play in person in high school. James, of course,was already a national star in his senior year at St. Vincent-St. Mary’s in Akron, Ohio, but I hate that I missed seeing him before he was crowned. I would have loved to see him when $40 million (his earnings per Sports Illustrated’s Fortunate 50 List) wasn’t riding with every move he made. When he was able to go out there and just have fun. When he was just Bron, playing for himself.
I was reminded of this regret when doing research on a couple of upcoming baseball stories I’m working on and saw the list of the players that played in the National Baseball Congress World Series. It’s amazing just how many future stars come around as youngsters, and the moment to take in the beauty of unbridled talent is missed. Seriously, if you’re a sports fan, I urge you to take a couple of days in your life and check out Bryce Brown before he heads down to the “U.” To see one of the area Jayhawk League baseball teams. To see Joanna McFarland or Lindsey Keller before they head down to the state of Oklahoma. To witness Perry Ellis.
By no means am I saying that these kids are on the caliber of what King James was, but, in it’s purest essence, it’s a chance to see what the combination of gifted talent and love for the game looks like.
