David vs. Goliath

The stage was set. David vs. Goliath. Atenas. Runner-up in the top league vs. Nueve de Julio. First year in the league. Rivals, separated by one hour driving distance. They were second in the league and we were 13th. We had played them 8 times already and only won once, and that was before their Americans arrived. My teammate at this point had played in more games with us than he had practiced (2 to 1). AND we were on the road. We had only won one game on the road all year and that was against the last place team. So on paper we have no chance, right? Well, that's why you play the game.

It was definitely one of the most physical games I've played in, and my teammate said that in his 6 years of professional basketball he had never come close to a game as physical as that. There was pushing, shoving, grabbing, holding, and trash talk. Two mid-air collisions. One ended in stitches and broken teeth, the other a broken nose and a dislocated shoulder. Yeah, not exaggerating on the physicality.

Yeah I got fouled, but look at those triceps!

One of the greatest atmospheres I've ever played in. We had just as many fans as they did even though we were on the road. One side cheering for you, the other booing you! (Made shooting free throws very interesting). There was never a silent moment; the crowd for both sides was electric.

It was a close game throughout, but when the smoke cleared and the dust settled, we came out victorious! I had a great game, 20 and 9, and so did my teammate.

After the game, our crowd chanted at the top of their lungs, "NUEVE TIENE HUEVOS", the staple chant for our team. It literally means Nueve has eggs, it's figurative meaning...well, I'll let you do the math.

When the celebration was over, we stopped at a restaurant to eat. My teammate and I went outside when we finished eating to use the Internet. 20 minutes or so passed, and I noticed everyone was standing outside talking. I was tired and ready to go home, so I went over to rally the troops...and that's when I saw the mechanics...
Yep, another tire needed to be changed. 

At least this time didn't take
them an hour and a half
to get there!

Ironically, the same one as last time. All you can do in that situation is laugh. I was just glad we won.

We only have 12 games left! We are currently in 11th place and 12 teams make the playoffs. So yeah, every game from here on out is the most important game of the year. Let's go!

You Can't Make This Stuff Up

So it's been two weeks since I've written a blog, and my plan was to recap the last two weeks. However, due to the events of the last few days, I'll start at this past Monday night.

My teammate and I were sitting down having dinner before our 9:30 departure when my teammate told me he had just been cut. I was in shock. He had been packed and ready to go on the road and everything. I said goodbye to him and wished him the best, and then got on the bus to start the 14 hour bus drive for our Wednesday night game. 

When I got on the bus I learned two things: 1) I was going to get another teammate, who was supposed to arrive Tuesday night; 2) There was a 22 hour drive between the city that we played in on Wednesday and the city we played in on Friday. 22 hours. No, seriously 22 hours. We wouldn't even have time to practice.

Tuesday comes and my new teammate still hasn't arrived; they then said he would arrive Wednesday morning. Tuesday night after practice I was fortunate enough to meet up with one of my former teammates who was playing for a different team in that city. We hung out for a little while at the casino (got my 50 pesos back haha) before I tried to head home. Key word... tried. I ended up getting lost of course. After wandering for a while, I asked someone where I needed to go and they told me I was about 8 blocks in the wrong direction. Luckily, he was kind enough to give me a ride back to the hotel...glad I was in Argentina because I highly doubt as a 6'9 black man I would've gotten a ride from a stranger at night in the US.

Wednesday. The day of the game. My new teammate still hasn't arrived; I assume he wouldn't play that day. Uno, dos, tres NUEVE! We break the huddle to start the game, and I see my new teammate getting rushed with his bags to the locker room to change. I guess he is playing...and he did. 

We ended up losing the game. Afterwards, I spoke with my teammate and he was still in shock from traveling 36 hours. He joked about how when he arrived at the gym he didn't even know what team he was playing for.  I then told to him that we had a 22 hour drive starting Thursday morning. His jaw hit the floor. I laughed, patted him on the back, and told him, "Welcome".

Next morning. I had a feel that this would be an epic trip so I documented some of my thoughts and feelings. Enjoy:

10:45 am we leave. My teammate is still in shock. Laughing at him makes me feel a little better. I think about putting on a movie, but I didn't sleep much last night so I put on the music and went to sleep... Not very comfortable.

1:30 I feel the bus stop. I look at my watch and realize that we have to eat now because everything closes at 2. I look outside and we are beside a little outdoor restaurant that has barbecue. Not really a restaurant, more like an outdoor shack. Not only did it not have Internet, it didn't have electricity. We sit down and of course there are flies everywhere. Great! Teammate is still in disbelief. Now for the food. Greasy fries, greasy sausage, greasy beef, and a little salad. Mmmmm. I'm so glad I have food with me because I'll be hungry in an hour; or maybe not because it'll take my stomach a while to digest all the grease. Here's a picture of the fun times.

Look how happy we are!

6:30 just finished playing the same game for four hours. It was great. Making great time not feeling bored. But now I feel like watching Shrek Forever After.

7:30 the bus is stopped. Food time? I look at my teammate and asked what happened. He said "we blew a tire". I said "come again". He repeated his last statement. I burst out laughing. You can't make this stuff up. You. Can't. Make. This. Up. This is beyond funny. I wonder how long it'll take now. I love my life.

It looks like a samurai

stuck a knife in this tire. 

7:51 I was charging my computer on the bus because I just found out it has a plug, but now there is a shortage and the power keeps going on and off. I guess no more charging.

8:20 the mechanic arrives. The plan is to see if the tire can be fixed but it looks unlikely because the differential is broken. So after waiting for the mechanic for an hour we may have to wait even more to get a new bus. I'm starting to get hungry. Oh yeah we have only been traveling for a little less than 7 hours which means we have about 15 left, and a game tomorrow...

8:41 false alarm. Still no mechanic

Oh yeah, that's how mechanics roll

9:03 he's here! Yessss. Check out his ride.

9:18 it's fixed! So it took 15 mins to fix...but an hour and a half to get here. Oh yeah.

9:21. We're on the move again.

11:00 pm we change buses. More time added to the trip. Still no food. I'm starving. McDonalds is proposed as a place to eat and I am not a happy camper. McDonalds for dinner and the greasy food we had for lunch would not bode well for our game tomorrow, but everyone else wants it so I am being forced to eat it. 

11:40 we finally find a McDonalds after the first one is closed.

11:49 they lock the doors. We literally JUST made it.

12:24 on the road again. Oh. You think we ate on the bus because we are already so far behind? Nope. We sat and ate leisurely. 

12:31 we stop at a shell station...there was one right beside the McDonalds but we drove down the street to another.

12:34 we pulled off minus 4 players and a coach.

12:40 we actually pull off with everyone

12:51 we are speeding so fast every time we hit a bump I fly out my seat...I guess our driver doesn't know we just blew a tire...

4:00 I am finally about to go to sleep. I don't even want to think about how many hours are left

11:10 I wake up from my slumber if you want to call it that. Looks like we are in a city. Hopefully the city of our destination. We have now reached the 24 hour mark on travel time.

11:20 we made it. They trip is finally over.

At the hotel, we tried to get as much rest as possible before the 10 o'clock game. We gave it all we had during the game but unfortunately we came up short.  After dinner, we drove back to Río Tercero. It was 8 hour drive, but that was nothing compared to what we had just been through. Out of curiosity, I calculated the distance that my new teammate traveled in the last 96 hours and I came to an approximate total of 14,073 km or 8745 miles. Wow. 

We have another game tomorrow against our rival Atenas. Hopefully, we can get some better officiating than we did in the past two games, but I'm not hopeful. I still can't believe I survived that 24 hour road trip.