In sports, when people think of the hero’s journey, they
usually think of minor league baseball players who aren’t top
prospects.
They think of the endless hard work, the low salaries and the
rough living conditions that these players endure to fulfill a
dream that looks blurry but is not quite out of reach ““ to
play in the major leagues. This is the essence of sports.
On my trip down to San Diego two weekends ago, I got to see
another inspiring manifestation of the hero’s journey.
One of my best buddies landed a job as the assistant general
manager of the San Diego Siege, a first-year National Women’s
Basketball League franchise, and offered me a media pass to its
home opener against the San Jose Spiders.
The NWBL is a professional women’s basketball league that
has been in existence since 1997. It currently consists of four
teams located in San Diego, San Jose, San Francisco and Colorado
and already has expansion teams in place for next season.
A few of the players are from the WNBA, trying to tune up for
the coming season (The Siege have a league-high four current WNBA
players on its roster). But most of the players are just trying to
make a name for themselves.
“I’m just trying to get to the (WNBA) and get on a
team that can pick me up and use me,” Siege guard and former
USC player Jessica Cheeks said.
Former UCLA guard Natalie Nakase is another one of those players
trying to make the WNBA. Watching her play, you can tell that she
has the talent, the skills and the grit to make it to the league.
But when you see the tiny 5-foot-2-inch guard battling against a
6-footer on the block, you can understand what is holding her
back.
Nakase has been trying in vain to get into the league and
fulfill her dream of playing basketball for a living ever since
graduating from UCLA in 2003. This season is her second in the NWBL
““ Nakase played for the Spiders in the 2005 season.
“The first year (after college) I tried out for a couple
of teams and didn’t make it, so this league has definitely
helped me,” Nakase said. “I haven’t gone
overseas, I’m an hour and a half away from home, so this is
the perfect deal for me right now.”
If you were to look at the situation purely from a financial
standpoint, however, you might think Nakase is nuts for being so
enthusiastic about playing for the Siege.
The entire player payroll for the Siege is $10,000. The top four
players earn somewhere around $1,600 for the two-month season, the
next four players earn slightly less money, and the remaining
players on the team don’t make a cent and are just playing
for pride and exposure.
But for Nakase, who also works as a basketball trainer and a
club team coach, playing for the Siege is about more than money.
It’s about continuing to be a part of the game that she
loves.
The guard, who was the first player ever selected by the Siege,
has become the face of the franchise with her leadership,
determination and scrappy play. Even if she doesn’t make the
WNBA, she will still find a way to be part of the game that she
loves.
“(I’ll be) a coach,” Nakase said. “I
love coaching and I just love being around basketball. I’ve
tried to stay away from it, but it just keeps calling.”
And it is players like Nakase who define what sports should be
all about. In an age where money, power and ego dominate
professional sports, it is refreshing to see a player giving her
heart, soul and energy for the pure love of the game.
The enthusiasm of the players during the game and especially
after the game, when the players eagerly signed autographs for a
big group of elementary school-age fans, is a sight I will not soon
forget.
E-mail Azar at bazar@media.ucla.edu.