Courage + Believe = Life

The story of John Challis, who lived by the motto of “Courage + Believe = Life”. Even though John had cancer and he knew it wasn’t going away, he still kept a very positive outlook on life. John showed courage by staring death in the eye and continuing to live life to the fullest. Sometimes we have to understand that  it’s not that bad compared to what others have to face.  If John can stay positive with cancer slowly taking away his life we can all attempt be positive more often then not.  See the great story done by ESPN below.

Basketball and Beyond

Basketball will consume this world and surpass soccer. That’s a very bold statement I’m making but it’s already happening. In the past year the amount of international players in the NBA has grown to 76 and the popularity of basketball in the world’s most populous country of China is exploding.

I watched the USA vs. China game of the 2008 Beijing Olympics over the weekend and you can see how important this game is for both countries. The US team is out for redemption and the Chinese team is out to make a statement to be a future basketball powerhouse. International competition is only going to get better as the US tries reclaim world dominance of basketball with a team of super stars from the NBA. As popular as basketball already is in the US, the international exposure will make it even more popular. International play has caught up with the US, so you can’t deny it that basketball will continue to grow with other countries catching up to the US and now you add into the mix a massive country with a billion people.

As the popularity of basketball grows in China, the players will only get better there and make the sport even more popular. The fact that China plans to put a basketball court in every village shows how big basketball is going to be in the future. This won’t only happen in China it will happen for any country that has a up and coming basketball team. More popular players will spur more interest and it will continue this way exponentially.

Yao Ming is the perfect example how the popularity of basketball is going to explode worldwide.  He has been the perfect ambassador to opening the game up to players overseas to play in the NBA as the first number 1 pick  from overseas.  He is the face of basketball in China that is bringing basketball to the forefront of sports in the country. NBA superstars worldwide will be bringing basketball to another level of popularity as the world shrinks and we are all little more closer to everyone.  On a side note I’ve never seen anybody represent their country as proudly as Yao Ming has done for China as they host the 2008 Olympics. Fittingly a man of this stature has put the weight of the country on his back to represent China and basketball.  )For a great story on Yao, check out this story on Yahoo Sports! about what Yao Ming has done.)

Basketball is such a simple sport that you can play with one or many.  Basketball is bringing the world together like no other as countries embrace this great game. Kids in the US are doing the same thing as kids in China, they’re playing basketball.  I Love this Game!