Let me start off by congratulating you. You’re officially a pro! I know it took a lot to get there. You've been running around so much you haven't even been able to soak it in. Many of your peers won’t ever get to experience this feeling. It’s an unfortunate fact, but you need to be aware of that simple blessing before anything else. I know it sounds cliche, but your first season will literally be the beginning of a new you. You’re going to find another version of yourself that you didn’t even know existed. The expectations that your new team has for you is much different from what you experienced from when you were in college. You’re going to have to score a lot more points than what you’re used to while still keeping up that high level of defense that you already have. It might seem overwhelming at first, but the game will slow down for you at some point and you’ll eventually figure out what works best for you.
I remember exactly how you’re feeling right now. There is this up and down feeling you have about playing in Malaysia. One side of you is happy that you’re making decent money right out of college. You’ve spent the last 4 years as a broke college student so you’re just grateful for this opportunity more than anything. I already know you’re going to buy that designer backpack with your first paycheck and send some videos of you counting thousands of dollars to your old college teammates back home to let them know you’ve made it. You deserve those moments, and if you looked back years later you would it all over again. I also know you have this feeling like you deserve to be somewhere bigger and better. You don't really know the basketball business right now so you're not exactly sure where it is you should be, you just know it should be somewhere much higher than where you are right now. You feel like you’re overlooked and unappreciated. There is this bad rap on you because your college stats weren't that impressive, but you know you bring so much more to the game than what some numbers say on a piece of paper. You just feel like you don’t belong, and the truth is, you don’t. That feeling isn’t going to help you succeed on the court though, because you’re going to score only 7 points in your first game. You’ll spend some time deep in your thoughts about this feeling, but all that complaining never really pushed you in a positive direction. The good news is, you’ll eventually learn to channel that feeling of deserving more into your game. It’s going to take some acceptance and a lot of patience, but it’s going to be the force that drives you for most of your career.
I don’t want to scare you but I must be honest, you’re about experience some of the toughest years of your life. It will be challenging in every way possible; mentally, physically, financially and even spiritually. You will spend a lot of time questioning everything about yourself. You’re still going to be overlooked and under appreciated even though you thought you did everything you were supposed to in order to be rewarded properly. So the short answer is no, you won’t get that big contract that you expected in your second year. You actually won’t get anything you expected, you’re going to be jobless for almost 9 months after this first season. I know this story does not sound appealing at all, but it’s your story to own and you’ll grow to appreciate that over time. I wish I could warn you of some of the decisions that you plan to make, but if I did that then I’m not sure there would be the same kind of person writing this to you today. You’re going to make a lot of mistakes, not because you chose to do the wrong thing, but simply because you didn’t have the knowledge you needed in order to make the better choice. I can’t give you any advice because everything I say now is out of hindsight. Only thing I can say is to keep following that gut feeling you have right now because it will eventually lead you to where you want to be in life.
One last thing, be sure to pay attention to the all the advice and stories your older teammate tells you. He'll be giving you gems all season and I know some of them will go in one ear and out the other. One day he's going to tell you that "Your story doesn't end here" and it's going to stick with you forever. I know he talks a lot, but you're going to be in his position one day telling stories of your own. You might be doing it a lot sooner than you think.
With Love,
The Wiser You
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