My Monthly Sports Minute: “That Feeling” I Got from Watching & Playing Sports as a Kid

Growing up in the 90s, I not only felt I could “be like Mike,” but I also felt I could be like baseball phenom Ken Griffey Jr., two-sport athlete “Primetime” Deion Sanders, plus track and field gold medalist Michael Johnson. I was in awe of their performance and personalities both on and off the field. By watching them excel at their sport, I experienced a lot of #BlackBoyJoy.

Watching my favorite athletes, as a kid, motivated me to be active.

I played basketball on the school playground or in the neighborhood. I played football in the street or in a yard. I played baseball in a park or a backyard. I loved gym class and recess. I raced kids, tried to out jump them, and outlast them. If the weather was nice then I was outside. To compete, I also bowled, played pool, ping pong, video games, card games, board games, you name it.

While playing sports, as a kid, I felt free.

In organized sports leagues, I felt more controlled but still carefree. I’ll never forget how we couldn’t run into little league catchers, so I once jumped over one while trying to imitate Willie Mays Hayes from the Major League baseball movie series. I also prided myself on defense like MJ, Deion, and Griffey, so I’d fall down on a knee or sprint across the baseball diamond to stop any ball from getting passed me. I can’t forget how my defensive pride carried over into basketball. I was so determined to prove my defensive capabilities that my entire elementary school team was unable to individually score on me — even after multiple attempts. I was one of the smallest guys on my team.

Playing sports, as a kid, made me feel confident and resilient.

To this day, I try to hold on to and recreate the feelings I got from watching and playing sports as a kid. “Some forget to play as adults, all work and no play as adults” (lines from my poem Recess). I believe grown men can and should experience #BlackBoyJoy. While watching sports as an adult, I experienced that feeling when LeBron yelled “Cleveland this is for you!” after an epic 3-1 comeback against the Warriors in 2016. While playing sports as an adult, I recently experienced that feeling when beating my nephew in multiple foot races down the street. My family and friends help me create my adult version of recess. I even involve sports in the research I do as a college professor.

— Leroy Long III, PhD

For more info. about me and my work related to sports checkout my site via: leroylongiii.com, leroylongiii.com/ease

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