So who is this guy? This guy is an NBA basketball played by the name of Fred Vanvleet. He is the starting guard for the Toronto Raptors. Everybody see's all the praise and the glamorous life that NBA players live because of their talent. But nobody really see's exactly how hard it is to get there. Everybody has their own path and journey, but Fred has one for the books. In 2016 following the NBA draft, Fred's name was not called. After about 45 out of the 60 picks were called, Fred told the rest of the teams not to draft him, if they were planning on it. In doing so, he decided he was just going to tryout for as many teams as he could, then make a team for the season. He describes this decision as betting on himself. Fred traveled city to city, working out with teams in this time period. He impressed the Toronto raptors enough for them to invite him to their summer training camp. By the end of the camp, Fred has a spot on the roster. The bet on himself was successful. He. them began to play extremely well, earning his way to the starting lineup, and is now looked at as a well established player in the league. When people got word of his story, people became fond of his "bet on myself" mentality. Now, thousands of people look at his story as inspiration and motivation to always believe in yourself and when in doubt, to bet on themselves.
That is a really cool and inspirational story. I don't follow sports very closely, especially basketball, but I am very impressed by Fred Vanvleets ability to bet on himself and this is for sure a story I am going to keep in the back of my mind when I feel myself losing confidence in myself. Thanks for sharing this, it is exactly what I needed today. -Chloe Predmore
ReplyDeleteIt's always a great thing to bet on yourself especially when people are counting you out. FVV definitely did what he had to do to get on a roster, and he earned everything that was given to him. That boy a champion too now!
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