Quin

Just a day or so after his basketball instructor labeled him a shooting phenom the likes of which she has never seen, Quin won another carnival shooting game. His prize was a grumpy looking red dog seen pictured above.

This reminded me of grumpy San Antonio Spurs fans who had to witness the worst collapse in sports history recently. I was then reminded of the excitement and drama sports can manufacture, which reminded me of Quin’s amazing battle for the YMCA youth basketball title last winter.

Quin’s GBD squad made fans nervous when they fell way behind in the first half, but then caught fire in the second half. I believe all of the following shots from the super scout took place in the second half.

Though I can’t remember the exact score at the time, I remember that little beauty was a crucial shot in the comeback.

That bomb from Ray Ray either tied the score or gave GBD the lead.

That was a little play the team had been working on and by then the crowd could feel the momentum changing in GBD’s favor.

Can you spot the difference in the past two videos?

And that was a flashback to the beginning of the game, before everyone’s hearts were in their throats.

So, as you watch the NBA Finals play out to conclusion this summer, remember the kids produce more emotions for fans than the pros ever could. GBD hung on for dear life and won by a point.

Just in case you forgot about Quin and his hooper legend since the last post, here is another highlight video from the super scout, this one with a little more rock and roll vibe:

Summer is here and basketball isn’t over at all, as I previously thought. Reports from the super scout (Quin’s mom) confirm that he is hooping it up about 12 hours per day.

Quin starts before breakfast on his indoor hoops, spends seven hours a day at NBC camp and then practices in his driveway until the sun goes down. Can this mythical behavior be true? If so, the legend of Quin grows.

At this rate, we could easily forget all about last winter, so the super scout sent along a highlight video to commemorate the season:

February Frenzy gave way to March Madness, April Angst and May Mayhem. Quin’s basketball and hockey seasons are finally at an end, wrapping up with a trip to L.A.

The best highlights from the trip to L.A. were the following:

The GBD team added a Baron Davis autograph to their consolation for poor tournament play in L.A., and of course they have great memories from winning the YMCA league in a thrilling championship game at West High to help them rest easy at night.

The GBD team won a lot of tournaments over the winter and have every reason to be proud. The team also made their share of mistakes and learned some valuable lessons, which are all part of growing up and becoming real basketball players.

Quin’s personal game improved by leaps and bounds all winter, as he became a more complete player than ever. At one time or another, he played every position on the floor, succeeding at handling the ball, passing the ball, rebounding and defending. Of course, he continues to excel as a shooter.

Quin’s hockey season was a challenging competitive slog, mostly due to his play up above his age bracket. Still, improvements were made and next season promises to be a good one as his age advantage will kick in.

Quin’s first day of summer vacation was spent shooting baskets in his yard and rooting for his Vegas Golden Knights hockey team, which is making strides towards a title. His second day off was spent pretty much the same way. I guess that means the winter games are still on his mind. He also has plans to take some training lessons this summer, so he’ll be ready for another successful winter as an 11-year-old. There is, of course, some golf on the schedule, which is kind of like hockey and basketball rolled into one.

If you turned on a TV on Saturday night, all the talking heads could talk about is how March Madness had arrived early. They were referring to the variety of thrilling finishes that day in the college basketball universe, but none of them were more exciting than Quin’s game in his YMCA league for 3rd and 4th graders.

In perhaps its best overall team game this season, Quin’s GBD squad squeaked out an overtime thriller to maintain their tie for first place with one game left in the regular season. The drama at the end included this 3-pointer from Quin in OT.

Every player on GBD played well and contributed in significant ways. Quin’s overtime bomb was his second triple of the game and combined with a free throw from Brantley and pick-two (steal and layup) from Aso to forge a six-point win.

GBD’s stellar defense in the second half created what felt like a comfortable lead, but some late errors at the end of the half, let the other team back in. Quin was even pounding the floor in an unusual display of emotion after an errant pass of his led to a game-tying free throw by the opponent.

The GBD kids are really starting to play basketball for the first time in their lives, making moves that go beyond just dribbling in a straight line. One such example is pictured below.

You gotta be ready to look quickly at that highlight to catch his behind-the-back pass that leads to a great shot by his teammate Ayden.

The kids seem to be improving quickly in recent weeks, making seats at their March playoff the hottest free tickets in town.

Quin will miss next week’s game due to hockey obligations, but will be ready to go for the playoffs, for which GBD should be either a one or two seed.

Friday the 13th gave way to Valentine’s Day and neither was very kind to Quin and his teams. Though his hockey team and basketball team did each get one win, there were four losses suffered within a 48-hour window.

The Drillers, Quin’s hockey team, were overwhelmed Friday to begin a tournament. They lost twice by significant margins, then lost again Saturday morning. The good news was, that freed Quin up to play in an evening basketball game, which his GBD team won.

The problem was the loss that preceded the win. It was GBD’s first loss in the YMCA league and came at the hands of the Young Bulls, who overcame a five-point, halftime deficit to pull into a tie for first in the standings with GBD. There was a full-court press by the Young Bulls that caused some problems in the second half, but I have a sneaking suspicion GBD will be ready for that next time. There is a good chance the two teams will meet again in the playoffs next month.

Quin didn’t offer any post-game comments. He was all business, getting ready for the next game, which GBD won by double digits. Quin contributed mightily in the win and the positive vibes carried him and the Drillers to a victory Sunday morning, so all is right with the world again.

Here is a nice highlight sent over from the scouts.

On second thought, the highlights machine isn’t working tonight. I’ll save them for next week.

Someone told me there were people who spent as much as $30,000 this year to watch the Super Bowl in person, but Quin’s latest basketball game was much more entertaining and it was free to attend.

A day before the big football game that ended with the Seahawks decidedly winning in a snooze fest against the Patriots, Quin’s GBD team battled for first place in the YMCA league against the T-Wolves and left fans breathless by the end. GBD won 31-30 in a back-and-forth war of wills.

It was perhaps the best shooting performance I’ve seen in a game full of 10-year-olds. Both teams were swishing long and short shots alike, nailing multiple three-pointers along the way and bringing all the fans (parents) to their feet with applause. One kid on the T-Wolves even started prompting the cheers by waving his hands toward the rafters.

It was quite a scene, one that Quin played a big part in. He set up his teammate for the game-winning shot, making a nice, long pass from near the half court line to the left baseline.

The T-Wolves charged back down for one last shot at winning and made an amazing swish from 15 feet only to find out the kid who made it traveled first and Q’s team got the win.

I’ll leave you with one video highlight of Quin nailing a bomb that had so much arc (a good thing) on it, I thought it might not come down. It was a critical shot at a critical time, as well, so at least a measure of clutch was involved.

Quin put in serious work this weekend, logging two basketball games and two hockey games, with practice sessions for both sports jammed in between. His teams won three of the four games, with the lone loss happening on the ice.

The basketball games were convincing victories featuring a lot of points for GBD and very few for the foes. The hockey victory was a one-goal win that came down to the waning moments. Quin scored no goals, but did have some almost goals, which are basically the same thing in hockey. He did score many points on the court, as well as having many almost points.

Quin’s team played the Eagles two days in a row. How is this possible?

Quin traded in his sneakers for skates on Sunday and played hockey with his Drillers, who took on the Eagles and won 5-3, I believe, although I was called away midway through the third period due to a family emergency and couldn’t swear by the score, which doesn’t matter.

Quin’s team won and that’s all we need to know. Scouts said he nearly got in a fight at one point, so I guess that means the kids are starting to flirt with the idea of playing real hockey. They grow up so fast.

As prognosticated by the prognosticators, Quin’s GBD team steamrolled the Eagles in a YMCA youth basketball game Saturday. Score doesn’t matter, but it was something like 38-9.

Quin’s team moves to 2-0 and is still atop the standings in the league for 3rd and 4th graders. Next Saturday, he plays a double header, one game against another lightweight opponent and one against a formidable foe. Drama will ensue, no doubt.