IN THIS VERY FIRST BLOG EDITION OF THE O’NOPSIS, I FELT THAT IT WOULD BE
BEST TO START IT OFF IN THE VERY PLACE THAT MEANS THE MOST TO ME …. MY OWN
HOME! MY HOUSE IS FILLED WITH A VARIETY OF TALENTED INDIVIDUALS WITH HIGH
ASPIRATIONS AND AMBITIONS. WE HAVE SPOKEN WORD ARTISTS AND ACTORS, MODELS AND
WARDROBE STYLIST, A BUDDING LAWYER AND ONE POSSIBLY TWO FUTURE STAR ATHLETES.
MORE NOTABLY, ONE OF THESE ATHLETES IS MY SON, MARQUES SUMNER.
STANDING 6” 1’ FEET WITH A 6”2’ WINGSPAN, THIS 11TH GRADER
HAS MADE A NAME FOR HIMSELF IN THE CSRA (CENTRAL SAVANNAH RIVER AREA) OF NORTH
AUGUSTA, BUT THIS HAS NOT COME WITHOUT HARD WORK AND SACRIFICE. MARQUES, HAS HAD
A BASKETBALL IN HIS HANDS WHEN THE BALL WAS STILL BIGGER THAN HE WAS. HIS
THIRST FOR THE GAME OF BASKETBALL WAS SPURNED WHEN HE STARTED PLAYING REC BALL
FOR THE RICHMOND COUNTY RECREATION & PARKS DEPT. WHEN HE WAS 5 YEARS OF
AGE. A FEW YEARS LATER HE WAS “THAT” LIL DUDE ON THE COURT THAT ALL THE OLDER
MORE EXPERIENCED PLAYERS WANTED ON THEIR TEAM BECAUSE OF HIS BALL HANDLING
SKILLS AND ABILITY TO MAKE THE DIFFICULT SHOTS OVER HIS LARGER OPPONENTS. IN
THE SPRING OF 2006 – ’07, WHILE HIS FAMILY WAS ON VACATION IN FLORIDA, THE THEN
10 YEAR OLD MARQUES MADE A GROWN UP DECISION TO FOREGO HIS TRIP TO FLORIDA AND
NOT LEAVE HIS TEAM STRANDED. SEE, THAT YEAR HIS TEAM, THE CAVALIERS, HAD BEATEN
EVERY TEAM IN THEIR CONFERENCE ONLY TO STEAMROLL THROUGH THE PLAYOFFS AND RIGHT
INTO THE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME. AT THE HELM, MARQUES LED HIS TEAM TO AN IMPRESSIVE
WIN TO CAPTURE HIS VERY FIRST CHAMPIONSHIP.
NOW, AT THE AGE OF 16, HIS WORK ETHIC IS IMPECCABLE! HE TRAINS HARDER AS
A HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT THAN I’VE SEEN A LOT OF COLLEGE PLAYERS DO. I TELL PEOPLE
ON A REGULAR THAT HE IS A STUDENT OF THE GAME. HE’S CONSTANTLY
WATCHING/STUDYING GAMES AND PLAYERS OF BOTH COLLEGE AND PROFESSIONAL ATHLETES.
WHEN HE WAS YOUNGER, I REMEMBER TELLING HIM ABOUT HOW WHILE IN COLLEGE, MICHAEL
JORDAN SAT ON THE PINE, ONLY TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF HIS GIVEN OPPORTUNITY AND
BECAME ONE OF, IF NOT THE GREATEST, PLAYER OF ALL TIME. FROM THAT CONVERSATION,
AND SEVERAL OTHERS, HE DEDICATED HIMSELF TO BECOMING THE ABSOLUTE BEST. HE
SHOOTS COUNTLESS JUMPERS, 3 POINTERS AND FREE THROWS; HE WORKS ON SPEED DRILLS,
PRECISION DRILLS AND CROSSOVER TECHNIQUES OVER AND OVER UNTIL HE FEELS LIKE
HE’S REACHED HIS PEAK OF PERFECTION. I’VE ALWAYS TOLD HIM THAT HE IS AMONG THE
ELITE OF ATHLETES (HE’S ALSO PLAYED BASEBALL AND FOOTBALL), BUT I CAN RECALL A
DAY THAT HE AND I WERE TRAINING AND AFTER A FULL TRAINING SESSION, HE COOLED
DOWN BY MAKING 19 OF 20 FREE THROWS …… BLINDFOLDED! THE FUNNY THING IS, HE WAS SO
DISSATISFIED AT MISSING ONE, THAT BEFORE HE WOULD GO IN HE SHOT 5 MORE IN A ROW
…… BLINDFOLDED!
THAT COMPETITIVE WORK ETHIC WAS
EVIDENT THIS PAST SEASON AS HIS NEW SCHOOL AND TEAM, THE FOX CREEK PREDATORS,
MADE A VALID RUN FOR THE SOUTH CAROLINA STATE CHAMPIONSHIP. AS ONE OF THE PREMIER
GUARDS, MARQUES, SHOT, PASSED, SLASHED AND HELPED LEAD THE TEAM TO A REGIONAL
CHAMPIONSHIP, BY SCORCHING SOME OPPONENTS BY 10, 20, SOMETIMES EVEN 30 POINTS.
ALONG WITH DJ CURRY AND BRANDON QUILLER, THE PREDATORS, CAPTURED THE SCHOOLS
FIRST EVER REGIONAL TITLE. DURING THE SEASON, @AUGBBALL (TWITTER) COMPARED
MARQUES TO THE MIAMI HEAT SUPERSTAR, DWAYNE WADE! PLAYING LIKE SEASONED VETS,
COACHED BY ANDRE BASKETT, THEY WON A HARD FOUGHT BATTLE AGAINST MCCORMICK AND
TRIUMPHED IN A SHOOTOUT WITH MCBEE, WITH MARQUES, WHO GOES BY THE TAG OF, QUES
CINCO, HITTING SOME CRUCIAL FOURTH QUARTER CLUTCH 3 POINTERS.
IN A HEARTBREAKING LOSS IN THE THIRD ROUND OF THE PLAYOFFS, FOX CREEK
FELL TO LEWISVILLE, WHO EVENTUALLY WON THE STATE TITLE. IT WAS A HARD LOSS TO
SWALLOW GIVING THE TALENT THAT THEIR TEAM POSESSED. NOW MONTHS LATER, RANKED #7
IN THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA AND GUNNING FOR TOP HONORS, MR. SUMNER HAS
UNDOUBTEDLY LEARNED FROM THAT “SO CLOSE, YET SO FAR” LOSS. WHEN ASKED WHAT HE
LEARNED FROM THAT LOSS, HE SAID, “I LEARNED NOT TO GIVE UP ON MY TEAM,
ESPECIALLY IN BIG GAMES. I’M A LEADER AND WHEN WE’RE DOWN, IT’S MY
RESPONSIBILITY TO SHOW SPARKS OF HOPE AND NOT GIVE UP”. WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO
ACCOMPLISH NEXT? THIS YOUNG MATURE MIND EXCLAIMS, “I DON’T CARE ABOUT THE
ACCOLADES BUT I WANT TO WIN STATE, GET ALL REGIONAL PLAYER OF THE YEAR AND
RECEIVE A VALID COLLEGE OFFER BEFORE I’M A SENIOR”. HE SMILES AND SAYS, “THAT’S
ALL!” @_QUESCINCO (TWITTER) IS WELL ON HIS WAY TO RECEIVING ALL THAT HE
DESERVES AND OBTAINING HIS DREAM OF ONE DAY PLAYING IN THE NBA. WITH TWO YEARS
LEFT IN HIGH SCHOOL, A WARRIOR SPIRIT AND MAKING A’S AND B’S, MARQUES IS ONE
STUDENT/ATHLETE TO WATCH NOW AND IN THE FUTURE! HE’S A FIERCE COMPETITOR, A
CHAMPION, HE’S MY SON AND I LOVE HIM!
*** NOTE: AS WE WERE GOING TO PRESS,
MARQUES WAS 1 OF 4 PLAYERS SELECTED AS ALL-REGION PLAYER OF THE YEAR! ALL 4
AWARDS WERE GIVEN TO PLAYERS FROM THE FOX CREEK TEAM!
*** NOTE: AT PRESS
TIME, MARQUES CAPTURED HIS 2ND CHAMPIONSHIP AS A PART OF THE AAU
BAKETBALL TEAM “THE SOUTHERN KINGS”
No comments:
Post a Comment