Then there is the other 99%. Within that much larger number are the vast majority who will never front a 'game highlights at 11 feature' but are involved in basketball for both the love of the game as well as the feeling of group, or better put, unit camaraderie.
Advit Raghavan never had high school coaches whispering him sweet nothings as temptation to transfer to their particular school nor college coaches interrupting his family meals with daily phone, email or text check-ins.
It was golf and basketball first out of the sports starting line for him but hoops quickly won out. "I loved the pace, the running back and forth and the bursts of energy."
It wasn't a re-invention but more an addition to his game took place between his sophomore and junior years of high school when he also made a school change. "I was not a good defender at Valley Christian" where he spent his first two years. Even though he moved up to varsity in his sophomore year with the Warriors, something was askew. Raghavan began hating basketball. "My values weren't in line with those of the basketball director," he explained.
"I wanted to bring something I hadn't done to Evergreen [Valley High] and that was be the best defender in the league." This even though he stood just 5-foot-11. "My goal every game was to lock down the other team's best player, to wear him out and make him feel tired. I took a sense of pride in doing that."
Evergreen won the league championship in the 2012-13 season, finishing 21-6 overall. "Our starting five were five seniors, we liked each other and played good basketball."
Paralleling his high school play was participating in AAU hoops.
"I began AAU in the fifth grade playing in local tournaments," Raghavan recalled. Then began a more serious effort. "In eighth grade, I began working out with Bobby (Bramlett) and West Valley Basketball. I played with them my freshman through my senior year.
It was a different experience, one that took a period of adjustment.
"They prepare guys for college and there's no sugarcoating. They treat it like a college environment so you won't be surprised. West Valley does a lot of skills work focusing on making the individual better. Every year, they do exit interviews talking about what to work on to get better, what you need to add."
Here's Bramlett on Raghavan: "Fom the first day, when he showed up in those space goggles, with a 'please teach me' look on his face, we all felt that Advit would be one of those rare guys. He was miscast by coaches early on who profiled him as a 'thinker' as opposed to a 'very athletic thinker.' You can't possess a 35-inch vertical and not be called athletic. Al Grigsby spent more time growing Advit's mental game because it was clear he could have a chance to play hoops at the next level. I am so impressed that he focuses on each experience as a cleverly disguised opportunity to improve as opposed to just good ones and bad ones."
Raghavan then decided to attend the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington, a DIII program headed by Coach Justin Lunt.
"As a freshman, we battled the juniors and seniors in practice everyday. "I saw my job as getting guys more prepared for game." Puget Sound fell three points short of winning the championship that season. "My sophomore year was also a learning experience." Matters became more interesting for Raghavan the following season. Now standing 6-foot-1, "I started out playing really well in my junior year but then I sprained my wrist." Upon further medical diligence, the sprain was determined to actually be a fracture and, as he stoically put it, "it did affect some parts of my game. I played more of a leadership role this year, my senior one. We stepped back from 8-8 to 5-11 but learned from it and grew from it. I wished it ended differently, absolutely. I learned a lot about myself, to stay on an even keel."
In preparation for his upperclassmen seasons, Raghaven undertook a grueling schedule combining time on the court and weight room alongside an internship. "It was the hardest I ever worked, both mentally draining and the most physically demanding thing I ever asked my body to do. I worked 45 hours a week and then from 7:00 p.m. to 10:30 I would lift and then do a basketball workout or vice versa."
He added, "it's what you do with the moments you are given that count so I approached it with a great attitude, maximum effort and high energy."
With just a few weeks to go before graduating with a B.A. in Business and a Minor in Economics, Raghavan is treasuring the relationships he has established. "I still talk to some of the guys who have graduated and the guys who are teammates are my best friends now. I love basketball but this is bigger than basketball."
He praised "my Mom and Dad who give me great advice. I put so much pressure on myself, they get me back to who they know I am." Also coming in for praise were the standout coaches during Raghavan's playing days -- "James Davis (now at Oak Grove High), Michelle Bento-Jackson (who is the current head coach for the women's program at Humboldt State), Bobby Bramlett and Jason Lunt, my college coach."
What he wants to do next is be "a graduate assistant for a college basketball team. I've been planning it for awhile." He's not done with his life love just yet, if he ever will be.
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