My NBA Assist

For those who are unaware, I have an NBA assist. But you never played in the NBA you say. That is true, I was never drafted, never signed an NBA contract, or collected an NBA pay-check, but I still have a stat. An assist to be precise. How is this possible you might say. I will tell you.

During the 2005 Season I was given a ticket and the opportunity to sit on the front row during a Utah Jazz home game. As I sat on the front row a warm sense of belonging blanketed my body; I truly was where I was meant to be. The Jazz players came out of the locker room 30 minutes before the game was to start for a little warm up. I watched as they went through some lay-up drills, and then stood on the hardwood court as they separated and began practicing their jump shots. Then it happened....a ball bounced to me and I caught it. Then I did exactly what John Stockton would have wanted me to do...I looked for the open man and made the pass. Keith McLeod caught my perfect chest pass and drained the 18 foot jump shot.

Who is Keith McLeod you say? Keith McLeod was a 6-2 guard drafted out of Bowling Green State, who played for the Utah Jazz for two seasons (04-06) where he averaged 6.7 points and 3.4 assists. His time with the Utah Jazz was short, as was his career in the NBA.

It is said by those who were there that night that the crowd arose to their feet after my accurate assist, and applauded me. I however cannot confirm the ovation as I was still in awe at my first and only NBA stat. I don't know if my assist was recorded in the NBA log that night, but I know of my assist and the fame it has brought me in my own imagination.