By Tom Rohrer
Basketball is a game of ups and downs, as minor successes and failures take place over the course of any matchup.
Success makes the failures worthwhile, for the competitive players, while the free flowing nature of the game leads to enjoyment for the recreational participants.
Like the game itself, the weather during Spokane Hoopfest, the world’s largest three on three basketball tournament held this past weekend, was certainly up and down.
The usually sunny event fell victim to rain and thunderstorms on Saturday (the first of two days of playing) making the nearly 500 “courts,” which line the streets and bridges of Spokane, puddle filled and slippery.
However, this rain (combined with the 95 + degrees temperatures on Sunday) did not slow a large quantity of teams from the Thurston County area from having a great time and competing at a high level.
For the seventh time, I participated in the basketball pilgrimage, and again, it gave me the opportunity to compete with some old Capital High School teammates and burn off some competitive juices that have been long since overflowing.
A fourth place finish in an adult competitive bracket (comprised of 16 teams) was my best finish ever, and the laughter and stories shared over a cold beverage following play with friends and family was as rewarding as any sunk basket or blocked shot.
Likely the most accomplished player from the Olympia area competing was Kelly Golob, one of the best players in the history of Olympia High School who went on to star at Northern Arizona University, a Division I basketball school competing in the Big Sky Conference, in the early 2000s.
Golob, a chiropractor who runs Olympia Sports Chiropractor in Olympia, competed with three other teammates in the Elite Division of the event. Golob was able to compete at the Nike Center Court, which is surrounded by bleachers that sit hundreds of spectators. Golob’s Oly Chiropractic team took third place in the Elite Division.
Golob also lined up a second team with his younger brother, Corey (a standout at Shelton High School), his sister Whitney Holm (who played for Saint Martin’s University) and friend Julia Eisentrout. This team competed in the co-ed division.
Seeing a player the caliber of Golob compete was a worthwhile experience for Thurston County basketball junkies.
“He can obviously still play, and he’s just a guy who plays and competes the right way,” said Andy Beagle, a Hoopfest participant from Olympia who competed against Golob in the Olympia Parks & Recreation City League. “It’s always fun to see guys from our area compete at a high level on a stage like this.”
Beagle, a three sport standout during his years at Capital High School, now is an assistant coach at Shelton High School. A small collection of High Climbers players he has coached took part in the tournament, a prospect Beagle was pleased with.
“I think it’s good for kids because it takes them out of their usual element in a way and they have to find new ways to score and new situations to over come,” said Beagle. “Plus there are crowds of people around, so they have to handle that pressure. It’s just a fun experience for any young player, something they’ll look back on and smile on.”
Along with the actual tournament (which had an estimated 25,000 players and over 150,000 people in attendance) a host of other events take place as well.
For the first time ever, the World Slackline Championships were held at Riverfront Park, a sport that involves balancing and performing tricks on a flexible line held between two trees. Members of the Gonzaga and Washington State men’s and women’s basketball teams signed autographs, and former Gonzaga star Jeremy Pargo held a series of parties over the weekend.
I was also able to spot 2013 first team All American Kelly Olynyk, who was a star on Gonzaga’s winningest team in school history and is now a member of the Boston Celtics, after last week’s NBA draft. He was checking out one of Golob’s games during the weekend.
If you’re a basketball fan or player in the Pacific Northwest, a trip at the end of June to Spokane is a must.
“If you’re a youngster, there isn’t a better time, and if you’re an adult, it brings you back to being a kid,” said Beagle. “You’re not stuck in a gym during the summer – you’re surrounded by tons of nice people having a fun time. It’s just one of those unique events that you have to see to believe and understand.”
Until next summer Spokane. Now, to work on that jump-shot.
