As an avid sports fan and an active individual, freshman Liuen Yu involves himself in a diverse range of activities including basketball, football, track and Boy Scouts, but his favorite by far is basketball. Ever since his parents signed him up for his first basketball summer camp in first grade, he found a passion and an endless willingness to dedicate himself to the sport. His journey has taught him valuable lessons of self-discipline and genuine hard work. 

“Basketball is pretty hard and I have to push myself to do drills,” Yu said. “It has taught me how to work harder and how not to get distracted.” 

As both a JV and club player, he can balance his experiences on the court between fun and competition. 

“There is a huge difference between club basketball and school basketball because, in high school basketball, you take all the practices and games seriously,” Yu said. “Whereas in  club basketball, you play for fun because there’s no way you get benched.”

Yet Yu’s experience with the sport has not always been so smooth-sailing. Due to difficulties with coaches in his middle school team, he often could not play during matches and felt his skills declining. Luckily, he gained more opportunities in high school basketball to participate in matches. However, Yu has recognized a vast difference in intensity and rigor between practicing and match play. Fortunately, he feels more encouraged than ever and now works overtime, with more intensity than his peers to reach a level he is satisfied with. 

“Because of that, I have to work harder to get a spot on the team,” Yu said. “More practices went by and I started to play more minutes and prove who I was as a player.”

Ultimately, although Yu holds no plans of playing professional or college basketball, he hopes for basketball to be a lifelong skill and hobby.