Gordon Hayward, you may recall, made that miraculous last-second shot back in March to lift Brownsburg to the Class 4A boys basketball state championship over Marion at Conseco Fieldhouse. The recently graduated Bulldog was kind enough to keep a journal for us during his time as an Indiana All-Star as the boys prepared for their annual showdowns with Kentucky.
Though the Hoosiers managed only a split in the series, Gordon’s wisdom and gratefulness for the experience shine through in the following blog …During the week of June 7-15, I had the opportunity of experiencing something not very many high school basketball players are able to experience. I was able to play for the 2008
Indianapolis Star Indiana All-Stars.
It was quite an honor to be selected to take part in the 68th Indiana-Kentucky All-Star Series, and I must thank everyone who allowed me to participate in the series.
I must start with my parents, who gave me everything I could ever ask for. Also, I need to thank my best friend and twin sister, Heather, for being there for me through the good times and the bad ones. Finally, I must thank my Brownsburg teammates, especially my sidekick, Julian Mavunga, as well as the hardest-working coaching staff in the state.
Once again, it was an honor and a privilege to represent the state where basketball rules over all.
I will only focus on the positives in this blog as, in every situation, there includes both positives and negatives. It was a thrill to be able to hang around all the guys on the team for a whole week. It was amazing looking at where all the guys will be playing ball at next year, and I am happy for each and every one of them.
Just hanging with the guys had to be the best part of the week for me. We had a lot of fun clowning at Marian College (I will say, however, that we were kept on a tight leash, so no worries).
Another highlight of the week was the food that we were fed. We had McDonald's or Bob Evans for breakfast everyday, followed by MCL for lunch, then Outback for dinner. Let's just say they fed us well.
Another good part about the week was doing what we were there to do, which was beat the Kentucky All-Stars.
I am glad we represented at Conseco Fieldhouse and took home the victory (I'm not going to say anything about the game in Louisville … all of us were very tired after the long week). I might sound like a little kid, but getting our names announced with the lights turned off at Conseco was the coolest part of my All-Star experience. I actually felt like a superstar (emphasis on the
like as superstar status is far from where we are at) when my name was announced in front of 5,000 fans.
Overall, I had a very enjoyable week. Being able to put the Indiana jersey on was a dream come true! It was great being able to finish my high school career this way, but I am ready to play with the Butler guys and start a new chapter!
Gordon Hayward
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