On the 27th of November 1997, in Freeport, New York, a six-foot-three African American international Basketball player, Elijah Bailey was born. New York has a massive Basketball culture.
On June 6th, 1946, The Basketball Association of America was formed in the city (BAA). Five months later, the first game took place at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto. Where Elijah’s favourite team, The New York Knickerboards beat Toronto Huskies in a close 68-66. Three years later on August 3rd 1949, The BAA joined with the National Basketball League (NFL) to create what we now know as the National Basketball Association (NBA). The most innovative league in sports. The NBA has now been successful for over seventy-six years and the owner of the Boston Celtics, Walter Brown had a great role in the innovation of Basketball games. Walter noticed that many ice hockey rinks were vacated and that many games of Basketball took place outside on the street (Streetball) in substandard conditions. Harlem City, New York, was one of the first cities Streetball was created.
Streetball is commonly played outside and the game travels heavily throughout the city. New York has two very own National Basketball teams ‘The New York Knickerbockers’ (more commonly referred to as The New York Knicks) in Manhattan and ‘Brooklyn Nets’ in Brooklyn. The two teams both continue to go strong in 2023. ‘The New York Knicks’ Personally being Elijah Bailey’s favourite team in the NBA. For his career, Elijah grew up in the perfect city as New York is often referred to as “The Mecca of Basketball” as there are five boroughs with landmarks, arenas and parks located in the city.
There are approximately 1,800 basketball courts across the boroughs there, The Villager finds. Basketball was created by Springfield college instructor James Naismith in 1891. Naismith intended to create a game that could be accessible to many in the middle of Baseball and Football seasons. James got the inspiration for the game when recalling a rock-tossing game from his childhood. James Naismith invented basketball in Springfield, Massachusetts so how did basketball get so popular in New York? In the 20th century, Basketball was a very popular game played against immigrants. Men and Women love basketball and would play it with their families, widening the community. This way teams were formed, and immigrants played the sport more frequently in New York. As there is not a lot of material needed to successfully play a game of basketball, the competitiveness and the easy-to-understand rules are what drew New Yorkers to the sport.
For decades a ball, a hoop and a flat court have transformed the lives of many. When interviewing Elijah Bailey, I found that his family too were heavily involved in the sport. New York is a basketball-orientated city so this gave me a better understanding of his and his family’s personal connection to the team sport. Elijah said that his household is immensely familiar with basketball and that leads me to believe that his family have a weighty influence on his career today. He is proud that he “grew up in a basketball home” as his dad and eldest brother Kirk Bailey also play the sport. It would not make sense for Elijah to not take on the sport as he grew up with basketball in his blood. Within the sports community, it is common for siblings to share interests and take a liking to the same sport. In basketball, legends such as Seth and Steph Curry or Pau and Marc Gasol are prime proof of this. Elijah has a great community of friends and family around him and has adopted a few nicknames from his lifestyle over the years, Ebuckets, Book of Eli and King Eli. At 22, Elijah Graduated from The University of New Haven, Connecticut with a bachelor's in business marketing. Now at 25, He is currently in the UK, Loughborough getting a master’s in International Business at Loughborough University, a heavily sport-orientated school whilst playing matches with his team Loughborough Riders in different cities throughout the UK. He is currently preparing for his most recent game on the 25th of January 2023 “The Big Match 2.0” at Sir David Wallace Arena.
Much like many athletes, growing up has not always been easy for Bailey as he has experienced challenges with his mental health and has been in an unfortunate position to receive a life-altering injury. Despite this, Elijah shows great pride in what he previously would have felt ashamed of and is now a pioneer for Basketball players to prioritise their health and safety. Eli is also no stranger to travelling as he has played in four different countries just within the last two years. “I’ve played professionally in 4 countries in the last 2 years: Armenia, Iceland, Maldives and now the UK. Seasons can be as short as 1 month or 8. Staying in shape in the off-season makes it a year-round commitment. “Bailey continues to achieve great awards and milestones. He details his most recent favourite memory to be “scoring my career high of 50 points in my first professional season in Armenia.” Which is an international memory he is extremely proud of. “I have so many great memories of basketball and the amazing thing is that every year that season could have my new favourite basketball memory.” King Eli has countless memories that he is fortunately very proud of but one that is engraved into his mind is one that happened when he was younger, at the beginning of his Basketball career. “When I was younger my favourite memory is probably winning the championship and MVP for the Stephon Marbury tournament in coney island, New York. Stephon Marbury was the starting point guard for my favourite team the New York Knicks at the time and he awarded me a trophy that was taller than me.”
This is a formative memory in the basketball admirer's life as he met the person he looks up to the most. Although Bailey's career has been one that he is exceptionally proud of, it is no secret that every athlete must make great sacrifices to be in the position that he is in now. The player has mentioned that practising has taken up a lot of his free time. Along with having to maintain his reputation and Physique. Many of the public look up to athletes across the world. In America, in particular, because sport culture is so heavily ingrained in the minds of students, there is more pressure on athletes to uphold. In America, there is an emphasis on how greatly sports can be transformative in one's life due to the scholarships and incredible perks that come with it. “Basketball has a deep significance to me because it has created so many positive outcomes.
I was able to get a free education by playing basketball. I have been able to make a decent living by playing basketball.” Basketball is a lot more than just a sport for many athletes. It is a lifelong career that can take an amateur to a pro. Bailey also said “it (basketball) has allowed me to travel to amazing places I probably would never have visited, make friends internationally, and learn about new cultures. The game also teaches life lessons and creates lifelong bonds with teammates along the way. “Looking deeper into the eyes of a player you can grasp how tightly they hold onto their love for the sport. Bailey was able to meet his Idol Stephon Maurey, travel to four different countries, build inseparable connections and gain free education all through conforming to the game that is in his roots. As athletes are in the public eye so frequently, it is often difficult for them to break away from their strict eating habits and dedicated work lifestyle.
“Growing up, basketball kept me safe by having me stay in the gym and focus on working on my game instead of getting distracted by all other outside influences,”.
The sport can get highly competitive and savage when matches are tense. Everyday Basketball players experience injuries and often these injuries can be life-changing. Elijah acknowledges that as a sport “Basketball is not safe physically.”. According to to live sports injury data on ESPN5, Basketball is the most dangerous sport in America. In just 2021 alone 2,823 injuries took basketball players into the emergency room. Basketball researchers conclude due to the “frequency and intensity of physical contact” as well as opponent injury, basketball is aggressive. The Late legend Kobe Bryant also, known as the “Black Mamba”, dealt with a fractured knee, severe right ankle sprain and a fractured metacarpal throughout his career and was absent from numerous games due to this. One example is Kobe missing nineteen games just from getting Achilles surgery.
It is not uncommon for players to undergo surgery due to the severity of their injuries. Much like any high-contact sport, players must make health sacrifices. When thinking about Basketball injuries, the first incidents that come to mind of many are concussions, jammed fingers, knee injuries, ankle sprains and thigh bruises. However, for Bailey, this was different. Elijah was playing a match in an iconic court in Manhattan. Located at West 4th Street Park, Greenwich Village is “The Cage”. A rusty 20-foot silver chain link fence confines players into a court half the size of a typical regulation court. Basketball amateurs to National Basketball Association stars have bounced balls on this court, NBA players Jayson Williams and Stephon Marbury being two. Often, Basketball amateurs now referred to as legends have started their careers here. Games played on this minuscule court tend to get ferocious and intense as the court is smaller than standard size and the pressure is on for athletes to make a memorable impression. Players tend to be on their best performance as it is common for them to get scouted here. For most players, there is a positive association with this legendary court.
However, for Elijah, it is more complicated. At just 16, In “The Cage”, Elijah suffered an injury so severe that his doctors had to give him an ultimatum, which meant there was a risk he could never play his most cherished sport ever again. During an intense match, the pressure was on and players were sweaty and hot-blooded. Elijah was struck in the eye by an opponent which left him with a detached retina. The following day, after assessing the damage and noticing the corner of his eye had changed coal in colour, Elijah and his mom rushed to the hospital. “The Doctor insisted I go into surgery right away and he placed a scleral buckle behind my eye”. Bailey reminisces. A type of eye surgery called scleral buckling can fix a detached retina and restore eyesight. Elijah is grateful to have taken the condition of his eye seriously as doctors shortly after made him aware that he would have permanently lost his vision in that week if he had stalled going to just as short as a week later. “Afterward he told me if I had waited a week that I would have lost the eye. “That was not only the distressing news Elijah was told that day. As soon after, Bailey was placed with a terrible ultimatum by his doctor.
Quit basketball forever or wear Goggles throughout the rest of his sporting career to protect his eyes. This was a conflict for Elijah as his surgery went successfully which he is forever thankful for but now he would have to experience the challenges that come with wearing goggles during a game.
Since the incident, Elijah Bailey wears goggles while he plays. “It made me take the game a lot more seriously and made me want to accomplish my basketball goals as soon as possible before another game-stopping injury could occur”. Wearing goggles was a physical and mental challenge for him in the beginning. “The first pair of goggles that I was given was too bulky for me and it affected my peripheral vision..
My defence suffered which meant my performance was temporarily weaker,” Bailey said. “People would make fun of me sometimes and being honest with you the laughs hurt more.” Bailey eventually stopped explaining to people his reason for wearing them because there were so many people who wanted to know. Currently, in Elijah's games, he now wears clear racquetball-style glasses and is a lot more confident.
Elijah Bailey and Fashion
He started a clothing brand to reaffirm his now pride in wearing glasses during his games and to inspire others. “this led to me establishing my brand and logo that represents infinite vision.” One of the main messages to take away from the clothing is to "Not let anything stop your vision and not have a limit on what you can be."
His products can be purchased through Instagram at “buckets_prodcutions”. Having a degree in business marketing and also currently working on a master's in International business is also what gave him the tools to start https://www.bucketsproductions.com/.
Even though as mentioned earlier Eli has a busy lifestyle with basketball and it takes up most of his time. In his spare time, he does have side hobbies that he does to keep his day-to-day not solely basketball orientated. “My side hobbies include working out, reading, partying, watching Netflix and chilling, playing call of duty, and working on my brand “. Much like us, Elijah does get to enjoy everyday tasks and keep up with day-to-day activities. However, I must say it is inspiring to see how much he has accomplished at twenty-five and puts into perspective for me how much more could be done when you simultaneously follow your heart's desire whilst still choosing to stay educated. Elijah finds the basketball community to be very interesting as every player has a story different from the next and the opportunities that can arise from the sport can be completely life-changing. “I have former teammates and friends literally playing around the world currently. Whether that be the NBA, Europe, Australia, Africa, or Asia it really puts in perspective how small this giant world can be.”. Basketball is a sport that can be played everywhere throughout the world. Competitions happen everywhere since there are so many teams working hard to be the best. With Basketball, there is a general consensus that every player can work on their techniques to keep improving and there is a want to keep advancing till you become acknowledged by top professionals.
Players are always on their best performance during games because they understand how significant getting scouted can be not only financially but mentally as there is something to show for the hard work they have put in. There is often a great amount of pressure for players as the dream is for a member of a team to be drafted by the NBA. Basketball players are constantly under pressure to overperform from their previous games in the league. There is a pressure for them to stand out from the crowd and make themselves memorable to interested onlookers.“Everyone is focused on being the best they can be and their individual team/ league and because there are not that many of us most basketball players know each other.” Elijah said. According to film insider, the average age of NBA players to hit retirement from the sport is just 34 years of age. Did you know It is rare for players to continue into their 40s? This would mean Elijah is already over halfway through his beloved career.
Currently, The average age for Americans to retire is 62 so you can only imagine the discomfort a player might feel if they do not feel like they are progressing quickly enough. This only increases the pressure and impatience that basketball players are made to feel as drafters turn their focus to younger players. Professionals mainly look towards hiring 19 year old and higher. As a result, athletes tend to be discouraged faster if they do not perform to a high standard and players sometimes feel as though the expectations set for them are unfeasible. As mentioned earlier many athletes get injured and that is one of the main reasons players leave the sport early. However, many players who retire in their thirties lack the skills they acquired during their prime years and simply cannot identify with the same performances as their former years. Athletes undergoing this are more likely to fall into depression and battle mental illness as they are ruminating on how they do not feel good enough. Legends that have shaped basketball into what it is today have experienced retirement for this very reason. At the age of 30, Micheal Jordan retired. This contrasts with Shaquille O'Neal who retired due to an Achilles tendon injury. That being said, Basketball is an amazing sport that brings thousands of people together.
Not every player leaves the game due to negative reasons, some players feel extremely fulfilled with how their careers have gone and feel as though they have reached all the necessary milestones to no longer need to continue playing the sport, This was the case for Dwayne wade. A basketball lies very deeply in the lives of many players for decades that have gone by til the present day. What Eli finds to be the main challenge when it comes to basketball is how competitive the sport is.
“The only challenge about basketball is how competitive it is. There are close to half a billion people that play the sport around the world and many would like to make it a career, but the reality is that only less than 1% do. So, there's always an awareness of all the people who would kill to have your spot.”
Not everyone is gifted to have basketball run through the veins of their family or live in a city that adores their favourite sport. However, those who are more fortunate like Elijah Bailey acknowledge the incredible amount of hard work and discipline is what has gotten him to the position he is in now. If you need to take anything away from this, please follow your heart's desire and know that despite the unforeseen obstacles that life can throw at you. Like potentially losing an eye, you can truly come back from anything. Adapt to new circumstances, like him wearing his goggles to every match till this day, you too can keep pushing towards your passion regardless of what may attempt to halt you.
-Victory Onifade
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