Tonight's game is against the Washington Wizards. I really like this up-and-coming team. They've got a lof young guys with promise and talent. In a few years, maybe we'll be talking about them come playoff time! Going into this game, I had some expectations and had heard some rumors so I wasn't sure what to expect with some other guys. The core of this team is similar to what it was last year, but there are some new guys that have been brought in to help bolster some weak areas. Fellow grapher Jeremy said that Morris brothers in general aren't usually nice about signing autographs and posing for pictures, and for Marcus (who I saw at the Detroit game) definitely seemed to fit that bill. But Markieff Morris was SO nice! He was impressed with my camera like a few other players have been, and he put his hand on my arm while I took the selfie. He also signed a photo for me. I'll bring that picture with me next time I see him and hopefully he'll sign it! Bradley Beal ran past everyone with his Beats on last year, but this year he was willing to sign up to 2 for the kids. I don't know if he would have done it for me, though. Either way, I only had one photo for him. He was wearing his Beats again so I figured it wouldn't be an ideal situation to ask for a selfie. You gotta know how to pick your moments when you IP graph. John Wall was the autograph I wanted most (again), and he had a security guard/handler again. It was a different guy this year, although the one from last year was also around. He was nice about changing pens for specific items, but I don't think he would have agreed to a selfie, in all honesty. The paint pen wasn't all that great (could have been prepped better), but at least it didn't explode. It is a bit faint, but it's my first one signed in paint pen (all the others have been in Sharpie). I still have some learning/experimenting to do in this arena. I'm not one to sell, but if I got a better-looking one, I'd be willing to part with this one. If you're interested, that'll have to wait till next season. As expected, Marcin Gortat was a bit of a dick, although just slightly nicer than usual. He sort of reminds me of Gru from the Despicable Me movies, y'know, before he adopted those girls and turned into a nice guy. Mr. Gortat signed one for Jeremy's wife, saying he would because it was a photo of him with his national team (I gotta print one of those!), and when he came off the court, he signed for a few kids (and Jeremy again), but all the while saying, "I gotta go" in a slightly annoyed tone, much like last time. I'm not sure how I ended up getting Beal, Wall, and Morris, but not Gortat. The stars sign, but the other guys are hit or miss. Is this a parallel universe? Have I stumbled into the Twilight Zone? And are there any kids out there that want to hold out my photo to get signed? Marcus Thornton signed for the kids but didn't sign for me. I only had a logo photo and it wasn't out all the way, so who knows. Do I regret not getting him? Honestly? No. The last guy, I'm not really sure who he was but he looked like Ian Mahinmi. The kids had their card pages out to the tab marked "Andrew Nicholson" but I didn't really think it looked like him. Either way, we all got kicked out of the section before mystery dude came off the court. Beal 1/1 Gortat 0/1 Mahinmi? 0/1 Morris 1/1 + selfie Thornton 0/1 Wall 1/1 I got all of the autographs I wanted, so I'm okay with this outing. I'm pretty satisfied with the Wall swingman, but I'd love to try again next season with a better-prepped paint pen. And maybe gold, instead of silver. The next game on the docket is against the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday. Anthony Davis will probably be around (but will he come out)? He's a black Sharpie only guy, so we'll see. Good luck to my fellow OKC graphers! Until next time, J.R.
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I missed most of the East teams last season because I was actually paying much more for my tickets on the resale market, so I picked and chose which games to go to (mostly higher-profile West games). However, I had mixed feelings about this game against the Detroit Pistons. There were players I was after, but no one I just HAD to get. After the game, I try to haul it/hoof it out of the arena to get to Bass Pro as quick as I can, because getting out of that parking lot after a game SUCKS. Somewhere by the Sonic Corporate parking lot, I either tripped or lost my footing and fell onto a manhole cover. I lost all of my drink on the grass and some of my photos got wet. The Kentavious Caldwell-Pope 'graph got the brunt of it as far as graphs go, and a few of my unsigned photos were sticky on the edges. I made out fine, I have a bruise on my left thigh and a couple of cuts on my left pinky and ring fingers. This wasn't how I wanted to remember this game, or the type of souvenir I was expecting, but oh well. Thems the breaks. Not sure if I'll slow down when I walk, but maybe I'll choose my path a bit more carefully next time. I'll spare you all the pictures. You're welcome. Sunday Update: my left shoulder is also sore. Funny, it didn't hurt at all until today. As soon as I arrived, Boban Marjanovic was wrapping up his practice session and started signing for the kids in the front row. He is probably the nicest player I have met thus far, last season included. I didn't have time to take my jacket off, but I held out a Spurs photo for him, and he said, "Oh!" And I was like, "Yeah, [it's the] Spurs!" He signed his name and then asked me if I wanted him to sign it with his number #40 (from the Spurs) or his current number #51 (Pistons). Most players won't give you this option. JaVale McGee is conscious of what number he's pictured in and will sign the number that matches his jersey in the photo; same with Steve Novak. On the other hand, players like Dion Waiters or Ryan Anderson will sign with their current number, regardless of what team they're pictured with. After Mr. Marjanovic was done, I saw the opportunity there (the crowd was still small at that point and even the early arrivals were still making their way through the entry gates), so I asked him if I could get a picture with him and he said, "Definitely!" When he saw my camera, he said, "Oh!" like he was excited. A lot of players and people react that way. It's the perfect camera for selfies and the very reason why I bought it. Thank you random lady from last season's Spurs game, for botching my selfie so that I could buy this camera. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was next, and while I didn't have anything for him, he was nice too. He signed a pretty nice signature (much nicer than the KCPs that I've seen on eBay) and also agreed to a selfie with me. The next guy, some fans got excited about and I am ashamed to admit that I didn't realize who he was until after the fact. I knew he was an assistant coach. What I didn't realize at the time was this was Tim Hardaway. Yes. The Tim Hardaway from my childhood. The Tim Hardaway who played for the Golden State Warriors. The one guy whose autograph I got this evening and DIDN'T ask for a picture with, even though he probably would have because he did for all of those kids. I'm kicking myself a little for this one, but hey -- you can't win 'em all. Stanley Johnson was next and I'd heard some reports on 101 that he's not a very nice guy when it comes to autographs. Even though he is a relatively no-name player, he won't sign or is very particular about signing. I believe he signed for the kids but skipped everyone else. So unless you're 10 years old, or look like you're 10 years old, you can probably forget about getting Stanley. I had studied the roster briefly before the game and knew the next guy coming our way was Henry Ellenson. I didn't have anything more than a logo photo for him, but he was very nice about signing it and taking a picture with me. He, too, was impressed with my camera: "Oh, nice!" Jon Leuer seemed like he was in a bit of a hurry, but he ran past everyone. I'm not sure if he even signed for the kids. When Andre Drummond came out, someone asked him if he would sign, and Andre kind of mumbled that he would do it after he was done. I know what you're thinking: oh, yeah, where have we heard that one before? Well you know, sometimes they really do come out and sign after they're done. Unless you're Andrew Wiggins. Hello, secret mystery tunnel. He dangled us around a bit, making us think he would come our way, but in the end, he ended up taking the Wiggins tunnel back to the lockers. Sneaky! If I had to guess, I think it was the dude and his girlfriend that asked if he would sign initially, that scared him off. Who whips out a giant 16x20 with a paint pen right off the bat? Tact, dude! Tact! You look like a flippin' dealer! I don't know about you, and I don't speak from personal experience, but I am sort of glad Marcus Morris and Markieff Morris don't both play for the same team anymore. I can't imagine having to figure out which brother is which. I know, I know -- they're identical twins. But unless you guys know how to tell them apart when they're NOT wearing their jerseys, I don't know how to properly identify them. Fortunately, it was only Marcus at this game. But rather unfortunately, Marcus didn't sign. Does anyone know what was the inspiration for Aron Baynes' new haircut? This is not a riddle, I sincerely do not know the answer. I think someone on 101 said he took a picture of a turnip from VeggieTales, went to the barber and said, "I want you to make me look like this." As silly as that sounds, I think it's spot-on. I would have thought his would be an easy autograph to get, but no-- he ran by everyone. Beno Udrih is known to be a non-signer, and to no one's surprise, he didn't sign. He, too, has an unusual haircut. Going to the barber with Baynes, huh? Ish Smith didn't sign, and Reggie Jackson stayed out so late (they were about to do the starting lineups) that of course, nobody got his autograph. I get that you don't want to sign, Reggie -- you've proven your point. Do you really still have to be out there shooting buckets when the cheerleaders are doing the pre-game entertainment show? Ironically, he didn't play at all during the game. All that work for nothing, eh? Baynes 0/1 Caldwell-Pope 1/1 + selfie Ellenson 1/1 + selfie Hardaway 1/1 Jackson 0/0 Johnson 0/1 Leuer 0/1 Marjanovic 1/1 + selfie Morris 0/1 Smith 0/1 Udrih 0/1 The next game on the docket is against the Washington Wizards. I have a John Wall swingman that is just BEGGING for an autograph on it. Paint pen! This will be my first attempt in asking for a jersey signed in paint pen. All the others thus far have been in Sharpie, and the red Wizards jersey with blue numbers won't look good in Sharpie. Here's to hoping! Until next time, J.R. Tonight's game is against the Indiana Pacers. Their warmup jerseys (starters: blue; non-starters: yellow/black) looked sort of like Charlie Brown's shirt. Were they the Indiana Pacers or Team Charlie Brown? Like at the Orlando Magic game, Enes Kanter was out practicing with the team. I was surprised to see him out again in the same month/season. Will it happen more often? Either way, this lottery ticket of sorts gives me something to hope for when I eventually graph the Thunder. I'm not sure if he signed for anyone when he came out, but Rodney Stuckey ran past everyone when he was done warming up. Myles Turner was nice and signed for everyone, even taking selfies with people who asked. Jeff Teague skipped around and signed worthless items like the program but skipped cards/photos/premium items. That's weak sauce, bro. Thaddeus Young signed for everyone but he seemed kind of quiet. Well, Al Jefferson definitely lives up to his nickname. That dude is BIG! And so nice! He said he would sign for everybody and he straight up DID. Even those up in the corners that were way up high and hard to reach -- Big Al made the effort to get them all. He said he was one-per based on the number of people he had to sign for, but that was totally fine with me. You go, Big Al! Oh what an epic fail...again. The lady that stands at the foot of the stands in the blue jacket said the Pacers were done, and only Nick Collison and Lauvergne were on the court on the other side. I did notice Collison start to come over to the Pacers basket, but I foolishly left early because everyone else I was standing with left also. The other side still had everyone waiting. If I hadn't gone over to the Thunder side, I would have been in a PRIME position to get a selfie with Nick Collison! Epic fail. I'm still bitter about this but I really hope I get another opportunity. Mr. Collison is a really nice guy and who knows how much longer he'll play. His minutes go down every season and he's really learning a lot about coaching from sitting on the bench. Fingers crossed on this one! OK, I didn't really ask Andre Roberson, but I probably could have because the kid to my right wasn't quite ready (they were getting a selfie, courtesy of mom). I don't really have regrets here, because Andre signs a lot. It'll happen at some point, I'm sure. I was way too high up for this one when Joffrey Lauvergne came off the court. It shouldn't surprise me that he didn't sign for my side. See, I TOLD YOU that other side gets skipped less. He was signing for those way up high on the opposite side. Lesson learned for next time! Bitter face emoji. To recap: Jefferson 1/1 Lauvergne 0/1 Roberson 0/1 Stuckey 0/1 Teague 0/1 Turner 1/1 Young 1/1 During the game, there were two girls sitting behind me. One of them kept asking the other, "Did that go in?" Yes. No. It made me laugh the first couple of times, but it got old pretty quick. Umm...how about watching the instant reply on the Jumbotron? Overall, this wasn't a terrible outing, although I have walked away from many other so-so experiences with more autographs in hand. I usually get more than one signature on the logo photo, but not this time. If I had a chance to see the Pacers again, I might not, unless Paul George is playing. The next game on the docket is Saturday against the Detroit Pistons. This is another Eastern Conference team that I haven't seen yet, and while there's no one on the roster that I MUST HAVE, I'm looking forward to it. Until next time, J.R. I've never really been apathetic about graphing, but for some reason I felt thay way for this game against the Houston Rockets. I've never seen the Rockets play in person, so that couldn't be it. Maybe it's that slow start I mentioned in previous entries, or maybe it's because I've heard some jerky things about James Harden (black sharpie only, regardless of your age) and I was hoping they wouldn't be true. But let's not get ahead of ourselves! K.J. McDaniels was first. He seemed to be a little quiet but he signed at least one for most everyone that was waiting. Ryan Anderson was a really nice guy! He commented on the photo I presented to him, saying that he had a cheesy grin, and we both laughed about it. Come to think of it, I should have asked for a selfie because I really think he would have done it. I'll just make a mental note and file it away for the next time I see him, and hopefully the circumstances are ideal for a selfie then. You just have to know when to pick your moments if you graph and selfie -- sometimes due to time constraints, you can only get one or the other. Clint Capela signed one for everyone waiting. His signature is OK; it's a big C with loops in the middle. This was also the time when those two dudes showed up and got all in my space, but it's ai'ight, we formed an alliance! Three Musketeers and junk like that! We gon' get James Harden! His autograph gon' make my program worth $500! I'mma sell it too! Those were their words, not mine. I don't sell my IP basketball autographs -- just check my store! It's on this same page. We got Nene's autograph! It's probably worth like ten bucks! Hey Harden, what'chu you doing for Thanksgiving? We gon' have that cookout? If I had my phone I would tweet Harden and tell him man you lied to me [about signing later]! And he be like, Damn. I'm coming! Where you at son? Oh, the things I hear at games! I could write a book. Or a blog...! These dudes were straight up amusing/funny, even if they were all up in my personal space. Until next season! WE WILL GET JAMES HARDEN. Alliance, yo! Nene was nice too, although he wasn't particularly chatty or engaging. I saw him sign random pages in the program for people. If I was a player I might not sign those unless you're a kid. One kid handed him a paint pen to sign a ball, but didn't take the cap off. Hello. Nene asked the kid to take the cap off. Any other player would have probably brushed him off/skipped him and not thought twice about it. On another note, can anyone read/translate what he wrote? Assistant coach John Lucas who wrote on me with a red pen. Sorry, I had to get that out of the way. I had a Sharpie out for him but he was on auto-pilot and used those dudes' red pen on my photo. In his attempt to get to everyone, he got a little happy with the pen and finished his ending stroke on my thumb. But to get back to the main point -- who signs a photo with a pen? A PEN. Coach Lucas, that's who. He was nice though, and I'll give him points for that. I don't have much to say about James Harden other than he's kind of a jerk. Or a body part (you pick). He used a red Sharpie for somebody, and I was pretty sure he was strictly black Sharpie only. He skipped a crap-ton of people, signed mostly for kids, and even made one of them cry (and not in a good way). The kid was still sort of crying when the next guy came along. And that was a while later. Back to Harden, I also heard the sig quality left MUCH to be desired. Maybe it's a good thing we didn't get him? I'd rather have something recognizable than a sloppy mess. But that's just me. Patrick Beverley signed a few but skipped most of us. Not really a dirty move, but I didn't really expect him to sign. He knows he gets a frosty reception here in OKC. Eric Gordon. Second verse, same as the first. One per. Anderson 1/1 Beverley 0/1 Capela 1/1 Gordon 1/1 Harden 0/1 Lucas 1/1 McDaniels 1/1 Nene 1/1 The next game on the docket for me is Sunday's game against the Indiana Pacers. I used to really envy people who got to go to a Pacers game, and looking back I am not really sure why. Nevertheless, Paul George is who I'm after, but we'll see. I never know how a star player will react when introduced to a crowd of autograph seekers. Fingers crossed. Until next time, J.R. Tonight's game is against the Orlando Magic. Surprisingly, or perhaps not so surprisingly, this ticket was not part of my half-season package. I'm a big Nikola Vucevic fan ever since last season's encounter, and it being an East team, I had to go to this game. Oh, and to welcome back Mr. Serge Ibaka too, I suppose. A few general comments, this was the first time I saw Enes Kanter come out for the shootaround. Usually you see your usual suspects (Morrow, Singler, Roberson, Collison), but this was a surprise because Kanter doesn't usually come out/stay out this late. I would have gone over to the other side where he was, but I just couldn't give up my position. Jeremy's wife came back and said that signed, but he used a dying black Sharpie and wouldn't switch markers. Oh well! Maybe some day I will get him. In other news, the seat I had wasn't all that great because I was sandwiched between possibly the two biggest guys in the arena. I need elbow space too, yo! And the dad on my right was a little annoying. I've never met Adam M. before, but I feel like he would be that kind of dad. Cheesy. Annoying. Doesn't realize he's old now and not cool anymore, but I digress. The game itself started off horribly, got a little better, and then got bad again. We're in a funk, we need to play better defense, and we need to WIN. First up for the visiting Magic was Jodie Meeks. He was incredibly nice! No other player I've ever met has said anything to me first until today. Mr. Meeks said something to me first (maybe what's up?), but I'm not 100% sure what it was since it caught me off guard. Players usually DON'T initiate conversation with me (I don't tend to stand out) but I recovered quickly and asked him how he was doing. He said good. What a nice guy! It makes me wish I had printed an actual photo for him instead of offering my logo photo. Maybe next time! Every time I saw D.J. Augustin as a Thunder player, he would skip me. For the longest time, I couldn't be sure if he just didn't like the photo I brought or that my camera was always out. He signed it but it smeared a little -- I think that was me though, because I was trying to hold my camera and film it at the same time. Oh well, at least I finally got him! I honestly don't know if Aaron Gordon signed for anyone. I just know when he came around the corner, he brushed us off with a smile on his face and ran back to the locker room. I expected as much from him, which is unfortunate. I always hope I'm wrong about that sort of thing. I ended up getting a pretty good video of Jeff Green signing and Gordon running off just seconds before. It's hard when two players come off at about the same time. Fortunately I always carry around two foam boards, so I was ready to go if the two players overlapped in their signing. One thing of note, Jeff signed a better (fuller) signature this time around compared to the last game I got him (vs. LA Clippers). Bismack Biyombo and Evan Fournier were next. Nothing stands out about either player's signing habits. They came off at different times, but both signed one for everyone waiting. I don't usually present more than one item to get signed because I know most players are 1-per (but will possibly do multiples if they are small and all laid out), but if ever there was an opportunity, it's with my boy Nikola Vucevic. Last season I got my picture taken with him. He signed for me last season as well. I presented him that photo and a new one as well (the selfie being the second one shown to him). He signed the first photo, no questions asked, then looked at the second photo, up at me, signed that one as well, and said, "Here you go." I said, "Thanks man!" Vooch doesn't usually talk, as far as I can tell. If you watch his facial expressions during a game, he's like Kristen Stewart (the actress from those horrible Twilight movies) -- one expression to rule them all. Even when he's just scored the game-winning basket: blank face (see YouTube video). So it surprised me that he said anything. I still like this guy and I'm a fan for sure. Next time, I'll bring a swingman jersey. And you guys know how I feel about swingman jerseys. Damjan Rudez signed a few then after he heard the 45-second warning to get back to the locker room, he ran off. A second later, and he may have signed for me. A whole bunch of players came off once that warning came out, including Stephen Zimmerman, C.J. Wilcox, and C.J. Watson. The C.J.s signed for a few, but I'm not sure I would have wanted the rush-job sig. C.J. Watson's autograph made my worst autograph list last season for good reason, and that wasn't a rushed scribble. Mario Hezonja knew he had to go but he was nice enough to sign for those of us who were still waiting. He played decently last season when the Magic came to visit, but he didn't get any playing time so there's no way for me to tell if he's gotten better or not. Augustin 1/1 Biyombo 1/1 Fournier 1/1 Gordon 0/1 Green 1/1 Hezonja 1/1 Meeks 1/1 Rudez 0/1 Vucevic 2/2 Watson 0/1 Wilcox 0/1 Zimmerman 0/1 This was a good game autograph-wise and I don't regret going, even if my seat was sub-par. The next game on the docket is Wednesday's game against the Houston Rockets. Like everyone else, I'm looking for a James Harden, but realistically, I'm prepared if it doesn't happen. Until next time, J.R. I have wanted to see the Toronto Raptors play for a long time. Okay, maybe just since last season. I like Jonas Valanciunas, okay? As a player only, just so we're clear. I thought about buying tickets for this game when I found out it wasn't part of my half-season package, but in the end I didn't end up pulling the metaphorical trigger. No reason, the tickets weren't expensive but I wanted to sell off the ones I had before I bought more. Props to my boss for giving away the tickets and my co-worker for sharing the extra ticket with me! Patrick Patterson came off the court first, and althoguh I recognized who he was, I had nothing more for him other than a logo photo. He was polite and signed for everyone waiting. Delon Wright commented on my logo photo; he said that he liked it. Dude, I totally agree! They don't make them like they used to! The current Raptors logo is three claw slashes across a ball, and doesn't look intimidating at all. Speaking of Raptors, the announcer at the 'Peake kept over-emphasizing the second syllable of "Raptors." As in, "Rap-torrs." Uhh...why? I recognized Cory Joseph from his Spurs days and he was way nicer than I thought he would be. He posed for pictures with everyone who asked and signed two items for a few people as well. It makes me wish I had printed an individual photo for him. With Norman Powell, I pulled a n00b move and didn't bother with player flashcards for this game. One, this ticket was offered to me sort of last minute (and I don't use local photo shops to print my photos) so I did not have any photos prepared other than a team logo one and ones for Jonas Valanciunas and DeMar DeRozan. If you go by the base definition of rack, I almost did it because I went home with only one photo that wasn't signed. Anyone I didn't have a photo for went on the logo photo. Somewhere in the middle of it all, maybe here at this point between Powell and Valanciunas, Fred Van Vleet walked by. If you're asking who? Then you're just like most of us who were standing there waiting. He signed for a few people bold enough to ask him because they recognized him when he came ONTO the court, but skipped most of us when he was done practicing. I kind of got the vibe that he was a little offended there at the end. Sorry that we didn't all jump at the opportunity to get your autograph? Some of us just don't have items for you to sign. Sorry? Maybe I was the only one who got excited when Jonas Valanciunas came by. Excited on the inside only, just so we're clear. I wanted to ask him for a selfie and I was determined to do it as the Asian couple next to me asked all the other players that came by before Jonas, but when they didn't ask him, I lost my courage when he came by. Well hey, everyone gets star-struck sometimes, right? And even though this is the Rap-torrs' only trip to town this season, I'll be ready for him next time, darnit! I was actually pretty surprised that I hadn't printed out an individual shot for Kyle Lowry. I thought maybe I had alphabetized my stack wrong, but after several combthroughs coming up empty, I resigned myself to a silver Lowry on the logo. No shame in that -- the final result actually turned out pretty nice. DeMar DeRozan was the last guy off the court, and I was afraid he'd pull a Novak and just run off based on lack of time. But to my surprise, he signed for just about everyone. The end product was a little sloppy (I think it's just "DD"), but no complaints here. When you get the league's leader in scoring, you don't complain about what you get. Thanks DeMar! In all of the 4-5 major professional sports leagues (aside from hockey), there are very few Canadian teams. I've never heard a real Canadian anthem before. Being a die-hard hockey fan, yes, I know some of the words (English) but no, I've never actually heard it sung in person. Live. So naturally, I recorded it. You'll have to excuse the disrespectful schmucks in the background who would NOT SHUT UP during the national anthem. OK, I get you're not Canadian, but SHOW SOME RESPECT, MAN! DeRozan 1/1 Joseph 1/1 Lowry 1/1 Patterson 1/1 Powell 1/1 Valanciunas 1/1 Van Vleet 0/1 Wright 1/1 All in all, this was not a bad outing. I got more than my average number of autographs (based on last season's totals), and I got the players I wanted. I didn't get a selfie with Valanciunas, but I'll probably try next season. We didn't win the game, but this was a team that did pretty well last season and almost beat out the eventual Champion Cleveland Cavaliers. Hopefully we'll get off the schneid soon; losing so many games in a row kind of sucks. The next game I'll be attending is against the Orlando Magic on Sunday. Hopefully my boy Vooch will be in the starting lineup. I printed out the selfie I got with him last season and I hope he'll sign it! Until next time, J.R. Hello everyone! The 2016-2017 NBA season is already well under way, but tonight's matchup against the Miami Heat is my first game of the season. After spending entirely way too much money last season, somebody from the Thunder noticed and I now have half-season tickets! I couldn't go to the pre-season game against the Denver Nuggets as I had to work, and I am notorious for getting off to a slow start with any sports season. As a result, I wasn't feeling the Los Angeles Lakers game this past Sunday even though I really could have (and should have) gone. With no Kobe, I think my laziness was justified. Before each game, I pull out photos for everyone on the team and set them aside in my portfolio binder. For some reason, I didn't have very many photos for this team (Babbitt, Waiters, and Williams was the extent of it), so the logo photo got pretty loaded up as expected. The first guy that came out was Josh Richardson, but I didn't recognize him. As I said before, I only had a few photos, so anyone I didn't know got the logo photo. His signature is kind of neat, although a little loopy, but he signed one for everyone waiting. Udonis Haslem is a guy who's been in the league for a while, and while I did recognize him, I didn't print out a photo for him for whatever reason. He carried around his two bottles of soda or water and picked them up and set them down as he moved through the crowd. I believe mine was the last one he signed because he actually had those bottles in his hand and I was afraid he'd just skip me and keep going. Instead, he stopped to sign for me. It's not much to look at, but I'm glad I got it. Tyler Johnson was nice. Some kids were calling out to him to sign as he came on to the court, but he said he would sign after. True to his word, he did. His signature is pretty small -- that's usually something that shy people do. He didn't seem shy to me, but he also didn't appear overly outgoing, either. I'm not sure where he's from or where he's been, but he kept saying "No doubt, no doubt" whenever a fan asked him a question or said thank you. James Johnson was next, and he was nice. I just found it mildly amusing that he signed right next to Tyler Johnson on my logo photo. Two Johnsons. Right next to each other. Ha. I don't know what to say about Derrick Williams. He signed for a few people and then just sort of gave up and walked off in the middle of it all. He had plenty of time to sign for us, and there weren't even all that many of us there. Who knows. And for some reason, I printed out two Derrick Williams photos that are exactly the same.They are both still unsigned. Luke Babbitt came off not long after and signed one for everyone. Juwan Howard was next. I don't think anyone else was as excited as I was to meet Juwan Howard. I remember watching this guy play when I was a kid. Mr. Howard, if you're somehow reading this, sorry! I don't mean to make you feel old. I asked him if I could get a picture with him, and while he politely declined, citing shyness and that he preferred to just sign autographs, he was very cool about it. This is how you should let fans down -- just be nice about it. I want to try to bring a real photo for him next time. Great guy. Dion Waiters was a guy who, as far as I know, never came out for shootaround when he played for the Thunder. I mean, I only went to about half of all the home games, and I never saw him come out. He was out tonight, which was great. But would he stop to sign? To make a short story even shorter -- yes. He signed one for everyone and even chatted with a few people. See, now THIS is how you leave a team. Stay classy and don't go throwin' shade! Justise Winslow was last off the court (presumably so he wouldn't have to sign many, if any at all). The fangirl behind me was freaking out, saying things like, "I must get Justise Winslow!" and "I'll even settle for a high five!" Meanwhile, I couldn't get past the fact she was wearing Miami Heat pajama pants. In public. Pajama pants. I didn't get him and I think most of us walked away empty-handed. Sorry fangirl. Babbitt 1/1 Haslem 1/1 Howard 1/1 J. Johnson 1/1 T. Johnson 1/1 Richardson 1/1 Waiters 1/1 Williams 0/1 Winslow 0/1 This was not a bad outing. I didn't have high expectations so I'm not at all disappointed. My average number of autographs per outing was roughly four per, so getting 7 is not bad. The next game on the docket is Wednesday versus the Toronto Raptors, thanks to my boss for giving them away and my co-worker for sharing the extra ticket with me. I haven't seen this team play before, so I'm excited! Until next time, J.R. |
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December 2018
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