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Javon McCormick: Our Time: Why giving up on my dreams was never an option By J'Von McCormick 1/6/2020 5:00:00 PM I love the game of basketball. The game doesn’t owe me anything. But I owe it everything. It kept me out of trouble growing up. It’s taken me to new places, introduced me to new people, including some of my closest friends now, and it’s helped me become a better man. But more than anything, basketball has taught me to never give up on my dreams. On my left forearm, there’s a tattoo. It’s younger me sitting on a basketball in front of my house looking up at the goal. It’s on the street in New Orleans where I grew up, the same street that was really bad with gang violence. Not everybody made it out. Some of my friends were in gangs. But me looking up at that basketball goal symbolizes me looking up at my dream. Back then, that dream was to play Division I basketball. We eventually moved from New Orleans to Texas when I was in high school. My family wanted me and my brothers to get away from the violence and play sports because they knew how much we loved it and they knew the God-gifted abilities we had. Here’s the thing. I’ve been short or small my whole life, so people have always counted me out. It didn’t help that when I moved to Texas, I was playing around guys like De’Aaron Fox and Carsen Edwards who are both in the NBA now. They were the highly-recruited guys who got the big offers, and I always got overlooked. I had some small D-I offers coming out of high school, but I wanted the chance to play at a high-major program. So I felt like I had to take the junior college path and start from the bottom. I knew coming in that JUCO was going to be tough. Some guys that I knew went JUCO and they said basically if you make it out of there, you’ll be good. So my mindset was I’m going to stick through it. I know it’s going to be hard. I know I’m going to want to quit or I’m going to want to give up. I just have to stick through it. So that’s what I did. After playing two years, the hard work paid off. I was already receiving interest from Virginia Tech and Wichita State when Auburn called and offered a scholarship. We took a visit. I came here and saw the facilities. The coaches went over the plan with me. I knew that Jared (Harper) and Bryce (Brown) were both coming back, but I liked that they were the main founders of this team. I didn’t mind coming off the bench. I could have gone to Virginia Tech or Wichita State and been the guy, but I knew coming out of high school I was always the guy and that didn’t really work out for me. So instead I chose to come to Auburn knowing I wasn’t going to be the guy. Little did I know then that we would go to the Final Four my first year here. It’s crazy how I came to Auburn and then we went to the Final Four and won the SEC championship. During that run, it just felt like we were going to win every game. We grew together as a team. We became closer as friends, family, all of that. I'll never forget that run and that team. It was just amazing. This year has been amazing, too. For us seniors, it just shows that you have to be patient and stay ready, stay right and just keep working. Those guys before us put in a lot of work, too, so it’s good that they’re succeeding right now. We just had to wait our turn. Now that our turn is here, we can showcase what we’ve been working for our whole life. This team is not all that different than last year’s team. There’s still one goal. It’s not like one person has their own goal. Everybody is bought into the system, everybody is focused and knowing that if we win as a team, everybody is going to eat. Looking back at who I was to who I am now, I’m a different person. I’m less emotional on the court, more relaxed. That comes from experience. Off the court, I would say I’ve matured more as a person, especially coming from different situations like playing in JUCO. I really had to humble myself. I still look down at my forearm from time to time as a reminder. It’s hard to believe how far I’ve come, and it’s all proof that you should never give up on your dreams. My dream now is to graduate, play professional basketball and show kids that taking the JUCO path is not always a bad idea. You just have to fight through it, overcome your obstacles. Anyone can play D-1. You just have to be focused.

AuburnTigers.com is doing a series of articles where each of the 5 seniors tell their story in their own words. Two have been published so far. First up is: Our Time: Why basketball is only the beginning to who I am By Anfernee McLemore 12/17/2019 9:00:00 AM Every basketball team I’ve ever been on, there are the superstars and then there are the other guys – the guys willing to support the players that are going to make those big shots. The superstars are important. I played with T.J. Dunans my freshman year. Bryce Brown, Jared Harper and even Chuma Okeke to an extent handled that role the last two years. You need those players. But what makes a successful team is having those other guys that are willing to put themselves out of the limelight so the whole team can be in the limelight. That’s who I am. That’s who I’ve always strived to be. I want to be the guy who helped his team win rings and who was there to help other players achieve their goals. Obviously, basketball was a platform for me to achieve my dreams of going to college and getting my degree. But basketball won’t last forever. If it doesn’t take me to professional work, I still have that degree I can fall back on. I just want to be remembered as the guy that won three championships in four years at Auburn and was part of a legacy team that will stand as the benchmark as other great teams come and go at this university. It’s funny. When I first got to Auburn, I was like any other player in the country. It was all things basketball. I had a laser focus on trying to play professionally. I still did well in the classroom. Growing up as a military kid, grades were always important to me. But my future was on the court. That all changed my sophomore year when we were playing on the road at South Carolina. I went to grab a rebound, and the next thing I knew my season was over. The injury was crushing, especially knowing that I was leading the SEC in shot blocks at that point. But it also sort of pivoted my career. It opened my eyes that basketball might not be the only future that I have or that might be in store for me. I turned my attention toward the classroom where I focused on graduating early and getting the most of my scholarship educationally. In case I didn’t decide to play professionally, I would have something to fall back on. Not even something to fall back on. Something to strive toward to where I could take a position utilizing my degree or utilizing my talents on the basketball court and be equally as happy. I don’t think I would’ve seen it that way before the injury. Over the summer, that dream became a reality. I walked across the stage at graduation with my whole family in attendance. I still carry my pocket-size degree in my wallet everywhere I go just because I’m so proud of it. But I didn’t feel like I was done at Auburn. Graduating was more like just another step on the ladder. With one degree in hand, I was eager to earn a second one. So next August, I will graduate with a master’s degree in finance from Auburn. The thing about Auburn is wherever I go, it will always be a place I can call home. It’s a place that has shown me love unconditionally, win or lose. Like with school, I don’t feel like I’m done with basketball either. It was hard coming back from injury. There was the mental hurdle of gaining confidence and realizing that my legs were going to be back under me when I jumped. It definitely affected my timing as far as shot blocking and things like that. It took a while to get over that. It wasn’t until SEC play the next year that I truly started feeling confident again. And still I had that hesitation until we got to the NCAA Tournament. That’s when I put everything behind me and said OK, we’re going to win. I’m going to play. If I get hurt, at least it will be in a big tournament game. I ended up having one of my best runs as a basketball player in the tournament where I was playing my most dominant basketball. It was also a dream come true to be able to make it to Minneapolis and experience everything that goes with the Final Four. Seeing my face on the side of a hotel, that’s not something I ever imagined would happen to me. It was amazing to see. But now coming into this season, coming off that Final Four run, my mindset hasn’t changed. Every year for the last three years, I had a reason to be an underdog. I had a chip on my shoulder. This being my last season, I have to come in with that chip still on my shoulder. Yes, we had a lot of great players last year. Most of those players are gone now. We have to prove we can win without those players. We have a lot of talent on the team right now, and we just want to show that we can still win. We’ve got a great coach leading us into the games, and we can still continue to make history for Auburn. I just want to do my part to help the team. That’s all I’ve ever wanted. After this season, I don’t know what the future holds. Maybe there’s a future in basketball. Maybe there’s not. What I do know is that I just had a baby, and I will work hard every day to be a good father to Maverick. I’m getting married in August and when I do, I will strive to be a good husband. And no matter what comes next with my career, I will keep pushing. The thing about Auburn is wherever I go, it will always be a place I can call home. It’s a place that has shown me love unconditionally, win or lose. From the season that we had my freshman year to now, the love has always been the same. When I went down with my injury, I got countless amounts of letters sent to me – from social media to actual physical mail. I will forever be grateful, forever be indebted to that kind of support that we have. Now let’s go make history … again.

His Instagram message. I wish him only the best

Ellitor, glad Super 7 and your 16 hour days are over so you can get back to your "real" (and unpaid) job. 😁 Seriously, thanks for the updates to the OP and for the new thread for the upcoming signing date. Also, thanks to others who have been providing info over the last few weeks. War Eagle, all!

Great work, ToraGirl! Watched again last night. Does bring joy to my heart several times, most of which you hit in your poem. War Eagle!

Just want to add my appreciation for you taking time to do this. Been missing seeing this each week. Great write up as usual. War Eagle!

I go with what someone said earlier: It's a win with learning opportunities and it's only November. Also, maybe some should take a look at Doughty's stat line Did he play a perfect game? No, but 10 boards, 10 points, and he got the rebound and fed Okoro for the last shot. War Eagle!

Sounds good. I enjoy people posting analysis of what they see and why. JwgreDeux had done that many times and it's educational for those like myself who are fans but not students of the game. War Eagle!

Thanks for sharing the link. Good read on each player.

JMR, I've been out of town so I was just catching up on your post and the comments because your thread and StatTiger's analysis threads are all I generally read in the football section because of the many people with agendas that aren't worth a person's time.When I first read your reply, I thought you had put the guy on ignore as someone had suggested. It wasn't until I saw all the other comments asking you to continue, that I realized I had misread your post. As many before have posted, I hope you reconsider and continue your analysis because it is beneficial and educational for many of us on here. Thank you for the time you have spent in the past and hope to see your analysis in the future. War Eagle!

Thanks, that's what I figured in terms of exposure but thought maybe you knew where he was headed - in state, out of state. I agree he accomplished a great deal there but there is always the challenge of repeating at a state level. Many top level players come into college having won multiple state titles at their high school. No criticism of his decision because you have to make choices about what's best and go with it.

Cole, what's up with Mark? https://www.timesdaily.com/sports/high_school/muscle_shoals/basketball-standout-mark-sears-is-no-longer-enrolled-at-muscle/article_efef8975-865f-5ae9-9590-aa42e609f9db.html Basketball standout Mark Sears is no longer enrolled at Muscle Shoals By Craig Thomas Sports Writer Mark Sears, one of the top prep basketball players in the Shoals, is no longer attending Muscle Shoals High School, Muscle Shoals coach Neal Barker confirmed to the TimesDaily. “He withdrew from our school,” Barker said. Barker said he has not heard from Sears since the start of the school year and does not know what school Sears now attends. Sears’ father did not respond to two text messages seeking comment. Asked if he was surprised by Sears’ departure, Barker said “I’d heard some rumors.” Sears, a 6-foot guard, has college scholarship offers from Elon, Missouri State, South Alabama and UAB. Sears was a Class 6A second-team all-state player as a sophomore and a first-team all-state player as a junior. He has been the TimesDaily’s big-school boys basketball player of the year each of the past two seasons. Last year as a junior, he averaged 22 points, eight rebounds and four assists per game. One of his more notable performances came in a Northwest Regional final win over Bessemer City, when he had 31 points, 12 rebounds and five assists. That victory sent Muscle Shoals to the state semifinals. Sears also played a significant role in the Trojans’ run to the 2016 Class 6A state championship game when he was an eighth-grader. The Trojans return several contributors from last year’s state semifinalist team, but Sears is not an easily replaceable player. “It’s just next man up for us,” Barker said. “It’s high school basketball, so you’ve got to go with the guys who are there.”

I had missed this thread earlier (I know how because I generally don't spend a lot of time in the football forum due to the pro-con Gus back and forth). Certainly would have pegged ages of many posters incorrectly so it was interesting to see the various ages. One thing I saw in the latter posts were reminiscing about days at Auburn. Mine were a little different. My wife and I were already married almost 2 years before starting college. I was doing carpenter work and she was a secretary for Department of Social Services. I was preparing to go to work early one morning when it was 6 degrees. Threw a rod in my old VW squareback (2nd time). Still had to get to work and work out in the cold all day. When I came home that night, I told my wife that I thought I should do a career change involving college - engineering. She said that she would work. I had always been an bama fan (I was in North Alabama after all) but when I was considering an education involving engineering, it was an easy choice in the state of Alabama in 1976. She and I went to Auburn for counseling on courses to take at UNA to get pre-engineering stuff out of way at minimal total expense of living. After one semester at UNA, my wife said that she wanted to go to college as well - made sense as she was valedictorian when we graduated from our county high school. My reaction was more of how are we going to pay for school and survive. After 3 semesters for me, we moved to Auburn in the Married Students Housing. Adequate but basic accommodations. Our last summer in Auburn, I worked for the Forest Service and my wife took 23 hours to catch up so that we could graduate at the same time. She got her degree in Accounting. We had some fun in college but it was basically business for us. We both had jobs during school to provide our basics. Fortunately, college tuition and books were not as expensive as today or I'm not sure we would have been able to do it. It was the right choice and we have been blessed. We will celebrate our 45th wedding anniversary in October. War Eagle!

Lake Murray is huge - one of the largest with an earthen dam

Certainly know where Elk River is. We still have family there so usually take Hwy 72 over and cross Elk River.