I was always a fan...
I used to marvel at the talent of one Stephon Marbury, and even though he spent only one season at Georgia Tech, I was one of the few who thought he was better than Allen Iverson. He had a rare combination of ball handling proficiency with scoring gifts that made him the pride of Coney Island. When he went to Minnesota I was excited at the possibility of him and Kevin Garnett being the northwest version of Shaq-Kobe. They had a phenomenal duo before they traded him to New York and he became the epicenter of the disaster that was the Isiah Thomas regime with lawsuits and poor results on the court.
However, all of that changed when "Starbury" went to China to play in the Chinese Basketball Association in 2010. Gone were the Vasoline eating videos and emerged was a man who found not only unprecedented success, but overwhelming peace, both on the court and off of it. He was recently bestowed the honor of receiving a permanent residence card, in addition to a statue and a postage stamp in his honor. Truly a remarkable turnaround!
What's so special about this is that he realized that what many of us have to in life; that sometimes it takes a great risk for a great reward. We have to step away from situations that while familiar to us and sometimes comfortable, don't provide us the peace that we need. It's stepping away from bad influences and toxic situations that only deteriorate our character in the long run. It's Abram leaving behind his family to become a father of many nations. It's that songwriter moving to California in the 70s on nothing but a tank of gas and a lot of dreams. It's the person reading this blog thinking "I need a change in my life." Marbury realized this while on the path of self-destruction, and now has a whole new outlook on life.
I was a fan of his as a teenager for what he did on the court; I am now a bigger fan for the excellence he displayed in making the right choice.
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