The Los Angeles Lakers are finally world champions again after 10 years and this has impacted a lot of people all over southern California.
This win has not only impacted NBA fans but the Fullerton College men’s basketball team as well. The team believes that this championship win will light a spark in them to play harder and practice every day.
This doesn’t only impact the team on a player level as coaches have also felt inspiration from the victory.
The Hornets men’s basketball head-coach Perry Webster shared his feelings about the championship. “I’ve grown up my whole life as a Laker fan so, I was thrilled to see them win. Sometimes, when people become coaches, they become less of fans. Not for me, I love the Lakers and will always cheer them on,” he said.
“I think the Lakers team has definitely impacted me because it makes me want to work harder so I can possibly do the same thing one day,” said sophomore forward Ronnie Stapp.
The Hornets see this win as an inspiration for them to work harder, play harder and win as many games as possible.
They are still figuring out a schedule for when basketball returns in the spring due to COVID-19 restrictions. For the time being, players have been doing their own practices and workouts at home.
Luckily starting Oct. 21 the athletic teams were allowed back on campus for conditioning purposes only. The Hornets are one step closer from getting back on the court.
For guard sophomore guard Devin Howlin, he is very optimistic about this season and hoping that they can play safely like how the NBA did. “We definitely will have a season. Seeing how successful the NBA bubble was, it doesn’t make sense for us to not play any basketball. As long as we follow the rules and keep getting our regular COVID-19 checks, I think we should be playing again very soon,” Howlin said.
This year has definitely been a rocky year for the basketball community with COVID-19 shutting mostly everything down as well as Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna and several other passengers that died in a helicopter crash on January 26th, 2020.
On Oct. 10, the Lakers brought home their 17th title with heavy hearts because of Bryant’s close ties to the franchise. This was a very happy moment for the Lakers team and fans of the Lakers.
“I believe that the Lakers winning a championship the same year as Kobe’s passing brought a light to the Lakers community during a very rough year. With this Lakers win, you can say something good has finally happened in 2020.” said sophomore guard Ryen Perry.
Overall, basketball itself and basketball players are going to inspire people on and off the court every day. The Fullerton College Men’s Basketball team is pumped up and ready to move forward with this upcoming season.
The team is excited and ready to finally begin practicing. Collectively they believe that if they buy into the team culture and remain dedicated to the sport they love to play, they can ring home a championship of their own.
