Caner-Medley’s Corner- Following Michael Jordan’s lead

Note: This will be Nik’s final entry for “Caner-Medley’s Corner.” It’s been a lot of fun working on this series with him. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading as much as Nik and I have enjoyed putting the whole thing together. Thanks- Chris

“I’m excited to say that we made the playoffs! This is a huge accomplishment for this group to make the playoffs in one of the most competitive leagues in Europe.


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I envisioned myself writing this final blog and writing these exact words. For me it’s another example of talking things into reality. It is always a risk to be vulnerable and make a goal known because if you don’t achieve it then its clear you failed.

At the same time I have learned over my career that if you don’t set goals and vocalize them daily then you sell yourself short in terms of the process it takes to achieve them.

For example, if you think to yourself, “I want to lose 10 pounds,” and continue to go about your business as usual, losing that 10 pounds is nothing but a thought. But if you tell your friends, parents, trainer, co workers, everyday that you want to lose 10 pounds you begin to naturally live the process it takes to achieve that.

I watched a great documentary on Muhammad Ali and his wife said that Ali would talk so much trash to the media about what he was going to do to his opponents to put the added pressure on himself to live up to it. It made him train harder, and allowed him to visualize his dominance by bringing his statements into his daily routine.

The lesson I take from this is great for young players. Don’t be scared to tell people your goals, don’t be scared to tell your friends you want to make varsity, or play division 1.

When I was in high school and I told people I wanted to play D1 in college, people immediately told me that it would be fun to watch me play at the University of Maine. UMaine is a great program don’t get me wrong, but I had aspirations to play on the national stage for UNC or Maryland.

Caner-Medley going in for a block on former Duke standout JJ Reddick.

Caner-Medley going in for a block on former Duke standout JJ Reddick.

When I told my peers that I wanted to play at that level people thought that meant I was arrogant or just plain not realistic. Setting that goal made me work 10 times harder because I wanted to live up to my personal expectations.

My Dad always told me to not worry about what other people thought, to use the doubt as motivation, but it was tough sometimes. I was 16 years old and there were plenty of times when I had self-doubt.

Caner-Medley's reaction to fouling out of the state championship in 2001.

Caner-Medley’s reaction to fouling out of the state championship in 2001.

I hope that young players in Maine will read this and realize that it’s ok to doubt yourself, but it’s also ok to dream big! I love the quote “If you shoot for the moon, and come up short you are still amongst the stars.”

This season, like all the ones before it, was full of ups and downs and has been a great challenge and learning experience for me.

I’m proud of this team because we had numerous injuries and adversity and still reached our goal.

With another summer ahead of me I look forward to adding to my game and spending time with family.

The best advice I have ever gotten as a basketball player came from Michael Jordan when I had the privilege to be a counselor at his summer camp when I was still in college. I even got to play along side him in some pick up games.

He started by telling me if he could he would “buy me a right hand,” but his message to me was, “Every summer guys want to go in the gym and work on what they do well and when they leave the gym they feel great about where their game is at. You have to add something to your game every summer, and when you leave the gym you should be frustrated because you worked on a weakness and exposed yourself.”

Those words feel like they were yesterday and to this day it was the coolest experience of my career. Growing up, Jordan was my idol. To be able to spend time with him and play with him- and even go outside the gym to his car and have him let me pick shoes and gear out of his trunk- was surreal.

When I graduated from the University of Maryland, Jordan was in the ownership for the Charlotte Bobcats. I went to Charlotte for a workout before the NBA draft and after the workout he came up to me and told me, “I see you have been working on that right hand.”

That honestly got me choked up because hearing that from him was a dream come true.

It has been a pleasure to write this blog this season and share some of my experiences and the ins and outs of a season.

I want to thank Chris for the opportunity and to any and all readers I thank you for sharing these messages with young players because ultimately that’s why I did it.

I look forward to seeing you around, and please don’t hesitate to contact Chris or myself if you’d like me to come speak at your camp, school, or whatever the case may be. I am motivated to share my experiences with anyone who is interested. Take care.

Friends05

Chris Shorr

About Chris Shorr

Chris is a sixth generation Portlander who loves all things Maine. He has worked with mentally ill and marginalized adults at a Portland non-profit, on a lobster boat in Casco Bay, at several high-end Portland restaurants, and at a local meat packing plant. He also ran for Portland City Council in 2013, wrote a weekly column in the now defunct Portland Daily Sun, and currently writes a weekly column in The Portland Phoenix.