Next Level Bball Training 2009 Summer Skillz Camp

Another successful skillz camp to add to our record. With close to 30 campers aged 7-11, Coach Lance and staff put on a great summer basketball camp. Campers were happy, had fun, were challenged, played games, had contests, won prizes and received recognition.

Thank you to all of our special volunteer coaches: Jim, John, Jackson, Andrew, Vance, and Grant Z. You guys are awesome and we couldn't have done it without you!

Please visit our site at www.nextlevelbballtraining.com for photos, short videos, and testimonials on our camps/clinics.

A Wounded DAWG

Over 5 weeks ago, Joshua's good buddy, Jashon from the YBA DAWGS basketball team was injured in a game. He actually broke his ankle! Jashon has been out for 5 weeks and will be getting his cast off soon, followed with 3 weeks of physical therapy. Ja's a trooper though, he's been coming to all of our tournaments to support his team!

Check out the DAWGS logo that Joshua drew on Jashon's cast!

DAWGS Champions Again!

Here are the DAWGS posing for their championship photo on July 11th. They went 3-0 in this tournament! Way to go DAWGS!

Here's Jayden with Bobby Jackson from the Sacramento Kings. Bobby was over at the Hardwood Palace one weekend when Joshua played and was really nice to take some photos with our team and Jayden too!

Next Level Basketball Training's 1st I.T. Session

We (Next Level Basketball Training) put on our first I.T. Intense Training sessions. It was 6 days (hour and a half sessions) of intense training consisting of footwork, agility, defense, and offensive moves. The I.T. sessions were created for the players who wanted to take their game to the 'next level'. It was not intended for the beginner players.

This was not a summer camp. It was a clinic to refine skills and strengthen the players' abilities. It was tough and the kids who attended definitely worked hard, probably the hardest they'd ever worked in baskteball thus far!

The I.T. sessions went over really well with the campers and we've received nothing but positive feedback from the kids and parents as well.

The I.T. sessions will definitely become a part of Next Level Basketball Training's programs for sure! Stay tuned for more information!

Jayden took the William Jessup University basketball summer camp for the 2nd year in a row. Again, he had a blast! His good friend, Kai from his school took it again. Also, Coach Muhic (Kai's Dad) is the men's basketball head coach at Jessup and runs this camp each year.

Jayden held his own as usual and walked away with another trophy, as he was the 2009'hotspots' champion of the camp. Scoring the most points in the hotspots competition of the entire camp ages 5-12!! Great job to our shooting machine! The highlight of this camp was when he shot a 3-pointer in his scrimmage! I nearly fell off the bench when he launched that far shot and made it!! Way to go Jayden!

Rocklin High School Summer Camp 09

In June, Joshua and Jayden took their 3rd annual Rocklin H.S. summer basketball camp. As usual, they both had fun and came home with great feedback from their coaches, prizes, and individual awards.

Great job and effort by both Joshua and Jayden!!

Straight As Again!

School has been out for a few weeks and we are very proud and happy to announce that both Joshua and Jayden received straight As this school year. Congratulations! Great studying and effort!

Joshua Ballin'

Check out this cool collage of Joshua that Lance put together. We have the best team photographer on our YBA DAWGS aau team...Tye (Jashon's Mom) takes action shots of our boys at each game. Thanks Tye!!

Sac Town Shoot-out Champions!

This past weekend, Joshua and his 4th grade YBA Dawgs AAU team participated in the "Sac Town Shootout Tournament". They went 3-0 for the second weekend in a row. It was a hard fighting, exciting weekend of games. In the championship game on Sunday, the team went into over time and won the game by 3 points. Even with the terrible refs who were making terrible calls throughout the whole game, Coach Lance kept his calm, respectable nature as always. I can't say the same for the opponent's coach. Talk about competitive! During our freethrows, the parents and the head coach of the team were yelling out trying to distract our free throw shooter. Even with the poor sportsmanship that they displayed, our shooter hit 4 out of 5 freethrows. My goodness, this isn't the NBA. You usually don't see that type of behavior at this level, afterall these are 9 and 10 year olds!

In the 4th quarter of the championship game, we were down by a point. Joshua hit an amazing 3 point shot under pressure and gave our team the lead!! Because of that shot, the Dawgs were once again fired up. The crowd and the players on the bench went wild!! It was thrilling to say the least.

The boys definitely played hard. Great job Dawgs, Coach Lance, and Coach Jim! Next up, the "qualifier" tournament! Wish us luck!

Xtreme Hoops "Spring Classic" Tournament Champions

This past weekend, Joshua's 4th grade AAU team, the YBA Dawgs took first place in their division. They played 3 games and won all 3.

After the game, they were given trophies and were photographed. Congratulations to the 4th grade division champs!

Here's Joshua all decked out in his YBA Dawgs AAU gear. He has a white armsleeve with his jersey #1 on it, a matching carolina blue Nike duffle bag, brand new personalized Nike basketball shoes with his #1 printed on the shoe along with his team name "DAWGS" (which stands for Defense Always Wins Games) printed on the shoe as well. Joshua also has an "away" armsleeve in black, along with black and carolina blue basketball shoes!

He looks GOOOOOOD doesn't he? And believe me when I say that he also plays as good (and even better than) he looks!!

Go DAWGS!

Jayden's Broadway Musical

Based on the title I bet you thought this was an April's Fools Day entry. Nope, it's an entry based on a real event of Jayden's! Last month, the first graders put on a broadway show. The boys were dressed in top hats, bowties, and tuxedos w/tails! The girls were all dolled up in pretty dresses, boas, gloves, and jewels! It was absolutely adorable. The program consisted of the 1st graders singing a medley of broadway classics like, "Hello Dolly", "There's No Business Like Show Business", "Hey Look Me Over", "Consider Yourself At Home", and so on. Jayden was proud to be in his top hat and tails and for weeks during bath time, we'd hear him practicing his broadway songs! It was an outstanding production by the Foskett 1st grade classes! Here are a couple of video clips from the show. The first clip featured "the boys song". After that performance you'll see Jayden walk across the stage as he was given the duty of a sign carrier. Just scroll down below...there you will find two video clips. Enjoy!
(CLICK THE PLAY BUTTON TO VIEW)
(CLICK THE PLAY BUTTON TO VIEW THE VIDEO CLIP)

Finally...A Missing Tooth!

Jayden finally lost his first baby tooth (with the help of his dentist). On March 24th, Jayden had to have his tooth pulled because his permanent tooth was already out and growing BEHIND his baby tooth!

I guess the Tooth Fairy leaves extra money for the 1st lost tooth, and apparently, she leaves even more for a 1st tooth that is pulled by a dentist! Jayden received a whopping $10 for his tooth. I don't know about you, but I remember being thrilled to receive a whole silver dollar for my first tooth! How much did you get for your first tooth? I guess teeth are worth more now (haha).

Yesterday, Jayden's entire 1st grade classes received a surprise visit from a few of the Sierra College Basketball players and the head coach of the team. Coach Fusano is Jayden's friend's Dad who also brought a few players last year to his kindergarten class. Jayden received special treatment again just like last year because Coach Fusano and his wife knew how much Jayden loves basketball. During the special visit, the first grade classes were all outside at the basketball courts and Jayden was chosen to play against the 6'++" players. He dribbled, crossed over on them and went to the hoop! The college players were ecstatic to see little tiny Jayden with his basketball skills! They were impressed and cheered him on! One of the players lifted Jayden up and had him dunk the ball too!

Later, in the cafeteria while Jayden was eating lunch, the players took the above picture with him. Out of 4 1st grade classes, Jayden was the only one who took a picture with the players (special treatment again)! Wow! What an exciting day for him. Thank you to Coach Fusano, Mrs. Fusano and Jayden's new friends from the Sierra College Basketball team for making this day so very special and memorable!

(Jr.) Celtics Took 2nd Place!

Last Saturday, Jayden's 1st/2nd grade competitive basketball team took 2nd place in their final championship game of the season. It was a close game against the Jr. Eagles who all season long remained undefeated. Jayden's team lost to the Jr. Eagles twice in the regular season. The Jr. Celtics fought hard, played hard and did extremely well! They played their best game yet. The final score was 20-21. Although they didn't get the win, they were still winners and should be very proud of their accomplishment. Afterall, the Jr. Eagles team's roster consisted of all 2nd graders. Our team were mostly 1st graders (with the exception of 4 2nd graders).

This was Jayden's first season playing competitively and he did great! Although he didn't score in double digits like he used to in non-competitive, he did handle the season well. His ball-handling was great, shooting on point, rebounding was impressive even though he was the tiniest guy out there, and not once did he ever travel, double dribble or double team. We're very proud of his accomplishment! Great job to Jayden and his team!

3-Peat for the Celtics!!

On Saturday, Joshua and his Celtics team played in 2 games. The first game was a play-off game which they had to win in order to play in the final Championship game for 1st place.

Of course the Celtics won their play-off game and headed to the next game to hold on to their championship title and earn a 3-peat (3rd championship in a row!)

It was an interesting championship game to say the least. At one point, we were down by 10. We never gave up hope and we new if any one team could pull through and win it, the Celtics could. Never losing their composure or heart, they fought through. Joshua hit 2 major shots in a row in the final period, a 3 pointer and then a back to back 2 pointer...the crowd went wild!!! There was about 30+ seconds left in the game and the Celtic were up by one single point! They passed the ball around intentionally trying to use up the clock, but, at 4 seconds left, the opposing team stole the ball from Bryson and went down the court for a lay-up, the crowd was silent. We all knew that if he made his lay-up, the game would be over and the Celtics would lose. Fortunately for the Celtics, the opposing team missed and the game was over!

Every team was after the Celtics all season long. Knowing that the Celtics were undefeated for 2 season in a row, with 2 championship games under their belt, each team wanted to defeat the Celtics! "They" said it couldn't be done, "they" said it would be nearly impossible to go undefeated again during the most competitive session of the year. But, the Celtics prevailed! Not only did they have a 9-0 record, they are the only team in the league who earned a "3-Peat"!!!

Way to go Celtics! And of course, we have to give props to the best coach ever, who led his team to yet another championship....Coach Lance!!

In a couple of weeks, the Celtics will participate in their final tournament of champions and play against the top teams of the CYBL. Also, Joshua and Bryson will again represent the team in the All Star Sunday game.

After the T.O.C, the Celtics will be moving on and saying goodbye to the Hotshots league. They have come a long way. From this point on, it's all about AAU! Lance has every intention on building our YBA aau team up and challenging each team we go up against. What a great way to walk away from Hotshots and move forward to AAU.

Congratulations to Coach Lance, Joshua and the entire Celtics team!

Last Saturday, Joshua's YBA (AAU) team had their free throw shooting fundraiser. All players shot 100 freethrows on regulation hoops. In the weeks prior to that day, the player's collected sponsors to raise monies to offset costs of tournament fees,club fees, uniforms, etc. Sponsors were given the choice to either donate a flat rate or a rate based on how many free throws were made.

Everyone who knows Joshua, knows that he's a sharp shooter! The team expected him to get a high score. Our family and friends who sponsored Joshua also knew he would score well, but I don't think ANYONE was expecting him to do as well as he did! Joshua made a total of 85 out of 100 freethrows!!! That's amazing and very difficult to do. That's 85% from the free throw line! Michael Jordan's free throw percentage is .835! Hehe. It was very impressive!

Joshua earned A LOT of money due to the extremely generous offers from his sponsors. Thank you to all of you who supported and sponsored Joshua. Sorry you had to pay him so much! Thank you to Ami & Papa, Grandma & Bumpa, the Nagahiros(Hawaii) , the Matsuuras(Hawaii), Suzanne, Seiji(Hawaii), Aunty Mimi(Hawaii), Donnie, Lisa, Alex & Marisa(CO), Kev, Tracy, Emma, Hannah, & Sarah(CO), the Laus(HI), the Itagakis, the Changs, and the Yoshimuras(HI).

Here's a breakdown of the scores for the team:
Joshua: 85
Nick: 66
Bryson: 61
Alex: 52
Grant: 52
Brendyn: 48
Andrew: 48
Jashon: 44

Great job to all the boys!!!

Moving On...

We're half way through the winter season of Hotshots and Joshua's 4th grade team remains undefeated. We've had a lot of fun and success with Hotshots but feel that now is the time to move on. The core group of players that we have are ready to take their game up a notch.

After the end of the season, Lance will be taking 7 of his players to the next level of basketball. They as a team are now officially an AAU (Athletic Amateur Union) sanctioned team. AAU is the highest level of competitive basketball.

Lance was personally recruited by the director, Ken Gee of the YBA DAWGS (Youth Basketball Academy -Defense Always Wins Games) to be the Head Coach of the 4th division in YBA. YBA is an AAU club organization who has a history of having the highest caliber coaches and players within the club. YBA is a highly respected organization with the reputation of having the best teams competing at the competitive level.

This is yet another exciting venture for Lance as a coach and Joshua as a player. We're proud to be a part of YBA and are looking forward to a successful season (which begins in the spring).

Next Level Winter Skillz Camp 2008

During Christmas vacation, we put on our first Winter Skillz Camp through our business (Next Level Basketball Training). We had 32 attendees, boys and girls grades 3rd thru 6th. It was a 3-day, 3 hour camp.

It was a total SUCCESS! It was very well organized, fun, challenging, and never boring! We had daily contests, gave out great prizes, and had the kids wanting more and more. Lance and his staff worked on fundamentals, agility, and kept the kids pumped up and energized. The kids worked out hard but had fun at the same time.

Lance had some help of course and great coaches to volunteer their time, support, and efforts. Without their help, it could not have been as successful. Thank you to Coach Jim, Andrew, David, Jackson, and Tim!

Some of the kids said it was the best camp ever and wanted it to be all day and all week!

I have to say, out of all the basketball camps that Joshie and Jayden have attended, this one was definitely ranked #1! Way to go Coach Lance!

Next up, Next Level Basketball Training's 1st 3 on 3 Tournament.

Please check out our Next Level Basketball Training website for photos and testimonials from our camp!

Repeat...next up, Three-peat!

Joshua's Celtics basketball team were undefeated this season and took Championship for the second season in a row!! Next season, the Celtics will try their best to defend their title and come out at the end with a "three-peat"!

Here's a summary of the game: A hard fought 53-30 championship game win. The Celtics getting off to a slow start in the beginning, falling behind by as many as 12 points. This was new "territory" for the team, as they very rarely were ever behind this season. There was awesome effort by the team - EVERYONE contributed - to fight back. Some good calls, some bad calls and some no calls...but that happens everywhere.

Everyone knows that in sports, the stronger players are usually the ones to start the game. In our case, however, our team has very little weak points. So, rather than group our players into "starters" and "2nd stringers", I prefer to refer to them as "units". As in - "first unit", "second unit". Neither one is better than the other, they both have the same job and goal in mind. Unfortunately, the rules of basketball only allow five players on the court from one team at a time.

That being said - our first unit was outscored 13-4 in the first period. Our second unit outscored the other team 10-6, thus making up 4 points. In the third period, the first unit outscored the other team 12-10, thus making up 2 more points. Here's the kicker, in the fourth period, our second unit outscored the opponent 11-0!!!! And the "deal was sealed". A GREAT EFFORT BY EVERYONE!!!

The Celtics held the opposing team to 1 point in the last two periods combined. Thus, solidifying my belief that "defense wins championships".

Cogratulations to the Celtics again. Good luck to you all in the RTOC (recreational tournament of champions) and the All-Star Sunday!

Thanksgiving Guests...

This Thanksgiving, Kevin, Tracy, Emma, Hannah, and Sarah came out for about a week long visit from Denver. It was a great visit. The girls are getting so big. They're really cute and all very affectionate with their aunty Cyndee, especially Emma and Hannah. Joshie and Jayden are always so sweet to their cousins.

We had a couple more guests this year. My cousin, Seiji and his friend Grady flew in from Hawaii. It was great as always to see Seiji and nice meeting his good friend too.

Dinner was so yummy for all of our tummies, that's for sure. Hope all of your Thanksgiving feasts were as delicious as ours.

Blessed...

As we approach Thanksgiving, I wonder how many people TRULY are taking note of the blessings in their lives. Are they worried about how to pay for Christmas, how they can get around the holiday traffic, how to cope with the stress of the holidays, or when they are going to get their shopping done?

Unfortunately, I think that with the "commercialization" of Christmas, I think Thanksgiving is often overlooked. Christmas lights are up before Thanksgiving hits, right after Haloween ends, Christmas displays go up, and the advertising begins.

So, just for those of you who didn't know, I've included some facts about this "forgotten holiday".

Take some time to relect on what you have in front of you right now.

I have been blessed with a wonderful family, and an outstanding family life. I am thankful to have a roof over our heads, clothing on our backs, and food on the table. I am thankful for all of the laughter we have shared, and for the fact the we do everything as a family. These among lots of other things I am thankful for...as this is just the start of my list of things I am thankful for.

Here are some facts about Thanksgving...

The First American Holiday

1621: The first American holiday, Thanksgiving, was celebrated in Plymouth. Plymouth, America’s first colony, is now Plymouth Massachusetts. The Thanksgiving consisted of 50 Pilgrim settlers and 90 Wampanoag Indians, including their Chief, Massasoit. They shared a feast of fowl (could have been turkeys as they are native to America), deer and crops from their fields. They gave thanks to their Creator because after landing at Plymouth Rock in 1620, they had survived a very harsh winter. Sadly, half of them had succumbed to disease and cold.

1777: The first time Thanksgiving was celebrated by all 13 states (colonies) was when the Continental Congress declared a day of thanksgiving because the British were defeated at Saratoga.

1817: The Governors of New York and Pennsylvania made Thanksgiving an official state holiday. A few years later, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa did the same.

1846: A very determined lady, Sarah Hale, began a crusade for a nationwide Thanksgiving holiday.

1863: Abraham Lincoln heeded Sarah Hale's request to create a federal holiday, and made the last Thursday in November, a day of Thanksgiving.

2008: America will have celebrated 387 years of Thanksgivings. We are currently experiencing a temporary 'bump in our economic road', but we are still the most blessed nation in the world. And we have much to be thankful for …

Joshua's Career High

Last weekend before Joshua's basketball game, he set a goal for himself. He verbally stated that he would get 18 points and 5 assists.

Setting goals, visualizing and truly believing in one's self is something I was taught at a very young age and something I continue to do today. Now, that I'm a Mommy, I've told both boys to always set goals and work hard and they'd be able to accomplish anything they set their minds to.

That night, Joshua had exactly 18 points and 5 assists! In this league, most kids will average 5 or less points per game. Can you believe it? Joshua is an awesome shooter for sure and although he usually takes the outside shots, 9 out of 10 shots made were inside shots. He drove in on all 9 shots and made them! Amazing...simply, amazing. So, that night he shot 90%. He's the smallest player on the team and everything, but obviously, size doesn't matter. It was such an exciting game to watch. Joshua's team ended up squashing their opponents 47 to 7!

This weekend is the play-off game and Joshua's team, the Celtics are still undefeated. Wish us luck!

Super Students...A+!!!

I just attended Joshua and Jayden's 1st trimester Parent-Teacher conferences and as usual, both boys had great grades and remarks from their teachers. They are each at the top of their classes. The teachers had nothing but positive things to say and told me that the boys had nothing to improve on. Wow!

We're so proud of you both, Joshie and Jayden! Keep up the tremendous work ethic that you have and you'll always be successful!

Jango Fett says...Happy Halloween!

Although Jayden would've preferred to shave his head bald and go as Michael Jordan, he settled for Jango Fett instead. For those of you who don't know, Jango Fett is Boba Fett's Father in Attack of the Clones (Star Wars).

Joshua didn't want to dress up or go trick or treating this year. Now that he has braces,he knew he wouldn't be able to eat all of his favorite candies: caramels, skittles, and starbursts, so he decided not to go at all.

Hope you all had a fun Halloween!

Here's Joshua and his new braces just put in last Tuesday. He has an expander in his mouth that rapidly expands his palette. It's a metal contraption in the roof of his mouth where I have to insert a tiny key and turn everyday for 4 weeks. He has 3 brackets (braces) on his top 3 adult teeth (the orthodontist will add one more bracket once his 4 top adult tooth comes in). At the end of the month, he'll begin another treatment where he'll have to wear a face mask at bedtime only. It has a pad at his jaw and forehead with a metal bar running vertically down his face. This is to push his lower jaw back since he has a class III underbite. I don't think I'll be able to post a photo of the face mask...Joshua will probably not allow it!

He's doing well considering all these new changes. He has a hard time speaking clearly, chewing and swallowing, but he is adjusting and getting better each day. The estimated time for the braces is 9 months. So far so good. No pain, he just complains of the awkwardness.

Here's to a rapid and successful treatment!

Talented Artist

A few weeks ago, Joshua won an art contest in his grade. His piece is titled, "The Titanic Sets Sail". His artwork is being displayed at a local bank and he's officially a candidate in the children's artwork contest.

Great job Joshie!

High Achievers

I'm happy to say that both Joshua and Jayden have been assessed as "high achievers" in their classes. Joshua has always been a "H.A." and now Jayden officially has that title as well.

Both of our boys are grouped together in the H.A. groups in their classes and are given advanced work to supplement their daily activites. Joshua is now in 4th grade, but is doing 7th grade math!

Not only are both boys high achievers, they are getting straight A's as well!We're so very proud of Joshie and Jayden! Keep up the great work boys!

Joshua's 9th Birthday Celebration

Last weekend, Joshua celebrated his 9th birthday with 3 great friends, Bryson, Jackson, and Alex.

First we took the boys to Skyzone. It's a really fun place that has wall to wall trampolines...trampolines on the walls, literally! For an hour, they bounced up and down, on and off the trampoline walls, played dodgeball, attempted flips, fell a few times, and then bounced around some more. Back at the house,they opened presents, played basketball, golf/putting games, traded basketball cards, ran around, watched a movie, acted goofy, danced around, and even sang karaoke! They ate pizza for dinner and then instead of a birthday cake, Joshua requested to go to Top This. All four boys had a terrific time, stayed up late, made a lot of noise, and filled the house with hysterical laughter! Another great celebration!

RTOC/Allstar Weekend

On Saturday, Joshua's championship team, the Celtics participated in the Regional Tournament of Champions in Elk Grove. They ended up losing to a CYBL team by 1 point in overtime. All I can say, is that they were robbed, due to unfair calls by the ref! With 4 seconds left and the score tied up, our guy went up for a last second 3-pointer and was fouled! He should've been given the opportunity to shoot 3 freethrows to win the game, but the ref did not honor that! Boooooo!!! Pretty unfair, but what can you do? Apparently, absolutely nothing. Well, the main thing is that the Celtics played hard and had fun.

On Sunday, Joshua and Bryson competed in the Allstar Sunday game. Each team in the division were allowed to send 2 players to represent their team and form the Allstar team. The Celtics got to send two players and a coach's pick. The parents voted to send both Joshua and Bryson, and the coach's pick was Kovey.

I'm happy to announce that the Hotshots Allstars defeated the CYBL Allstars! Woohoo!!! It was a great game and a great experience.

Congratulations to the Celtics and the Hotshots Allstars!!