Hey, Thanks

Eight years ago I decided to try my hand at some sports blogging. I had no experience and I had no idea what SB Nation was. I just found a site that looked cool and shot off an email. I never would have imagined that I would enjoy it as much as I have, or that anyone at all would read it.

I’ve written some stuff I loved and some stuff I wish I hadn’t. I’ve been right and I’ve been very very wrong. I have certainly overreacted to things my fair share of times, and I’ve published a lot of typos. I wouldn’t change any of it though, because, while it may sound silly to say this about a sports blog, all of those instances have helped me as a writer and as a person.

I’ve always treated this platform as one that lent a certain amount of credibility to its contributors, which largely felt unearned for me personally. I didn’t view that credibility as something I was given for joining here. I viewed it as a standard I was obligated to live up to. If I wanted to continue to do this thing that I’ve suddenly discovered I enjoy, I owe it to the people that have taken the time to read my writing to ensure that writing is useful to them, to really know what I’m talking about. That means being willing to interrogate your own opinions. It’s a piece of personal development that I very much credit this community for.

I won’t tell a lie. When I first joined here, I’m not sure I could accurately describe to you what a pick-and-roll was, even though it’s kind of self describing. Fast forward eight years and I’m publishing articles breaking down the schematics of Kevin Keatts’ spread ball screen offense. I don’t say that to brag on myself at all. I say that to note how much of a motivating impact being here as a contributor has had on my desire to learn. Even as someone who writes only semi-regularly, that’s just one example of how getting the chance to do that here has meant a lot to me. I wrote this just to say thank you to Steven for answering my email and to anyone and everyone who has ever read anything I’ve written. It will never stop being cool to me that even one person clicked on something I wrote.

If you want to read the first article I wrote, it’s here. It is . . . um . . . horrible.

I’m moving on from SB Nation. I’ll still be blogging about State athletics, just in a different place, but I felt compelled to tell all the readers here thank you. You guys are great, I appreciate each and every one of you, and I hope you’ll continue to read the work the other writers do here, as well as anywhere else that you find enjoyable State content. We don’t have to be weirdos about our preferred coverage sites. As a reader of many, I noticed more of this everywhere lately and it’s silly. We can all be friends.

I’ll still be here in the comments to argue with you about Kevin Keatts’ halfcourt offense, but as a contributor, I just wanted to say thank you for your time. I will leave you with this parting thought. Whether you’re reading or writing, never be afraid to interrogate your base instincts. It is one of the most important traits you can have, and it is sorely lacking. It doesn’t mean you have to change your mind. You may find that doing so only strengthens your beliefs, but even in that case, you’ve learned something. Part of what made BTP important to me is how much I’ve learned from being a part of it.

Thanks again, guys.

Go Pack,

Alec

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TA was so in