Toronto to Tokyo

"Welcome back to Overseas With A Carry On. I'm your host, Olu Ashaolu.

                                              **Applause**

On today's episode we are going to discuss the immaculate #Summer16 and what lies ahead for the basketball journeyman from Toronto."

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That would be the intro if I was a television host like Ellen, Oprah or Dr. Oz.

To those of you reading for the first time, greetings & salutations! I'm glad you took the time to inquire about my livelihood and experiences;and to those routine readers who continue to show support, I thank you.

Earlier this summer I ran into a long time friend of mine who I grew up with back, back in the day. (I'm talking early 90s!) We began chatting about life and hoops and how far we both had come giving the circumstances we rose from. He then asked me what the latest was with my blog and why I stopped writing. I always hate getting that question because, well, I really had nothing substantial to give him as an excuse. I promised him I would get back to it and voila, here I am. Man of my word; master of my domain.

Where should we begin? Last season I played my second consecutive year in Japan which was a first. A first in the sense that, prior to returning to Japan, each of my past experiences of playing overseas were in three different countries. In 2012-13 I was in Spain. In 2013-14 I took my talents to France. Finally, in 2014-15 I made the leap out of Europe and decided to stay put the following year. I felt as if I had found my niche in this league. What more could I ask for? A safe environment, a high level of basketball, professionalism and a secure economy that would ensure my payments would be on time. Needless to say, I'm back for a third go round and have no intentions of leaving any time soon.

Okay, I got sidetracked, back to the summer!

So I arrived home in late May and was ready to hit the ground running! It had been a long and tiring 9 months away and as we all know, there's nothing quite like home. Now if you know me, you know food is the way to my heart. As you may or may not know, Canada as a country does not even compare to the United States when it comes to fast food franchises per capita. And yes, I know, I shouldn't be eating "fast food" (or is it good food, quickly), but after a 9 month bid, I think I'm due for a cheat meal or two...or three...mmmaybe four? Who's really keeping count?

                                                           

So upon my arrival home, my 16 year old niece had an AAU tournament down in Lexington, Kentucky and the thought of seeing her(and fast food) entered my mind. I had yet to see her play live and was extremely looking forward to seeing her in action. One of the major setbacks of living this life overseas is missing out on these priceless moments with family. As I enter my basketball prime and she continues to get older, these precious opportunities to watch her play at the amateur level begin to dwindle. So needless to say,  I decided to shake off the jet lag and drive down with her father, my brother, and take in some high school level hoops.

When we arrived in Lexington, it was like a holy food haven. Whatever I wanted was at my tip of my fingers; I just had to make a selection. Sounds easy enough right? Wrong! I decided to go with these four selections as they each resonated with a certain location and time in my life.

Raising Canes took me back to my college days in Ruston at Louisiana Tech University. It was the first time I discovered these finger-licking-good chicken strips. I opted for "The Box" combo: 4 strips, slaw, fries and Texas toast. I'm not a big guy for fried chicken but when it comes to Canes, count me in!

Chick-Fil-A reminded me of my prep school breakfasts down in Atlanta, Georgia. Back then, 2 dollars could get you a moist chicken breast sandwiched between a country biscuit; I'd top mine with grape jelly and be high off life. I know my Canadian and non-southern American readers are probably throwing up at the combination of fried chicken and fruit preserves but, hey - "It's a southern thang," and when in Rome...well, you know the rest.

Jimmy John's! How could anyone ever go back to Subway after the freshness of JJ's. I first tried Jimmy John's in 2011 when I was out in Indianapolis training for NBA pre draft camps. The #16 Club Lulu is my go-to. I actually had a friend whose nickname for me was 'Lulu.' Thinly sliced turkey, lettuce, bacon, piled high [I always get it] on whole wheat with added banana peppers and cucumbers. Throw in some kettle cooked jalapeño chips and you've got a 5 star meal loaded with spice and kick that's in your hands less than 60 seconds after placing your order!

Last but not least, Sonic. You've always been there for me. Whether it was back in the day playing video games on Sega Genesis (#ThrowbackAlert!) or throughout my prep school days in the south, or even up to my days in college, you never wavered. Be it your Sonic Burger specials, pancake sausages on a stick (they discontinued those), Sonic Blasts on the late night creep or your ice-cold slushies at Happy Hour on a hot summer day, you always had my back. I like that.

I must say, 'twas a great weekend after months of rice bowls and limited American options. For those who actually care about the AAU tournament, my nieces' team did walk away victorious. But prior to leaving the tournament, my Snapchat was hacked by a very outgoing 10 year old who happened to be the younger sister of one my nieces' teammates. Take a look...

I'm not sure if Lebron actually has that type of range though 😏

When not road tripping south of the border you can catch me doing a number of things within the great city I call home. Such as getting word the night before that Maxwell is in town to perform and purchasing tickets 20 hours before showtime.

This was only my second time attending a live concert, the first was Jay-Z & Justin Timberlake a few years back. They opened their concert tour in Toronto and to say it was epic would be an understatement. I was on my feet for two hours straight rapping just about every Jay song and pretending to keep up with JT and his vocals. Those tickets were were also purchased last minute. I guess I've got to get a better pulse of what's going on in my city huh?

If I'm not at a concert you can catch me on Friday nights participating in the Nike Crown League summer pro am. Basically the 'who's who' of pros, high school talent and everyone in between come back and play weekly games. It's one of the only times you can get a quality run of 5-on-5 in the city so it's something we look forward to. If you're lucky, you end up on the custom Nike Snapchat filter with your patented one handed dunks..

Lastly, when I'm sick of being indoors and I just want to get away from the city, I take a 90 minute drive out to the Falls of Niagara and sit back and gaze at the great piece of nature that I'm proud to call Canadian. The United States does have a portion of the Falls that fall (you see what I did there) on their side of the border but, it's nowhere as breathtaking or majestic as the Canadian side. Just a friendly FYI, hehe.

As you can see, the turn-up was very real in the summer of 2016, or was it "lit"? I'm not sure what lingo you young folks denote as cool nowadays. I didn't even mention attending the DVSN concert, our caribbean parade 'Caribana' or all the food festivals that are hosted throughout. When it comes down to it, I've got to make up a 9 months of inactivity and cram it all into 90 days. I've got to build enough memories to last me the grind of a full season so I'm not becoming homesick or selling myself and my team short by not being out-of-it mentally. To be honest, I've never gotten to that point of just absolutely departure, but there have been some close calls over the years. I'm human. Home is where heart is and Toronto is not an easy place to leave. Well, come the summer time. Come winter, you can have it. I want nothing to do with Toronto when snow is involved. Nothing. Rien. Nada!

Well, that's it for walking down memory lane. Now it's back real life, back to "work." I get to play basketball for a living, it's not exactly work if you love it right? Back to not being able to read signs or speak to anyone but my fellow imports. Back to long nights of watching Scandal, Narcos and whatever drama series lands on my Macbook screen. Back to chopsticks and meals for one. All in all, I don't think I'd trade it in for anything!

Thank you for taking time out to read the first post from this 2016-17 campaign. In the following entry I will let you in on where I am in Japan, the team, it's history and so forth.

Oh yeah...

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As a token of my appreciation for tuning into today's episode, everyone in the studio audience is going home with a free video. Check the link below and enjoy!

Olu Ashaolu Highlight Clip

Once again, you are watching Overseas With A Carry On hosted by yours truly.
This is Olu signing off, until next time...

O.W.A.C.O.

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The 6th Man

Welcome back to Overseas With A Carry On for all of my returning readers and 'Welcome' to my first timers. A lot has happened in the sports world since our last visit; namely the NCAA 2014 men's basketball champion was crowned.  The Final Four included Wisconsin, Florida, Kentucky and the University of Connecticut. UCONN defeated Florida and Kentucky was victorious over Wisconsin; both were great games. In the finale, the 'veteran' UCONN squad proved to be superior  and knocked off the young and talented Kentucky Wildcats.  I actually didn't get to watch the championship game because, well, I simply fell asleep trying to stay up into the wee hours of the morning for the game to be streamed online. Another quirky fact about the game: when I woke up the next morning, to find out who won the game I did not go to ESPN.com, Facebook, or Twitter; I simply checked my Instagram timeline. How about that - sports update via your photo sharing app.  The 'perks' of life in 2014.

Getting into the main theme of todays' entry, I'd like to discuss a huge part of basketball that we sometimes overlook. It's not a secret that teams are more victorious playing at home than they are while playing on the road. I'm sure there are a plethora of reasons for that: gym/rim familiarity, sweet spots on the court, maybe a spouse/significant other in attendance, etc.  Whatever the personal reason, I truly believe the collective reason is what many refer to as "The 6th Man."

No, not the J.R. Smith or Jamal Crawford award but the psychological idea that the next important player is none other than the fans.  The crowd. The spectators.  The ones who mindlessly shout chants of "D-Fence", roar at the sight of a string of good plays and shout "Boooooooo" to the opposing teams' best players. The group of people who make the arena so loud that opposing coaches cannot communicate tactics to players during timeouts and huddles.  These are the die hard fans that that give you the energy to feed off of when the game is deadlocked and you need a big defensive stop to seal the game. They undeniably play a large role in the psyche of players and coaches.

In college basketball, due to their success on the hardwood, many would argue that Duke Basketball has the most influential student section and crowd.

 Grant Halverson/Getty Images

These group of "crazies" are known as the Cameron Crazies.  The name is taken from the name of the gym where Duke plays their home games, Cameron Indoor Stadium.  These fanatics are active the entire game, dressed or painted in blue and make it a nightmare for opposing players inbounding the ball as they pack tightly into the tiny arena.

Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

I have never played at Cameron Indoor Stadium so I cannot comment on the effect of the Crazies personally; I can only go by what I've seen while watching countless games over the years and peers of mine who have played there.

One gym that I can personally comment on and in my opinion, is the craziest collegiate atmosphere to play in is The Spectrum of the Utah State Aggies in Logan, Utah.  These fans are such a well organized group of spectators.  From their chants, to their taunts to the fake media press release they have waiting for each person in attendance, these guys are clever as ever. They have been known to befriend you on Facebook only to steal an embarrassing picture of you, blow it up as a life size poster and have it plastered all throughout the stadium on gameday! Please watch the following videos because, well, pictures just don't do The Spectrum justice...

I Believe 

Winning Team; Loosing Team

Well . . . As you can clearly see, this is not one student section to play around with. Under head coach Stew Morrill, the Aggies are 194-13 at home. Until a surprising early season loss in 2009, Utah State boasted the second longest home win streak in the nation behind Kansas.  During my tenure at Louisiana Tech, we came close but were never able to scratch out a win there. The Spectrum is a tough environment to play in, especially when you have this guy distracting you while shooting free throws.

Boyd Ivey

As far as crazy home court advantages overseas? One word, Partizan!

I hope you enjoyed that snippet. Though I have yet to play at Partizan, I do have a teammate who has. He sent me this photograph that left me in awe. Most stadiums prohibit the normal threats fans may carry such as bottles, beer bottle caps and things of that nature. At Partizan in Belgrade, these are what the signs outside the stadium advise you not to bring:

                                                       

I guess bringing guns and knives is not so unthinkable out there. Needless to say if I ever play in Belgrade, let's say a prayer now that I make it out alive! I think it's clear to see why it can be so difficult to win on the road and why big road wins count for so much more than just a win in the standings. A group of individuals went into enemy territory and overtook them on their own turf. Takes a lot of focus, discipline and resiliency throughout an entire game to pull off those kind of wins against top level teams. 

With that said, appreciate the fans and never never sleep on The 6th Man!

Olu

#OWACO

It's Only Entertainment

*Royal Wave*

Thank you for visiting my blog Overseas With A Carry On! I am happy to deliver another detailed look into the life of an athlete living in kilometers - or miles 'por mi americanos' - away from home.  Before we dive into things I would like to congratulate every team, player, and university that has continued on to play in the post season.  Not only March Madness but on every level, not limited to the NIT, CBI, NCAA Division II, III, and all the others.  A special shout-out to the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs who advanced past UGA in the 2nd round of the NIT tournament and big pat on the back to the Oregon Ducks who unfortunately fell to Wisconsin last night. 'Twas a great run!

In 2014, our generation is fascinated with technology, speed and selfies. We've become so impatient as a society that we even have a notification through iMessage (solely for iPhone users of course) that tells you that your recipient in is the middle of typing a response. Postal mail? Fax machines? Yeah right! You're better off scanning and E-mailing that document.  We've become fiends for instantaneous communication on all levels.  Let's take a look at what a typical player had to go through playing overseas before the WIFI era.

The pioneers who came to chase their dreams across the waters didn't have the luxuries of video chats and mobile devices like we do today.  They most likely had to deal with home telephones, calling cards and airmail. When's the last time you used a home phone? Better yet, how often do you see your home phone ring and you neglect to pick it up because, "That's not for me. If it was urgent, they would just call my cell phone."  I can remember my mother using calling cards to make long distance calls over the speakerphone when I was younger.  She would have to dial the access number, followed by the PIN code then an automated voice would tell her how much credit remained on the card.  Then she'd have to enter the phone number of the person she was calling and again the automated voice would tell her approximately how many minutes she had to make the call. All that for ONE phone call! Like Jay-Z said, "Aint nobody got time for that."

Writing letters has become a thing of the past. Ancient. Prehistoric even!  For my generation Y folks, the only time we wrote letters was back in grade school! Those paper notes passed through class were the first footsteps of todays' Facebook inbox messages or Twitter DMs. The majority of the ones I passed out were to girls in my class that read: Do you like me? Check: Yes. No. Maybe.  Needless to say, I had a 86.9% clearance rate of boxes checked "Yes".

On the side of entertainment, in the foreign countries I have visited, there were always a few channels in english. Usually something along the lines of international news coverage or the Disney Channel or something to that extent. Technology today allows some of the more mainstream channels to add sub titles to certain programs or even switch the voice-overs to english.  This is not available with every channel but progress is being made.  But to be honest with you, I never turn on my television, whether at home or in a hotel.  Thanks to wifi capabilities, all you need is your handy dandy laptop, tablet or even just your smartphone.  We can download the latest episode of Scandal or play levels upon levels of Candy Crush during road trips; our forefathers were stuck reading paperback books, listening to Walkmans or better yet, Discmans on their treks.

Last but not least, the pioneers didn't have live streaming March Madness games to watch. We're lucky to be able to view these games as if we were back home. I just watched fellow AAU teammate of mine, Dwight Powell at Stanford advance to the Sweet 16 and I'm currently watching another AAU teammate Kadeem Coleby at Wichita St. attempt to knock off Kentucky.  There have been a lot of upsets but that's no surprise if you're an avid college hoops fan. For all of those who filled out a bracket, better luck next year!  I'm terrible at brackets so I avoid the disappointment and just enjoy each game and usually cheer for teams based on their jersey/shoe colour combinations. . . Seriously.

Who will come out atop the 2014 NCAA Division I champion? Who knows, it'll be a team who's resilient, mentally tough and gets a little lucky in the end. Whenever it happens, with the right smartphone app, you'll get a bunch of notifications giving you every detailed stat of the game. Welcome to the fast life. Is it the life we chose, or rather the life that chose us?

Olu

#OWACO