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nov 2010
23
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Volley-Ball (1) Sherrise Smith is a living legacy to her father’s memory. The late Homer Smith suffered a fatal heart attack only hours after watching Sherrise and her Cal women’s basketball team play at USC back in 1997. “I was inspired to play basketball through my father’s interest and participation in the game. He was a pioneer in girls’ grassroots basketball . He assisted young athletes to obtain collegiate scholarships and continue their education,” says Sherrise, who founded the non-profit basketball association Got Game Basketball based in Los Angeles, Calif. Sherrise was a highly recruited guard from Santa Monica’s (Calif.) Crossroads High School. From her father’s mentorship, Sherrise earned a full athletic scholarship to the University of California at Berkeley, where she was a four-year starter and a key force in the Pacific 10 conference. The death of her father along with two serious knee injuries stalled hopes for a professional career, but guided Sherrise to focus her attention in another area of the sport, coaching. “Due to my in inability to compete professionally, I was inspired to coach and train future and aspiring basketball players. I incorporated Got Game Basketball in August of 2004 to help young women obtain their basketball dreams and goals, though professional coaching and mentorship from former collegiate and professional stars.” Sherrise suffered two major knee injuries as a student-athlete at Cal. They were significant enough to end any hopes for what would have been a promising professional career in the WNBA. In her freshman year, she suffered a dislocated knee cap. She underwent a surgical procedure called a lateral release, in which doctors took connective tissue from the side of her knee to facilitate the movement of her kneecap back to its proper place in the center of her knee. In the second half of her sophomore season she suffered a torn Posterior Cruciate Ligament (PCL). During her PCL surgery, doctors discovered that Sherrise had a partially torn meniscus and chondromalacia. Her rehabilitation went well, and she eventually returned to the court in Cal’s 1998 season opener against Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, where she scored seven points and had four assists in 17 minutes of action. Although she continued to show tremendous progress both on and off the court, team doctors advised that continued play would prove detrimental and could lead to more severe injuries. She started to channel her drive and determination to helping motivate and teach the other players on the team. She cites her experiences as a collegiate student-athlete with having great influence on her philosophy of injury prevention, knees in particular. “After my injuries, I learned the importance of proper training and development of all muscles; not just the dominate muscle but all the smaller tendons and muscles surrounding the joint. I learned that it is important to strengthen and have flexibility in the quad, hamstring, and calf areas in order to prevent injury. I believe that the Zamst product properly supports and provides the flexibility for rehabilitation without the element of restriction that many orthopedic braces provide.” Through Got Game Basketball, Sherrise reaches literally hundreds of kids each year. Her students range from the beginner to the most advanced level, with teams competing nationwide and players earning college scholarships to top universities. Sherrise also works with professional players as a personal coach, and recently started Got Game’s “The League,” the only NCAA-sanctioned summer league and by all accounts a huge success with players coming from all across the U.S. She has worked with the top players in the game, including WNBA superstars, Lisa Leslie and Candace Parker. Got Game Basketball provided much needed wear testing and participates in research and development projects for Zamst through Sherrise’s involvement on the Zamst Advisory Board. “I share with every athlete that I coach or mentor the importance of using a product like the Zamst IW-1 or IW-2 to ice after competition as well as to do a proper warm up and cool down. I advise all my players that it is important to work hard during workouts and push yourself to the limit, not just to earn a starting spot or a scholarship, but to learn the value and importance to staying fit as a lifestyle not just to achieve immediate goals.” Sherrise is a great example of a commitment to excellence both on the court and off. She has successfully translated her own accomplishments and experience as a top level athlete into her coaching and business career. “The most influential people in my career were my coaching staff and players that were professional athletes. Observing their drive and commitment to excellence on the basketball court and off the court. Their commitment to self improvement mentally and physically inspired and motivated me to be my best.” Category Basketball |
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