The month of June started with a hike at Longquan mountain, just outside of Chengdu.

The mountain, which ended up being more of a glorified hill, was peaceful and provided excellent vantages of the Sichuan countryside.

It was a nice first hike to get my feet wet, but there are a number of more rigorous treks further out in the province that I have planned for future months.

My CIBL season came to a disappointing in with a buzzer beater loss in the playoffs. Our team was leading for the entire game, but sloppy possessions and porous defense late gave the other team the chance they needed to put us away.

Overall, I enjoyed the first season, but definitely noticed subtle differences in the Chinese basketball culture in comparison to its stateside counterpart.

Some were fun, and others – like the occasional spats between foreign and Chinese teams – were less so.

I’m looking forward to a lot of casual pick-up this summer to get back to enjoying the game in a less competitive environment.

I took some much needed R&R and traveled by myself to Thailand for a long weekend at the beach in Krabi. Traveling with friends is usually a more comfortable experience, but I find I learn a lot more about myself while traveling alone.

It also provides the chance to find new friends along the way like the two I met in Krabi: Gary from Southampton, England, and Jessica from Shanghai, China.

My current lease ends in a few weeks so June has included a lot of apartment hunting all over Chengdu.

I recently found a place a little closer to the city near a metro stop that I think I’m going to move on within the next few days.

It is much more convenient for getting to my Chinese classes and provides a new area of the city for me to explore.

Finally, I’m gearing up for our PSB China Trip in August. We are bringing a number of our program’s elite players, both past, and present, for a three-city tour in China.

The goal is to introduce these young men to Chinese culture while providing a unique basketball experience via scrimmages and clinics.

Right now we are planning to play a famous streetball team in Shanghai, the top academic institution – Tsinghua University – in Beijing, and Sichuan’s very own CBA team, the Blue Whales. Stay tuned for updates!

That’s it for June, come back next month for the July recap!

Pro Skills Basketball and Lineberger Orthodontics are committed to providing consistent opportunity and resources to young athletes and their families. They are united by one goal, that is, to give our young athletes the ability to SMILE ON no matter life’s circumstances.