How I Missed Out On Shooting Russell Westbrook, Paul George, and Carmelo Anthony
It was the MOST important game of my life. January 13th, 2018. Russell Westbrook, Carmelo Anthony, and Paul George. The OKC Thunder came to town and I was ready to get some shooting done at the game. I knew it would be a great day, because the night before went entirely too perfect. I didn’t plan on going to the Hornets vs Jazz game but after I received some free tickets to shoot, I figured why not? I also knew that I wouldn’t be able to stay the entire game because my line brother (Fraternity brother that I crossed with, for those who don’t know) was proposing to his girlfriend that same night! So, I began to formulate a plan. After work, I headed straight to the arena. I figured if I wasn’t going to stay the entire time I shouldn’t waste the $15 on parking that I normally do.
So being the frugal guy that I am lol, I decided to use one of my old parking tickets that I had bought at a previous game. I tore off the date and pushed it down into my dashboard so it would look believable, and IT WORKED!!! I was so excited, I got to see Donovan Mitchell, caught some awesome shots, and I actually made it on time to capture my Line Brother’s proposal. It went so well. I took some great shots of the proposal and I knew that the next day was going to be even better.
I got home with so much excitement because I knew the next day I was finally going to meet Russell Westbrook. This would be my first time seeing him play all year and the Hornets were wearing their CLASSIC uniforms, so I definitely didn’t want to miss out on any action. Because I had been using my camera so much the night before, I decided to charge my battery so I could take as many shots as possible.
The next day arrived, and I headed to the arena as I usually do. As soon as I got there I paid for parking and I headed in to the security clearance. I make it through and I head to the visitor’s tunnel and immediately I see RUSSELL WESTBROOK! He’s chatting with his trainer and I’m just in awe. All I could say was “Wassup Brodie!” as he sprinted back to the locker room. All of the other players started to make their entrances to the pregame shootaround as I began to get autographs and handshakes from each of the Thunder players. It was then time for the game as everyone was forced to take their seats. I headed back to my seat to get my camera ready as the Thunder proceeded to the court for the final warmups. I turned the knob to “ON” and nothing happened. Suddenly I got into a frenzy, I checked my camera only to find that there was NO BATTERY. I ran frantically to the entrance only to be told there was no reentry. So, I sadly walked back to my seat and began to wonder, “Why me?” Although it was a great game, and a great experience, I learned one valuable lesson: No matter what you do, ALWAYS, and I mean ALWAYS PAY FOR PARKING. That was karma coming back to haunt me from the night before! Below is a screenshot from a video I had to take of Melo on my iPhone SMH.