HoopsHype.com NBA Blogs - Julius Hodge

I want another shot at the NBA!

My agent has been communicating with a couple of NBA teams so far but as of today my #1 objective right now is to keep BBCD in Pro A.

I have been given here an opportunity to excel on the court, good coaching, and a tremendous amount of on-court experience which I have fully taken advantage of.

For example, I’ll be the first to admit I used to see the game at the PG position as it progressed in present-tense, but now with this added experience and mental growth I see more than just the next pass after mine (which I call the hockey assist), I now see the next 3-4 plays and what pace to play at just by quickly examining whose hot on my squad, whether or not we’re scoring consistently, and the defense being played.

Coach has definitely took the time out to teach me this. Because as a basketball player you always hear since your a young kid “think the game” and its true. Basketball is a bunch of fun for me again I must admit.

We had a very important game and although I scored 19 points and had 10 rebunds and 8 assists, we lost by 7. We’ve got four games left in order to stay in Pro A. We have a number of injuries so I need to step up my game to a higher level.

Coach told me that now I’m the leader of the team. It’s not only about the points, the assists, it’s about making my teammates better.

As for the NBA teams interested, I came here to get experience and improve my jump shot, and I’ve done those things.

We’ll see during the summer, I’ll keep working to get better… like picking the NCAA champ! I had Pittsburgh, but you know, it’s so easy to pick the usual suspects (the Dukes, the North Carolinas…).

Seriously, I’ve read that it seems the Nets are committed to keep the core intact. Coach Lawrence Frank was very honest when he told me last summer that I was the final cut; he let me know which areas I had to improve so I would get to play in the NBA again.

Finally, it’s play off time! I see Cleveland winning the championship because of the maturity of LeBron James, and the fact that everybody on the team knows their role. LeBron can score 30 points, get 10 rebounds and 10 assists, and everybody on the team loves him. He’s been the MVP of the season and he will be the MVP of the Finals.

That’s all!

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We’re on a three-game losing streak right now, but we’re still optimistic that we can turn it around. We’ve had a couple of injuries, but I’m sure we’ll improve.

My first four games, it was really a challenge for me to get acquainted to my teammates. Same thing with the coaching staff.

There’s still a lot of adjusting to be made. Now I feel very comfortable running the point guard position. I knew that it’s something I had to do apart from improving my jump shot.

Against Strasbourg, our next game, we have to be very vocal, more demanding on everybody. Putting extra work on defense, getting tougher on defense.

It’s been a month since I’ve been here at Besançon, but I honestly don’t know the city. It seems that it’s a nice place to live and the people I know here are great people, but I focus on my work. I have to get the job done, that’s why I came here. So it’s 24/7 basketball: in the morning me and Justin Hawkins shoot before pratice, then practice; then we shoot after practice. Before the second practice we lift weights, we practice and then after practice we shoot once again. When we finish, we eat some food and then I go to my house.

I know that my chance to get back to the NBA, especially now that I’m learning the point guard position, is to not sort of be a shooting guard who can also play the one but a point guard who can also play the two and the three positions.

It’s very important for me to knock down open 20-footer jump shots so everyday I try to work on my game.

Talking about the NBA, there were no blockbuster deals at the trade deadline but there was a big one for a NYC guy like me: Stephon Marbury wearing the green Celtics jersey. I’m happy for Steph. It’s good that now he’s got a chance to win the championship. He’s an icon for New York on a contender team. I’m a fan of Marbury since I was a teenager so I’m definitely happy for him. I’ve never been a Celtics fan, but If I had to be a Celtics fan, that would be now because of Marbury.

Finally, my take on the economy. Obviously it’s gonna affect players who are playing overseas and I have to take advantage of every situation. I have to make sure that I get better everyday. To win the mental war with my jump shot so when I get back to the States everybody will see that I improved a lot.

That’s all for now.

Bye!

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Hello everybody!

I recently signed for the remainder of the season with French team Besançon. After leaving Australia I was able to go home and be with my family and friends in NYC. Then about a week later I was heading to Europe.

The city seems to be good but honestly I haven’t seen pretty much. My whole routine consists on going from my hotel room to practice, focusing on learning the offense and defensive system of the team.

Coach told me he wants me to get to the lane and create good shots for the other guys. You know the drill… Play hard, distribute well, effective shooting, guarding the best point guard and most importantly: running the team.

And talking about my teammates… There are really good players, but there is a really, really good young player called Justin Hawkins. This kid really can play. He has a smooth stroke, like Carmelo Anthony’s. This kid has a lot of potential.

We worked out for an hour and after the second practice we went together to lift weights. I feel good knowing that he also loves being in the gym. We’re gonna push each other to get better. This is a plus in this situation.

But I mean it: this kid has game. We can complement each other very well on the court.

I have no NBA opt-out clause this time. I will focus for the remainder of the season on Besançon.

This can be a very positive situation, coming to a team that desperately needs some help.

About the stuff that happened in Australia… I wish the team luck. I think it was a good situation for the most part… And I wish my former teammates and coaching staff the best of luck in the future.

Anyway, I don’t think this will hurt any chances to come back to the Australian League someday.

Honestly right now I’m focused on doing the best in the French League. This is definitely a situation that could help my career… Playing some combo guard, a lot of point guard, helping the team getting Ws.

That’s all for now.

Bye!

UPDATE: My first game went really good: 18 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and only one turnover in 24 minutes playing the point guard position. We won by 2points. I defended Brian Laing, a St. Raymonds High School  teammate of mine, university of Seton Hall graduate. I must admit it wasn’t as easy-going at first but I got into a good rythm by the 2nd half and our up-tempo offense allowed me to get in transition, throw alley-oops and set my teammates up for easy scores. It was tough leading and running our offense so quickly in just a few days but leading and running a team has never been a challenge for me.

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