Hunter Nunley '20 Recruiting Profile

     Growing up in a small town in Alaska there were a lot of challenges to overcome if I wanted to play sports.  Probably the biggest one is that it is hard to find really good coaches and people to teach you the skills you need to know.  My basketball journey probably didn't start as early as most kids these day, and if I'm being honest when I started playing I felt like quitting everyday.   I really started to play when I was about nine years old, I would go to the YMCA and play with all the older kids who would own me on the court.  Every night I would be so upset about not being good enough to play with them, and every day I would go back and keep trying.  That's all I did for the next 4 years, at the age of 13 I had become a pretty decent player compared to those around me, and this would also be my first year playing on a real team for me Middle school.  Tryouts come around and I end up making the varsity team which was a real shock to me.  That year we lost half of our games and and that bad season sort of clicked something inside of me to where no matter how far behind my team is I am going to fight my hardest even if there is no hope. 

     Before my 8th grade season me and my family moved to Alabama, I joined a travel team and we won our first tournament.  That experience has really helped me grow as a person and a player because before that I had never actually won any sort of championship.  Our team has its ups and downs but one key area that I have grown in is leading and encouraging my teammates.  Whenever someone on my team is in a slump or sad from our team losing I do my best to cheer them up because I've felt what they feel but I know that as long as we keep our heads up and fight for what we want that we may not have to have that feeling again.  Leading is something I feel like I do naturally and hopefully I will be able to fight and lead for a team at the next level.