Cooper's Crew in 2022 ... Dixon Davis, Jacob Earl, Ryan Van Lewen, Hunter Olchewsky, Bridger Magelby, Caleb Cox ... and Cooper Blackham (no #4, Mommy likes her boys to have "their" number!) Coach was Carter Davis, not much older than the boys.
Cooper played several seasons of Junior Jazz, but he really prefers just playing for fun, not anything competitive. Even rec ball would get a little stressful for him, and there was more than one season where he bowed out early. Here's a peek (links to posts) at his previous basketball days...
So it had been over three years since he'd played Junior Jazz with his buddies. Although he'd seen them, and even played some pickup ball here and there, Coop had transferred schools and didn't see his old crew that often. He had been asked, and said no, to playing Junior Jazz in recent years. I was pretty surprised when he said he was signing up for his senior year (does that make it Senior Jazz?)
They practiced at the Taylorsville Rec Center on Thursday nights at 5:30, which was a bit of a challenge to get to with his work (usually getting off a little after 5:00). Games were Saturdays at Hunter High School (one switched to Magna, Mom had him get a ride to that one as that drive is a bit out of her comfort zone). Mom did try to attend most of the other games, coming with camera in hand, just like the old days. Coop missed a couple of the games mid-season (skin issues/anxiety issues) and while he enjoyed practices, he would stress about the upcoming games. It was a bit of a relief when the season was over. Hopefully there will still be some pickup games in the future.
They won the game in the picture above (and video below) ...
They lost more than they won - but it's all about just having fun!
Here's two more highlight reels (February 26, 2022 & March 5, 2022). These were the two final games of the season and very similar in that the first half was rough, with the ball not going in the hoop. The boys managed to do a lot better in the second half of both games.
