“Every time I get on the floor, I know I’m representing a country, even now in high school and [playing] American ball. I’m still known as the Canadian guard…[I’m] representing something bigger than [myself],” she says.

Swords’ parents, Shelley and Shawn, played basketball at Laurentian University in Ontario, with Shawn continuing to play professionally until he was offered a spot as Laurentian University’s head coach.

Swords credits her parents for introducing both her and her younger sister, Savannah, to basketball early on. “Going to my dad’s practices—that was the way he would babysit us,” she says. Though Swords recognizes that her family had a huge impact on her passion for basketball, her love for the game was something she developed on her own. “It’s a passion and it’s not like it’s not a job, which is something [my parents have] been really keen on putting into our minds,” she continues. “When we finally got the chance to join our first team, it was a no-brainer. Our role models were basketball players.”

After verbally committing to Michigan last May, she’s keeping her eyes on the prize, which right now means leading her Long Island Lutheran basketball team to the top of the rankings.

After her father was offered a position as the associate head coach for the Long Island Nets in August, the Swords family packed up and headed to New York, where the sisters started hooping at Long Island Lutheran High School. “We had no idea about anything New York City coming in from a small town in Northern Ontario,” she says.

Though her end goal has always been following in her father’s footsteps by representing Canada in the Olympics, Syla’s immediate goals are slightly more representative of your ordinary high school senior. “I’m planning on majoring in business [at Michigan]…so I’m just finishing up my essays right now to submit next week,” she says. “That’s been number one on my list.”

When she’s not hooping or working on her Common App, you can find Swords crushing the competition (her family) in games of Catan during family game nights. Because at the end of the day, it’s always been about family. As she enters her last season of playing high school basketball with her sister, Swords reflects on the importance of having family on her side on the court.

“It’s been amazing having a built-in best friend, a built-in training partner,” Syla says. “I always say we’re each other’s biggest competitors, but we’re also each other’s biggest supporters.”

Until her debut at Michigan, Swords is working on taking her game to the next level by becoming more shifty, establishing herself quickly on her first step and improving her reads of the defense. When speaking about any concerns for her collegiate career and beyond, Swords knows it won’t be easy. But Ontario’s very own is no stranger to change.

“Of course, I’m going to fail at different things,” she says, “but I’m just excited to get myself into that environment.” One of Swords role models is Seattle Storm point guard and fellow Canadian, Kia Nurse. “She’s where I want to be in the next 10-15 years. Just growing up, watching her do what she’s done for Team Canada, it’s been really fun. Hopefully I can follow her path.”

Photos by Marcus Stevens.

The post Inside Syla Swords’ Incredible Rise from Ontario, Canada to Long Island Lutheran appeared first on SLAM.

“I’ll never forget it. I was in our practice facility. It was before my sophomore year, so I’d only played one season, and then my assistant coach came out and was like, Yeah, Liz, everyone gets an extra year.”

It’s been over three years since that moment, and this season’s seniors are the last of the Covid class. This year will be the last time college athletes have to decide between taking that extra year or not. But with the introduction of new NIL rules in the summer of 2021, the decision doesn’t carry the same amount of weight as it did three years ago.

“I think it just changed the way I looked at things,” says Kitley, who initially considered entering the WNBA Draft or venturing overseas after her fourth year at Tech.

For Endyia Rogers, a guard at Texas A&M, NIL was a massive contributing factor in her decision to take that fifth year. Now that Rogers is able to make money while still competing at the college level, she sees her fifth year as an “opportunity to build yourself up financially, saving your money up for what you’re gonna do afterward.”

Because the reality is, most athletes don’t end up going pro after college. For many, this extra year of eligibility is the last opportunity to play the sport that’s been a defining aspect of their lives.

Boo Buie, though, a guard at Northwestern University, says it’s always been about making it to the League.

“My goal as a competitor, as an athlete, is always to make it professionally,” he says. “But halfway through my senior year—we just were having an unbelievable year—I just really wanted to come back.”

After leading his team to the NCAA Tournament, as well as the program record for Big Ten wins, Buie’s hoping for a season to rival the last. That’s one thing every athlete taking a fifth year has in common: a desire to bring a new level of competition to this upcoming season.

“The NBA…it’s not going anywhere,” says USC’s Boogie Ellis. The fifth-year point guard still feels as if he has some unfinished business with the Trojans, and with superstars Bronny James and Isaiah Collier joining the mix, Ellis is in for the long haul. Like many other athletes, the San Diego native decided to take this year to improve his game, making sure that he’s the best version of himself before he enters the NBA draft.

For Rickea Jackson, this season will be her first without having to adjust to a new coaching staff. The Tennessee forward played under three different coaches during her first three seasons at Mississippi State, but after transferring to Tennessee her senior year, she knew that she had to take advantage of the opportunity to stay with a coach who knows her—even if it had only been for one season.

“Having that consistency in my life is something that I’ve craved,” she says, “and, you know, I have it now.”

Photos via Getty Images.

The post Inside the College Basketball Fifth Year Journey: Five Seniors on Their Decision to Return appeared first on SLAM.

After ending his most recent season with the Clippers with an injury, George is ready to get back on the court. Allow us to introduce you to a side of Paul George you’ve never seen before in our recent SLAM 246 cover story, where he talks about everything from his training to his podcast and how he’s measuring his success from now on: by winning a championship.

Check out the behind-the-scenes video below.

Back on his bully. Get your copy of SLAM 246 today.

“I had that approach of guarding everyone tough, of trying to be the number one option and score on the best player every night while shutting the best player down every night.” 

The Clippers star kept it real for the cover of SLAM 246, where he sat down with us to talk about his legacy, the perception of him in the NBA and what he meant in that livestream…

The post The ‘Bully’ is Back: Go Behind the Scenes of Paul George’s SLAM 246 Cover Shoot appeared first on SLAM.

The New York Liberty, thanks to their starting lineup—Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones, Sabrina Ionescu, Betnijah Laney and Courtney Vandersloot—currently have the best regular-season record in franchise history.

Here’s a backstage look at how these five stars teamed up to take over the WNBA.

The Stars Align Tour. Get your copy of SLAM 246.

There’s no “I” in New York, but there is a “W” and an “E.”

Read about how these five icons came together to dominate the League as we catch up with the squad for their first-ever SLAM cover as a team.

Come behind the scenes with us as the Liberty’s starting five opens up about their group dynamic and their how their individual journeys led them to Brooklyn.

The post The Stars Align: Backstage Look at the New York Liberty SLAM Cover Shoot appeared first on SLAM.

However you want to perceive it, 2,006 days is a long time to do anything consistently. Some might even call it impossible, but not Kenji Summers. On December 25, 2017, Summers was challenged by a friend to meditate every day for a year; pretty soon, one year turned into two, two turned into three, and now Summers is completing his sixth year of the challenge. But Summers has always been up for a challenge—his most recent being a part of the SLAM Zen Collection, which is inspired by mindfulness and finding inner peace both on and off the court.

“I identify mindfulness as coming back to yourself and meditation as going into yourself,” Summers recently told SLAM.

Summers has been mentored by the legendary George Mumford, who has worked with everyone from the late-Kobe Bryant to Michael Jordan on the practice of mediation. The Brooklyn-native and UMass Amherst alumni is also a former hooper, worked as a brand manager for Nike Basketball East and founded Passport Life, a non-profit organization committed to empowering youth to travel the world.

In SLAM’s Zen Collection campaign, Summers narrates the promotional video and talks about the essence of piece and how, as a player, it’s important to be fully present.

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We talked to Summers about his take on meditation, his personal journey and how every athlete can unlock their higher selves through this practice.

SLAM: How would you define meditation and mindfulness?

KENJI SUMMERS: Peace. I identify mindfulness as coming back to yourself and meditation as going into yourself. 

SLAM: Why do you meditate?

KS: I meditate to get to know myself better. When I started 2,006 days ago I was just trying to escape anxiety. My thoughts were moving non-stop and life felt overwhelming. I had lost my job and needed something to take the edge off that would not lead to other side effects. When I started my first meditation lasted for three minutes.

SLAM: You’ve spoken about learning from George Mumford, and how his work helped you on your path to mindfulness? Do you see mindfulness as an individual journey or one guided by mentorship?

KS: George Mumford is the GOAT you never heard of. He was the mindfulness coach to Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. In 2015 he put out a book “The Mindful Athlete” and I read it front to back while working on ideas to celebrate Kobe’s last season in the League. George’s teaching has helped me see the masterpiece within and elevate my game to a level of pure performance. Today I don’t try to be anyone but myself. Mindfulness is an inner game and if you want to play the infinite game—which never ends and is all about continuing the play—then having a mentor is very important. We all have those favorite teachers or OG’s from our life, and for me, George is one of them. I would still be me without him but I am a better version of myself because of him. If you ever meet him you will know what I’m talking about. Straight Black Jedi, Yoda flow.

SLAM: What is the infinite game and who is the infinite player? 

KS: The infinite game is the boundless arena of life and the infinite player is the one who thrives, transcending limits and embracing the unpredictable play, ever-evolving and adapting. Live the infinite game, be the infinite player, and play as an infinite athlete.

SLAM: How is an individual’s mindfulness impacted by being on a team?

KS: Basketball is a team game. You have to know yourself and know your teammates. Mindfulness which I like to call Sturdiness is all about getting right with yourself so you can get in flow with your homies. Your teammates. Your coaches. I say your homies because mindfulness is not about hierarchies but recognizing roles and contributions. Meditation, which I like to call structure is about practicing on a deeper level. George would have MJ and Pippen and Kobe and Shaq meditate with their teams before games. No wonder such big personalities were able to get along and win chips during their time. My style is similar and while I focus one-on-one, my group sessions are about encouraging everyone to be their own masterpiece so that they can create a masterpiece with other masterpieces. Feel me?

SLAM: How did you incorporate mindfulness and meditation into your life when you were hooping in high school and considering furthering your career in basketball? 

KS: I didn’t. It took me ’till I had gotten to be dream job at Nike to start practicing. But when I look back I had glimpses of mindfulness and meditation when I was practicing Tae Kwon Do at the Vanderbilt YMCA while simultaneously playing in Junior Knicks. Hoops needs these practices more than ever. With superstars getting suspensions for mental lapses and poor decision making it is important to get to the root of the issue. It’s about stress. We do not want to admit that we have a stress epidemic. This stress epidemic connects to our attention epidemic. In “Stolen Focus” author Johann Hari emphasizes “In situations of low stress and safety, mind-wandering will be a gift, a pleasure, a creative force. In situations of high stress or danger, mind-wandering will be a torment.” We have to admit that we don’t feel safe in this world. Especially young hoopers. There is a level of psychological violence inflicted on them from the time they start showing promise and the cameras go on them. Instead of making them out to be villains or victims, we have to be OG’s and elders. That means we have to be sturdy and structured. What I am doing is putting these practices into easily learnable and digestible tools. It’s about physical fitness and skills along with mental fitness and mental skills. We need them all. 

SLAM: How can athletes integrate mindfulness into their everyday lives?

KS: Start with whatever is buggin’ you right now. Breathe in and hold your breath until your desire to breathe is more important than the issue at hand. On the breath out feel the gratitude that at this moment breathing was all that is important. From moment to moment having gratitude for the ability to breathe will provide more peace and joy in everyday life. I call this Free Peace.

SLAM: Is there a difference between the type of mindfulness an athlete may practice on the court versus at home?

KS: Nah, the court is life and the life is the court. But starting out knowing that these practices can help you play better is a real motivation. The GOATS all have had mental practices: LeBron, MJ, Kobe, Dr J you name ‘em. Make your practice your life and see what miracles happen. 

SLAM: Do you have any advice for hoopers beginning their mindfulness journey?

KS: Come see me this summer in NYC. NYC hoops is in a renaissance and I am part of the scenius –the genius of a group of people and their culture. 

SLAM: Could you speak on the inspiration behind the SLAM Zen Collection?

KS:  I had read “Unlocked” by George Mumford and “Finite and Infinite Games” by James Carse. In sitting with these books and speaking to my friend Jesse Stollak I realized how powerful our stories are to tell. Jesse does a lot of storytelling in his role but we both connect on knowing that what we do ultimately is about service. Me repping Zen every day through Captain Zen Garden caps and living my Free Peace lifestyle was a natural fit to tell a story around meditation and hoops. I realized that I had recently unlocked my infinite athlete. It felt wavy to realize that there is no one better to be but myself (everyone else is taken) and I came to believe that I had to share my masterpiece with the world.

The SLAM Zen Collection is all about finding serenity in style.

The post Kenji Summers on the Art of Mediation and Being Mentored by the Same Teacher Who Worked with Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant appeared first on SLAM.

Since his college days, the superstar has always been a force to be reconciled with, and now, Murray has made sure everyone knows that. In honor of his, and the Nugget’s victorious season, here’s a look back at Murray’s ascension over the years—from his SLAM 230 cover story to his days at Kentucky and more.

2016: FEATURE IN SLAM 199

Back in 2016, a 19-year-old Jamal Murray was finishing up his first, and only, season of college basketball at the University of Kentucky. In SLAM 199, Murray opened up about his decision to enter the NBA Draft, dealing with expectations and more.

You can read this story and more in our SLAM Digital Archives, which has every copy of SLAM, ever.

2020: JAMAL MURRAY COVERS SLAM 230

In 2020, Murray was gearing up for what would be a breakout run in the bubble. Murray was averaging a then-career high 18.5 points per game during the 2019-2020 season.

For the cover of SLAM 230, we talked to Murray about how he expresses himself through basketball and how he’s inspired by martial arts legend Bruce Lee, practices mindfulness and more.

Celebrate ‘Mal’s championship status with this exclusive SLAM 230 Cover Tee.

The post Here’s a Look Back on Jamal Murray’s Ascension Over the Years — SLAM 230 Cover and More appeared first on SLAM.