BAYLOR, DUKE, YANKEES, CELTICS? Are you from the East Coast?

If you read the about me post then you have probably learned that I am a Baylor fan because I am an alumna. Was I always a fan of Baylor? Actually, no. I initially bled burnt orange and white, and occasionally find myself rooting for this rival often enough. But Baylor was life-changing for my career and as a student there I met my amazing husband. So of course a Baylor fan, and as an alumni it is easy to go to the games and see friends. Not to mention I worked Baylor sports for 4 years so it's hard not to root for a team that I was around all the time.

So why Duke with no ties? First of all I am mostly a Duke Men's Basketball fan, why do you ask? COACH K. The man with a plan and the man that has led not only Duke but the National Olympic US team to many titles. But my real passion for Duke came from watching JJ Redick play back in '05. My older brother was a Duke fan and once I saw this young team play I was hooked. I have followed JJ's career and kept up with Duke along the way as multiple known players enter the top of the NBA draft each year. Most recently Zion Williamson, and that guy is fun to watch! But also this is initially where I heard of Steph Curry, but only because I heard that he was the brother of Seth Curry a notable Duke player. So it was actually through Steph's younger brother that I learned of who he was and then his season really kicked off.

One of the questions I always get asked is how are you a Yankees fan but you live in Texas? My answer is always snarky along the lines of "There's not much to root for in Texas" because up until recently the Texas hasn't had any notable seasons. I mean the Cowboys are a joke, Texans are off and on great, Astros are on the come up but are also CHEATERS, and the Rangers can't seal the deal. Anyways being that we live in Texas my parents are Rangers' fans and during the summer we would drive up to Arlington to watch and as a fan of sports I enjoyed watching Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez, Alex Rodriguez, Alfonso Soriano, and Mark Teixeira. As you know there are times were trades are made and 3/4 favorite Ranger players went to the New York Yankees so I started to pay more attention to this team and watched guys like Robinson Cano, Mariano Rivera, Derek Jeter, Andy Pettite, and so on. Following the trade of ARod and Tex I became a fan of the Yankees and never went back. Through the good the bad and the oh so close chases of the pennant. My husband married into my love for the team and my current favorite player is Aaron Judge, and this is where my dog Judge got his name.

Celtics? Again the same question are you from Boston? Nope. But I enjoy some solid basketball and I became a fan when I saw the Big 3 perform in the 2008 finals. Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen. These 3 guys were awesome to watch and I've been a fan ever since. I briefly kept up with the Clippers when they selected my favorite college player Blake Grffin in 2009. But that changed when he was traded abruptly in 2017. Since then I've kept up with the Celtics and now the Pelicans because they have several of my favorite Duke players on the roster including JJ Redick and Zion Willamson.

As fans of these teams I can't stand the Lakers, Red Sox, UNC, or TCU. But I love a good game and watching my teams play their rivals is always exciting.

I love football, but currently don't have a professional team. Since Cam Newton went to the Panthers I have followed here and there and now my old Baylor coach Matt Rhule is out there giving me another reason to follow so we will see.