What Was Your Favorite Non-NBA Moment of 2016?
The staff members of 16 Wins a Ring weigh in…
2016 was an incredible year for sports, and this week the staff members of Sixteen Wins a Ring have taken a look back to remember our favorite NBA moments of an awesome year.
But life is bigger than basketball, and we wanted to pause and appreciate some other memorable moments along the way as well — some from other sports, others from life at large, all of them personal and meaningful.
Pete Toal
My proudest and favorite moment of 2016 came on December 3rd as my wife and I welcomed our first child to the world. I was certainly ecstatic when my wife broke the news that we were expecting a boy, but nothing can compare to the feeling I got when I first held him in my arms. I am especially excited that I have a future basketball fan to watch the games with and to teach the ins and outs of the game to as well.
I was told “there is nothing finer than being a dad,” and I can absolutely attest to that. There will be many stories told of Sager Strong moments mixed with E.J., Charles, and Kenny. Stars of my era such as Jordan, Bird, Magic, Iverson, Kobe, Duncan, KG and more will fill up story-time moments. But I’ll be oh so proud one day to watch my baby boy walk on that future arena floor.
Duncan Smith
The Cubs finally winning a World Series after more than a century of futility was incredible. I have no love for Chicago sports but the story was too good to not get excited about.
David Ramil
Visiting the Pacific Northwest and driving along the majestic peaks of Mount Rainier was breathtaking. I’m from Florida — we don’t have hills, much less mountains. And Rainier is an evolving experience, starting at its base on a rainy, mist-filled day and slowly climbing above the clouds into a bright, sun-soaked and snow-covered explosion.
So much beauty in one relatively small area but a reminder that there is greatness all around us if we just bother to look for it.
Chris De Silva
Although the Indians lost the World Series, my favorite moment has to be the Rajai Davis tying homer late in Game 7. The Cubs looked like they were going to absolutely blow the Indians out of the water, and at 5–1 they were doing so. But the Indians had one last gasp in them and it made for enthralling viewing. The LeBron celebration really said it all.
Shy
Personally, my favorite moment was when I contributed to my first article for ESPN’s The Undefeated. It highlighted Penny Hardaway’s post-professional career and the commitment he made to his friend Desmond Merriweather by mentoring young men and preparing them for life beyond basketball.
Keith Smith
There is nothing I love more than when sports and family intersect. This year that happened for me in the best way when my 6 year old daughter crushed her first ever basketball tryout and fell in love with the game. Bring it on as we look to a big 2017 in the Smith family.
Mind right. Grind tight. Shine bright!
Daman Rangoola
The Olympics are a great reminder that the world is able to come together every four years and show our collective spirit and all that we are capable when we set our minds to being great. We are united as a country and we are united as a planet.
Cameron Stewart
I saw the Chicago Cubs win the World Series, I covered the Final Four and the incredible Villanova vs North Carolina title game in Houston, and I saw Kanye West live and briefly did some variant of moshing with Travis Scott.
Picking between those three is nearly impossible for various reasons that I could write thousands and thousands of words about, but we’ll just keep it at that. It’s been an incredible year full of memories that I’ll keep with me for the rest of my life.
Mara Averick
Taurean Prince’s response to “How did Yale out-rebound Baylor?” was perfection. 2016 had a lot of great sports moments, but I just never want his deadpan poise in the face of that moment to be forgotten.
Troy Tauscher
Getting the chance to cover Arizona State basketball for a student club is one of the best chances I’ve ever had. It’s been a great first couple months just getting that kind of experience.
serge
The feel-good moment has to be Leicester winning the English Premier League. Let me paint you a photo. Imagine the 2015–16 Sixers somehow came through the NBA and won the title. Something like that. It’s great.
But I’m a cynic, an Arsenal fan, and I hate happiness and joy, so it has to be Tottenham inexplicably imploding into themselves and not only losing a title but finishing behind Arsenal for like the eternaleth time. It just felt good to see a team do so well and then fall apart so completely. Again.
Adam Howes
The best part of 2017 was the meteoric rise of Chance the Rapper. From the release of his critically acclaimed Coloring Book album to hanging with DWade and Jimmy Butler, 2016 has been a blessed year for the Chicago-born artist. He started the year off strong with his fingerprints all over Kanye West’s The Life of Pablo and featured on arguably the best song on the album (“Ultralight Beam”) and then performed it with Ye and co on SNL.
DWade introduced him at Lollapalooza, he made a USA basketball movie with Jimmy Butler for Nike, and he made it on to Ellen and then SNL a second time. Now he’s embarked on a world tour (I’ll see him Jan 4 in Melbourne!), oh and let’s not forget the five Grammy awards he’s been nominated for and the fact that The Recording Academy changed the rules so he could be eligible for nomination BECAUSE HE STILL GIVES HIS MUSIC AWAY FOR FREE. Not bad for a 23-year-old kid from the South side.
George Kondoleon
My favorite moment of 2016 was when we found it my mom’s melanoma was rapidly shrinking. It was some unthinkable Ray Allen Game 6 of the NBA Finals type stuff. She’s like Russell Westbrook, and cancer is the rim — it’s getting wrecked every time. Watching my mom get healthier was by far the greatest moment of a tough year.
Spencer Davies
It was unbelievable being part of the Cleveland Indians’ roller coaster ride of a season. To have that team make the World Series and almost win just months after the Cavaliers did what they did was nothing short of amazing.
I’ll never forget 2016 in The Land. It was some kind of special, and with both of these teams building upon their previous success, I’m pumped to see what 2017 has to bring. Now as far as what will happen for that third professional sports organization in the city I don’t exactly know… but hey, go Browns.
Allana Tachauer
Although 2016 hasn’t been too kind to society in general, I’m grateful to say I actually had a pretty good year. One highlight was having the opportunity to interview Jalen Rose for AllUCanHeat.com. He had a lot of interesting insight on the Heat’s then upcoming 2016 postseason run.
Many were shocked how quickly they were able to turn things around after missing the 2015 playoffs, as James headed back to Cleveland and Bosh was diagnosed with blood clots. And although Miami did not end up making the Eastern Conference Finals like Rose predicted, they were only one game away from doing so!
Brandon Anderson
2016 gave me the greatest sports moment of my life — past, present, and future. The Chicago Cubs won the World Series!! I still can’t totally believe it happened. I stood in the stands Game 5 and sang Go Cubs Go with a World Series crowd for the first time ever. I agonized with tens of thousands of Cubbies fans in Wrigleyville in Game 7, and I celebrated with five million more at the largest non-religious gathering in human history days later.
For all the incredible moments of this Cubs season and World Series run, the moments after have been just as good or better. For weeks after, old men would see me at the grocery store wearing a Cubs jersey and just come up and give me a hug. People see me wearing a Cubs hat and just smile at me knowingly. Now two months later, I actually forget about the Cubs for a few hours now and then, and then I remember and cry all over again.
One moment stands above the rest — writing my brother Nate’s name in chalk on the Wrigley Field brick in hallowed rainy silence, then calling my other brother Steve deep into the night as he sat by Nate’s grave site back home and the three of us celebrated together. That is something I’ll never forget.
Nicholas Arguelles
In the beginning of 2016, I was just a freshman attending a small college in western Maryland, still trying to figure out my future. My few talents included writing and talking about sports, so it didn’t feel like very much to hang my hat on.
Fortunately, my roommate noticed my passion for sports and suggested I combine both writing and sports. This combination had never occurred to me, but the advice given to me by my roommate that day has turned out to be a blessing. Every step of the way, I’ve remained humbled and eager to learn. Now I am attending historic Marshall University, majoring in journalism, and following my dream of becoming a writer.
My favorite moment? I can put it simply: finding something I want to do for the rest of my life.
