How the Ball Bounces
The History of the Rockport Celtics Vol. 1
by
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In 1988 the city built a small full court basketball court at the Mexican park. At no time did we ever believe what was being built would become such a popular place to play basketball, but it did for a short time. We had the Mecca of all basketball courts in Rockport. You could on a Friday night find basically every type of ball player at our home court. From the skinny loser type who smoked more than he ate, or the fat beer lovers who talked like "huh". They were all present, even the real ball players like me or Nino who would hold court. Sometime the brothers would come out and dominate the court. They would have one team of three and would win like nine games and there would be thirty people on the sidelines calling "game, I got next game". We knew who was going to win the game, but everyone wanted the next game to try and knock off whichever team was holding court at the moment. In all the years I played ball there, no one ever got pissed cause someone else had game in front of them. It was an interesting time for me. Most of the guys that played drank beer in between games and smoked pot, although offered countless times when the court was first put up, after a while they knew what type some of us were and simply did their own thing and left us alone.
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About the Book
Imagine growing up in an ethnically diverse, poor neighborhood with little hope for the youth that lived there.
Eric DeWolfe doesn’t have to imagine having grown up in South Rockport, Texas at a place known affectionately as “Mexican Park”. Most of these residents of Rockport were of meager means and some even on public assistance. DeWolfe and his friends had a hard time envisioning a better life.
But everything changed when the city built a small basketball court at the park in front of his house. It didn’t take long for him to form his own team.
As a huge Boston Celtics fan, DeWolfe named the team in their honor. He could include or exclude whoever he wanted, but he rarely exercised his authority. Team members were all close friends from the South Side neighborhood in Rockport.
With only a hoop, ball, and dreams of transforming themselves into Magic, Bird, Jordan or Robinson, these kids would transform their mundane lives into lives worth living. Some would grow up and even get out of the neighborhood, but others would not.
If you’re a huge basketball fan who wants to relive your younger days and celebrate a love for basketball that you’ve kept into adulthood, then you’ll be inspired by the highs and lows in How the Ball Bounces.
About the Author
Eric DeWolfe earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Texas A&M University in Corpus Christi, Texas. He is a secondary social studies teacher in South Texas and a huge fan of the Boston Celtics, The Ocean Blue, and Michael McDonald. He and his wife, Gayle, have three boys and live in Corpus Christi. This is his first book.