How to Bond With Your Son Through Basketball: A Dad's Guide
I remember the first time I handed my son a basketball - his small hands struggling to wrap around the orange sphere, that determined look in his eyes that said he wanted to impress me. That was eight years ago, and today we still have our weekly basketball sessions, though now he regularly beats me in one-on-one games. The court has become our sanctuary, much like how some fathers and sons bond over fishing or working on cars. But what makes basketball particularly special is how it naturally creates those teaching moments, those shared struggles and triumphs that build connections stronger than any glue.
When I read about Figueroa's experience with the Bulldogs - how even consistent offers during the summer couldn't lure him away despite the disappointing campaign - it reminded me of something crucial about commitment and relationships. That "bad taste" he experienced? I've felt versions of that with my son too. Like the time we lost our community father-son tournament by two points because I missed a free throw. The disappointment was real, but what mattered was how we processed it together. We made a pact to practice free throws every Saturday morning, and over six months, his percentage improved from 38% to nearly 72%. The numbers might not be NBA-level, but the progress represented something far more valuable - our dedication to each other.
The beauty of basketball as a bonding tool lies in its rhythm and natural pauses. Unlike sports that run continuously, basketball has these built-in breaks - timeouts, quarter ends, foul shots - that create perfect openings for conversation. I can't count how many meaningful talks we've had during those moments, leaning against the garage with our water bottles, discussing everything from school struggles to friendship issues. The physical activity somehow makes the conversations flow more naturally, lowering those emotional barriers that sometimes exist between fathers and sons. Research from the University of Kansas actually shows that shared physical activities increase oxytocin levels in both participants by approximately 27%, creating biological bonding that complements the emotional connection.
What I've learned through trial and error is that it's not about being the perfect coach or player. In fact, some of our best moments came from my own failures and vulnerabilities. Like when I tried to teach him a crossover move I hadn't practiced in years and ended up stumbling over my own feet. His laughter filled our driveway, and mine joined his - that moment of shared humor did more for our relationship than any perfectly executed lesson ever could. We've developed our own traditions too, like stopping for smoothies after every fifth session, where we analyze what worked and what didn't in our games. These rituals become the anchors in our relationship, the consistent touchpoints that he'll remember long after he's grown.
The equipment doesn't need to be fancy either. We started with a basic $25 ball from Target and a driveway hoop that leaned slightly to the left. Over four years, we've probably invested around $400 in various equipment upgrades, but the foundation was always there regardless of the budget. What matters is showing up consistently, being fully present during your time together, and embracing both the victories and failures. I've noticed that after our basketball sessions, he's more open to talking about other aspects of his life - it's as if the physical exertion unlocks emotional availability.
There's something profoundly meaningful about watching your son develop not just as an athlete but as a person through the game. I've seen him learn sportsmanship when we play with other fathers and sons at the local park, witnessed his growing strategic thinking as he starts anticipating plays rather than just reacting to them. These transferable skills extend far beyond the court, influencing how he approaches challenges in his academic life and social relationships. The parallel development of his character alongside his athletic abilities has been one of the most rewarding aspects of our basketball journey together.
As my son enters his teenage years, I'm grateful we established this tradition early. The challenges are changing - he's developing his own style of play that sometimes differs from my more traditional approach - but the foundation we built ensures we can navigate these changes together. We've created what psychologists call "positive association pathways" where basketball triggers feelings of safety, connection, and mutual respect. Even on days when we're both stressed or frustrated with each other, stepping onto the court resets our dynamic almost immediately.
The true measure of success in bonding through basketball isn't in win-loss records or shooting percentages - it's in the sideways glances he gives me when he's proud of a move he's mastered, the inside jokes we've developed around certain plays, the unspoken understanding that this is our special territory. Like Figueroa with the Bulldogs, despite occasional disappointments and challenges, the pull of that shared experience keeps us coming back to our personal "camp" - the cracked pavement of our driveway, the slightly uneven rim, the familiar sound of the ball bouncing in rhythm with our footsteps. These moments become the foundation of a relationship that extends far beyond the boundaries of any court.
We are shifting fundamentally from historically being a take, make and dispose organisation to an avoid, reduce, reuse, and recycle organisation whilst regenerating to reduce our environmental impact. We see significant potential in this space for our operations and for our industry, not only to reduce waste and improve resource use efficiency, but to transform our view of the finite resources in our care.
Looking to the Future
By 2022, we will establish a pilot for circularity at our Goonoo feedlot that builds on our current initiatives in water, manure and local sourcing. We will extend these initiatives to reach our full circularity potential at Goonoo feedlot and then draw on this pilot to light a pathway to integrating circularity across our supply chain.
The quality of our product and ongoing health of our business is intrinsically linked to healthy and functioning ecosystems. We recognise our potential to play our part in reversing the decline in biodiversity, building soil health and protecting key ecosystems in our care. This theme extends on the core initiatives and practices already embedded in our business including our sustainable stocking strategy and our long-standing best practice Rangelands Management program, to a more a holistic approach to our landscape.
We are the custodians of a significant natural asset that extends across 6.4 million hectares in some of the most remote parts of Australia. Building a strong foundation of condition assessment will be fundamental to mapping out a successful pathway to improving the health of the landscape and to drive growth in the value of our Natural Capital.
Our Commitment
We will work with Accounting for Nature to develop a scientifically robust and certifiable framework to measure and report on the condition of natural capital, including biodiversity, across AACo’s assets by 2023. We will apply that framework to baseline priority assets by 2024.
Looking to the Future
By 2030 we will improve landscape and soil health by increasing the percentage of our estate achieving greater than 50% persistent groundcover with regional targets of:
– Savannah and Tropics – 90% of land achieving >50% cover
– Sub-tropics – 80% of land achieving >50% perennial cover
– Grasslands – 80% of land achieving >50% cover
– Desert country – 60% of land achieving >50% cover
