On Friday, the 20th day of December 2013, Anything Is Possible with Faith & Hard Work, was proven once again as I spent the morning on a basketball court with Orlando Magic Legend, Nick Anderson!

For over two hours, the man that has created so many memories for fans over his career in college and the NBA, made some lasting memories for me by taking time out of his day to share stories, lessons, and time on the court as I continue my journey towards playing Michael Jordan.

The Nicest Guy

The Friday before, at a friend’s urging, I sent Nick a text message asking if he’d be open to doing something with me for the site.  Over two years ago, to my surprise, Nick called me one morning to encourage me on my journey.  I’d had his number since that time and while we had sent messages back and forth over the years, schedules just never seemed to match up.

The man is very busy.  Busy helping, that is.  I believe since our time together he has made at least 5 to 6 appearances in the community, donating his time to make a difference.

But about an hour after I sent the text, we were on the phone talking once again.

This time everything aligned and a week later we were on the court shooting and talking about defense, offense, trash talking, tricks of the trade and of course the steal against MJ!

Nick couldn’t have been any nicer.

In the more than two hours we spent together, he never seemed rushed at all.

“I’m going to walk you over and introduce you to Michael.” – Nick Anderson

As we closed out our time together, I asked Nick if he would take a picture with me wearing one of my mevsMJ.com shirts.  He said, “Absolutely!”

Then as he unfolded the shirt, he read the message printed on the back that I’ve been sharing and is the slogan for this journey, Anything Is Possible with Faith & Hard Work!

He then called his brother over, who was there with him, and read it again to him, closing with, “I like that!”

That of course set me on a path to explain how those eight words came about and what they mean to me.  I told him how difficult the journey has been and how most are quick to say that what I’m looking to do is impossible.  That most would believe that spending time with Nick Anderson, which I had just done was impossible.  And that my journey beyond the game is to inspire others and show that you can accomplish anything in your life if you believe and work tremendously hard.

I told Nick that him spending time with me was not only a dream come true for me, but that through his willingness to help, he would inspire so many people in their own lives.

Nick then said, “You know what I’m going to do.  The next time the Charlotte Bobcats are in town, I’m going to make sure you’re at the game.  You know MJ usually comes to the game.  Well, I’m going to make sure you’re there and I’m going to walk you right over and introduce you to him.  MJ’s my guy.“

My Time with Nick Anderson (Video)

httpvhd://youtu.be/OZS5pY4Cz8g

(link to video)

An Act of Kindness

In the couple of days since this all took place, as I’ve reflected, I’ve become even more amazed at the kindness and selflessness of Nick Anderson.

There was no real benefit for him to take time out of his day to spend with me this past Friday.  I told him as much on the phone prior to our meeting, but all he kept saying is that he looked forward to getting out on the court with me and helping.

It was an act of kindness.

One that I will always appreciate.

One that I hope inspires you in your own life and dreams to BELIEVE a little more.

Thank you so much Nick!

Dreams DO come true my mevsMJ.com family!

What’s next?  Stay tuned!

1 Game.  me vs. Michael Jordan.  The anything is possible with faith and hard work journey continues!

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Special Thanks to Orlando Hoops

I have to give a special shout out to Irwin Hudson, Gerrod Trytten and the entire Orlando Hoops family for opening up the lab for me, just for this special time with Nick Anderson.  Without their facility, time, and friendship, none of this would have been possible.

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If you’re new here, I set out in August 2010 to get a game of 1-on-1 vs. my childhood hero Michael Jordan.  This site is about that journey…through every valley, to every mountain top of triumph!

Anything Is Possible with Faith & Hard Work!

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Connect:  Twitter (@KennyEller) and mevsMJ.com Facebook Page.

I woke up yesterday morning and the first thing I read was, “That would not be possible.”

It wasn’t the response I had hoped for when I sent out the the request, but I emailed them back, thanking them for responding nonetheless.

Head up, I then sent out the following update to Twitter and Facebook:  “Woke up to a ‘That would not be possible’ this morning, but I won’t stop until I hear it from Michael Jordan himself!”

Then a few hours later something HUGE happened!

Something that very well may be the turning point in this journey of mine to play Michael Jordan!

The BIG NEWS!!!

At 10:29 a.m. on Monday, May 2, 2011 my cell phone rang:

Me:  Hello this is Kenny.

Caller:  Ken…(long pause)…this is Nick Anderson.

Nick Anderson’s NBA Career

Nick Anderson averaged 15.4 points per game and 5.3 rebounds per game for the Orlando Magic over his ten year career with the team and over 14 ppg during his 13 year NBA career.

Anderson was the first ever draft pick of the Orlando Magic (11^th overall).  He is also the Orlando Magic’s all-time leader in scoring, steals and games played.  He ranks third overall in rebounds behind only Dwight Howard and Shaquille O’Neal.

How “The Call” Happened!

I received a text from a good friend of mine asking if I had ever gotten in touch with Nick Anderson.  I replied no, that I hadn’t.  In the past, in passing, I had mentioned to her how cool and BIG it would be to make contact with someone like Nick.

She then said, if you write him (Nick Anderson) an email about your site and forward it to me, a friend of mine said that he could forward it on to Nick for you!

A few minutes later I sent the email.

An hour later I was talking with Nick Anderson!

Talking with Nick Anderson

After I got over the shock of who was calling me, I explained to Nick exactly why I began mevsMJ.com, what I’ve done thus far and what I’m looking to accomplish and he loved it!

He said,

“My dream growing up was to always play in the NBA, so I can relate to what you’re doing.  You only live once, so you might as well go after your dreams!”

Nick went on with,

“I’d be more than happy to do anything I can to help you.  You’ve got my cell phone number now, lock it in, call me tomorrow and we can set a time to meet at a court and shoot around.  We can start from there.”

Blown away by his kindness, I thanked him profusely, asked him at one point, “Seriously?!?!?!” and threw in some “THIS IS SO COOL!!!”

Life is Amazing!

My slogan this year has been “Life is amazing, if you allow it to be!” and that has never been more true than now.

When I began this journey in August, if someone would have told me that in a little over eight months my cell phone would ring one morning and on the other end would be former NBA player Nick Anderson, well, it would have been tough to believe…even for me.

The kindness of people along the way has been the most inspiringly rich part of this journey of mine to play Michael Jordan.  The selflessness and want of others to HELP ME achieve my childhood dream humbles me and I am so forever grateful.

I really can’t fully express in words what I’m feeling right now, other than to say that I am so thankful.

Me and Nick Anderson

Thirty minutes after our conversation, still so very excited, I sent Nick a text message that said, “Wow, I am so thankful!  You have no idea how much I appreciate this!!!”

Nick responded back, “You are more than Welcome :-)”

So later this week, I will meet Nick Anderson on some court somewhere here in Central Florida!

Proof, that if you work hard, have faith and believe, anything truly is POSSIBLE!

Proof that right behind the disappointment of a NO could be the BIGGEST YES you’ve ever heard!

me vs. MJ…this fantastic journey just went BIG TIME!

Stay tuned, it’s about to get VERY COOL around here!

Thank you all for the love, support and for following along!

**Note:  I want to give a very special thanks to my great friends Dani Sebaali and Eric Nourse for being amazing people and for connecting me with Nick Anderson!  You have no idea how much this means to me!  THANK YOU!  YOU GUYS ROCK!!