Well, let me tell you, this here basketball thing, it’s got all sorts of words. One of them words is “stocks.” Now, I ain’t talking about them cows and pigs, no sir. This here is somethin’ different. I heard some young folks talkin’ about it, and it got me thinkin’.
So, what are stocks in basketball? It ain’t like them stocks you buy in them companies. You can’t buy no part of them NBA teams. Nope. That there is a private thing, like old man Johnson’s farm. You can’t just go buy a piece of it.
This basketball “stock” is more like, how good a fella is, I reckon. It’s like when you got a good, strong mule. That mule, he’s got good stock. He can pull a plow all day and not get tired. That’s kind of what it is with these basketball players.
- Steals
- Blocks
If a player, he’s got a lot of “stock,” that means he’s valuable, like a prize-winning hog. He can do a lot of good things on that court. Folks say it’s like a player’s potential. Whatever that means. Sounds like a fancy word for “he’s gonna be good, just you wait and see.”
They got all these words for basketball. Like, “alley-oop.” That there is when one fella throws the ball up high, and another fella jumps up and slams it in the basket. It’s a real crowd-pleaser, I tell ya. Like watchin’ a good barn raisin’. Everyone gets excited.
Then there’s “zone defense.” Sounds like somethin’ out of a war movie, don’t it? It’s just how them players guard the other team. They all stand in a certain area, like they’re protectin’ their land from them pesky crows.
And a “dunk,” well, that’s when a player jumps up and slams that ball down into the basket. It’s like when you dunk your bread in your coffee, only a whole lot more excitin’.
And a “brick”? That’s a bad shot. That ball just bounces right off, hard as a brick. Makes a terrible sound, too. Like a rusty old gate swingin’ in the wind.
And “stocks” means steals plus blocks. It’s like how many eggs that hen gonna lay, add how much milk that old cow gonna give. More eggs and more milk, she worth more. Same with players. More steals, more blocks, they worth more. Simple as that.
These basketball terms, they ain’t just about the rules. It’s like knowin’ the difference between a good rain and a bad rain. One helps your crops, the other washes ’em away. Knowin’ these words helps you understand the game better, they say.
But this “stock” thing, that’s a new one. People say the more blocks, steals a player does, the more “stocks” he has, his value goes up, like a good harvest. That’s a good thing, I reckon. It’s like sayin’ that player is a good worker, a good investment, like a good piece of land that grows lots of corn. And everybody wants a player who’s like a good harvest, don’t they?
It ain’t like buyin’ a piece of the team. That ain’t possible, no how. It’s just a way of sayin’ how good a player is. What are stocks in basketball? It means, how good he is. More steals, more blocks, it means he is good. Just like them stocks on the farm. A good, strong bull, he’s worth a lot. A good, strong basketball player, he’s worth a lot, too. It’s all about how much they can do, how much they’re worth.
You can’t buy the team, you can’t buy the player. It’s like you can’t buy a sunny day, but you can sure be happy when it comes around. It’s all just a way of talkin’ about how good somethin’ is. Like a good pie, or a good song. This “stock” thing, it’s just another way of sayin’ “that there player is a good one.”
So if you hear them young folks talkin’ about “stocks” in basketball, don’t you worry none. It ain’t about buyin’ and sellin’ like them Wall Street fellers. It’s just about how good a player is. It’s about his value, like the value of a good, strong horse. It’s somethin’ you can’t see, but you sure can feel it when you watch ’em play.
