Okay, so I started watching more women’s college basketball recently. Lotta buzz, right? And Angel Reese, she’s everywhere. Hard player, intense.
Then I noticed it – the scar on her leg. Pretty long one. Stood out, you know? At first, it was just something my eye caught. But then I got this idea. I’m always trying to, like, sharpen how I watch things, really see what’s going on, not just the ball.
My Little Observation Project
So, I decided to make it a little exercise. Sounds weird, maybe. But here’s what I did: every time I watched an LSU game, or highlights with Reese, I specifically tried to track that scar. Not in a creepy way, mind you. More like, using it as an anchor point for my attention.
The steps were simple:
- Tune into the game or clip.
- Consciously look for the scar during plays. When is it visible? Close-ups? Wide shots?
- Listen to the commentary. Do they ever mention it? Ever?
- Note down, just mentally or quick scribbles, how often it’s even noticeable depending on the action or camera angle.
- Think about how she moves. Does it seem to affect anything? (Honestly, looked like it didn’t faze her one bit).
It became this weird little focus game. Instead of just following the ball, which is easy, I forced myself to keep this other detail in view, or check for it periodically. Sometimes it was super obvious, other times hidden by socks or the angle. The cameras mostly focused on her face, her expressions, or the ball, naturally. The scar wasn’t really part of the broadcast ‘story’.
What Came Outta It
So, what did I get from this? Well, for one, it definitely made me pay more attention overall. When you train yourself to look for one specific, less obvious thing, you kinda start noticing other details too. Little interactions, player positioning off the ball, stuff like that.
It also got me thinking about narratives. Like, here’s this visible mark, probably from some past injury or event, part of her journey. But it’s mostly ignored. Sports media focuses on the dunks, the blocks, the trash talk, the NIL deals. The physical reminders of the grind? Not so much, unless it’s a current injury impacting play. It’s just… there. Part of the person, but not part of the public story they’re telling.
Made me realize how selective watching sports can be, how much we filter out. And how much of the athlete’s reality just doesn’t make the screen. It wasn’t some massive breakthrough, just a small personal exercise. But yeah, it kinda shifted how I watch games now. I try to see more than just the highlight reel stuff. The little things, the constant things, the ignored things. Like that scar.
