He didn't hear anything. Concentrated before entering the parquet floor of the Marcel-Cerdan sports hall for Boulogne-Levallois' first home match against Monaco, Keith Hornsby did not hear those piano notes he knows so well. A pop-rock melody, dating from the 1980s, far from the musical standards that sound systems usually spit in basketball halls, but which rings in all of us. And more for the new rear of the Metropolitans. Because this song - "The way it is" - was composed and performed by his father, Bruce. This hymn to tolerance occupied the top of the charts around the world for weeks and won numerous awards. Even Tupac, a tragically deceased US rap legend, “sampled” the track for his track “Changes”.
“Everywhere I played I was put this music, the announcer launches it, looks at me and watches for my reaction, smiles the person, born January 30, 1992. It doesn't bother me, I'm probably the only one. basketball player to have such a famous musician father.
But I find it a shame to always put the same song.
It is perhaps the best known but my father wrote and sang several.
It's a great song but it's not the most beautiful for me.
We have heard it too much.
True fans know there are many more.
"
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Kids, little Keith and his twin brother Russell - now a world-renowned professional climber - saw the biggest stars of American and world song parade through the family house such as Bruce Springsteen or Huey Lewis - the author of the song Back to the World. future.
But if music has always accompanied his life, and still has an important part in his daily life, this fan of Metallica or ACDC never imagined following in his father's footsteps.
He had other desires, other dreams.
"All my life I have seen my father working hard"
Thanks to a basketball court installed in the family property - “I was very lucky” -, he made his first dribbles with a big orange ball from the age of 3. Since then, the passion for this sport has never left her. The father even becomes his first supporter. “He felt that I had a real passion for basketball, he pushed me, he believed in me, he encouraged me without putting pressure on me,” says Keith. I love music but basketball is the path I have chosen. I could never have had the same talent and had the same career as him. "
On the other hand, the son inherited the same perfectionism as his father.
A quality for this specialist in 3-point shooting whose mechanics are regulated like music paper.
“All my life I have seen my father work hard, paying attention to the smallest detail to find the right note, the right rhythm,” he explains.
He spent hours on the piano to find the right melody.
To be the best musician you can be.
Sport, and in particular basketball, also demands this requirement.
You have to work hard to progress and become good.
He passed on to me this passion for effort.
"
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After three seasons spent on the floors of G-League - the antechamber of the NBA -, the one who was the former "roommate" (roommate) of triple All Star NBA Ben Simmons at the university understands that he will not have no access to the upper floor and decides to fly to Europe. "I could have stayed in the G-League but I wanted to see something else, I have no regrets," said Hornsby, who landed in Poland. His skill wreaked havoc there and allowed him to be spotted by Oldenburg (Germany) then by Boulogne-Levallois where he was the first summer recruit.
"We were looking for a specialist in 3-point shooting, he corresponded perfectly to the profile," says Alain Weisz, director of basketball operations at the Mets. We recruited him quickly because it is a rare and sought-after position. He has specific qualities of a shooter but he is able to do a lot of other things. He is complementary to the other players. "
If his integration was delayed by an ankle injury, which deprived him of much of the preparation, the metronome has not lost its smile.
“Paris is one of the most beautiful cities in the world, appreciates the young father of a little Lilah born at the American Hospital in Neuilly 3 weeks ago.
I had come once at the age of 8, in April 2000, but it had rained the whole stay, I did not keep a good memory of it.
Coming here allows me above all to play in an ambitious club, with a great coach (
Editor's note: Vincent Collet
), it's a great opportunity for me.
Everyone dreams of playing in the NBA but places are expensive and I know a lot of good players who are not there.
I'm happy to be where I am today.
"
