Obama finds refuge, identity in basketball

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EPA	Road to the nomination Sen. Barack Obama becomes the first African-American presidential nominee of a major political party. NBC's Andrea Mitchell reports.
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Image: Sen. John McCain and Sen. Barack Obama

Race for the presidency
The trips, the speeches, and the moments of Decision ’08. A look at the campaigns of Barack Obama and John McCain.

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The lone lefty, Obama was often called upon to bust zone defenses with his abilities to slash in the lane, improvise and hit the mid-range jumper. Players say Obama's up-tempo and freewheeling style sometimes didn't fit into McLachlin's structured game plans, modeled after UCLA's legendary coach John Wooden.

Obama was frustrated at times but stuck with the team's goals, his teammates recalled. "A lot of times, he didn't agree with coach. He sucked it up," said teammate Alan Lum. "A lot of times he did question, in respect. It wasn't anything negative. Perseverance is what he learned, because he really had to be a total team player."

The team's music was Obama's responsibility. Players grooved to the sounds of Earth, Wind and Fire and idolized the moves of pro star Dr. J, Julius Erving, whose picture hung on Obama's bedroom wall.

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Still finding time for play
Obama continued playing pickup games at Harvard, where his long arms, quick first step and solid jumper made him difficult to guard, said friend and former schoolmate Hill Harper.

"I truly believe the way someone plays basketball definitely gives you a sense of who they are in their character," said Harper, now an actor who is raising money for Obama's campaign.

Michelle Obama may believe that as well. When she began dating Obama, she asked her brother, Craig Robinson, to test her new boyfriend on the court. Robinson, a former hoops star at Princeton and Oregon State's newly hired coach, reported back that Obama was confident and unselfish.

Today, Obama manages to squeeze in games occasionally, including on the morning of his big opening win in the Iowa caucuses.

"He really feels the game brings him back to a place where he can be completely himself and he can relax," said his sister. "He can recline into a gentler past, if you will."

Before the New Hampshire primary, Robinson helped set up 3-on-3 tournaments tied to a voter registration drive. In late April, Obama played in front of cameras in hoops-crazed Indiana. Four days later, in North Carolina, he scrimmaged with the beloved Tar Heels.

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Obama said Sunday he'd like to put a court in the White House.

Referring to his disastrous attempt at bowling before Pennsylvania's Democratic primary in April, Obama said: "I hear there's a bowling alley (in the White House) and obviously that hasn't gone too well. So we're getting rid of the bowling alley and replacing it with a basketball court."

Obama's high school teammates say they recognize many of the moves on display in recent footage of Obama playing hoops, even if his mini-afro and several pounds of body weight are long gone.

"Could I take him?" Hale asked. "Definitely. He might get me in full court, though. I don't run up and down as fast as I used to."

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