Living The Dream

Like many basketball players growing up Jake Martin had big dreams and his
centered on wearing a Duke uniform and playing for his beloved Blue Devils at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Martin was a solid player who had a successful career at Monsignor Donovan, where he graduated last spring. He probably could have played for a small school but there was little doubt where he would head once he received his acceptance letter from Duke because that education opens a lot of doors. So the Toms River resident headed to Durham, North Carolina with his dream still somewhat alive because he was now on campus. Martin applied to be a student manager for the basketball team and he was among more than 100 students seeking one of the four freshman openings. He had to go through three rounds of interviews but in October got word that indeed he would be one of the 10 managers on the team. So what exactly does he have to do?

Let’s start with about 35 hours of work a week for no money. At practice it can be anything from getting Gatorade for the players to throwing them passes while they work on their jump shots. At home games the freshman work under the baskets, cleaning sweat off the floor or getting drinks for the referees and they take turns videotaping the TV feed for Coach Mike Krzyzewski. They work all the home games but don’t travel with the team…that will come later in their Duke careers. However when the Blue Devils return after a late-night road game they have to help unload the bus. Sometimes Jake doesn’t get back to his dorm until early in the morning and before too long it’s off to class. Education clearly comes first for a young man majoring in Pre-Med whose ultimate dream is to be a doctor in a Hispanic third-world country.

So why put all this time and effort into being a student manager? Well there are some pretty good perks including tons of Duke basketball gear, before and after practice meals, pre-game meals at the University Club, second-row seats when his parents Brian and Lisa travel to Durham and most of all association with a program and coach second to none. Oh and Jake still gets to play in practices and pick-up games and just last week in that storied Cameron Indoor Stadium he had a dream come true. Before Duke hosted arch-rival North Carolina on national TV there was a game between the student managers in which Martin played very well. He was also the hero, hitting a game-winning three-pointer with 8 seconds left to set off a wild celebration in the middle of the floor…a floor he would be cleaning hours later. He’ll also be a marked man when the managers meet in a rematch on March 4th in the Dean Dome. Something tells me Mr. Martin who one day will be Dr. Martin will handle things just fine.