Like Father, Like Son — An NBA Threads Story with @Aaron_bollwinkel
The love of the game is generational.
We’ve seen this story play out so many times over the years. From Dell to Steph and LeBron to Bronny, basketball can be the through line that connects fathers and sons despite divides in musical tastes, cinema, and even approaches to life.
Such is the case for Aaron Bollwinkel, similarly named on Threads as @Aaron_bollwinkel. He and his father share a passion for basketball through their own endeavors, the former with the weekly basketball newsletter Live. Breathe. Ball. and the latter as a staff member for the Chicago Bulls for nearly two decades.
Despite both enjoying the pride of the Windy City, Aaron is not opposed to cheering for his hometown Golden State Warriors.
“I grew up in the Bay and Klay [Thompson] is one of my favorite players ever,” Aaron recounts.
This Threads user is no stranger to the hardwood, having played in high school. “I played until junior college, where I stopped pursuing basketball because of life’s demands. I was a pretty good role player on a very good high school team, and I played summer ball as well.”
That said, he does attribute his passion for basketball to his father. The elder Bollwinkel was a coach for twenty-five years, which could explain why his son takes a holistic approach to analyzing the game and its star-studded cast.
“You can’t truly be a superstar until your level of play is directly linked to team success,” Aaron explains. “That typically means some element of sacrifice for the greater good of the team, though I would argue that we have seen superstars that sacrifice very little because they are so good that they can will their teams to competency, but also never achieve true greatness until something personal is left on the table.”
Greatness, as Aaron further elaborated, involves additional off-court requirements such as “being available to the media and your fanbase, consistent and exemplary effort and work habits, and honoring the game with your words and actions.”
Some of the greatest to play this game according to Aaron include Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and LeBron James, though you won’t catch him saying that one is better than the other. “It’s situational, and all three have extremely valid arguments to be considered the greatest.”
With his father’s position on the Bulls, one could imagine that his perception on who his personal “GOAT” is could be different than his son’s. And yet there were other players — including another to don the red and white — that caught Aaron’s eye in his younger days.
“Scottie Pippen was my favorite player when I was very young,” he remarked, “followed by an undying love for Alonzo Mourning. Michael Finley is why I wore number 24.”
To his younger self, Aaron wishes he could’ve given this sage-like advice that is applicable to a lot of fans of basketball who are looking for their own big breaks on and off the court.
“Have the courage to see things through to the end. Don’t get so down on yourself because the results weren’t what you expected.”
“Expectation poisons courage.”
It is readily apparent that Father Bollwinkel did a wonderful job instilling the best principles in his son, and it all began with this simple, powerful force that we lovingly call basketball.
You can catch Aaron’s extensive coverage of college basketball, the NBA, and the WBNA by subscribing to Live. Breathe. Ball. today.