"My Knee Injury Helped Me Realize That Facing Adversity Doesn't Define You, It's What You Do Afterwards That Does"... The Basketball Story Of Filip Vujadinovic.
When a person is told that they are unable to do what they love, the biggest challenge when hearing that is how to cope with it. If someone has a dream to become a doctor or engineer but lacks the funds to pursue it, that person would be left in agony. The same thing can be said about sports. When an athlete gets an ACL tear or an Achillies tear, their entire world shatters right before their eyes. However, what happens afterwards is much worse as the athlete who tore their ACL or Achillies has to relearn how to walk, run, and play the very sport that they love. Various NBA legends have experienced this. From Derrick Rose to Shaun Livingston, athletes put their bodies on the line every day to play the game that they love, and when they face that potential career-ending injury, it’s like a bullet pierced their hearts as if it was made out of butter.
What makes Derrick Rose, Shaun Livingston and many more athletes who receive severe injuries like an ACL tear so unique is what they do afterwards. Rather than allowing their injury to define them as a player, they worked twice as hard as everyone just to have a glimpse of their old selves. Even though basketball fans would heckle them and call them “crippled players,” athletes like Derrick Rose and Shaun Livingston have defied the odds and have both received the most respect and honour any player could ask for. However, various athletes who are not in the NBA have done the same, if not more. Take Filip Vujadinovic, for instance. As a young 17-year-old, a doctor advised him that he should pursue a different sport instead of basketball because of his horrible injury. Despite the advice that he received, he too defied all the odds and is now a professional athlete while also being regarded as one of the greatest University of Ryerson players to ever play in their program! However, how did Filip manage to become a professional athlete?
Born on January 24, 1995, in Toronto, Ontario, Filip would immediately get attached to any form of physical activity. Before he grew to love the game of basketball, Filip’s first passion was hockey. Growing up, Filip would dream of becoming a professional hockey player and fantasize about becoming a goalie in the NHL. However, his dream of becoming a hockey player was short-lived due to both of his parents being refugees in a place where they struggled to speak English. Although both his parents admired his desire to play hockey, his father suggested basketball instead. He was very passionate about the game and felt that basketball could be a great complement to Filip’s stature and physical talents.
“Growing up, I originally wanted to be a hockey player, but my parents couldn’t afford it. Being a goalie was something I was very passionate about, but because my family at the time had very poor English and were refugees, my parents encouraged me to play basketball instead where I would start to flourish as an athlete.”
Before his parents moved to Canada and gave birth to Filip Vujadinovic, they lived in Yugoslavia during the civil war. Attempting to escape, Filip’s parents were successful and, as a result, moved to Canada in August 1994, where they would enter a different world. Filip’s parents barely knew any English and had little to no money, which enhanced their stress and anxiety when entering a new country. However, both his parents were determined to make a new and better life in Toronto and, as a result, started to work minimal jobs to grant their children a decent life for the first few years of living in Canada.
“The first few years of living in Toronto was rough for my family and I. Growing up, my sister and I had a strict schedule. We would get dropped off, picked up from school by my parents, and then stay home until the next day. This was implemented because the area where I grew up was very dangerous as drug deals and gang fights would happen a few blocks away from where we lived. It was rough, but my parents granted my sister and me a much more comfortable life.”
After living in Toronto for more than half a decade, Filip’s father felt that it was time to make a change if he wanted his family to have a better life. The area where they lived was too rough to grant his children a better life and, as a result, decided to make a big decision to move to Burlington, Ontario, where Filip would grow up and blossom to be the professional athlete he is today.
When Filip found out that his parents couldn’t afford to put him in hockey, he was upset but understood why he was unable to play. It is costly to join a hockey program, considering the amount of equipment a person needs to buy before playing the actual sport. With basketball, however, a pair of sneakers and shorts is all a person needs, especially when joining a league where basketballs and nets are provided. Filip’s father was passionate about basketball and, as a result, took his son to a house league where he shockingly out-performed everyone else in the gym. With this being Filip’s first time playing basketball, he didn’t know what to expect.
“My father took me to a basketball house league when I six years old just to see how I would react to it. When I went in, I had no idea how to play the sport, but I played above expectations. I would out-run the other kids, display great shooting and was good enough to advance to the next level because no one could stop me. It was at that very moment where I fell in love with the game of basketball.”
Filip not only advanced to the next level but also won the MVP of the house league. Winning that award at such a young age changed his perspective towards basketball and immediately felt that this could be something he could pursue in the future. While his basketball career was getting more serious every day, his family’s life was also profoundly improving by the minute. Both his parents had much better jobs, Filip’s basketball skill was getting much better, and his family was living a comfortable life in Burlington, Ontario. However, Filip wanted to be better as he believed that he could one day make it to the professional level.
Growing up, his father was very adamant in helping his son accomplish his dream. As a young kid, Filip’s father would train him close to every day, teaching him the fundamentals of the game. From shooting the ball to basic dribbling, Filip was developing an understanding of how basketball is played. Every day, his daily routine of training granted him a spot with the Burlington Panthers, a local sports team in his community. Even though he did miss the first two try-outs while also coming 25 minutes late to the third and final try-out, Filip made the team as he was the best player Burlington had to offer! From that moment, basketball became something much deeper and much more serious. As good as Filip was, he wanted to get better and enhance his craft and, as a result, met a person in grade eight that would change his life forever!
“My father was my number one trainer. He would show me the footwork, how to shoot, how to dribble, the basic fundamentals you need to play the game. As I got older, I was fortunate enough to meet some trainers and coaches. In grade 8, there was a substitute teacher named Nancy Wilson Blackly, who loved basketball and was also a kickboxing champion. She loved the game and decided to coach the team. After Grade 8, she would privately train and coach me up till this day.”
Once Filip entered highschool, basketball for him entered a whole new realm of seriousness.
“Nancy Wilson Blackly was my trainer when I entered high school. She would pick me up at 6:30 am, drive me to school, run some drills for me, or allow me to play with the senior team until 8:30 am. After that, I would go to school until 3:00 pm and would practice until 4:30 pm if there was practice. If not, Nancy would pick him up where I would train with her in her gym.”
His daily routine in high school was almost a religious exercise as he wanted to be the best player he could be. He would train night and day, just to fulfil his passion. His hard-work was left unnoticed as he became the best basketball player in his school. From his shooting to his athleticism, Filip was looking like an icon in Burlington, Ontario. However, none of his accomplishments would have existed if it weren’t for his parents’ support and sacrifice from the beginning.
“Growing up, my parents sacrificed so much for me. My father would drive me to London or Windsor, which was 3-4 hours away from where we lived. During that time, my parents couldn’t afford to get a hotel, so my father would drive for 3-4 hours, watch me play, and then drive back home. Even though it was tough for him to do that, he just wanted to see me play the game I love.”
His parents were so committed that they would treat him like a pro before even making it to college!
“My parents were so supportive that when it came to recruiting, my father would drive me to Pitsburg, Davidson, and Western Kentucky, to give me the experience of what it would be like if I were a Division 1 player. His willingness to do that is what brought me here today, and to play professional basketball while getting paid for it is just so rewarding. That is my greatest accomplishment to be able to see my parents happy watching me play on the sidelines or at home. I play basketball for them”
His high school career early on was glamorous as he worked hard with Nancy to reach his goals. He loved the game and would do anything to play it. However, as a 17-year old, his entire career flashed before his eyes as he tripped on a curve and tore his meniscus to the point where his meniscus had to be removed entirely. With his aspirations of playing professional basketball, this was the first time Filip went through this level of physical adversity. When he tore it, it was the most pain he had ever experienced mentally, physically and emotionally. However, his trip to the doctor’s office wasn’t any better as he later found out that he could most likely injure his knee again if he played basketball.
This was shocking for the young icon as he wanted to play basketball for the rest of his life. Hearing this news caused anger and frustration within himself and his environment. Filip would break down crying as he felt that the love of his life was stripped away. Without basketball, Filip didn’t know what he was going to do.
“When I found out that I tore my meniscus, that was the first time I suffered real adversity. It was so bad that they had to remove my meniscus. The doctors told me that If I played basketball again within six months, I would injure it again to a point where I would need a knee replacement and have arthritis. It was mentally so hard to hear as a 17-year-old, especially from a doctor, so hearing him say that destroyed me. The one thing I loved was gone, which destroyed me.”
Filip was starstruck and refused to believe the facts that the doctor presented him. He would feel trapped, but because of how much he loved the game, he didn’t let an injury so severe to dictate his future or his passion. His doctor would advise pursuing swimming or horseback riding, but Filip refused to hear such an outrageous statement. Basketball was his passion and something that he wanted to do for the rest of his life. He would take an extra year of high school to play basketball rather than give up and allowing his injury to control his fate. Filip would average an astonishing 31 points and 11 rebounds in his final year of high school, where he would look to join Ryerson University, where he would become an absolute star.
“My winning percentage in Ryerson was the greatest winning percentage in Ryerson’s history. In just one season not counting the playoffs or pre-season, the record that Ryerson had when I was on the court was 89-14, which is the most for that school’s history”. “I also would go to win five national medals which capitalized what would be the greatest experience of my life.”
Filip Vujadonovic’s journey to basketball is the definition of someone determined to do whatever it takes to get the job done. Despite the horrible injury and what doctors told him, he refused to accept his fate and, as a result, is now a professional athlete playing in Spain before COVID-19. Before Spain, Filip would play alongside Guillaume Boucard, Ryan Anderson, and Alex Johnson to represent the Niagara River Lions of the CEBL in 2019.
The journey that Filip went through to get to this point in his life illustrates the essence of hard work and determination. Even though Filip, to some degree, had a natural fitting to the game of basketball, his mindset and diligence led him to become a professional athlete while also receiving an immense level of support from his family. Whether it was a ride to a tournament or advice on specific aspects of the game, he could always rely on his family.
The message that I learned about Filip Vujadinovic’s journey to basketball is when you deal with adversity, and someone tells you that you can’t pursue what you want because of the adversity you are going through, the only person that is stopping you from doing what you want to do is you. He could have accepted his fate and submitted to what the doctors advised him, but instead, he put his passion on a pedestal and only focused on that. Filip was told that what he was doing was dumb or foolish, and yet, he loved the game so much that he was willing to risk everything just to have another day of playing basketball.