Members of the BYU Dunk Team constantly practice to hone their skills on the court. Kaden Dengin, a member of the dunk team, spoke about what goes through his head when he is preparing to perform.
“You’re running up to the tramp, and you think ‘ok, I got this, I know what I’m doing,'” said Dengin.
Their practices, unlike their performances, often come with mistakes.
“There’s that immediate feeling of ‘aw man, this sucked, I screwed up,” said Dengin, “But then as soon as you land and you’re walking back to go again, everyone’s like hey, it’s ok, you’ll get it next time, try again.”
Dengin said that he was “very grateful to be around a group of people that are so Christlike and so willing to accept one another and encourage one another, even when we mess up.”
Dengin joined the team two years ago. Once he joined, he felt as though the team had become family. “They’re like my brothers and sisters,” Dengin said. “We’re all super encouraging of one another.”
Alexah Frost, one of the girls on the Dunk Team, agreed with Dengin’s experience. “They’re always super supportive, and help me, give me tips from what they know how to do it, and it’s… it’s just super awesome.”
When someone makes a mistake in practice, the team is there to encourage them to try again.
“They don’t get mad at you when you make a mistake,” Frost said. “They kind of, they high-five you, they try to help you know what to do better, and they just kinda support you, no matter what we’re doing.”
The lessons Frost learned on the court have impacted her in her personal life as well.
“Even if I haven’t had 10 years to train at it, I can still go in and I can work as hard as I can and I can get it done no matter how many mistakes I make, it’s gonna be ok and it’s gonna work out,” she said.
As the team prepares for their next performance, they know that only by working together can they succeed, both on the court and in real life.
“At the end of the day you’re still having fun, and you’re still making people smile, so that’s kinda all that it’s about, nothing else,” Frost said.
