I’m Ashton Judd, from West Plains, Missouri, and I came to Ioannina this year to play professional basketball for PAS Giannina. I’m studying Kinesiology and will finish my degree in December, so this is a pretty exciting time for me: finishing college and growing my professional basketball career at the same time. This is my first year playing overseas.

How did I end up in Greece? After four years of college basketball in the States, my agent reached out to teams overseas and did a lot of the communication and networking. My job was pretty simple: I had to be good at what I do.

Once you get an offer, you only have a few days to decide whether you want to say yes or no. I got the chance to talk with our head coach, and one of the biggest deciding factors for me was the role I’d be playing. Once we talked about that, I said yes. And here I am.

My first impressions of the city have been great. I love walking and exploring the city, I love finding new coffee shops, and I love the lake. Those are probably the things I enjoy most about being here. The weather has been really nice since I arrived, although it has gotten cold sooner than I expected.

I’m still exploring the city, so if someone came to visit me, I’d take them for a walk around the lake, find a coffee shop, maybe go to the beach, and show them the basketball facility. For food, I’m a little picky. I like NEA YORKH by the lake and Il Pazzo for their pasta, but I’m definitely still discovering Ioannina.

Growing with the game

Women’s basketball is growing so much right now, and I’m really happy to be part of that.

The European leagues are becoming increasingly competitive. After watching this past Women’s Basketball World Cup, you can see how much the sport is excelling in countries like France and Spain. The US has been pretty dominant, but European teams are starting to give the US a real run for their money.

There are also a lot of European league players who are scouted for the WNBA, which is one of my own goals. So playing in Europe is a great opportunity for me to develop and see where basketball can take me.

Basketball has always been part of my life. Both of my parents played. I got into the sport because of them, and I think I inherited that competitive drive. I’ve loved basketball ever since I was a kid. I fell in love with the feeling of success and reward. 

Dealing with losing

One of the biggest things basketball has taught me is how to deal with losing.

You have to lose to improve. Losing exposes your weakness and allows you to reevaluate your individual game as well as the teams. Of course at this level, everyone wants to win. 

That mindset goes beyond basketball.

I’m thinking about getting my MBA in the future, and I know the lessons and skills I’ve learned through basketball will assist me long after I stop playing. Ambition, patience, working with people who have different mindsets or methods, working through adversity, all of those things are useful in the real world.

Basketball careers don’t last forever. Retirement can come at anytime for an athlete, so I want to make sure I’m building something for the future too.

Finding my rhythm in Ioannina

Balancing university and professional basketball takes a lot of planning. You have allocated time for practice, and then you have to fit your studies around that. It can be a lot, but I’m used to managing everything after years of practice. 

When I’m not studying or training, I like keeping things pretty simple. I like walking around and exploring new places, getting coffee, hanging out with my teammates and resting.

There are still things I’m getting used to. The parking, for example.

There aren’t a lot of parking spots, and people sometimes just stop in the middle of the road with their blinkers on. You never know how long they’re going to be. I really don’t understand it! If we were to do this in the states, you’d have some very angry people.

But other than that, I probably just need more time.

I’ve only just arrived, and I’m still exploring. For now, I’m enjoying the lake, the coffee, my teammates, the basketball and this new experience of living and playing in Greece.