{"id":45086,"date":"2020-09-02T13:00:45","date_gmt":"2020-09-02T11:00:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/web.demo.olimpia.iquii.info\/i-know-what-playing-in-milan-means-thats-why-i-cant-wait-for-our-fans-shavon-shields-reflects-2\/"},"modified":"2020-09-02T13:00:45","modified_gmt":"2020-09-02T11:00:45","slug":"i-know-what-playing-in-milan-means-thats-why-i-cant-wait-for-our-fans-shavon-shields-reflects-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.olimpiamilano.com\/en\/i-know-what-playing-in-milan-means-thats-why-i-cant-wait-for-our-fans-shavon-shields-reflects-2\/","title":{"rendered":"“I know what playing in Milan means, that’s why I can’t wait for our fans”: Shavon Shields reflects"},"content":{"rendered":"

At first sight, it might seem like a peculiar, unique life, that of a boy growing up in a family where the father is not just a professional athlete, but a true legend<\/strong>, an All-America in college, an All-pro in the NFL, a Hall-of-Famer at the end of his career. But in truth, this is not the case. \u201cIt\u2019s all I knew growing up. If your dad is an accountant, a businessman, a plumber, you kind of just get used to it. I don\u2019t know anything different\u201d, Shavon Shields says of the huge shadow cast by Will Shields, one of the greatest offensive linemen in American football history.<\/p>\n

Shields senior retired in 2007: in 1993, after being chosen in the third round, he came off the bench in his first NFL game. From the second on, he played 223 out of 223 games as a starter. He has never missed one game. In football, this is an incredible feat. It is obvious what Will taught Shavon. \u201cHow being a professional, taking responsibility, showing up and do your job every day,\u201d he says. But play football? No, that Shavon didn\u2019t do it. ” I considered it, I played for a couple years, but then it wasn\u2019t a thing for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

And so his basketball career was born, carrying those lessons with him. And also a little bit of the North European culture of his mother Senia, who is Danish. \u201cI think living-wise, it definitely helped because I\u2019ve been over here, experienced the culture, things like that, it made the transition easier, it wasn\u2019t much of a culture shock\u201d, says Shields who first played in Frankfurt, then in Trento and finally two years in Vitoria.<\/p>\n