Coming Home (part 2)

By Adonal Foyle

On January 8, I'll be returning to Northern California when we play against the Sacramento Kings in Arco Arena. We have a few days between games (our previous game is January 4 at home against the Houston Rockets) so I'll be able to spend a little more time back home in the Bay Area than I was able to last month, when we played against my former team - the Golden State Warriors.

I never had a chance to discuss how I felt coming back home that day on December 3 and play in front of so many familiar faces, this time in a different uniform.

For the first time in my entire career, I went down I-880 to Oracle Arena on a bus instead of in my own car. And I entered the Arena through the back and went to a locker room I've never even been to. There was no nameplate on my locker, but just a piece of white tape with my No. 31 written on it in the corner of the room. I had absolutely no idea where to go. So, I followed my teammates the whole time.

The whole experience was just so surreal for me. And seeing so many fans, friends and employees that I've know for the past 10 years or so... and to see that I'm no longer part of the home team's pregame warm-ups and other rituals, that's when it really hit me that I was no longer a Warrior.

It was something I had to get used to quickly and move on right away so I can just focus on playing. Then, the Warriors put together a minute-long video montage (which can be seen on my home page) paying tribute to my years at Golden State. And to have the fans stand up and celebrate my return after the video was truly an amazing experience that will last a lifetime, because that doesn't happen very often. It really means a lot that they have recognized how I have conducted myself through the years when I was with the Warriors. And to receive that kind of feedback, it assures me that I did something right while I was there. I am humbled and at awe with that experience.

We wound up beating the Warriors in overtime that night 123-117. And the feelings were mixed. I'd be lying if I said that win wasn't any different than beating any other team in the league. Certainly, I wanted to win the game. But the night was filled with so much emotion for me, the game almost felt secondary. Don't get me wrong, I'm very happy that we won. I wanted to play hard and I wanted to win. And I'm happy that we won because it shows the maturity of type of team we have in Orlando. We're continuing to make tremendous strides and we're going to continue to be a force to be reckoned with.

To all the fans in the Bay Area who have shown me their love and support, thank you very much and I wish you all a very Happy New Year.

- Adonal