Where Are They Now: From Potter to Professional Gamer: Elijah Garcia takes his talents to NBA 2K

Elijah Garcia played for the Lincoln Potters from their inaugural season in 2017 until last season while also playing for Sierra College for two seasons. Garcia also made eight appearances for California State University at Northridge and was on the Sac-Joaquin Section Championship teams at Lincoln High School in 2015 and 2016. His playing days are behind him, at least for now, as Garcia was recently signed to the Detroit Pistons NBA2K League team, PistonsGT, back in February. "I first got into competitive gaming when I started just playing casually with friends. Some of them were former Potters as well such as Jacob Gomez, Kassey Wallace and Larry Fonseca," Garcia said. "Then I met my guy Dirk (Jamie Ruiz) who is the current commentator of the NBA 2K League and he opened my eyes to this opportunity." While some might not consider competitive gaming a sport, the eSports industry has grown both in viewership and revenue over the past decade, especially NBA2K which began their eSports league in 2018. The league currently has nearly 143,000 followers on Twitter and more than 82,000 subscribers on YouTube. Fans can watch their favorite teams and players compete either on YouTube or Twitch. "NBA 2K has always been my favorite game and what I like most about it is my dad was always a big basketball head and I loved football and baseball, so this was my way of loving basketball the same way he does," Garcia said. In the NBA 2K League, each season holds a draft just as in traditional sports leagues and Garcia was drafted 47th out of 52 players in 2022. Garcia attempted to get drafted in 2021 but went undrafted and had to wait another year. "This was just a testament of my hard work paying off and proving myself right after all those years of being told 'you can't make money playing video games' and just being able to live out the dream of doing what I love," Garcia said. Players earn between $33,000 and $37,000 for a four-month season but can earn more by winning tournaments. While most play is done remotely, tournaments are played in front of live crowds and for this season are held in Indianapolis, Indiana which is where Garcia is currently living. PistonsGT lost in the first round of bracket play in the TIPOFF Tournament in April but will play in six more tournaments during the summer. "It's pretty awesome and it gives me the same feeling I had while playing in front of our awesome fans for Potters games," Garcia said. Garcia is also able to have some great opportunities when not competing as he was given tickets to a Detroit Pistons game where he and his teammates' gamer tags were displayed on the jumbotron at Little Caesars Arena. "The Pistons organization itself is a very historical franchise and I love it here," Garcia said. "Our coach, Duane Burton, takes really good care of us and spoils us with off the game activities." For Garcia, his roots will always be in Lincoln and he doesn't forget his Potters family back home. "Playing with the Potters was amazing and I wouldn't trade those past summers for anything," Garcia said. "We were truly blessed with the best fans, amazing coaches and owners. My favorite moment has to be when Fonseca hit a home run to take the lead against the Chico Heat on the 4th of July and it had the town of Lincoln rocking that day." To watch Garcia play and compete, you can catch EG4Hunnid on YouTube or Twitch with PistonsGT.