In the two latest White Chair Films released by global storytelling organization I Am Second, collegiate Texas Tech athlete Bailey Maupin and former player-turned-coach Charlotte Smith each tell their stories about faith, basketball and identity.
Bailey Maupin’s White Chair Film – “Breaking the Press”
Bailey Maupin, amid a wholesome upbringing on a farm outside of a small Texas town, found her faith as a young girl within her Christian home. She aspired to play college basketball and was scouted midway through junior high school. As she began her college athletic career, she found herself lost and extremely alone. Basketball, the game in which she’d found her identity, had failed to fulfill her.
“It was culture shock for me, having to become [my] own person,” shares Bailey. “Finding your way in a world of sin and hatred and violence is hard…I [had] let my faith be held up by so many other things, and when I got to college, they were all gone.”
Consumed with the business, victories and pressure of basketball in an “environment that was hard…to find God,” Bailey eventually found herself neglecting her faith. Yet, following a sobering realization, she began to explore the avenue of online church to ultimately re-foster her relationship with God and point others to faith through her talents.
“I [hadn’t given] glory to God; I was glorifying myself,” continues Bailey. “In reality, I was good at basketball because that was God’s gift to me, and He is using my gift in basketball to proclaim his glory.”
Charlotte Smith’s White Chair Film – “Finding Balance”
Charlotte Smith, a “PK” (Pastor’s Kid), grew up in a sheltered home centered around faith, benevolence in community and love toward all people. Yet, as sports was also a second-nature interest for her family, Charlotte eventually began to place a priority on sports over everything else, ultimately modeling her life around her idol Michael Jordan. She recalls getting recruited to play for North Carolina Chapel Hill, winning the national championship and chasing the high of the wins — yet accompanied by a deep sense of conviction and emptiness.
“There’s a lot of temptations, a lot of distractions,” shares Charlotte, looking back on her career. “Unfortunately, because at that point in time I wasn’t strong enough in my identity, I fell into a lot of sexual temptation…I professed to be a Christian, but behind the scenes I was doing a lot of things that I knew my parents wouldn’t approve of—and I knew that wouldn’t make God proud.”
In the film, Charlotte opens up about her lowest point, amid her time playing for the WMBA, when she was forced to face the reality of losing herself amid her athletic career’s conclusion. As she grappled with what to do next, she ultimately found her purpose of giving back to others through a heart change of obedience.
“You finally hit that brick wall where you surrender to God, and you realize…He is my hope, He is my joy, and He is the love of my life,” continues Smith. “There comes a point in time where you have to make a decision…Are you going to give God your whole heart and fully surrender?”
Basketball, Second.
Each woman’s powerful story reveals a deeper sense of hope and fulfillment than that of a glorified court-centered identity, offering inspiration to individuals searching for more.
To watch these exclusive I Am Second films, visit:
- Bailey Maupin’s story at Iamsecond.com/film/Bailey-Maupin
- Charlotte Smith’s story at Iamsecond.com/film/Charlotte-Smith
