The first installment in Sports Scene's fourth season of the special basketball series "CBA Stories" features Beijing Ducks center Justin Hamilton discussing his squad's historic missed opportunity in the playoffs and the ups-and-downs of his career. After sweeping the Shanghai Sharks in the first round, fifth-seeded Beijing won the first two games of their quarter-final set against the number four Shenzhen Leopards. 

The Ducks then returned home looking to close out the mild upset but instead lost both contests at the Wukesong Arena, which left the series tied at 2-2. It also meant another trip to Shenzhen, where the Leopards prevailed in a hard-fought Game Five at the Universiade Sports Center to eliminate Beijing and advance to the last four. The stunning defeat makes the Ducks the first CBA team to lose a playoff series after leading 2-0. 

"We just didn't have that close-out mentality that we needed to have, and sometimes in those long seasons, it's just not there, and so they just had a bit more urgent sense of recovery, and they were able to equal it out, and at the end of the fifth game, we just didn't have enough gas to finish out the game," said Hamilton. "And so for us, it's a bitter taste, like we know we should have won, but credit to them they beat us at the end." 

But despite the stunning end to the campaign, Hamilton says he has many good memories of the season, including the 13-game winning streak Beijing tallied from November 4 through December 14. That set the stage for the Ducks to finish fifth in the CBA's regular season standings in the face of numerous injuries to key players that forced the coaching staff to rely on multiple line-ups to get through the winter. 

Hamilton's road to professional basketball success was not easy, even though the Philadelphia 76ers chose him with the 45th selection in the 2012 NBA Draft, and then dealt his rights to the Miami Heat. The American had to play in Croatia and Latvia before getting opportunities with Charlotte and then Miami in early 2014, coinciding with the end of the Heat's "Big Three" era of Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh. 

"Going to play with the 'Big Three' guys in Miami, and the whole Heat organization was just great to learn from," recalled Hamilton. "I think they were my biggest mentors, the 'Big Three' and all the other veterans on that team, just kind of showing you how to conduct yourself on and off the court, how to approach everything in a professional way, and how to become a champion." 

The American center, who spent a year in Croatia as a child, is pleased that his wife and young daughter have been able to be with him during his stay in China. He believes that even if his daughter doesn't understand much, or any, of their time on this side of the world, items like photographs and clothing will serve as reminders, and he hopes she will continue to accompany him on all of the future stops in his career. 

The 29-year-old also expressed a desire to return to Beijing, and continue helping the team strive for a fourth CBA title, even while acknowledging the team's front office will make such decisions with his agent handling any negotiations on his behalf. Hamilton admits nothing is permanent in professional sports, but he feels that he's found a home with the Ducks, and hopes to continue his journey with them next season.