A.J. Hakim

A graduate from Wayne State University in Detroit, Mich., A.J. Hakim earned a Bachelor of Arts in English and a Film Studies minor.

In 2003, his sophomore year of college, Hakim joined the staff at The South End--Wayne State's student newspaper--where he wrote about the University's athletics, and also featured a beat on the Detroit Panthers, a semi-professional basketball team who played in the American Basketball Association.

Soon after, in 2005, Hakim ventured into freelance writing, and found a gig with The Detroit News, writing for the Preps section of the sports department. It is through the News that his career expanded and he found freelance work elsewhere. With recommendations by the News editors, Hakim received freelance offers from The Boston Globe (Game 6 of the 2007-08 NBA Eastern Conference Finals between the Detroit Pistons and Boston Celtics), Motor City Open Squash Tournament, Holland-Sentinel (2008 Class D high school football state final) and San Antonio Express-News (2009 NCAA Naismith Hall of Fame Induction Press Conference).

During his spare time, Hakim enjoys watching movies, playing and watching sports and writing. His favorite films include: Takeshi Kitano's Dolls, Mike Nichols' Closer, Alfred Hitchcock's Rope and Nicholas Ray's In a Lonely Place.

You can follow him on Twitter @AJHakim.