Page 43 of Loving the Legend
Argh! I throw the phone across the mattress. That was way too forward. Fuuuuck. I ignore the phone when it buzzes. I turn off the lights and stare into the dark. The phone buzzes again. After an exhausting two-minute mental battle, I flick the light back on and scramble for the phone with zero chill.
Sid: It would be unforgettable.
Damn…I bet.
Sid: Night, Pretty Boy
Me: Night, Wonder Kid
I turn off the lights and jerk off for what feels like the zillionth time in the last forty-eight hours.
CHAPTER NINE
It’s been three weeks since Christmas and I’m back in Miami. This time with my teammates for a Tuesday evening game against the Marvels. It’s the first time Sid and I will face off. A fact that the media has run into the ground all week. Despite my efforts to drown it out, you’d have to live on another planet without access to a phone, television, or laptop to ignore it entirely. At the hotel gym, I noticed both my face and Sid’s plastered on treadmill screens tuned in to NBA TV. Ignoring my better judgment, I flip to the channel and catch Hal Patchett, a sports commentator, sharing his assessment:
“…ferocious, they don't call him the Wonder Kid for nothing. On the flip side, with the wisdom and poise you’d expect from a veteran, Ty’s explosive offensive power and speed make it difficult for larger opponents to contain him. He’s known to scramble defenses. His long and mid-range shooting is steadily improving. This season, he’s shooting 41.5% on shots from forty feet, a percentage not too far from some of the best point guards in the league. Let’s face it, there’s no stopping him! Even if you consider the rare night when Ty’s shooting percentage is low, the stats show that the Knights always score more when he's on the floor. He influences the game whether he takesshots or not. His ability to get hot in the third quarter requires him to be defended until the final buzzer. Knowledge is power and the Knights have learned to create specific plays to take advantage of Ty’s influence. Viewers may be familiar with the term “hockey assist,” which refers to a pass that leads to a pass that leads to a basket. Ty’s hockey assists rank third highest in the league. Defensively, there’s room for Ty to grow, but he already shows promise. Take this clip from their last game against Milwaukee. Ty, with possession of the ball, cuts to the wing. He is double-teamed by the defense—”
I turn off the screen and return to drowning out the noise. If we lose the game tonight, Hal will do a 180 and eviscerate me during tomorrow’s segment. I remember all that matters is my efforts and that of my teammates, not the critics. Never the critics.
We’re staying at the Four Seasons Hotel. For everyone else, the day started at a half-past eight for breakfast. I’m not as lucky as the rest of the team. A nightmare ripped me awake at four a.m. My feet got tangled when I tried to reach the waste basket, and I ended up painting the hotel carpet with regurgitated grilled chicken and potatoes that I had for dinner. I’m grateful to the front desk clerk who discreetly arranged for me to switch rooms. I was wide awake after I showered, so I hit the gym to sweat out the damn-near-crippling anxiety coursing through me. I can’t wait for this game to be over so that the press can move on.
After breakfast, we’re transported the two miles to FTX Arena for a shootaround where we practice taking shots from various positions around the court. I roll my neck back and forth before dribbling and releasing a center three-pointer. It spins around the rim before tumbling through the net. I catch another ball and release it again, this time from the left corner. Thetension seeps out of me. Few things are as relaxing as a ball in my hands.
Idris and I are tapped to answer questions from the media. When asked the highly anticipated question, “What’s your thought process as you prepare to face arguably one of the best players in the league, Sid King, for the first time tonight?”
I answer, “For me, it’s business as usual. I play the best that I can in every game, regardless of who we’re playing. We know what we came here to do tonight, and we’re focused on seeing that it gets done.”
What my answer omits is that I’ve been studying Sid’s game. I’ve observed that he is strongest when he has the ball. He’s unstoppable when it comes to isolation plays. However, ISO plays are predictable, so we have plays designed to counter them. He’s decent with catch-and-shoot shots, but I’m better. Our ability to keep the ball moving until we find an open teammate is one of the reasons we have the second-highest field goal percentage and lead in assists this season. We’ve seen the Marvels struggle to defend teams with good ball and player movement. If we stay locked in, we have a solid chance of clinching a W tonight.
After the shootaround, we head back to the hotel for lunch. I toss the food around on my plate as I pretend to listen to Tevin’s animated recount of last night’s hookup. After about my fifth yawn, I call it quits and head back to my room for a quick nap. I spent over an hour trying to turn off my brain and sleep, so it’s way too soon when my alarm goes off. We’re transported back to the arena at a quarter past four. We warm up on a non-game court. After, we crowd around the locker room for our pre-game meeting.
Before I know it, it’s game time. I throw on my noise-canceling headphones, then pop the hood on the Knights sweatshirt that I’m rocking over my jersey. The arena is buzzingwith Marvels fans. I scan a few blue Knights jerseys in a sea of white, red, and yellow Marvels jerseys. I drown everything out except rapper King D’s voice booming from my headphones as I warm up. In between shots, I spot Sid practicing a flawless left-handed layup. Like me, he’s ambidextrous. Whatever feelings I’ve developed for him are left off of the court. I plan to play the best ball I can tonight. Every shot, every game, is forthem. I can’t let them down.
I’m bouncing on my heels as I catch a pass from an assistant coach and charge the rim to post a floater. While a part of me is anxious for it to be over, I’ve been looking forward to this match-up since joining the NBA. Every aspiring player thinks about the day they’ll face off against All-Star players. I wondered what a match-up against Sid would feel like years ago when he entered the NBA, and now I am about to find out.
After team intros, we change out of our warm-up gear and meet at mid-court for tipoff. The referee blows his whistle and tosses the ball above the heads of the opposing centers, Tevin and Kristian. Kristian taps the ball toward Sid, giving the Marvels the first possession.
Here we go!
As expected, the Marvels make a play to isolate Sid, who is being defended by Harry, our forward. Sid backdowns Harry and attempts a shot while falling away from the basket, but Tevin blocks the shot.
Hell yeah!
They better have something else in their arsenal or we’ll put this game to bed quickly! Kaleb, our power forward, passes the ball to Idris, who attempts a three-point corner shot but misses. Sid then knocks down a three-point pull-up jump shot with the accuracy of a sharpshooter.
Damn!
Tevin feeds me the ball as Kevin moves in to defend me. I feint a shot, sending Kevin tumbling past me, and clearing my path to sink a jump shot.
They really think one guy can contain me!
Sid follows up by driving to the rim and slams a dunk.
Our gazes lock, and he smirks.
“Ball!” I yell to Kaleb, who lobs it to me from across the court. Boris, a center for the Marvels, reaches in to steal possession.
Seriously! Their strategy is to put up the slowest dude on their team—possibly in the league—to defend me?
