The Final Shot

Chapter 9: North VS South

The first of the three games against Northern Conference games was here. The whole court was loud, and it felt like the music was being played at one million decibels. The Braves had an unique approach to this, though, because they all had ear buds. Unlike most teams, who would take off their earbuds during the games, they would keep it on the whole time. How to communicate? Well, it's fairly simple. They used simple sign language to communicate and had made up signs for different strategies. For example, for pick and roll, they would make a fist and then let their palm slide around it. It was very direct and worked quite well. Minutes before the game began, Michael went over to the Arrows bench with Jake to greet their captain and star player Frank Jones. Frank was a great player, and had led the league in scoring last year, with a PPG of 34.2. He also had an RPG of 7.1 and APG of 5.6. His supporting cast consisted of a bunch of players who were all mediocre other than Don Leslie. He was the sixth man, but averaged more points than half of the starters. He was the Sixth Man Of The Year award winner and he served an important role to the Arrows' success. He was like James Harden on the Thunder, who made their whole second unit stronger. It gave the Braves a reason to worry as their second unit was not very strong. So, even if the opponent switches to their second unit with a strong lead, chances are that there's going to be a comeback. Thus, before the game, Coach Auerbach had warned the starters that the chances were high they would have to play 48 minutes. They all knew it, and were ready. When the game started, the ball flew up high into the air as the referee tossed it. Carter jumped with the might in his legs while Frank just stood on the ground. Carter got it of course, but Frank was agile and fast enough to steal it the moment Carter tried to pass to Michael. Frank ran for the fastbreak, and Carter and Michael attempted to follow him, but Frank already had his hands on the rim to finish a dunk. 2-0. Then, on the next possession, Michael passed to Jake and then Frank blocked Jake. Frank dribbled the ball towards the halfcourt line and swished a halfcourt shot. The Braves were now down 5-0. King now ran with the ball and when he missed a halfcourt three, Frank got the ball and took it to the three point line to make a three pointer. Carter fouled him, so it was a three-and-one. Now, the Braves were down 9-0. Jake was at the halfcourt when Michael called a time-out. He led his teammates toward their bench, and talked to them in a group huddle.

"Look, I know that Frank is being flashy, but that's just the way that he is. Get used to it. Right now, unless they switch Don on, they won't have a second option. Carter, Jake, I want you guys to double team him. Everyone else knows their role right, leave their center Ben open. He isn't much of a scorer and his percentages are pretty low. If he tries to get in the paint, foul him. Alright? Let's chant. 3,2,1, WIN!"

"WIN!"

The five got on the court feeling way better, and more refreshed. They stepped onto the court again, this time, ready to pounce.