The hotel room was in complete silence except for the noise from the TV screen that was playing.
"And we are here at the US Airways Center in Phoenix, Arizona, watching the game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Phoenix Suns," said the iconic voice of Charles Barkley for the TNT channel.
"Let me tell you, Charles, this is not a night for the Lakers, not even with Kobe putting up more than 25 points in this game," followed Ernie Johnson's voice on the screen.
At that moment, on the screen, you could see the back of a player with the unmistakable number 24 stamped on the jersey, who quickly opened up space on the court to then launch a suspension shot, adding about 2 more points for his team.
84-96 current score. Suns ahead by 12.
"And Kobe Bryant with another fabulous suspension shot from 16 feet to the hoop, keeping the Lakers afloat," Ernie Johnson said to all the viewers who were watching the game.
"Despite his best efforts, time is playing against him, Ernie," Charles said while on the clock it could be seen that only 9:50 minutes remained for the game to reach its end.
"Are you saying that as a commentator or as a former Suns player, Charles?" Ernie questioned him with a friendly tone in his voice, causing Charles to chuckle under his breath.
"I won't deny to you that part of me leans toward my former team, but I also say it because Nash, despite already being in his 35s, leads the best offense in the entire league," Charles gave his answer with a self-sufficient smile on his face. "And don't take it the wrong way, but Kobe cannot keep the Lakers team afloat all by himself," Charles finished saying, yielding the floor to Ernie.
"Odom seems to be more focused on the Kardashian than on the game, while Gasol seems to be asleep in the game," Ernie added toward the screen, showing how the game continued to develop while the Lakers were being outplayed by the Suns.
Seeing that the game was practically lost, Phil Jackson did not hesitate and decisively took out Kobe, who left the court frustrated without saying a single word, immediately putting a towel over his head while the game continued to play out.
"Pii!" With the referee's final whistle, the game reached its end, showing the final score on the TV screen.
103-118 Suns win the game.
"And the game has come to an end here at the US Airways Center. The Lakers add their sixth loss away from home with a record of 24-6, staying firmly in the Pacific Division, followed by the Suns with a record of 20-12," Ernie said toward all the viewers who were watching the game live.
"You can say that again, Ernie. The Suns added a crucial victory to let the boys from Los Angeles know to watch their backs or they could be overtaken," Charles added.
While both shared comments about the game and the other games being played, the 2 teenagers who were lying on their beds watched the TV with nothing better to do in the hotel room.
"Dude, I can't believe the Lakers lost," Omar said, putting his hands to his head in incredulity upon seeing the Lakers lose for the second consecutive game in the league.
"The Suns played better," was Aaron's simple comment after seeing the full game, losing interest once the game reached its end and the post-game comments began.
Seeing that the game had ended, Omar also decided to turn off the television and both stayed in a comfortable silence inside the room.
"Who do you think will win the playoffs?" Omar asked, decided to break the silence in which the room was in at that moment.
"Lakers," Aaron said without any hesitation in his voice, knowing the result beforehand.
"But they just lost right now," was Omar's response, thinking that Aaron was responding simply for being a fan of the Los Angeles team.
"They lost one game of an 82-game season; no team can win all the games, not even Jordan in '96 could," Aaron debated, giving the legendary Chicago team of that era as an example.
Biting his tongue to not also mention the 2016 Warriors, knowing that there were still 5 years left for that to happen if history followed its course just as it is.
"You're right," Omar said, thinking that what Aaron said had its logic.
"Besides, Kobe is still in his prime at 31, and along with Gasol and Odom, they can easily win their second consecutive ring without problems," Aaron finished saying, without leaving any point to debate.
After that, they began to debate again about whether the Celtics could stand up to the Lakers or if LeBron could lead Cleveland further in the playoffs until it was time to sleep.
December 29, 2009
The following morning, the Royals team was in the hotel cafeteria having breakfast in a lively atmosphere until the coach stood up, heading toward the center of the room.
"Boys," the coach started. "We already know who our next rival will be: it will be the King's Fork Bulldogs from Virginia," Coach Arbitello read the information he had received on his clipboard.
"Currently, they are one of the clear favorites to win due to their crushing 65-30 victory against the Binghamton Patriots." As soon as he said the result of the previous game, a series of murmurs spread through all the players' tables.
Some debated about the score while others had a face of incredulity upon hearing how they beat the other team by more than 30 points.
Giving a moment for the team to process the result of the previous game, Coach Arbitello quickly continued reading the notes he had at hand. "Their coach, Joshua Worrell, specializes in the offense, emphasizing the catch-and-shoot," the coach explained to his players, once calmed and listening intently to the information.
"Their team is very solid with players like Davante Gardner, their starting center, and Dion Bivens, their starting shooting guard," Coach Arbitello mentioned the 2 best players of the opposing team.
"Be especially careful with Bivens; in the previous game, he and Gardner were doing a fast Pick and roll in the paint, causing him to penetrate the hoop for dunks," the coach finished saying while his gaze settled on each of his players, evaluating how they had taken the news.
Some had nervous looks before the next rival they were going to face, while others like Aaron had calm looks, not letting any trace of nervousness be seen in their expression, something that made Coach Arbitello happy.
"The lineup will be the same as the one from the previous game, but with slight changes," was the next thing Coach Arbitello said, gaining his players' attention again.
"Milka Gardner is a classic, very physical center. Do you think you can handle him?" the coach asked, addressing the boy who, upon hearing his name, said with a smile:
"Don't worry, coach, I got him," he added while flexing his arms, giving to understand that he wasn't afraid of physical confrontation.
"Alright, but don't overdo it," the coach added with concern in his voice, letting Dominykas know that he must not overextend himself.
"Breakfast ends in 20; then we will go to practice before the game," Coach Arbitello finished saying, going to sit down and letting his players focus again on the plates that were in front of them.
Concentrating on the plate in front of him, Aaron could still hear the murmur of the conversations from the rest of the team.
"Dude, 30 points up, that's crazy," he heard Corey whisper toward Dominykas, who was also whispering about that.
"And I thought our victory by more than 20 was dominant," he said, slightly shrugging his shoulders.
"The other team was weak; there's nothing to worry about," a voice said, getting into the conversation of both, who turned their heads to see Maurice.
"We just need to score more, so just pass the ball to me," he added while pointing to himself with his finger and giving them his most conceited smile.
"But the coach said they play catch-and-shoot, so defense is better," Corey added, making Maurice remember the words that Coach Arbitello had said previously.
"We just need to shoot more than them, so pass me the ball and you'll see how we beat them," Maurice replied, not wanting to give in to anyone else's ideas.
"Besides, we have the rookie to defend," Maurice added, making the gazes of all the players turn to the mentioned one.
"Right, rookie?" Maurice said with a smile, causing everyone's gaze to settle on Aaron, who remained imperturbable eating his breakfast.
"I will follow the coach's plans," was the only response from Aaron, who remained more focused on the plate in front of him than on Maurice, who simply let out a huff of annoyance and continued eating his breakfast too.
After that brief discussion, the atmosphere in the restaurant returned to a silent calm while the players finished breakfast.
1 hour later
After breakfast and a brief rest, the players boarded the bus toward the stadium to be able to warm up and prepare for the next game.
Aaron, once seated next to Omar, had his gaze concentrated on the exterior landscape that the bus was traveling through at that moment.
"Dude, I can't believe we have to play last and we have to go so early," said an Omar who was sprawled in his seat next to Aaron.
"Think positive," Aaron began to say, finally putting his gaze on his friend sitting next to him. "At least this way we can see the rest of the teams and possibly our rival for tomorrow," Aaron shared toward Omar, seeing the pros of playing last and going early toward the stadium.
"If you say so, man," Omar responded, not very convinced of the idea of going so early to the stadium instead of staying in his comfortable bed at the hotel.
Seeing that Omar was still sprawled in his seat, Aaron decided to take the headphones out of his bag and connect them to his phone, to then rest his gaze on the window again.
While the landscape passed by the window, Aaron was concentrated on the thoughts and ideas that roamed around his mind.
He thought about the final game and how well he had played the previous game, taking advantage of his advantages when it came to predicting the place and the moment in which to receive the ball.
Aaron knew that physically he could not yet compete with centers physically stronger than him, so he decided to focus his training toward ball prediction and anticipation, knowing that was an aspect in which he could obtain an advantage.
He also remembered the sensation of yesterday's game and the chemistry he has with his teammates, seeing out of the corner of his eye Omar, who was the one he understood best on the court.
He knew the best he could do now was get more support from his teammates; so with Omar, it was already a great help and a solid support point, both being on the court, but even so, he needed one more if he wanted to play without worries.
In that, his gaze settled on the player who is a few seats behind him: Corey, a point guard with great vision of the game. Aaron knew that if he wanted the game to revolve more toward him, having the support of the team's playmaker was vital.
They had previously collaborated on plays in the previous game of the Vikings, so the chemistry was developing slowly, although they still hadn't reached a tacit understanding.
Once the bus stopped, Aaron snapped out of his thoughts while he stood up and grabbed his bag, ready to go in to practice along with the rest of the team, leaving his thoughts aside and concentrating on the game they would play later.
Once out of the bus, Aaron took a deep breath of the outside air while he set out to walk toward the stadium, followed closely by the rest of his teammates who were also heading in the same direction as him.
Authors thought's
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