Bouncing Back
It took a while, but you've managed to come around and bring yourself to the locker room after congratulating the other team. The room couldn't be any quieter and filled with more depressing faces as your own, but the mood comes pretty darn close. You want to say something to everybody, issue an apology of some sort, but you know it's useless. You know nothing you say will bring up the mood in any sort of way, and there are tons of guys who want off with your head. You can't even bring yourself to look at Sam, because you already know how disappointed he is. This was somebody who has been your mentor for this whole season, your brimming words of encouragement, and he was a senior giving sound advice to a lowly freshman who barely got any game time. His first words when he saw you? "Kid, you remind me a lot of myself."
Honestly, you've always wondered what Sam meant by that, because clearly he was far more talented than you as a point guard, and a whole lot smarter too. You realize that while the two of you have had your conversations over the game of basketball, you've talked about a lot more than just that. Your conversations revolved around your similar family lives, and your dreams in being the ones to give them everything they deserved through your salaries. Of course you always said it half jokingly and more on the serious side that youd most likely never make it to the NBA but he would definitely shine there, but Sam was always Sam. He would always make you hold your head up high by telling him that he believed in you. He believed you would eventually break out, and not to let yourself down just because you were a freshman. The two of you knew that after this year, he would finally be going into the NBA draft and that would most likely put a distance in your friendship, but you always kept talking with each other anyway. After all, he was the only one who was willing to talk to the only freshman and third string point guard on the team.
Recalling your friendship with Sam (which is probably destroyed by now) in the past only allows further tears to fall to the ground. You don't know if you're the only one crying or not, but you don't care. You're a loser either way.
It's at this moment that Coach Barnes starts to speak. You try avoiding him like you've been avoiding glancing over at Sam, but you know it's not a good idea to avoid the coach of your team. Reluctantly, you dry your tears with your jersey and look up at Coach with your now red eyes from all the crying you've done.
It takes a while for him to find his words, because you can tell he's devastated over the loss. Probably even moreso than you. You barely know him, and he doesn't know your right name yet, but you know how much he cares for his team. You've seen him talking with Sam on such a level that's seen as high respect, and you've seen him with the rest of the team. Ty, Wayne, Kipperton, and so on. He's even had a few talks with you when you've barely been allowed to go off the bench in the games in the regular season. When he talked to you, he told you that you were doing a good job (which you would have scoffed or done something in a sarcastic manner but you could feel the sincerity coming through his words that actually surprised you). He said that it didn't matter how much time you were getting in for the games, because he saw you in practices and scrimmages in your one on one bouts with Sam, who was the only one who you got to learn something from. He said not to get discouraged because you were just a freshman, and one of these days he said he knew you would get your moment to shine. He added that he was letting Ty and Sam get more bench time because he knew that they were both NBA ready, and he wanted them to get a perfect feel for what it would be like to be in the NBA. He told you that he didn't want you to feel left out, and that you had a lot of potential.
That talk surprised you. Not because at that time he still didn't get your name right and called you Jack, but because you could feel that he meant every word he said when he was talking to you. He wasn't pulling these words out from his behind, he was truly honest in how he was presenting himself to you. You knew all the players who have had more one on one talks with this African American man in his 60s truly respected and you could see why. He was a man who had clearly been through much adversities, yet he wanted to pass wisdom on from one generation to another. He cared for each of his teammates and wanted for everybody to succeed. Even when they were talking about the possibilities of winning a championship when they got to this point, he wasn't holding himself in a cocky manner, and he told none of the team to present themselves in such a way. He had a very humble demeanor whenever he did anything, and he would be the one who guided every player on the court, even you. Well, you're not so sure about yourself at the moment, because you know how much of a failure you are.
After taking in a few moments of silence, Coach gave the team a smile, but it was much different from the normal smiles he would offer. It wasn't a cheerful contagious smile like it usually was; instead it was a bit of a sad one that seemed to fit the somber moment. Something that seemed to contrast in his usually cheerful personality. It took him a while to gather himself, because it looked like he was about to break apart in tears, much like yourself. You can't stand to look at him at this moment, knowing this was another person you can add to the list of people you've disappointed.
"To the seniors on this team who are leaving, and to others who feel like they are ready to leave for the NBA, I'd like to say that this is your decision. I don't want you to feel that this game has shown you any other reason not to go, because I know that each and every person on this team will eventually be a superstar waiting on his respected team. No matter what happens in the future, I want us all to remember this season."
These words were a bit of a shock not just to you, but to the whole team. He actually wanted the team to remember a season in which they ended up losing the championship?
Coach Barnes paused and this time, his sad smile became the smile that everybody else was used to seeing. This helped in cheering the mood up drastically.
"We all played like champions, and we don't need a title to prove that we did, because it wasn't just this game that showed how hard we fought, we've done this throughout the whole season! I don't want you guys to feel like you've done any less. I know each and every one of you has grown not only as basketball players, but as men. This team has supported each other in our tough times this season, and this game is no different. Just because we didn't win, that doesn't mean you guys didn't play like champions. I'm proud of you guys!"
This time, the team roared in appreciation, the depressing mood gone.
"Even if we didn't win, I'd like to present this game ball to a player who has been impressive not just this game, but all four of his years on this team. Sam, where are you?"
The whole team roared again as Sam went up to the coach to receive the game ball.
"To Sam Gerardi, the man who has shown the most maturity on this team and one of the best leaders this team could have ever asked for. Sam, I want you to know that you will always have a part of this team," Coach says as he hands the ball to your best friend.
The players start chanting Sam's name, as Coach starts yelling, "On three! ONE TWO THREE!"
You know you're still extremely disappointed in yourself, but you join in on the team's cheer.
"TAR HEELS!"
Coach starts again.
"ONE! TWO THREE!"
"TAR HEELS!"
"ONE! TWO! THREE!"
"TAR HEELS!"
"The buses come tomorrow, but I want you guys to get a good night's rest. All of you have earned it."
Honestly, you've always wondered what Sam meant by that, because clearly he was far more talented than you as a point guard, and a whole lot smarter too. You realize that while the two of you have had your conversations over the game of basketball, you've talked about a lot more than just that. Your conversations revolved around your similar family lives, and your dreams in being the ones to give them everything they deserved through your salaries. Of course you always said it half jokingly and more on the serious side that youd most likely never make it to the NBA but he would definitely shine there, but Sam was always Sam. He would always make you hold your head up high by telling him that he believed in you. He believed you would eventually break out, and not to let yourself down just because you were a freshman. The two of you knew that after this year, he would finally be going into the NBA draft and that would most likely put a distance in your friendship, but you always kept talking with each other anyway. After all, he was the only one who was willing to talk to the only freshman and third string point guard on the team.
Recalling your friendship with Sam (which is probably destroyed by now) in the past only allows further tears to fall to the ground. You don't know if you're the only one crying or not, but you don't care. You're a loser either way.
It's at this moment that Coach Barnes starts to speak. You try avoiding him like you've been avoiding glancing over at Sam, but you know it's not a good idea to avoid the coach of your team. Reluctantly, you dry your tears with your jersey and look up at Coach with your now red eyes from all the crying you've done.
It takes a while for him to find his words, because you can tell he's devastated over the loss. Probably even moreso than you. You barely know him, and he doesn't know your right name yet, but you know how much he cares for his team. You've seen him talking with Sam on such a level that's seen as high respect, and you've seen him with the rest of the team. Ty, Wayne, Kipperton, and so on. He's even had a few talks with you when you've barely been allowed to go off the bench in the games in the regular season. When he talked to you, he told you that you were doing a good job (which you would have scoffed or done something in a sarcastic manner but you could feel the sincerity coming through his words that actually surprised you). He said that it didn't matter how much time you were getting in for the games, because he saw you in practices and scrimmages in your one on one bouts with Sam, who was the only one who you got to learn something from. He said not to get discouraged because you were just a freshman, and one of these days he said he knew you would get your moment to shine. He added that he was letting Ty and Sam get more bench time because he knew that they were both NBA ready, and he wanted them to get a perfect feel for what it would be like to be in the NBA. He told you that he didn't want you to feel left out, and that you had a lot of potential.
That talk surprised you. Not because at that time he still didn't get your name right and called you Jack, but because you could feel that he meant every word he said when he was talking to you. He wasn't pulling these words out from his behind, he was truly honest in how he was presenting himself to you. You knew all the players who have had more one on one talks with this African American man in his 60s truly respected and you could see why. He was a man who had clearly been through much adversities, yet he wanted to pass wisdom on from one generation to another. He cared for each of his teammates and wanted for everybody to succeed. Even when they were talking about the possibilities of winning a championship when they got to this point, he wasn't holding himself in a cocky manner, and he told none of the team to present themselves in such a way. He had a very humble demeanor whenever he did anything, and he would be the one who guided every player on the court, even you. Well, you're not so sure about yourself at the moment, because you know how much of a failure you are.
After taking in a few moments of silence, Coach gave the team a smile, but it was much different from the normal smiles he would offer. It wasn't a cheerful contagious smile like it usually was; instead it was a bit of a sad one that seemed to fit the somber moment. Something that seemed to contrast in his usually cheerful personality. It took him a while to gather himself, because it looked like he was about to break apart in tears, much like yourself. You can't stand to look at him at this moment, knowing this was another person you can add to the list of people you've disappointed.
"To the seniors on this team who are leaving, and to others who feel like they are ready to leave for the NBA, I'd like to say that this is your decision. I don't want you to feel that this game has shown you any other reason not to go, because I know that each and every person on this team will eventually be a superstar waiting on his respected team. No matter what happens in the future, I want us all to remember this season."
These words were a bit of a shock not just to you, but to the whole team. He actually wanted the team to remember a season in which they ended up losing the championship?
Coach Barnes paused and this time, his sad smile became the smile that everybody else was used to seeing. This helped in cheering the mood up drastically.
"We all played like champions, and we don't need a title to prove that we did, because it wasn't just this game that showed how hard we fought, we've done this throughout the whole season! I don't want you guys to feel like you've done any less. I know each and every one of you has grown not only as basketball players, but as men. This team has supported each other in our tough times this season, and this game is no different. Just because we didn't win, that doesn't mean you guys didn't play like champions. I'm proud of you guys!"
This time, the team roared in appreciation, the depressing mood gone.
"Even if we didn't win, I'd like to present this game ball to a player who has been impressive not just this game, but all four of his years on this team. Sam, where are you?"
The whole team roared again as Sam went up to the coach to receive the game ball.
"To Sam Gerardi, the man who has shown the most maturity on this team and one of the best leaders this team could have ever asked for. Sam, I want you to know that you will always have a part of this team," Coach says as he hands the ball to your best friend.
The players start chanting Sam's name, as Coach starts yelling, "On three! ONE TWO THREE!"
You know you're still extremely disappointed in yourself, but you join in on the team's cheer.
"TAR HEELS!"
Coach starts again.
"ONE! TWO THREE!"
"TAR HEELS!"
"ONE! TWO! THREE!"
"TAR HEELS!"
"The buses come tomorrow, but I want you guys to get a good night's rest. All of you have earned it."