The Final Shot
Everyone doubts Kevin’s dreams of making it to the NBA. But when he gets sucked into a virtual championship game, will he change their minds with one last shot?
I remember how many times I missed a shot, and started worrying. Will I really be the one?
I heard the crowd roaring. Yellow and purple confetti falling down. My teammates surrounded me, calling me MVP. The glittering trophy caught my eyes. The shiny golden metal told me that I had earned it, but it told me that it is only going to get better. My only dream had come true, except it was in a video game. I carried my team (the LA Lakers) to beat the Denver Nuggets in the semi-finals. But I knew that the next competition would be hard. My team finished the season barely making the playoffs. Making it to the finals was the fun part, but now I have to face the best team: the Oklahoma City Thunder.
So, how did a 7th grader meet Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in a playoff game?
It was a hot summer in 2020 and our whole country shut down because of Covid. I grew up loving basketball because my Dad played in the NBA. I played for my 6th grade basketball team too but something stopped me. First it was Ben, the school bully, who said that I couldn’t play basketball because I was too skinny. Then, it was Covid. Ever since the whole world was freaking out, I couldn’t go outside and play basketball. Still, I found a way to play: video games.
At dinner, I told my family that I had won the semi-finals. My family congratulated me, except my mom. She just stared at me and said, “Remember, video games are not the first thing you should do. You have other things to worry about, too.” Then I heard thunder outside. I always hated thunder and that is why I clenched my fist and thought we have to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder.
I loaded up the game and everyone was watching. My dad, my mom, and my sister. They were all excited and couldn't wait for me to get the trophy. I clicked play and then closed my eyes. Usually when we all gather around like this I hear my sister crunch her snacks, but this time I didn’t hear anything. I didn’t hear the birds sing, not even the music from the game. I opened my eyes to see what was going on but I saw my whole team right in front of me. LeBron James and also Austin Reaves. Anthony Davis, too! It was a matter of seconds before I realized I got sucked into the game. I heard my family screaming for help. I couldn’t see them, but I heard them fine. As we huddled up ready to play, I was so confused. But after all that waiting and not playing basketball for a whole year, I thought this was my chance.
As the tip-off began I was getting more and more nervous. Could our team really beat the Thunder? After a hard fought jump ball, I started to warm up my legs. My stiff short legs were not going to help me win this game. I started to bring up the ball staring up to my opponents eyes. He looked so much taller than me, and still so unrealistic. I passed the ball to my teammate when the opponent swiftly stole the ball and dunked straight over me. I could barely even touch the net! So in the next 10 minutes, it was literally me passing and them stealing. We only scored 12 points as a team and I missed all my shots. At the end of the quarter I started to notice how rusty I was. Even just a year without playing changed a lot.
At the start of the next quarter, I got subbed out. I knew that was good because the other player was better than me. I still thought in my head that no matter what, I was going to go back in. Either to just play, or take my winning shot.
Our team, working so much better without me, was trailing behind the Thunder by 5 points. LeBron James, known for his insane defense and dunks, was going crazy. Not only dunking, but scoring many 3s too! And soon enough, our team was tied at 39 points. Just shortly after a crazy layup that made the opponent lead, the buzzer sounded.
When we were going back to our lockers at halftime, I noticed everyone surrounding me wanting my autograph. I wished I could go to speak to my fans so I could soak up all of their support, and prove Ben the bully I was good enough to go to the NBA. But I couldn’t walk to my fans because in the game, I can only control myself on the court. Still, one day in real life, when I really do make it, I will walk straight up to them, and I all hope all the people who doubted me will change their minds.
Soon after teleporting back to the court, the coach put me back into the lineup. And I knew I had to make a difference. When our team passed it straight to me, I started to dribble up the court thinking this was my house. I told LeBron to give me a screen, which made me feel special. I took the screen and noticed a teammate open and decided to pass, but this time hard. He got the ball and let it fly. I froze as the defenders were jumping straight towards him. After a second, I realized the teammate was Austin Reaves. He fell down hard and was screaming in pain. I couldn’t hear him though because of the crowd's ferocious cheering. My mind froze and I wanted to help him. But I had to remind myself that this wasn’t real, that he would be okay, and that I needed to focus on scoring. I inbounded the ball with our team losing by 2. After a while, the game was so tight—each team was playing both good defense and offense. But I kept track of how many points I scored. Who knows when I will be back on the court with my teammates? I had 4 layups which tallied up to 8 points going into the fourth quarter. Our team was leading by 4 in a strong lead.
As the quarter started, right from the start the opponents best player, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander exploded into an easy layup. The lead shorted to two when suddenly I threw the ball the wrong place and let the opponent score another. In basketball, each basket matters. And small mistakes can cause everything to get out of hand. As the clock started ticking from 2 minutes, to 1 minute, I started worrying. Any mistake can cost us the game. The clock hit 30 seconds and boom! A mid-ranged shot and were losing by 2. The clock is winding down and the pressure is all on our team. We call a time-out when the clock hits 15. The coach says to pass it to me, screen, and let the shot go. I remember how many times I missed a shot, and started worrying. Will I really be the one?
LeBron inbounded to me with the clock at 10 seconds. I get a screen and take it. The defenders are off guard and fall back. 5 seconds. 4. I get ready for my position. 3. I jump to shoot. 2. I released the ball. 1. Everyone froze. Even my parents. 0. I hear the buzzer and close my eyes. There was no sound of the cheering crowd but only that of my parents and the thunder. All lights went out. I try to see but I can’t. Did it go in? Did we win?
