Blood And Basketball ppt

“Yeah, Dale Curtis,” Ed said.. “I appreciate your concerns,but we need Curtis on the team.” “Whatever you say, boss,” Ed said sarcastically.. Dale Curtis stepped into theEagles’ locker r

Janice Greene

Blood

Basketball

And

Kula‘i Street Knights

The Mystery Quilt

No Way to Run

The Ritual

The 75-Cent Son

The Very Bad Dream

SERIES 2

The Accuser

Ben Cody’s Treasure

Blackout

The Eye of the Hurricane

The House on the Hill

Look to the Light!

Ring of Fear

Tiger Lily Code

Tug-of-War

The White Room

Development and Production: Laurel Associates, Inc.

Cover Art: Black Eagle Productions

Three Watson

Irvine, CA 92618-2767

Website: www.sdlback.com

Copyright ©2005 by Saddleback Publishing, Inc All rights reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form

or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the publisher.

The Dark Lady Dimes to Dollars Read My Lips Ruby’s Terrible Secret Student Bodies Tough Girl

Carl, the owner of the JacksonEagles, punched a button on the remotecontrol “Just look at this,” he said.

Ed, the coach, turned to watch Onthe screen, a player with floppy blondhair twisted away from a guard andscored His moves were amazingly quick

“Yeah, Dale Curtis,” Ed said “I’veseen him I don’t want him.”

“Come on, man!” Carl said “Hecould be the next Larry Bird!”

“He’s a problem waiting to happen,”

Ed said “The kid is only 18, just out ofhigh school And he’s on his own—nofamily The word is he’s been livingwith a neighbor or something.”

“But the team’s like a family,” Carl

went on “Once he’s on the team—”

“Once he’s on the team, he’s aninstant millionaire,” Ed interrupted.

“He’s instantly famous It’s too much formost kids Remember Reed Stevenson?”Carl frowned At first, youngStevenson had been a great player.Then he’d discovered gambling anddrugs It had been an ugly year-and-a-half for the Mississippi team

“I’m not cleaning up after anotherkid like that,” Ed insisted

Carl stared at the screen Dalespun through the key and left the flooreffortlessly He seemed to float towardthe basket Below him, a guard’smouth dropped open The ball swishedthrough the net, sweet and clean

“Maybe Will Bishop would takehim on as a roommate,” Carlsuggested “Bishop had it toughgrowing up, too But he’s a real steadyguy He could be like an older brother.”

Ed disagreed “Dale’s older brother,Bode, is the only family the kid has

And Bode can’t stay out of trouble.He’s doing 18 months in maximumsecurity for stabbing some guy.”

“So he’s locked up,” Carl said

“Nothing to worry about.”

“Unless he blows it, he’s out onparole next week,” Ed went on

Carl held up his hand “Ed, look,”

he said “I appreciate your concerns,but we need Curtis on the team.”

“Whatever you say, boss,” Ed said

sarcastically

Carl’s face reddened “If he messes

up, I promise you that he’s out—nomatter how good he is, okay?”

“Let’s see if he lasts a month,” Edmuttered darkly

Dale Curtis stepped into theEagles’ locker room A smiling playerwith curly brown hair walked up tohim “Hey, you’re Dale Curtis, aren’tyou? I’m Will Bishop.” Will’s voice was

light and warm “Come and meet theEagles.”

A group of players were gettingdressed “You’ve seen most of theseguys on TV,” Will said, “so you knowhow they play But I can tell you alltheir dark secrets.”

“I heard that,” a thick-set playersaid as he threw a shoe at Will Willlaughed and dodged “This is RickJames,” Will said “Rick knows everysick joke on the planet.”

Rick grinned and winked

“And this,” Will said as he pointed

to a towering African-American manwith cornrows, “is Tyrone.”

“That’s handsome Tyrone to you,

man,” Tyrone said with a smile

“And this is Yuri,” Will said “He’sgot the grossest socks in the league.”

“Ha!” Yuri laughed “Your socks

could make a pig pass out, Bishop!”

And so it went The players smiledand shook Dale’s hand But Dale could

see the question behind all their

smiles: Does this kid have what it takes

to play for the Eagles? Dale knew he’d

have to prove himself

To Dale, the practice gym was like another world The place was hugeand perfectly equipped Soft light came from windows high above On the floor, assistants were passing balls to players Others players lined

up for shots Dozens of shoes squeaked

on the spotless floor

Dale’s chest was tight with wonder

and excitement You’re here! You made

it! a voice inside him cried out.

Will walked up beside him andsaid, “Looks good, doesn’t it?”

“Sure does,” said Dale “I’ve neverseen anything like it.”

“Hey—it looks like we’re gonna beroommates,” Will went on

“What?” Dale said “Don’t take this

personally, buddy, but I’m getting my

own place I can afford it now.”

“Sorry, man,” Will said “The coachwants you staying with me.”

Dale was upset “Well, that’s justtoo bad!” he said “I’m on my own.”Will nodded slowly “Okay,” he said

“Go ahead and tell the coach that he’ll

be taking orders from you now.”

Dale gritted his teeth “I’ve neverheard of any pro being assigned a

roommate Why do I have to?”

“ ’Cause you’re the youngest guythe Eagles have ever signed,” Willexplained “If you stay out of trouble,you can get a place by yourself.”

“What makes them think I’m gonnaget in trouble?” Dale grumbled

Will gave him a long look His voicewas cool as he said, “Let’s just see ifyou last a week.”

“Hey, Curtis!” one of the assistantscalled out “Come over here and shootsome foul shots.”

Dale sank one shot after another

As always, just the feel of the ball in

his hands made him feel better.

The night his father had walked out,he’d headed straight for the gym

There, the comforting pock pock

sound of bouncing basketballs blottedout the memory of his father’s shoutsand his mother’s tears Some timelater, he came home exhausted and fellasleep in minutes If his mother wasstill crying, he didn’t hear her

Dale peered out Will’s frontwindow Still no Bode He should havearrived hours ago

Dale couldn’t wait to move to hisown place Will had rules—a lot ofthem Yet Will himself was generousand smart He told Dale a lot about histeammates and how they played And

he seemed to know everything aboutthe rival teams

Dale was at the window again when

a rental car pulled into the driveway

“Bode!” he yelled He ran outside just

as his brother opened the car door.For a moment, the brothers juststared at each other Bode was six-eight, an inch shorter and 40 poundsheavier than Dale His arms werecovered with tattoos A thick scarencircled his wrist like a bracelet.Dale smelled alcohol when hehugged Bode “Get on in here!” he said

to his brother “You hungry? Got lots ofstuff to eat here!”

“Nah,” Bode said, as they walkedinside “I just want to be out of that carfor a while.”

“I’m gonna get you a car!” Dale saidexcitedly “Something real cool—withleather and everything.”

“That’d be real nice, Dale,” he said

as he grinned at his brother “Look at

you—a rich guy! It’s like a dream, huh?”

“As long as I don’t wake up, it’sokay with me,” Dale agreed

“Fine-looking place,” Bode said as

he looked around the large livingroom “That TV is as big as a fireplace!There’s nothing like that in the hole.

We didn’t even get cable.”

Dale punched the remote until hefound a basketball game The NewJersey Nets were playing the MiamiHeat “I’ll get you a TV, too,” he said,

“even bigger than this.”

Bode smiled “You got a good heart,kid Not like most people But now thatyou’ve got money—watch out Peopleyou’ve never even heard of, so-calledfriends—they’ll all be calling.”

“They already have,” Dale said “Ichanged my number yesterday.”

“That’s the smart thing!” Bode said

“Never trust anybody except your ownflesh and blood.”

Dale turned back toward the TVscreen “Hey, good one!” he said as aplayer dropped a long shot into thehoop He jacked up the sound

“You could wipe that guy off the

court,” Bode said as he flopped ontothe couch.

“Oh, I don’t know,” Dale laughed

“You’re way better!” Bode insisted.

“You ” Then suddenly Bode was up

on his feet

Dale turned around to see Willcoming in the door with a bag ofgroceries Will was frozen in place,staring at Bode—who now had a thick,ugly knife in his hand!

“Bode, it’s okay!” Dale cried out

“It’s just Will, my roommate.”

“Don’t ever sneak up on me, man!”

Bode growled “You’re risking your life,man—I swear it!”

“Got it,” Will said quietly “Now putaway the knife.”

Will and Bode glared at each other

“Sorry, Will We didn’t hear you comein,” Dale hurried to explain “This is

my brother, Bode.”

“So you’re out of prison,” Will said

“Good for you.”

“Yeah And I’m never going back,either,” Bode grunted.

“Great,” Will said “But you better cooldown, man I don’t want anybody gettingstabbed just for walking in my door.”

“And I don’t take orders, punk!”Bode responded angrily

“Come on, Bode!” Dale interrupted

“Let’s go out and get something to eat.”Will looked worried “Just makesure you’re on time for practicetomorrow,” he reminded Dale

“What? You think you’re his mother

or something?” Bode taunted

“Bode, come on,” Dale pleaded.

In the car, Dale tried to explain

“You gotta go easy on Will, Bode It’slike a probation thing—since I’m only

18 If I do okay, they’ll let me get aplace on my own.”

Bode swore “You should be staying

with me! I’m blood! Soon as I get

a place, you’re moving in with me

I don’t want you with some stranger.”

“Will’s okay,” Dale said “What doyou feel like eating?”

They never did go out todinner Bode stopped at a liquor storewhere Dale ran into Cici, the sister ofone of his new teammates She invitedthe brothers to a party

The house was jammed Dalelooked around for some of histeammates, but he didn’t see anyone

he knew In a hoarse whisper, Bodesaid, “Stay close, okay? I don’t wantanyone coming up right behind me.When you’re in the hole, you learn towatch your back.”

Dale nodded Bode poured him adrink and drew him into the crowd

“This man here is Dale Curtis—thegreatest basketball player that everwalked the earth!” Bode bragged

“Ever seen him play?”

“Never, ever,” said a tall woman

named Nikki Her dress was purpleand her hair was orange and spiky.

“Well, then, we just better get agame going!” Bode said with a wink

“All right!” a ponytailed man cried

out in a booming voice

“I don’t see any hoops around here,”the orange-haired woman said Shegave Bode a coy, challenging look.Bode playfully rolled a napkin into

a ball and tossed it at her glass

With one hand, she jerked her glassaway With the other, she neatlycaught the balled-up napkin andaimed it at Bode’s glass “Hold still!”she commanded

“Guard her!” Bode called out Awoman standing nearby stepped infront of Nikki Nikki laughed andbutted the woman with her head

“Nikki! Over here!” the man withthe ponytail yelled Nikki passed tohim but another man intercepted Hetook a shot at Nikki’s glass Jumping

back to catch it, Nikki slammed into aman behind her.

The man grabbed Nikki’s glass,spilling half her drink By now, a largecircle of people, laughing and shouting,were in on the game

The party got crazier as the nightwent on Bode filled Dale’s glass againand again It was so crowded he keptstepping on people’s feet Nikki fell on

a lamp and broke it When Cici toldher to leave, Nikki started shoutingand Cici yelled back

Dale fell asleep on the way home.He’d tried to remember to set thealarm clock before going to bed But itwas nine o’clock when he woke up Hewas late for practice An hour late.Dressing in a panic, he felt dizzyand sick He raced to the practice gymand walked in slowly, hoping no onewould notice Rick snickered when hesaw him Then Will came up and said,

“Coach wants you in his office.”

Ed was hunched over his computer.

He glanced at Dale, then turned back

to the screen “You’re suspended,” hesnapped “Come back in three days.”His voice was distant and cold

Dale waited for him to say more,but the coach’s eyes stayed glued to thecomputer screen

Dale threw up on the way back tohis car Later, after practice, Will said,

“Maybe we should start placing bets,Dale Think you can last another week

on the team?”

Dale was too miserable to answer.Bode was outraged when he heardthat Dale had been suspended “Theyact like you’re just some kid off thestreet,” he said “Just a nobody!”

Dale said, “I am just a nobody until

I start helping the team.”

“No, you’re the star!” Bode said.

“You’re better than any of them.”Dale grinned Bode had alwaysbeen good at making him feel better

Three days later, Dale wasback on the practice court Three daysafter that, the Eagles left for NewYork Their first game of the seasonwas against the New York City Hawks.Dale found himself matched upwith Burnell Simms, one of thequickest guys in the NBA.

Two minutes into the game, Dalewas guarding Simms The net wasclear Dale moved to block him—toolate! The ball swished through thebasket and the crowd whooped

Simms stole the ball from Daletwice Again and again, he was able toslip away from Dale and score But therookie was learning Dale was gettingbetter at spotting him By halftime,though, the Hawks led, 50 to 22

In the locker room Dale was pacing,full of nervous energy Will came up tohim and said, “You’re gaining on him.”Dale smiled “Yeah, but I haven’tquite got him yet,” he answered

“Don’t worry, you will,” Will said in

a confident voice

Dale sat down and turned a ballslowly in his hands His breath became

calm and slow Yeah, I’m gonna catch

him, he whispered to himself.

Next time Dale had the ball, Simmslunged for it Just as Simms’ fingersbrushed the ball, Dale swerved awayand took his shot The ball missed, butWill was under it Leaping back, hepassed the ball to Dale This time hesprang away from Simms’ graspinghands and put the ball through thehoop Nothing but net

“All right!” Will yelled.

Dale made another basket, andanother With two seconds left to go,the ball was in his hands again From

30 feet out, he made a basket TheEagles won, 67 to 58 Dale had scored

21 points—more than any other player.Inside the locker room, everyonecrowded around Dale “You beat

Simms!” Will shouted “You beat him!”

As players slapped Dale’s back, Rickyelled, “The ceiling! Take this man tothe ceiling!”

“Lie down!” Tyrone commanded.Glancing around nervously, Daleobeyed Smiling, sweaty faces were allaround him Then, slowly, he washoisted up by a dozen strong hands

Up, up “Touch the ceiling!” Rickcried out

As Dale reached up and touchedthe ceiling, the players roared “You

did it!” Will yelled “You’re the man!”

hollered Tyrone

Dale had never been so happy inhis life He was on top of the world.Visitors started to crowd into thelocker room For a few moments, Dalewas alone Bode was back in Jackson,shopping for his new car Then some ofDale’s teammates introduced him totheir wives and girlfriends, brothersand sisters, mothers and fathers

Then Will cut through the crowd.

A strong-looking, white-haired womanwas holding onto his arm

“Dale,” he said proudly, “I’d like you

to meet my mom.”

Dale shook her hand It felt astough as his shoes Her eyes werebright and piercing Dale had thefeeling that she’d been through a lot

“Will tells me that you have a lot ofpromise,” she said

A lot of promise, Dale thought I could make it Or I could lose it all.

On the plane back to Jackson, Willsat by Dale “Mom wants you to come

to the house and visit sometime.”

“I’d like that,” Dale smiled “She’ssomething, your mom.”

“Thanks You’re sure right aboutthat,” Will agreed “What happened to

your mom, anyway?”

Dale hesitated He never talkedabout his mom’s death—not even toBode But now the words poured out of