(Continuing from Part Four: GO! GO! GO!)
Just like that, the summer league was over and despite losing a majority of our games, it felt good to finally find the right tone and place for my personal game. It was clear to me now that my offense had plummeted but I had developed a great flow and sense of direction defensively and that at least gave me something to hold on to.
It was a new school year which meant new classes, new experiences, and a new coach. His name was coach Tri Ta and this would be his debut as a San Gabriel High School coach. All we knew about him was that he had played for San Gabriel and went on to San Diego State to study sports medicine, that was it. Although there were many question marks surrounding the type of coach Tri would turn out to be, we came down to the conclusion that we had already faced the toughest coach there has to be in San Gabriel history in Coach Chris, so really nothing could be that bad. And it was not.
From day one we understood the type of game Coach Tri liked to play: fast-paced. He was a fan favorite of the run, run, run type offense where the ball is constantly moving and finding the basket quickly. Unlike Coach Chris and Coach J (Jason Meador), Coach Tri gave us much more freedom with what we were allowed to do offensively and that was fine for most but this would actually go on to hurt my game.
You see I like a structured offense because I really lost my ability to make great decisions with the basketball earlier on in my basketball career. My lack of confidence and inconsistency on the offensive end was usually balanced out and filtered when our team was required to run sets that forced players to be in specific areas of the floor. It sounds like a boring offensive that may seem repetitive because it was a boring offensive that was repetitive, but it kept me from going out there and relying on my own basketball abilities. This was also the reason why I really could not beat most of my teammates on our little one-on-one tournaments before practices, I just simply could not find the rhythm to score without a play set up. I had grown into a completely different ball player once I left the courts at my middle school and my game had clearly evolved.
In other words, the offense got me nervous but defense, well, you cannot really teach defense. All you could really do is work hard, put your mind over matter, buckle up and lock your man down. By this point I was at my best shape and I felt that I had reached my peak in terms of awareness on the defensive end. I knew how to get around screens quickly, stay grounded when a player ball fakes, and slide my feet fast. More importantly, I developed a knack for helping my teammates out on the off-side, slowly becoming a voice on the team from the defensive end.
By pre-season, nevertheless, I was happy to say that I had earned a spot on the starting lineup and when you are able to come from zero minutes the previous pre-season, this would definitely be considered a huge turn around. Not only did I earn a spot on the starting line-up, I managed to get it by doing what I do best, not by trying to force myself to be that offensive player that I knew I was not.
But I soon learned that being a starter had its side effects too. I kept thinking about the three months that I had worked during the summer to get to this point and it all felt so good, but at the same time, it felt like it could all just go away in an instant. Now that I had decided to really stay dedicated to the team and backed it all up with all the training and hard work, I was nervous that it would just evaporate. The pre-season was important to me and I did not want it all to go to waste, we had Franklin up first and I knew it was important to make it a statement game.
The butterflies kicked in with 10 minutes left on the clock during shoot-arounds. It seemed to get worse with every minute. The pre-game jitters always got to me during summer league but this felt different and I needed this game in order to prove that I could be a contributing factor on my team. I had to let go of my nerves by thinking about nothing but the game; I could not afford to think of anything else.
The buzzer rang and we got into the huddle. Coach Tri told us that the game meant nothing and that we had a long way to go in season.
"Just work on our offensive, be quick on your feet, and stay solid," He said. "I want hard work for all forty minutes. Let's Go. SG on three: one...two...three...SG!"
Coach Tri was wrong. The first game meant a lot and every player knows that. When a coach tells you that a line-up will likely change as the season progresses, you know how important it is to perform at your best when you get the chance to. I knew this and I knew that this was not going to happen if I forced myself into the offense.
I told myself to start with the defense and to let the energy carry over to the offense. The ball is tipped and we lose it. I am not guarding the point so I am at the free-throw line extended where I could see my man and the ball. The ball is passed to my man and I get up on him. He takes a dribble and crosses-over but he allows me to see the ball, I reach in and take it.
Next thing you know, I am off to the other side but with the lack of concentration I miss the easy lay-in but I draw the foul. Start from the defense and carry through to the offense. So far so good. I split the buckets at the charity stripe. Not bad.
Back on the defense nothing much happens for a while. Franklin scores off a jumper but that is what we want. The ball is ours again, I come off a pick and the ball lands in my hands but I cannot take the shot, my defender is up on me. I pass it back to our point guard, junior Tien Quach who scores. That makes for an assist and a point.
That is when my body reacts on me and I begin to feel fatigued. The buzzer sounds and the subs come in. On the bench, I reflected on my performance with my teammates and took long sips of water and Gatorade. Not long into the second quarter I came back into the contest with some fresh legs. The next few moments would really go on to make my night.
on the second possession after I had checked in, we ran the same play with the off-ball pick on the guards which freed me up for an open mid-range jumper. Now this time I was ready to go. I caught the ball and set my feet before letting the ball roll off my finger tips. Splash.
The next play is a quick one, Quach runs the ball down off a transition and spot me open from the same spot that I had sinked the previous basket. My defender is deep in the paint. He won't get to me. Splash.
"Who is that guy," Coach J chuckles out.
At halftime the game was still a tight one. Coach Tri wanted us to slow down on the offensive end but liked the type of tempo we were playing with. He did not want any of us to get over our heads so he really didn't offer too many compliments.
"Guys we still need to clean up the boards and protect the paint."
And so we did what we were told... and then some. With a night that seemed to began with such a bang, the tempo just never stopped. The ball kept moving, everyone was getting touches, and it all seemed too good to be true. One of the best highlights of the game for me came in the fourth quarter of the game.
Despite our scoring, Franklin was still able to drain a couple of critical jumpers to keep the game close and we needed to continue to play solid defense for the remaining five to seven minutes or so. On the help side, I sensed that a guard was heading into the paint, fast and hard. I took a few steps up, put my hands straight up, and took all of the contact.
The whistle is blown by the ref who signals a charge. My Coach did his little fist pump and my team cheered. Taking a charge was one of the hardest things to condition ourselves to do during our first few practices together and I just did it. Pure joy seemed to vanquish the pain in my chest and abdominal area, one charge was good enough.
After scoring eight points, dishing out a couple of assists, grabbing a few boards, obtaining a steal, and taking a charge, it was save to say that I had the game of my entire career thus far. I was extremely happy and knew that I would milk the moment until the next big game.
Coach Tri said that I had done excellent and was very proud that I was able to take the charge for the team. It was all surreal and could only hope for more to come. In retrospect, there was more to come in the season but nothing came close to the likes of this epic pre-season opener to Franklin, no other game at all.
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