Summer Ball

Danny immediately retests his shot—the shot he works on all night with Zach, and the one he misses in the game—and lands it perfectly. This serves as a reminder that Danny, putting too much pressure on himself, actually ruins his instinct as a player: the stress causes him to miss shots he can make and make decisions he knows are not smart. For now, Tess serves as a stress reliever for Danny; he calls her after the game for comfort. She helps him see things more clearly; Danny wants to trash the whole game, but Tess convinces him to focus on the good things that happen—his improved playing, his growing relationship with Rasheed on the court—rather than dwell on the negatives. Danny begins to mature with this balanced perspective. This enables him to come back to the next game and play well, defeating one of the best players at camp (Lamar).

Danny also confesses his shameful secret about the fake injury to his father, and it feels “[l]ike he was telling somebody he was afraid of the dark” (157). Danny’s father does not take the news well. At first, his dad, Richie, seems dumbfounded, unable to believe what Danny tells him. Then, Danny’s father turns on his son, implying Danny is the worst thing in Richie Walker’s vocabulary of insults: a quitter. Danny considers his father’s feelings: “He should have remembered how his dad’s basketball life—and nearly his whole life—ended in that first car accident his rookie year” (157). Real injury cost his father his love and livelihood, and a huge part of his identity. Danny’s fake injury offends his father. However, though Danny’s father has a right to be angry, his son really needs help. This is where the line between coach and father becomes blurry. Danny’s father ends the call without resolving things with Danny. This might be appropriate for a coach, but not so much for a father.

This chapter also ends in a fight, one that is a long time coming, between Danny and Lamar Parrish. Danny takes Zach out to play, as a way to thank Zach for all his help. Lamar finds the boys and begins taunting them. Lamar is the type of person to use his size and reputation to intimidate the smaller boys. He begins by calling the boys hobbits, and “Tarik would say later he was surprised Lamar had even seen a Lord of the Rings movie” (165), stereotyping Lamar as someone that only causes trouble and plays basketball. Lamar reveals his cruelty: he destroys Zach’s beloved ball and punches the much smaller, much younger Zach in the stomach. Danny intervenes, even though Lamar drastically outsizes him.

The dilemma Danny faces here is right versus might. He should not provoke Lamar, even if Lamar’s behavior justifies that kind of reaction. However, Lamar gets away with bad behavior because everyone fears him. It’s rare that somebody like Danny stands up to Lamar. Today, however, two people stand up to Lamar: Danny and then Rasheed. When Rasheed intervenes and stops Lamar from hurting Danny and Zach, he sends a clear message to Lamar: we may come from the same place, but we are not the same person. Lamar sinks to the lowest level while Rasheed rises to the highest. Given the advantages others have over Rasheed, this makes the stand he takes all the more commendable. For a moment, Lamar reacts doubtfully, assuming Rasheed will take his side because they share similar backgrounds. In Lamar’s eyes, Danny and Zach are wealthy, spoiled kids, but to Rasheed, that difference is superficial. Rasheed sides with Danny and Zach because it is the right thing to do.