The Big Game

Chapter 1: The Worst Team?

"Good luck, Ben!"

Emma calls to me before the game.

"Thanks," I say.

It's the first basketball game of the year for the West High School boys' team. There's one big question. "Can we do better than last year?"

After one minute, we know the answer. No, our team is the worst team in town. We never win, and everyone knows that.

When I get the ball, I see Jamie near the basket.

"Here, Ben," he calls.

So I throw the ball to him. He catches it and throws it at the basket. It doesn't go in. The ball never goes in for Jamie.

Of course, we lose. We always lose. But that's okay.

"We love playing," Emma says.

"Good game, Ben."

I smile. She's the captain of the girls' basketball team at our school. And the girls' team is good.

A tall boy is watching us, and he isn't smiling.

"Who's that?" I ask Emma quietly.

"He's a new boy," she says. "He's in my class." The tall boy comes and talks to me.

"Are you the captain?" He asks me. "I'm Sam. I'd like to be on the team."

"Can you play?" I ask.

Sam doesn't answer. He takes the ball from my hands and throws it. We aren't standing near the basket, but the ball goes in.

"Yes," says Sam quietly.

Chapter 2: Sam

After school the next day, our team meets in the gym. I bring Sam.

"He's going to play on the team," I tell everyone.

At first, nobody is happy about this.

"Do we need any new players?"

So I throw the ball to Sam.

At once, everyone understands.

Sam is great. Fast and strong. He can move past players easily. And when he throws the ball at the basket, he always scores.

I can't stop smiling.

"What do you think?" I say to Jamie.

"Well," says Jamie, "we aren't the worst team now."

Chapter 3: What a player!

Before our next game, I see Emma again.

"Good luck," she says.

"Thanks."

I smile back at her. "We don't need luck this time," I think. "No." Everything is going to be different now. I can feel it. We don't need all of our players because Sam is on the team now.

"Jamie, can you sit and watch today?" I ask. "Oh." "Okay," says Jamie.

The game begins, and Sam is the best player there. He scores for our team again and again.

After the last break in the game, I say to Jamie, "Come and play for the last eight minutes." He smiles and runs to the team.

It's the last minute of the game. Sam has the ball. But there are two players in front of him. There's nobody near Jamie.

So I shout, "Pass the ball to Jamie!"

Maybe Sam doesn't hear. He runs past the two players. Then he jumps and throws. Of course, he scores.

When the game ends, I run to the team. For the first time, we're the winners. Everyone is excited.

"Let's go to the coffee shop," I say, "After a game, we sometimes go to the coffee shop near school." But Jamie is leaving.

"I'm tired," he says. "I'm going home."

Emma looks at him and at me.

"I'm going home, too," she says.

Everything is different for our team now. We win the next game and the game after that. At school, people are excited. Everyone wants to watch us. I'm excited, too. And I'm very excited when I think about our next game. It's the game with East High School. The big game.

"How good is East High?" Sam asks me. "Well, every player on their team is great," I tell him. When we play games, East High always wins. I put my hand on Sam's arm.

"But the players don't know about you."

Chapter 4: The Big Day

The day of the big game is here. And I'm feeling excited. I see Emma near the gym. But this time she doesn't say, "Good luck." "Are you coming?" I ask.

"No, I'm not watching the game today," she says.

"What's the matter, Emma? You always watch us. And we're playing well now, no?"

"Sam is playing well," Emma says.

"But we're winning games for the first time," I say.

"One player wins for you. And you all stand and watch," says Emma. "You want to win?" I know that. "But some things are more important. Sam is very good. But he never passes the ball. Ask Jamie. Does he like having Sam on the team?"

I feel bad when Emma says this.

She's right. Just then, we hear a noise. Somebody is standing behind us.

It's Sam.

"Sam, listen," Emma begins to say. But Sam walks away.

"Come back," I shout. "The game begins in ten minutes."

"I can talk to him," Emma tells me. "But the team needs you now."

The team is waiting.

"Where's Sam?" Jamie asks.

"He can't play today," I say. "What?"

"Then East High is going to kill us."

"Maybe," I say. "But maybe not. Remember the most important thing. We're a team. So let's go and do our best."

Jamie is afraid. I can see. But he's excited, too.

The game begins. And it isn't easy. The East High players are bigger, faster, stronger. But everyone on our team runs for every ball now. We never stop working. We're a team again. I can see it. Maybe we can't win. But we can do our best.

Of course, East High is winning. The team has more points than us. But not many.

Seconds before the next break, I jump for the ball. East High's biggest player jumps, too, and hits me. I fall.

"Are you okay?" Jamie asks.

I stand slowly. I don't know. My leg is bad. It's the break now. I'm happy because I can sit for five minutes. But can I play again with a bad leg?

Then I look up and see Emma and Sam.

Chapter 5: What a Team!

Sam doesn't want to be here. I can see.

"Ben, can you tell Sam something?" Says Emma.

"What's the most important thing for you in a game?"

"That's easy. The team," I say. "You're a great player, Sam. But the team is the most important thing."

Emma smiles.

"That's right," she says. Sam is quiet. He's thinking.

I stand up. The game is starting again.

"Wait," says Emma.

"What's wrong with your leg?"

"It isn't good," I say. "But the team needs me."

Sam looks at me.

"That's all right, Ben," he says. "Sit down. I want to play." Please, when the game starts again, Sam is back with the team.

I sit with Emma and watch. Sam plays very well, of course. But he plays differently now. He doesn't take the ball all the time. He works with everyone and helps them.

"He's a team player now," I say.

Emma smiles.

"I know."

Soon we're in the last minute of the game. East High has 24 points. And we have 24, too.

Sam has the ball. He isn't far from the basket. But there are lots of East High players near him.

"Come on, Sam!" I shout. "Score!"

But Sam passes the ball back to Jamie. Jamie catches the ball.

Two East High players are running at him. Jamie is afraid. I can see it. But he throws the ball. It goes up, up, up.

Everyone is quiet. They're all watching that ball. And then the ball goes into the basket in the last seconds of the game.

We're the winners!

I forget about my leg and jump up.

"What a game," Emma says.

"Great, Jamie," I say. Everyone is happy. And I don't want the day to end.

"Come on, everyone! Let's go to the coffee shop."

I say, "Yes," says Jamie happily. He smiles at our new team player.

"Are you coming, Sam?"

"Of course." Sam smiles. And we all leave.

A team.