Rebound: A 2nd Chance

Billy was looking out at the court as Jason got up and began to talk with his teammate "How do you think he's going to respond?"

Troy shrugged his shoulders "I don't know. We know that Jason is a bit of a hot head but he's never been touched up like that ever since he's started playing.

Some guys act big and bad until somebody puts their paws on them. I think that hard screen was a message from Millbrooks.

They're probably trying to intimidate him. Truth be told I'm not all that confident that Jason will be able to bounce back from that one.

The psychological affect of being put on your back that hard can be pretty strong. I'm sure you've heard about how things were during the 80s and 90s era of basketball.

The Bigs from back then were all taught two things: One was no easy baskets in the paint, two was make sure they feel you down there.

If you were a guard that was trying to score in the paint the Bigs from back then used to take offense to that.

'This little dude thinks he can come here and chill with the big dogs?' Type of mentality. Shaq used to say it himself that if you were a guard trying to get a layup or a dunk he would put you on your back.

Some people needed to be taught a lesson three times some only needed to be taught once. But after being put on your back by Shaq a lot of them starting opting for jumpers instead haha.

Although it's not so flagrant and prevalent as before this kind of thing still exists at all levels of the game.

There are guys in the league right now who are only on a roster because of their ability to rough people up on the court and put some fear in them."

After hearing what Troy had to say Billy nodded his head "You have a point there. I guess the real question is how much heart does Jason have? Is he built to step up to the plate or will he end up whiffing?"

- - -

The referee passed the ball to Kyle who then inbounded it to Jason. After making sure that everyone was in position he called for a screen from Kyle.

Kyle made his way from the left block out to the perimeter so that he could set the screen. Jason began to drive to the right.

Kyle's defender switched on to Jason after the screen. But just as he thought that Jason would continue to attack he suddenly stopped.

Jason then went back out to the perimeter before smugly looking at the opposing team's Big and gesturing for him to come over.

The Big took a quick look and saw that his guard had already followed Kyle out to the corner so it was too late to switch assignments again.

He had no choice but to go out to the perimeter to guard Jason. Jason then waved his hand as he gestured for the rest of his teammates to clear the floor for an isolation play.

The opposing Big gulped as he realized that he was alone on an island facing the best player in the county.

Jason began sizing him up with slow rhythmic dribbles. Left, right, left, right, Jason then crossed over to the left and faked the drive.

The fake got his defender going left as Jason quickly pulled the ball back and went right. The Big did a decent job of recovering as he planted his foot and changed directions to follow Jason.

But Jason suddenly stepped on the breaks and came to a stop which caught the Big off guard. As his brain was trying to process what had happened his butt had already fallen to the floor.

Jason pounded the ball into the floor once and stepped back. After making sure that he was behind the three point line he stared down the defender for almost two seconds.

The other players from the opposing didn't bother trying to close out on Jason as they knew that he had more than enough time to get his shot off.

After staring down his defender that was sitting on the floor Jason then looked back up at the basket and fired the three pointer.

The home crowd was going crazy after seeing Jason drop his defender to the floor. And when he stared his defender down the crowd got even more hyped up.

Some of the students stood up and started whistling or pumping their fist in the air. And as they watched the ball sink through the net the whole gym felt like it was shaking as the noise intensified even more.

Jason turned to the crowd and with one hand pretending to hold a bowl and the other hand holding an imaginary pair of chopsticks it looked like he was eating up a bowl of noodles.

The crowd got even more excited after seeing Jason's celebration. Kyle ran over to Jason as the two of them jumped up and chest bumped.

The crowd eventually chilled out a little after Jason and Kyle made their way back on defense. It was Millbrook's turn at offense again.

Jason began guarding the opposing Point Guard as soon as he crossed halfcourt. He then saw him call for another screen.

This time Jason knew exactly what he had to do. As the two of them approached the screen instead of him fighting over it he pushed Kyle forward as he yelled "Switch!"

Jason then followed the Big as he tried to roll to the rim while Kyle moved up to contain the ball handler.

The ball handler was surprised after seeing that Jason opted to switch on the pick and roll. He smiled as laughed at the thought of getting a chance to go one on one against a Big on the perimeter.

He grinned at Kyle 'Don't blame me after I cook you up. You can blame your guard for turning into a bitch after getting hit by one screen.'

- - -

In the crowd Billy and Tory watched as Jason pulled the opposing team's Big out to the perimeter after the screen from Kyle.

They watched as Jason confidently played around with the Big before putting him to the floor with his handles.

The could feel the energy in the gym rising and then Jason stared down his defender before shooting the three pointer which caused the crowd to go wild.

Everyone was hyped up until Jason and Kyle made their way back on defense. After the noise finally started going down Billy wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"I guess that answers the question of whether or not Jason would back down. You gotta admit that even though the kid isn't the most athletic he still knows how to make some real highlight level plays."

Troy nodded his head "The kid is normally so fundamentally sound and he normally opts for the most efficient play.

So most people don't think of him as a flashy player. But that doesn't mean that he's not capable of doing flashy things.

He picks and chooses his moments. Just like in the game where Trell got ejected. He can go deep in his bag when he needs to."

Billy nodded his head in agreement. Even with his years of experience as a coach Billy couldn't deny that even he got excited watching that play from Jason.

'This kid definitely has the IT factor. This kid is the perfect Point Guard. He has deep range and he can score at all three levels.

Even though he isn't the quickest laterally his defensive iq and instincts more than make up for it. And he actually anchors down their defense.

Normally that responsibility goes to the Bigs because they are normally positioned in the back which gives them a better view of the court.

But this kid can be at the top of the key and be guarding the opposing team's primary ball handler while still seeing everything that happens on the court.

This kid might be the next great Point Guard. Every generation seems to have a guy like this. Someone that changes the game with their impact.

The 80s had Magic Johnson, the 90s had John Stockton, the 2000s had CP3 and the 2010s had Stephen Curry and Russel Westbrook. Jason has a chance to be the next one up.'

Just as Billy's mind was racing from the possibility of witnessing the next great Point Guard in the making he heard Troy talking.

"That was a nice play but I don't know if that really proved anything yet." Billy looked at him in surprise "What do you mean Troy?"

Troy continued "Jason responded on the offensive side of the ball but you have to remember that Jason took the hit while he was playing defense.

It won't mean anything if Jason can score the ball if he gets scared to play defense. Part of Jason's value is his ability to lock down the opposing team's primary ball handler.

Without Jason locking down the opposing team's primary ball handler that would instantly drop the effectiveness their defense. And it's not like you can easily replace him.

Trell is the second best perimeter defender on the team but that's mostly because of his athleticism and he is nowhere near as effective as Jaso-"

Troy stopped talking out of shock as he watched Jason switch on the pick and roll during Millbrook's possession.

Billy was surprised as well. Jason was normally so effective at defending the pick and roll that he always fought over it or went under.

It wasn't very common to see him switch defensive assignments. Troy shook his head "Looks like I was right.

Getting knocked to the floor seems to have planted some fear in his heart." Billy thought for a moment "What if it's just part of their defensive scheme?"

Troy scoffed "Come on Billy. You've seen their defensive scheme this whole game has been Jason sticking with the ball handler.

So why would they just suddenly change that now? And besides, teams always want to avoid putting their Bigs on an island out in the perimeter.

You saw what happened to Millbrook's Big after he switched out on to Jason. I feel bad for Kyle. Now the same thing is about to happen to him."