The voice comes over the PA. "And now entering the court, Number 23, Michael Jordan!" Number 23 steps out into the arena amidst deafening cheers. Oh God, he thinks. Here I go again.
He plasters a broad smile on his face. Come on, he tells himself, I've done this a million times. I can do it again. He trots out onto the court and takes his position. Oh no. Not the tip-off! The Knicks get the ball. Jordan drops back to defend himself against Wilkins. Stay between him and the basket. Between him and the basket... OK, right here looks good... oh damn. He moved.
Jordan quickly adjusts to cover Wilkins, but Wilkins has a jump on him, already raising his arms up to shoot. Don't panic! Jordan lofts himself up in the air to block the shot, coming down over Wilkins' shoulders. A whistle sounds. Oh no! What have I done? Wilkins casts a dirty look in his direction and goes up to the line. Please don't let him make this shot. Wilkins aims, shoots, and scores. Please don't let him make THIS shot. The next shot mimics the first. The scoreboard flashes 2-0. We're losing! It's all my fault!
The ball gets passed in. The Bulls jog to the other end of the court. Near the three-point line, Jordan gets the ball. What the Hell am I supposed to do with this? Jordan hurls the ball towards the basket. The crowd cheers. That was a close one.
Wilkins receives a pass on the next play. Near the center of the court he passes it to Ewing who shoots and scores. Ha ha! You couldn't shoot it! In your face, Wilkins! The ball is inbounded to Jordan. He dribbles to the other end. What should I do? Should I shoot from the perimeter where there's not a lot of defense? Or should I take it down the middle of the lane for my aerial dunks? The outside shot is much easier, but my agent says that if I don't do more dunks I'm going to lose the Nike contr-
A Knick steals the ball and heads down court on a fast break, scoring on a spectacular dunk. Oops!
The Bulls inbound the ball again. Jordan is open and receives a pass. Oh no. Not again. I don't want it. What if I mess up again? Everybody will laugh at me. The defense has closed in on Jordan. Get away from me! Jordan splits the defenders, jumps, spins under the basket, and scores on a lay-up. The crowd cheers. They like me! They really like me! Hey! I can do this!
The Knicks get the ball again. They score. Up and down the court the teams go, sometimes scoring, sometimes not. Jordan takes charge with his many lay-ups in the lane. You know, this spin thing really works. And if I jump really high, I can defy gravity. Cool!
The Knicks put up a good fight, but as the fourth quarter draws to a close they find themselves with a deficit of points.
You guys should drink more Gatorade.
c. 1992, 2001 Cathy Gellis
cathyg@csua.berkeley.edu
www.csua.berkeley.edu/~cathyg