Jump Shot

by Tiki Barber, Ronde Barber, Paul Mantell

  This time, as before, the tip-off went to the Panthers. But this time, they were clearly trying a different tactic. Instead of rushing the ball upcourt, they went slow and steady, with the point guard dribbling in place for several seconds, surveying the battlefield as his teammates made their moves. Finally, he found the center free for a long pass and a quick layup.

  On defense, the Panthers kept up their fierce pressure. Sugar was able to avoid it the first few times, but now the defenders were anticipating him passing off. They faked double-teams, only to back off when Sugar had stopped dribbling.

  Suddenly, it was hard for the rest of the Eagles to get free. Sugar wound up taking a flat-footed shot that clanged off the rim, short.

  Over the next few minutes, the lead seesawed back and forth. All the Eagles’ points were on awkward shots by Sugar, who, despite not being able to shoot in rhythm, was managing to sink half his attempts.

  The rest of the Eagles were exhausting themselves on defense, trying to keep up with the many passes the Panthers were making, spreading the defense thin and tiring them out.

  Soon, the Eagles were getting themselves into serious foul trouble. Bobby Dominic had to sit down, and so did Ronde.

  Then, Coach J. gave Sugar a rest too. It was like a smoke signal to the Panthers, who proceeded to reignite their running game. Without Sugar and Ronde on the court, the Eagles soon found themselves behind by five, and fading fast.

  Sugar wanted to get back into the game as much as Ronde did. But he was so out of breath he couldn’t even manage to ask the coach to put him back out there.

  Ronde began to have a terrible, sinking feeling. After all the progress they’d made, were these Eagles about to lose this final, most important game of the year?

  By the time Sugar got back in there, they might be too far behind to catch up!

  Ronde bit his lip, worried. If only something could flip that energy switch back on—the energy that had lit up the Eagles at the start of the game. . . .

  That’s when Ronde saw the doors at the far end of the gym open and two new spectators enter the room.

  Ronde stood up and waved excitedly. “Tiki!” he yelled. In spite of the noise in the gym, Tiki spotted his twin and waved back, grinning broadly before finding a seat in the bleachers.

  That’s when Ronde noticed who the other new arrival was—Sugar’s mom.

  Ronde turned to look at Sugar, and was surprised to see a tear trickling down his cheek. Sugar hurriedly wiped it away, hoping no one had seen it—but when his mom waved to him, smiling hopefully, Sugar waved back.

  That made Ronde smile inside. As important as it was for him to see Tiki walking in, what must it have meant to Sugar to have his mom show up, after all they’d been through?

  Coach Jackson tapped Ronde on the shoulder. “You’re back in,” he said. “Sugar, you ready too?”

  Sugar’s eyes were on fire. “You bet!” he said. “Come on, Barber, let’s show these clowns who’s boss!”

  They high-fived each other as they jogged back onto the court. The score was 45–40, Jefferson, with eight minutes left to play.

  Plenty of time, Ronde told himself, suddenly confident deep inside. He had a feeling this was going to be ten minutes of action he would never forget.

  No sooner did play resume than Sugar went on a tear, streaking down the court with the ball, putting on impossible moves, sinking shots, making no-look passes, stealing balls, rebounding, and generally taking over the game.

  In all of that, though, he never forgot that there were four other Eagles on the floor. In the scoring blitz that followed, every one of them had at least four points.

  The Panthers were in chaos at first, but once their lead had disappeared, they seemed to find a way to stay even with the Eagles. Ronde could see that this one was going to come down to the wire—but he never doubted that the Eagles would end up on top.

  Behind by only a few points, the Panthers struggled furiously to win the game. They couldn’t stop Sugar, so they began to foul him, hard. He cried out in pain a couple times—but he sank every one of his free throws.

  When the Panthers saw that their strategy was backfiring, they came at the other Eagles instead. They would foul Ronde or one of the others in a one-and-one situation. If the first free throw was missed, there was no second shot, so the Panthers would get the ball back, and could catch up.

  But this strategy didn’t work either. No matter how inaccurate their normal shooting touch was, on this occasion—at this critical moment—every member of the Eagles sank every free throw he took. One . . . and one . . . and another . . . and another . . .

  With only two minutes left in the game, the Panthers’ point guard hit a three-pointer to bring Jefferson within one big shot of tying the game. Now they stopped fouling, just playing tight defense instead—not overreacting to Sugar’s moves, but not letting him penetrate to the basket either.

  Sugar made a perfectly good pass to Larry Budnick, but one of the Panthers saw it coming, made the steal, and raced the other way. Ahead of everyone, he could have pulled up and tried for a game-tying three-pointer. But he went for the easy layup instead, figuring a sure two points was better. There was still enough time for another possession—if the Panthers could get a stop.

  It had all come down to this last minute, Ronde thought. Could the Eagles stave off the Panthers’ furious comeback?

  Sugar went slowly, walking the ball down the court, letting the precious seconds tick down. He must have known the Panthers would panic and come after him sooner or later. And they did.

  With only twenty seconds on the clock, he faked a drive, then dished off to Ronde at the point.

  Afterward, Ronde was never sure whether or not he actually heard Sugar yell “SHOOT!” But whether the voice was in his head or for real, Ronde didn’t think twice. He heard “SHOOT!” and he shot.

  SWISH!

  The roar of the crowd as they leaped to their feet echoed off the gym walls as Ronde threw his hands over his head in triumph.

  But the ref quickly signaled that it was only a two-pointer, because Ronde’s foot had been on the line.

  “Dang!” Ronde moaned. That meant the Panthers would have one more shot at it, with fifteen seconds to play after their time-out.

  Coach J. huddled the Eagles together. “We’ve really played like a team today,” he told them. “And we’re gonna win this game if we keep it up for fifteen more seconds! Now get out there and WIN!!!”

  Ronde had never heard or seen the coach sound so excited. He’d never really stopped to consider what this all must mean to Coach J. But it felt good to know that he and Tiki had been a part of changing this team for the better.

  The Eagles went back out there. One more defensive stop, and they would go down in the record books as a winning team.

  The Panthers inbounded, and their point guard, pressured by Sugar, passed it to Ronde’s man.

  There were only ten seconds left as Ronde tracked his man’s dribble. He knew the kid had to be nervous—so he faked a sudden grab at the ball.

  Sure enough, it threw the kid off, just enough to lose control of his dribble slightly. By the time he’d recovered, Sugar was there too, on the double-team. The panicked Jefferson player threw it up for grabs, hoping that one of his teammates would come up with it. . . .

  But it was Bobby D. who held the ball when the buzzer sounded! Eagles 82, Panthers 80!

  The crowd erupted, flowing out of the bleachers like lava. The whole place was shaking from their feet pounding on the floor.

  Tiki ran up to Ronde and hugged him, both of them jumping up and down.

  For Ronde, at that moment, life was every bit as beautiful as when the twins had won the state championship in football. Even though this was only a game that brought the team above .500 for the season, and these Eagles would not be going to the play-offs, it didn’t matter. What mattered was that they’d done what they came to do—they’d helped straighten out a team that was a mess before th
ey got there, and turn it into a winner.

  Next year, with Sugar in ninth grade, and all the rest of its starters returning, these Eagles would surely contend for a play-off spot, maybe even the league championship.

  Ronde wanted to tell Tiki how much it meant to him to look up and see him there in the stands. Tiki had arrived at the key moment, and him being there had given Ronde the strength to overcome his exhaustion, both mental and physical.

  He wanted to tell Tiki that, but he didn’t. It was hard to say things like that, even to your twin brother. Besides, it was noisy as all get-out in that gym.

  So Ronde simply said, “How’d you get here?”

  “Ralphie covered for me,” Tiki said with a big grin.

  “His aunt took care of his mom?”

  “Even better!” said Tiki. “His mom’s doing much better.”

  “Really? That’s fantastic!”

  “Yeah, the money she got from Mr. Landzberg helped her get a new kind of treatment. She said Ralphie could go back to work full-time from now on!”

  “Wow!” Ronde was blown away. There must have been a whole lot of money in those envelopes he and Tiki had delivered. Another important mission, he thought.

  Mr. Landzberg and the people who worked for him were like another kind of family, really. Just like this basketball team was a kind of family.

  But Ronde knew there was no kind of family as precious as your real family. He looked over to the far side of the gym, and saw Sugar and his mom hugging each other. It felt really good to Ronde to know he’d been part of that, as well.

  “Come on, Tiki,” he said. “Let’s get out of here. I want to take you over to Kessler’s and get you your favorite ice-cream sundae—on me!”

  “What?” Tiki said, pretending to faint. “You, pay for me? Excuse me, would you give me a pinch on the arm. I must be dreaming!”

  “Come on, man, cut me some slack. I’ve been saving every penny for Mom,” Ronde said.

  “Oh! I almost forgot to tell you!” Tiki gasped. “Mom got a raise—and a bonus, too!”

  “She did?”

  “Yeah—I saw her after school on my way to Landzberg’s, and she was all excited. She said we didn’t need to hand over our paychecks anymore!”

  “Cool!” Ronde said. “In that case, I’ll buy you two ice-cream sundaes!”

  “You know what I was thinking, though?” Tiki said as they exited the building and headed down the street toward Kessler’s Ice Cream Parlor. “Baseball tryouts are next week. And they’ve got lots of openings. . . .”

  “You mean . . . ?”

  “What do you think? I think we’d look good out on the field together.”

  “Word!” Ronde agreed. “But I’m playing center field.”

  “No way. You play left or right. I’m a better outfielder than you.”

  “Get out! I’m faster than you!”

  “But I get a better jump on the ball.”

  “I’ve got softer hands.”

  “I’m a better hitter. . . .”

  And so it went on as they entered Kessler’s, ordered, and wolfed down their sundaes.

  One season might be over, but another one was just beginning. And Tiki and Ronde would always be up for the challenge.

  BASKETBALL MOVES

  Cut: An offensive move where a player who is not holding the ball quickly changes their position on the court to a better spot. This may be done to receive a pass from a player or to help defend a teammate.

  Double-team: In this defensive strategy, a coach puts two defenders on one offensive player to keep the opponent from making a shot. However, this takes a defender away from another teammate who can make the shot while no one is blocking him or her.

  Dribble drive motion: Players on a team place themselves near the layup and three-pointer lines with the shooter in the center, in this play. Similar to isolation, this allows the shooter to go one-on-one with the defender and dribble toward the basket. If another defender comes in to help block, however, the shooter passes to the open teammate, who makes a layup or three-point shot.

  Fast break: The defender for a team blocks their opponent’s shot and quickly takes the ball in this offensive play. The defender then runs to the opposite side of the court and quickly shoots the ball before the opponent can set up defenses.

  Hook Shot: In this move a shooter holds the ball in one hand and makes an arc over his or her head as he or she shoots the ball into the basket. This type of shot is difficult for players to block.

  Isolation: In an isolation play, teammates of the player holding the ball move to the side of the court, taking their defenders with them. This allows the shooter to go one-on-one with their defender, with less chances of double-teaming.

  Pass-and-cut: In this offensive play the player holding the ball passes to a teammate and quickly runs—cuts—toward the basket. When the player gets close to the basket, a teammate passes the ball back to shoot.

  Pick-and-roll: In this offensive play, either a forward or center player screens the defender of a teammate, the shooting guard. The forward or center then turns to receive a pass from the shooting guard, and shoots the ball.

  Pump fake: This is a trick move. The player who is holding the ball acts as if he or she is going to shoot or pass the ball, but keeps it instead. Players do this in order to get their defender to leave from a spot, while they go in another direction.

  Screen: Also known as a pick. The screen is a defensive move where a player blocks an opponent, keeping him or her from moving to a better place on the basketball court. Players do this to help a teammate shoot, pass, or run toward the basket.

  Tomahawk dunk: For this dunk a player takes the ball with both hands, puts it behind his or her neck while in midair, and slams the ball into the hoop to make the shot.

  Triangle offense: This offensive play was popular with the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers. In this, teammates place themselves into a triangle on the court that is wide enough to stop double-teaming, yet close enough to pass to teammates without an interception.

  TIKI BARBER grew up in Roanoke, Virginia, where he wore number 2 for the Cave Spring Eagles during junior high school. From 1997 through 2006 he wore number 21 as running back for the New York Giants, where he holds every rushing record in team history. He lives in New Jersey.

  RONDE BARBER wore number 5 for the Cave Spring Eagles. He wore number 20 as one of the top cornerbacks in the NFL for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers until he retired in 2013. Ronde is a Super Bowl champion and was selected five times for the Pro Bowl. He lives in Florida with his wife, Claudia, and their daughters.

  TIKI & RONDE BARBER have collaborated on nine other children’s books: By My Brother’s Side, the Christopher Award–winning Game Day, Teammates, Kickoff!, Go Long!, Wild Card, Red Zone, Goal Line, and End Zone.

  PAUL MANTELL is the author of many books for young readers, including books in the Hardy Boys and Matt Christopher series.

  A PAULA WISEMAN BOOK

  Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

  Simon & Schuster • New York

  Authors.simonandschuster.com/Tiki-Barber

  Authors.simonandschuster.com/Ronde-Barber

  Authors.simonandschuster.com/Paul-Mantell

  Meet the author, watch videos, and get extras at

  KIDS.SimonandSchuster.com

  Also by Tiki Barber and Ronde Barber

  Kickoff!

  Go Long!

  Wild Card

  Red Zone

  Goal Line

  End Zone

  SIMON & SCHUSTER BOOKS FOR YOUNG READERS

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  This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to ac
tual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2013 by Tiki Barber and Ronde Barber

  Jacket design copyright © 2013 by Frank Morrison

  All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.

  SIMON & SCHUSTER BOOKS FOR YOUNG READERS is a trademark of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

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  Book design by Hilary Zarycky

  Jacket design by Krista Vossen

  Jacket illustration copyright © 2013 by Frank Morrison

  The text for this book is set in Egyptienne

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Barber, Tiki, 1975–

  Jump shot / Tiki and Ronde Barber ; with Paul Mantell.

  pages cm

  ISBN 978-1-4424-5729-4 (hardcover : alk. paper)

  ISBN 978-1-4424-5731-7 (eBook)

  1. Barber, Tiki, 1975– —Childhood and youth—Juvenile fiction.

  2. Barber, Ronde, 1975– —Childhood and youth—Juvenile fiction.

  [1. Barber, Tiki, 1975– —Childhood and youth—Fiction. 2. Barber, Ronde, 1975– —Childhood and youth—Fiction. 3. Basketball—Fiction.

  4. Teamwork (Sports)—Fiction. 5. Twins—Fiction. 6. Brothers—Fiction.

  7. African Americans—Fiction.] I. Barber, Ronde, 1975– II. Mantell, Paul. III. Title.

  PZ7.B23328Ju 2013

  [Fic]—dc23

  2013000110