I Love This Game

I LOVE THIS GAME

Elizabeth Romero Stanley

Copyright © 2022 by Elizabeth Romero Stanley

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher at the address below.

[email protected]

*****

Dear Reader:

I want to thank you for choosing to read this book. I am hopeful that you will enjoy taking Peyton’s journey with her.

Throughout this book, I use basketball terminology to tell Peyton’s story. To help those unfamiliar with the great game of basketball, I have included a basketball dictionary at the back of this book. If there are any basketball terms you do not know, just flip to the back of the book to learn the unfamiliar concepts.

After you finish this book, I do hope you choose to head to your nearest library or book store and find another book to read. There is so much one can learn and discover while reading. So, always stay curious and keep reading!

~ Elizabeth R. Stanley

In Remembrance of Franchise – #33!

Contents

Preface

1. Get Up!

2. A Girl's Best Friend

3. Ok, I am up!

4. Bro Time?

5. Change is Inevitable

6. One on One

7. Game Over

8. Who Needs Sleep?

9. One Door Closes Another One Opens

10. Perfect Practice Makes Perfect

11. School. Practice. Repeat.

12. Girls Play Basketball?

13. I Always Hurry to This Class

14. Yes, Girls Play Basketball!

15. First Choice

16. Time to Find Another Coach

17. Game Point

18. Back to the Blacktop

19. Meeting the Coach

20. New Friends. New Teammates

21. Silver Squad

22. Game Time!

23. Game Film

24. Uptown Jamboree 

25. For the 'Ship

26. Defense Wins Championships

27. One Shining Moment

28. Epilogue

29. Acknowledgments

30. Thank You

31. Hoop Dictionary

32. Key Basketball Positions

33. Basketball Court

34. About the Author

35. References

Preface

Have you ever been in a close relationship with someone and then that relationship just seemed to change overnight? One day, you are super close to someone you loved one and then, the very next day, that person treats you like a stranger or an uninvited guest.

My name is Peyton and, when I was nine years old, this happened to me. Throughout my entire life, I was super close to my older brother, Jaxon. I considered my brother to be my best friend. Jaxon and I did everything together until one day, I woke up, and he began pushing me away. It happened shortly after he had turned 13. Suddenly, Jaxon was mean to me and began spending all his time with his friends. His interests revolved around them (and only them). I went from being his cute little sister - to his annoying little sister - literally overnight.

I went to bed one evening, after a fun day of trail hiking, bug exploring, and dog chasing with Jaxon, and I woke up the following day to being completely ignored. That morning, when I asked Jaxon what our plans were for the day, his response was, "Peyton, I am going to be hanging out with MY friends. Maybe you should get YOUR OWN friends and quit bugging me. I am done being your babysitter!" Jaxon's words made me cry. From that day on, Jaxon was mean to me.

Here’s an example of Jaxon's meanness: my brother and I shared kitchen chores. I was responsible for rinsing the dishes and loading them into the dishwasher. Jaxon cleared the dinner table and cleaned the kitchen. After that fateful morning, when everything between us unexpectedly changed, instead of working together, Jaxon would clear all the dishes from the dinner table, set them on the counter, and then quickly exit the kitchen. When I finished loading the dishwasher, Jaxon returned to the kitchen and insisted I leave him alone. Before this, we enjoyed doing our chores together. Then Mean Jaxon showed up and he couldn’t even stand to be in the same room as me. I got pretty lonely!

To give you another example, one day, Jaxon was playing basketball in our driveway with his friends. As I was turning into the driveway, my bike tire hit the curb, and I crashed hard in front of Jaxon and his friends. Instead of helping me or even making sure I was okay, Jaxon, along with his mean friends, laughed and made fun of me as I was bleeding. All the guys called me Crash for the next few weeks until my father insisted they stopped. I was equally hurt, embarrassed, and angry. The whole experience was devastating. Even now, my heart breaks a little when I think about that day.

I call the time when my brother was the meanest person on the planet, the Mean Jaxon Years. During the Mean Jaxon Years, I was very unhappy. In an attempt to even the score, I went out of my way to try and make Jaxon feel as upset as he was making me. I am sure this only made matters worse, especially for our parents.

I was 12 years old and in sixth grade when the following story began and the Mean Jaxon Years finally ended. This is the story of how I made it through three years with Mean Jaxon and, along the way, I fell in love - with basketball.

Chapter one

Get Up!

Like most days, my very deep and peaceful sleep was rudely interrupted by my mother shouting from her room, Good morning, Peyton! Time to get up and get ready! To say I was completely unmotivated to leave the comforts of my bed, for a cheerleading event on a Saturday morning, well, that was a BIG understatement.

So, I just pretended to not hear my mom's wake up call. I knew eventually I’d be forced to get up and get ready, but in that moment, I decided to ignore my mom completely.

My brother, Jaxon, was already up and dressed for his AAU basketball tournament. My brother was 15, super annoying, and played power forward on his basketball team; the very team I was expected to cheer for that day.

Jaxon seemed to be losing interest in basketball, but he remained close to his teammates, many of whom were his best friends. Jaxon and 'the guys' spent a lot of time together and, unfortunately, they often did so at our house. I found the guy very loud and extremely intimidating!

That cheer season, I had begun to feel like a total loser. The reason for this was simple, I was a cheerleader for Jaxon’s team, and he hated me. Everything I did just managed to get on Jaxon's nerves; this included me cheering at his games. As if I that did not feel like a loser enough, it was my own fault I was on the dang cheerleading team. When I was asked if I wanted to join cheerleading, I quickly replied, YES! because I actually believed that, if I cheered for Jaxon and his team, he would stop hating me.

That was just wishful thinking, of course, as Jaxon managed to grow even more and more distant from me. Which is why, even though my mom insisted that I get up, I decided to stay comfortably buried under my blankets. I had hoped my mom would forget about me and just head to the tournament without me, and I would never have to cheer for my brother’s team ever again.

That was just more wishful thinking.

As I had feared, my mom found me and urged me to get going. She said, Come on, sweetheart, time to get up and get ready. You don’t want to make us late. But she was WRONG! I absolutely did not care if we were late. If she really cared about what I wanted, she would not make me go at all!

Then, my mom shouted in her SCARY MOM VOICE: Come on, Peyton, move it! You are going to make us late. Time to get ready. I SAID, 'GET UP!' NOW! From her tone, I could tell my mom was getting more irritated with each passing minute. BUT STILL, I DID NOT MOVE, which was not like me at all.

Chapter two

A Girl's Best Friend

Mom, I think I’m sick! I said in a (very) fake, hoarse voice. I clearly needed to work on my acting skills if I ever expected to get away with faking an illness.

My mom didn’t buy my story at all. She quickly snapped, Oh please, Peyton, we both know you are not sick. NOW GET MOVING!

Just then, my best (furry) friend jumped on my bed and started licking my face. I giggled while begging for mercy from my dog, Atticus, or Atti, as we usually call him. Atti had just returned from his jog with my dad. I am always happy when I see Atticus and, even that morning, when I was feeling extra annoyed with the world, he was able to quickly change my grumpy mood to a happy mood. I tell ya, my dog is the greatest!

Atticus was sort of rescued from the ASPCA. His first family, the Andersons, were going through a VERY rough time. Their 16-year-old daughter, Maddie, was battling cancer. They made the incredibly difficult decision to re-home Atti because they didn’t have enough time and energy to devote to him anymore. Before Maddie got sick, the Andersons did a really great job training Atticus.

So, how did I end up with this amazing dog? Good question. Sadly, when Maddie became too sick to play with Atticus and the family was spending so much time at the hospital, they thought Atticus deserved a more attentive and energetic family. They decided to find the perfect new home for Atti. They offered Atticus to their friends and family, but no one had the time, space, and energy Atticus needed.

As luck would have it, I had just turned 10, and my parents promised I could go and pick out a dog from the shelter (FINALLY!). Our family had plenty of energy, lived near a park, and had a half-acre backyard with a new fence. We were a perfect fit for Atticus.

When we arrived at the ASPCA, I saw Atticus being led to the entrance. I know Atticus was sad to be leaving his first family, but I promise you, he picked us to be his next family. Why else would we have arrived at the same time?

Atticus and I bonded at