LANDON: We had to smooth some things out early on, but now it’s all good. I love being able to watch him play first hand, day-in, day-out. That’s special.
RAWLEY: Plus I’m the best chef in the family so he keeps me around for that reason too.
LANDON: No disagreement there.
JALEN: Let’s get into some football now. Rawley, you finished the three preseason games with four touchdowns, which definitely caught notice. But most importantly, you had a fantastic first regular season game this weekend. Eighty-nine yards, six catches, and a touchdown. Does it feel like redemption after everything that happened in the draft?
RAWLEY: I mean, I don’t really think about things that way. I’m not driven by revenge, or whatever. I know some guys would be.
JALEN: What does motivate you?
RAWLEY: These days, I’m fired up by the team goals we have, being a part of it. Individually, I’m trying to stay focused on what I can control, improving as a rookie. In college, I was much more susceptible to outside opinions.
LANDON: And there was no shortage of those.
RAWLEY: Yeah. I’m not perfect at blocking everything out, but I’m trying not to worry about that outside noise, or about letting other people down. Instead, I’m putting my attention on how I can get better.
JALEN: Well, you’re certainly off to a strong start.
JALEN: Landon, turning to the Waves next few games, how do…
48
AVERY
WNBA CHAMPIONSHIPS - OCTOBER (ANOTHER FIVE WEEKS LATER)
“We’resoclose. Everyone lock in for forty-one more seconds,” Sarah says in the huddle.
It’s Game Six of the WNBA Championships, and those forty-one seconds? It’s the time remaining in the fourth quarter. If we hold off Washington for that much longer, we’re this year’s title winners, since we’re leading 3-2 in the seven-game series.
Currently we’re up five points, so the chances are good.
“No stupid mistakes,” Wendy reinforces.
It’s Washington’s ball coming off of the timeout, so there’s a chance they’ll score and narrow the lead.
When the ref blows her whistle, we get in position on the court.
The Washington point guard throws the in-bounds pass to their forward, who Marisa is defending. They pass it two more times before my counterpart, their shooting guard, catches it.
We’re outside the three-point line, so I weigh whether she’ll go for the shot, drive to the basket, or pass again.She’s always itching to be the hero,I think.So probably the three-pointer.
I’m proven right when she’s up in the air a split second later. I follow, trying to get a hand in her face.
Whether because of my defending or just a poor shot, the ball bounces off the rim, and Wendy snags the rebound.
“Go,” Amari calls out to us. Meaning—get back to our side.
We hustle down to our part of the court, still thirty-five seconds on the clock.
Amari quickly swings the ball to Sarah, who’s immediately double-teamed. She somehow finds a window to whip the ball to me.
Shoot or pass? Shoot or pass?
The Washington defender is playing me tight, like I’m going to take the shot from here, a fourteen-foot jumper. Her close proximity, and the distraction Sarah is providing for two other Washington players, gives me a better option.
Namely, to drive to the basket. I do a dribble move that trips up the woman on me, then cut to the basket, executing a simple layup once close enough.
