Derrick saw Declan's grin widen as he approached. It had been about ten minutes since the end of Declan's game and Derrick couldn't be happier for his best friend. Declan had been the object of a lot of chatter in the player's stands and Derrick imagined it was the same for the spectator stands as well.

"Dude," Derrick said as the two exchanged their signature handshake, "that was badass."

Declan adopted a sly look. "Complimenting the enemy? This is new territory for you."

"Got to lure you into thinking you could easily beat us, is all."

Declan laughed. "I bet you were sitting there studying all our weaknesses and my teammates' tendencies. All that nerding crap you like to do."

Derrick smirked. "Maybe." 

Declan was right of course. Derrick had made a bunch of mental notes on both teams but mostly Declan's. Things like Aaron's tendency to hop to the left when he met traffic driving to the rim and how he sometimes dipped the ball low when waiting for a play to develop with his back to the basket.

"But you were definitely right, Aaron is a great player." Derrick pushed down the surfacing jealousy and forced a smile. It was only right that he'd prefer playing with the best weapon he had ever played with. "Imagine all of us on the same team. Your playmaking and IQ, his inside scoring touch, my shooting - we'd be unstoppable!" Declan continued, catching Derrick by surprise.

Declan seemed to mistake Derrick's surprise for skepticism. "I know it seems like Aaron is a playmaker but I'm positive he wouldn't mind giving you the role. He seems like a cool person and once he sees you play he can't deny your ability."

Derrick grinned. "I bet."

Just then, a man wearing a T-shirt with Preston Camp emblazed in the middle approached the pair. "Declan, you and Aaron are asked to attend a post-game conference in the media room."

"S-sure," Declan stammered out as the man moved on hurriedly.

Declan looked at Derrick with wide eyes, mouthing the words post-game conference. The two used to be glued to their screens watching various superstars give post-game conferences in the NBA. It had become a bit of a ritual for the pair and Derrick's father to study the responses and point out how a player's personality leaked through their answers. Now, after playing a phenomenal game, it had only set in for Declan once he heard those words.

Derrick pat him on the back, his cheeks threatening to bruise from his wide smile. "Go get 'em. We've been training for this moment, so don't go and make us look like fools."

Declan still seemed dumbstruck but he managed a snappy reply. "Damn right, your father would kill me."

 Declan numbly started in the direction of the media room with Derrick watching on, his smile never fading. To another eye, Declan might've seemed his normal cheery self - but Derrick could tell he was struggling to compose himself. It was so weird he felt no pressure on the court, but off it, he did in the weirdest ways.

"I wish I had someone who could give such a genuine supportive smile like you," a voice said from directly behind Derrick, jumping him out of his thoughts.

Derrick turned to find Thomas Wayne grinning at him. The boy had already changed into a plain red shirt and black and red tracksuit pants.

"You played really well, too," Derrick said, not quite sure what to say. 

Talk about an understatement.

Thomas smiled good-naturedly. "Thank you." He had a way of speaking that held a kind and sincere tone that made a person want to let their guard down. "You did a great job running the offense today."

Derrick scratched his head, pleasantly surprised. It wasn't every day a five-star complimented a three-star after all. "Wow. That means a lot coming from you, Thomas. I don't think anything I did could compare to how you kept your team afloat though."

"It's just a matter of switching gears," Thomas said with a thoughtful expression. "I think that's something you're missing too. The ability to switch gears."

"You mean pacing yourself during a game?" Derrick asked, getting his mental notepad ready. He loved soaking up any information or advice he could get and Thomas had more than proven himself as a credible source.

"Not quite. It's more so knowing when to be aggressive, and how aggressive to be. You operate in the first and second gears; getting your teammates involved, making sure they're in rhythm while taking an occasional shot when it's given to you by the defense." He paused, his eyes taking on a faraway look as if he were working out a complicated equation. "Gears look different for everyone. For example, you can't score like me so you're highest gear will never quite look like mine...I don't know if this is all making sense." 

As Thomas focused back on Derrick's face, he almost jumped back at how intense the boy looked as he nodded. "It does actually. You're saying the key to taking over a game is mastering how much effort to expend and in what area the effort should be focused."

Thomas grinned. His face beamed so bright that it would've challenged the sun if it could've breached the arena. "Exactly! I've never gotten someone to understand me when I go on my rants. Players tend to be guided by their instinct and experience, rather than bothering to think about the hows and whats once they leave the court."

Derrick nodded vigorously, it was an observation he had made himself.

The same staff guy who had instructed Declan to go to the media room passed again and a frown surfaced as he noticed Thomas. "Thomas, the guys are waiting in the media room," he said in a tone that indicated it wasn't his first time telling him.

"Right, my bad," Thomas said, gracefully brushing off the man's annoyance. He gave Derrick a little wave. "We have to continue this conversation another time, for sure."

"I'll be looking forward to it."

≫ ──────── ≪•◦ ❈ ◦•≫ ──────── ≪

"What the hell are you doing up?" Declan asked. He was still in his basketball pajamas and his eyes looked like they would shut back down any second.

"I'm going on the bus," Derrick replied. He was already dressed from head to toe and had just come out of the bathroom from brushing his teeth.

Declan glanced at the clock on top of the drawer with a groan and saw it read 7:50 am. "Dude, I know you're convinced coaches are watching who attends on their off days, and you're probably right as usual, but I'm sure attending the evening games will have that same effect."

"I'm not doing this for approval. I have to check out the other teams that didn't play yesterday."

Declan grumbled and buried his head back into his pillow. "Whatever, have fun."

On the bus, Derrick noticed that the numbers had significantly dwindled. It was like people having New Year's resolutions. 

In the beginning, staying motivated when the idea of the goal was fresh was easy, but it slowly began to take more and more willpower, which was uncomfortable for those pursuing the idea and not the actual goal.

Still, there were some high-profile faces Derrick recognized. It was at least a little satisfying to see not all of the stars were slacking.

By the time Derrick reached the arena, some of the teams were already warming up. As he was deciding on which matchup he wanted to watch between the two courts, he felt a sturdy hand rest on his shoulder.

"Glad to see you here, Derrick" Leo boomed.

"Likewise," Derrick replied. "You here to scout some teams, too?"

Leo nodded. "I figure I should get an idea of how my individual matchups like to score and learn how best to attack them."

"That's good thinking."

"I also think that it's important you and I work together. The way it's looking is the ball will work through either me or you for most of the game. Us being on the same page can be a very important plus to our success."

Derrick studied him. The towering Leo seemed determined, holding the same focused expression he did on the court when he was trying to get intoT scoring position. He held out a hand for Derrick to shake and Derrick did so earnestly.

The two decided to attend the west court which featured Elijah Baucher versus the highest-ranked player in the camp: Tyrone Higgins. With two extra-large egos that possessed the two stars, the game felt more like a one-versus-one at times than a team game.

It turned out that Elijah wasn't only good at making Derrick look silly, but generally, anyone who stepped in front of him ran a high risk of getting overpowered or outmaneuvered by the surprisingly nimble beast.

However, Tyrone Higgins stole Elijah's show this time around. Derrick was positive Tyrone could have a decent shot at scoring twenty points on any high school defense with one hand tied behind his back. 

He was simply that good.

His offensive game had no rhythm to it at all. He could score from any level and he did so with awkward pauses and a tendency to take ridiculous off-balance shots that found the bottom of the net more often than not. The cherry on top was his defense - which though not as strong as his offense, was solid with his great knack for racking up steals.

His weakness came down to teamwork which was no doubt a symptom of his colossal ego. He only passed if he absolutely had to. Tyrone even selfishly took on some double teams - which to be fair, he beat more often than not. 

Even his advice was laced with arrogance. He packaged the advice in harsh insults when scolding a teammate for messing up. 

Still, his team - the Hellhounds prevailed 80 - 68 after a three from Tyrone at the buzzer which he did not need to shoot. Tyrone finished with 45 points himself and Elijah with 37.

"I'm glad I didn't end up on a team with someone like them," Leo said with a shake of his head. "We'd be clashing often."

Derrick didn't doubt it.

"I just don't understand how they expect to win like that," Leo continued.

"I wouldn't go that far," Derrick said. "From the outside, it looks dysfunctional and chaotic but I'd say there's an order to those chaos. Tyrone leads through dominance, commanding his teammates to fall in line without room for kind encouragement. It works well for certain individuals, even more so than a kind leader."

Leo thought about it for a second. "I guess it would work for spineless players."

Derrick said nothing. He was sure if he had ended up on Tyrone's team, he would be one of those 'spineless' players who did their best to keep up with their ruthless leader.

Derrick noticed Kyle making a beeline for them as they descended the bleachers. He gave Derrick a nod and then turned to Leo. "You ready?"

"Can Derrick come?" Leo asked, earning a quizzical look from Derrick. "Kyle knows the area and he says there's a local court within walking distance. Probably gonna have locals scrimmaging there but I figured we could get some runs in and stay warm."

Kyle shrugged, his expression as indifferent as ever. "I don't mind."

Derrick considered the offer. No doubt the camp's insurance wouldn't cover him if he ended up injured at some random court. However, he had been wondering how he'd stay in rhythm on the off days and couldn't pass down this chance to stretch his legs.

"You mind if I call someone else to join us?" Derrick asked.

"Sure. Maybe I should ask Laine if he wants to join us too, I saw him further down in the stands."

Leo went looking for Laine while Derrick called Declan who he knew wouldn't pass up an opportunity to hoop either.

An hour later, after waiting for Declan to arrive on the bus, the four players followed Kyle who did indeed lead them to a nice court. Being from Illinois, Derrick was accustomed to a rough style of streetball and wasn't too worried he might face physicality that he couldn't handle.

Thankfully, only about three full teams were present so they didn't have to wait long. None of them were particularly famous enough to be known by California locals, so no one recognized any of them nor seemed particularly intimidated.

Derrick couldn't blame them.

Laine and Declan were two whiteboys with Laine especially looking like he was a tennis player, rather than being dedicated to basketball. Derrick himself was probably up there with the least intimidating at his  5'10 height. Kyle looked more athletically inclined and 6'10 Leo was certain to raise some eyebrows.

After playing in the Preston Invitational the competition that locals provided with their lack of dedication to the sport was laughable. Even not going a hundred percent, none of the teams could hold a candle to Derrick's squad. Leo could score at will whenever he wanted, and Declan was dragging his feet, not even trying hard to get open. Laine even beat his defenders off the dribble a couple of times, to his team's amusement.

The runs weren't much in terms of improvement, but it did provide some exercise and confidence-building moments.

Derrick focused on a move his father had hammered into his head. The floater. His father called it his own special move and he reiterated its importance for a player of Derrick's height often. If he was going to try to score more, he'd do well to listen to his father's advice.

Derrick and Leo shared a smile after a wrap-around pass from Derrick that surprised the stunned defenders and allowed Leo a clear lane for a slam dunk. The two bumped fists before realizing Kyle had stolen the ball and flicked it back to Laine who took a deep three without hesitation.

As the ball gracefully slid through the net, Derrick's smile widened. The Court Kings didn't possess the most star power in the competition - to put it mildly, but perhaps they could find another equation to pull off wins.

They had to.