A few other players filtered in and patted her on the back. Everyone had a different game-day ritual. Some players were hyped with adrenaline already flowing and could be a little too loud for her. She preferred to spend a quiet moment appreciating their state of the art dressing facility and her equipment. Most of her teammates knew she took this focused approach on game-day and simply saidhelloorsee you on the court.
Ariana got up and took the walk through the hallway until it opened up to their entrance onto the gym floor. She stopped and looked up into the vast arena and smiled. In a few hours the stands would be full and the noise level would be off the charts.The excitement from all the fans, coaches, support staff, and players would be like a current of electricity humming through the arena.
She slowly walked over to a rack of balls then wheeled it out onto the court. Out of nowhere a few of their practice squad personnel appeared to rebound for her if necessary. One reason Ariana liked to get there early was to shoot from her favorite spots on the court and hear thewhooshof the net as she connected or the clang of the rim when she missed. The sound the bouncing ball made on the court would echo for a few moments either way.
Ariana emptied the rack and, without asking, two of the practice squad players positioned themselves under the basket to throw the balls back to her. She smiled at the comfort of this routine and began to shoot from near and far as she dribbled around the court.
“Let’s do a few long ones,” she said. She dribbled to half court then took a couple of steps and let the ball fly. She made a few to the cheers of others coming onto the court.
Her teammates began to join her for shootaround, testing their shots from various places on their end of the court.
“Are they all going in?” Cameron asked, dribbling up next to her.
Ariana chuckled. “You know it.”
“Don’t waste any out here during shootaround,” Cameron teased. “You want to save all the good ones for the game.”
Ariana laughed as balls flew around them on their way to the basket.
“Want to run through a few passes?” Cameron asked.
Ariana nodded. One advantage of playing together for so many years was that they both knew what they liked to practice during shootaround. Ariana waited while Cameron took a fewshots then they simulated different passes Ariana would make to Cameron as she cut to the basket during the game.
A little later several players began to line up at the free throw line. Ariana took a few free throws and stepped back so her other teammates could toe the line.
While they had been shooting, most of the LA players were on the other end of the floor doing the same thing at the other basket. Ariana met several of the players she knew at mid court and talked for a few moments.
There were quite a few people on the sidelines getting everything ready and tested for the game. Ariana walked back down to where her teammates were still shooting and dribbled a ball as she watched. She could usually tell during shootaround if one or more of her teammates were ready for a big game. It was her job as the point guard and playmaker on the court to be aware of how her teammates were feeling. Were they loose and ready to go? Or did they appear stressed and nervous?
“Hey, your favorite commentator is at the table,” Cameron said, sidling up next to her.
Ariana glanced over to the long table that took up most of one side of the court. This was where the game officials, commentators, announcer, and other personnel sat during the game. She saw Nicole Neal dressed in jeans and a hoodie talking to several of the LA players. She would nod and smile while one of the players spoke.
“Shouldn’t you go over and say hello since she said all those nice things about you?” Cameron teased.
Ariana smirked. “They don’t want to talk to me. I’m not the star.”
“Hell yes you are,” Cameron said. “Just wait until they see what you’re going to do today.”
Ariana chuckled. She prided herself on her passing skills and getting the ball to open players for easy points. OccasionallyAriana would shoot when she was open, but she wasn’t the most prolific scorer on the team.
This season the coaches had encouraged her to shoot more and this was a little out of her comfort zone. They’d practiced several plays just for her and she’d worked on her shot during the off season. Ariana was confident in her game and hoped today this new skill in her arsenal would benefit her team. That’s one thing everyone knew about Ariana: she was the ultimate team player.
She glanced over at Nicole Neal several times and noticed the ease with which she conversed with players and coaches.
“It’s a shame you won’t be able to hear what she says about us during the game,” Cameron said.
“Oh but we will later tonight,” Ariana said, letting a shot fly and smiling as it whooshed through the net. She looked at Cameron. “You know I’m recording the game. I’ll be able to start studying what worked and what didn’t as soon as we get home.”
“You mean after we all go out for a celebratory dinner with the team,” Cameron replied.
“Hell yeah!” Ariana held up her hand and Cameron high-fived her.
They started towards the dressing room and Ariana glanced over her shoulder just in time to see Nicole look her way. She smiled and disappeared down the tunnel to the hallway.
Nicole hung her garment bag in the small closet provided in the commentators’ dressing area. This was one of the premier facilities in the league. They didn’t wear their on-air clothes to the arena and sometimes the area they changed in was sparse.
“Hey partner,” Shealyn said, walking into the room. “I’ve always loved coming here.”
