Vinny pulled a metal cart filled with basketballs from the storage room, grabbed one, and approached the hoop. He took a shot, and the ball swished through the net. He then moved back to the free throw line and made another shot, though this time the ball bounced off the backboard before going in. Vinny retrieved the ball and returned to his original position, where he made another swish. Back at the free throw line, he took his form again, and this time the shot had a perfect arc, with the ball only grazing the net. After picking up the ball again, he moved to the three-point line. With his form steady, he released the ball at the height of his jump, and while the shot had a great trajectory, it grazed the rim before going in. Returning to his original spot, Vinny muttered to himself.
Vinny: "I'm out of form."
Vinny was doing a shooting drill that night, replicating a famous training routine by Stephen Curry, where he shoots from five positions on the court at three distances: layup range, mid-range, and three-point line. Each shot had to be a swish just touching the net otherwise, he had to start over, hitting five shots from each spot. Vinny hadn't focused on shooting practice for a while, as most of his workouts were centered on ball-handling and layups. But now, he realized that such a limited skill set wouldn't cut it against players like Kobbie. He took out his headphones, put them in, and turned on some music. Vinny repeated the same motions over and over, determined to complete the drill.
While Vinny was training, Ace found himself in a difficult situation. After arriving home, the deep voice from the other room called out to him it was his father. Ace walked in, knowing this could only be about two things: either his father had found out that Ace had stolen money or it was about his grades in school. Judging by the look on his father's face, Ace knew it was the worst of the two. He stood in front of his father and said.
Ace: "Yes, what did you need?"
His father angrily responded: "You know very well why I'm calling you. Your sister told me everything." (We flash back to the scene from chapter 6 where Ace was stealing money from his parents. His sister had been watching him the whole time from the doorway and later she pretended not to see anything, but after father came home she told him everting to win more favor and hoping to get more privileges at home.)
His father continued, "First, you don't study, you skip classes, you're always on that computer, and now you're stealing from your own parents. Not only that, but you think you can sneak out and run away after stealing and hoping I'd be asleep when you came back home? Tell me why you stole the money. I've always thought I had a failure for a son now I've got a kleptomaniac too. What's next, drugs? Why can't you be like other kids? You're just set on ruining your life. Answer me! Why did you steal the money?"
At that moment, Ace's phone vibrated.
Ace pulled out his phone, completely ignoring his father, unsure of what to say. He unlocked it and saw that Hao had added him to a group chat called "Big Ticket."
This infuriated his father even more: "Now you're ignoring me too? I asked you why you stole the money!"
Ace, still unsure of how to respond, muttered: "I needed it... I had a debt to pay off."
His father misunderstood this completely: "Now you're in debt too? What's next? Gambling away the whole house"
After saying that, he slapped Ace and yelled: "Get out of my house! I don't want anything to do with a failure like you. Go hang out with your loser friends!"
Ace was left stunned by the slap, standing there in shock. He knew his father was 100% serious and that he shouldn't defy him, but he had no idea where to go.
While Ace dealt with his problems, Vinny continued his training. By now, he had taken over 100 shots but was still nowhere near finishing the drill. The whole time, he wondered how Curry could do this every day and finish it in half an hour. The man really was a monster. Maybe it was talent, or maybe it was hard work or maybe hard work is talent? Vinny got lost in these thoughts as he continued his intense shooting routine. He kept shooting and shooting, but the furthest he got was eight consecutive makes before missing and having to start over. He didn't give up, driven by the thought of the scrimmage from earlier, which pushed him to take yet another shot. He wasn't just envious of Hao he was also envious of Kobbie. Even though he knew how good Kobbie was from playing together in high school, tonight he realized Kobbie wasn't even playing at 10% of his potential. And then there was Alvaro. Maybe they were like Curry too was it talent, or was it hard work? Vinny had always wanted to know the answer to that question.
Time passed, and the number of shots Vinny took kept rising. He needed just one solid streak of focus and luck to finish the drill. After countless shots, it became clear he was getting closer and closer. Finally, the moment of triumph arrived Vinny hit 15 consecutive swishes from 15 different spots, completing the workout. Sweat poured down his face as he pulled out his headphones and wiped his face and body with his shirt. It was nighttime, so he didn't mind heading home shirtless. Vinny packed up all the equipment, turned off the lights in the gym, and locked the large metal doors behind him.
As soon as Vinny left the gym, his phone rang. He picked it up and answered.
Vinny: "Hello?"