Since the game against the Knicks we have not lost, we are 20-2.
-December 13, 2013
Cleveland. The city that was supposed to draft me. The team that passed on me. And the guy they took instead? Anthony Bennett.
-First Half
Right from the tip-off, I was in attack mode. First play of the game, I got the ball at the elbow, faced up Bennett, gave him a quick jab step, and then exploded to the rim for an easy dunk. "Too easy."
Next possession, I caught the ball on the perimeter, took a hard dribble inside, then hit a smooth step-back jumper right in his face. "Buckets."
The Cavs called a timeout early. Bennett? He looked frustrated already.
As I walked back to the bench, I passed by him."Hey man, they should've taken me, huh?"
He didn't say anything.
It only got worse for him. Every time he tried to guard me, I took him straight to work. Post-ups, fadeaways, spin moves—whatever I wanted, I got. By halftime, I already had 18 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists.
Meanwhile, Bennett? 4 points on 1-for-7 shooting.
-Second Half
At the start of the third quarter, Kyrie started heating up. He hit me with a smooth crossover into a floater, then pulled up from deep in transition.
"You know I gotta make this interesting, right?" Kyrie tells me.
I grinned. "Do what you gotta do."
But the Cavs still had no answer for me. Late in the third, I caught the ball on the break, saw Bennett trying to step in for a charge, and just took off.
Poster. Crowd silent.
I turned to look at him as I ran back on defense.
"Yeah… they definitely should've taken me. Even if it's better in Florida."
The Magic bench was going crazy.
-Fourth Quarter
Kyrie was doing everything to keep them in it, but we had control. I kept attacking, finding open teammates, cleaning up the boards.
Final two minutes, we were up by 15. Kyrie, exhausted, walked past me and shook his head. "You really cooked my guy."
I laughed. "Hey, you know it's all love."
The buzzer sounded. Final score: Magic 112 - Cavaliers 95.
I finished with 35 points, 15 rebounds, and 5 assists. Bennett? 7 points on 2-for-12 shooting.
-Postgame
After the game, I was heading toward the tunnel when Kyrie caught up to me. "Yo, next time you're in Cleveland, we gotta link up bro."
"For sure, bro. Hit my line." I answer him.
As I walked into the locker room, my phone was already blowing up with messages. The media? They were eating this up.
Tonight? This was personal.
A week and a few days have passed...
We are now in 26-3, but now I have a few days off because Christmas is approaching and I don't have a Christmas game.
For the first time in a while, I finally had a few days to breathe. No games, no back-to-backs, no travel—just some much-needed rest. With Christmas right around the corner and no game scheduled for the 25th, I decided to bring my family down to Orlando for the holidays.
I flew them out from New York—my dad Pete, my mom Martha, my sister Cee-Cee, and of course, Vic.
The moment they landed, Cee-Cee was already talking about hitting up the parks.
"Frank, if we don't go to Disney this time, I'm never letting you hear the end of it." I laughed.
"You're really about to make me spend my break in a theme park?" I say.
"Man, stop frontin'. You know you wanna see Mickey too." Vic argues.
We all burst out laughing.
The next few days were exactly what I needed—just time with my people, away from the noise of the NBA. We had dinner at my place, shared stories, and even went shopping.
One night, I took them to Lake Eola Park, where the whole area was lit up with Christmas lights. My mom held onto my dad's arm, just taking in the scenery.
"I still can't believe this is where you live now." Martha turns and says to me.
"You earned this, son. Enjoy it." Pete told me.
It hit me in that moment. Everything was moving so fast—I had barely taken time to just appreciate it all.
Cee-Cee nudged me.
"Bro, don't get all sentimental now. We still got Christmas morning coming up."
I smirked. "Yeah, yeah. Let's see if Santa brings you anything this year."
She rolled her eyes, and we kept walking through the park, soaking in the holiday spirit.
Christmas came and went in a blur of family time, laughter, and way too much food. It was exactly what I needed. But now, my parents and Cee-Cee were heading back to New York, while Vic decided to stick around in Orlando for a few more days.
We stood outside my apartment building, my mom giving me her usual last-minute motherly advice before leaving.
"Make sure you're eating right, Franklin. And don't just order takeout every day." my mother says.
"Ma, I got a chef now, remember?"
"That doesn't mean you're eating healthy." She tells me.
I just chuckled. My dad dapped me up.
"Proud of you, son. Keep handling business." My father says.
"Always." I assure him.
Cee-Cee hugged me tight. "Next time, I'm staying longer. And you still owe me that Disney trip."
I shook my head, laughing. "Alright, alright. Next time, I got you."
They got in their car to head to the airport, and just like that, the apartment felt a little quieter. Well, except for Vic, who was still standing there with his bags.
"You sure you don't wanna go back?"
"Nah, man. New York's cold as hell right now, and besides, I gotta enjoy my boy's NBA lifestyle for a little longer." Vic tells me.
I rolled my eyes. "Bro, it's not what you think. Half the time, I'm either at practice, in meetings, or sleeping."
"Yeah, yeah, but you also got a dope crib, access to everything, and no snow. So yeah, I'm staying."
I shook my head. "Man, just don't mess up my spot, alright?"
"Me? Come on, bro. I'm a guest of honor"
I just sighed.