Wheel Wizards (3 page)

Seth thought for a moment and realized it was true. “Yeah,” he admitted. “I can do things now, like getting in and out of
a car, pretty easily. It used to be a major effort.” The more he thought about it, the more he realized it was true.

“Anyway,” Danny said, “I want you to meet the other Wizards.”

“That'll be neat,” Seth replied. “Hey, there are players who can walk.”

“Sure,” said Danny. “If this was the adult division of the league, we'd get ratings according to how disabled we are. A guy
who can walk is in what they call Class III, and his rating is three points. If you're like Warren over there,” he continued,
pointing to a player with no legs, “you're Class I and have a rating of one point. No team can have a total of more than twelve
rating points on the floor at a time. It keeps things evenly matched. But in the junior division we're not rated.”

Danny waved to the guy who had walked over for a towel. “Yo, Gary! Come and meet my buddies.” Gary wheeled his chair over.
He had on a sweatshirt
that was cut off at the shoulders. While he was leaner than Danny, the muscles of his arms were impressive.

“Guys, this is Gary Vitaglio,” said Danny, before introducing Seth and Lou.

Gary shook hands, smiling. He studied Seth for a moment. “How long have you been in that chair?”

“Five months,” Seth replied.

Gary nodded. “I know it's rough, at first. I got hurt when I was eight, and I thought,
That's it, my life is over
. But, Seth, I'm telling you, I was wrong. You'll see. You can have a really good life. It's all a matter of attitude. Ask
anybody here.” He turned to another teammate who had come over to join them. “Right, Con? Seth and Lou, this is Con Addams.
He can shoot the lights out when he's hot … which is, like, once a month or so.”

Con grinned. “Look who's talking. If we had a rating system, Gary would get a minus three, and we could put two extra men
on the court.”

Con was square-faced and blond. A sweatband kept his hair out of his eyes. Seth found himself staring at Con's shrunken legs,
and he blushed.

Con noticed. “That's the way they've been all my life, so
I'm
used to them. They tell me it was a birth
defect. But, hey, we all have our problems, right, Gary?”

Gary and Con exchanged a low five. Gary said, “Con has big plans — he's going to be a star in two sports.”

“Right,” Con said. “I'm going to play basketball right through college and compete in the Paralympics some day.
And
I'm going to do marathons, too. Boston, New York, the biggies.”

“The Paralympics?” Lou asked.

“It's like the Olympics for disabled athletes. There are competitions in lots of events, for men and women. It's the big time
for wheelchair sports.”

Seth was impressed. He pointed to Con's chair. “That looks pretty hot.”

Con patted the chair arm. “The frame is made of a superlight alloy, like they use for racing-bike frames, and I just put on
these incredible wheels.” He pointed to the other end of the court. “I'm going to make those Rebels sweat tonight. They better
be
ready
.”

A shrill whistle rang out. “Uh-oh, it's that time,” Danny said. “See you later, Seth, Lou.”

“Nice meeting you,” added Gary.

“Enjoy the game,” Con said.

The three Wizards joined their teammates in a circle around their coach, a man in a wheelchair wearing a warmup suit.

Lou sat in the bottom row of the bleachers with Seth next to him as both teams began their regular pregame drills.

They started with a layup drill much like Seth was used to. The players formed two lines. The first in one line moved in for
a layup, dribbling if necessary. The leader of the second line raced forward to either get the rebound or pick up the ball
after the made basket and fed an assist to the next player in line number one, and so forth. Seth and Lou had seen and done
it many times.

Except, these guys were doing it in wheelchairs, maneuvering the chairs and handling the ball with incredible skill. Most
of the shots were made.

For a few minutes, both boys watched without saying a word. Finally, Lou spoke. “
Amazing!
”

Seth nodded. He had to admit it was impressive. The coach's whistle ended layups, and the players began a shootaround, taking
one- and two-handed shots, as well as hook shots, from various distances. Seth watched openmouthed as Gary Vitaglio raced
his chair toward midcourt at astonishing speed, leaning forward, hands pumping the wheels, and then used the heel of one hand
to brake one wheel, stopping the chair's forward motion and pivoting sharply.

Lou nudged Seth with an elbow. “See that guy with the blue shirt? He just made his fourth straight eighteen-footer! just with
arms and upper body! I'm not believing some of this!”

Seth was surprised to realize that he was looking forward to the game itself. He had expected the whole evening to be boring,
depressing, or both.

Con Addams came over to them. “How are you doing?”

“Fine,” replied Seth. “This is awesome! I can't believe the shooting, and the way you can move, the speed and how you stop
and spin. It's amazing!”

Con grinned. “You have any questions?”

“Are the rules any different?” From
real
.… uh, mean …”

“We call it ‘full-bodied’ basketball,” Con interrupted. “And the rules are basically the same: two points for most baskets,
except three points for shots from behind the three-point line, a point for free
throws, same fouls, same size court, same basket height, same basketball. Oh yeah, there's a thirty-five-second shot clock.
If you don't get a shot up that hits at least the rim or the backboard within thirty-five seconds of getting possession, that's
a turnover.” He scratched his head, thinking.

“There are a few things about height regulations for chair seats, the kinds of cushions you can use, stuff like that, but
mostly it's the same game.”

Seth saw that some other people were coming into the gym, including a group who carried a banner that read
Wizard Power!
!!

Con saw them and waved. He gestured to the group with a thumb and explained, “That's our official rooting section. Friends
and family who come to just about all the games.”

“How long are the games?” asked Seth.

“We play eight-minute quarters. The adults and college teams play twenty-minute halfs. Just like …, ” he stopped and grinned.
“Just like
red
ball.”

Con was about to go on when the coach called to him. He shrugged.

“Time to suit up and go over the game plan. See you later. Have fun!”

The two teams disappeared into the locker rooms as more people filed into the gym and sat in the bleachers around Seth and
Lou. Seth saw two girls unfold another banner. This one read
Rebels Rule!

“What do you think?” Lou asked.

“Ask me after the game is over,” Seth answered. He didn't want to admit yet that maybe he might have been wrong about wheelchair
basketball.

Among the spectators, he noted that there were a number in wheelchairs, seated, as he was, in front of the stands. There were
also plenty of able-bodied fans, too.

When the teams emerged on the court a few minutes later there were cheers, and fans called out encouragement. The Wizards'
jerseys were black and gold, while the Rebels' colors were red and blue. The teams huddled around their coaches, who both
used wheelchairs.

The Wizard coach seemed to be giving his group a pep talk and reminding them about the game plan. When he finished, the players
leaned forward and joined hands.

The coach said something Seth couldn't catch, and the Wizards barked out, “
Teamwork!
” Five
players moved out onto the court, leaving the six others on the sideline.

At the other end, the Rebels shouted, “
Play tough!
” Their starters came on. One of the two refs tossed a coin. The Wizard captain called, “Heads,” and won the toss, meaning
that the Wizards would put the ball inbounds to begin the game.

At the moment a Wizard inbounded the ball — a bounce pass to Danny — Gary sped downcourt as hard as he could, head forward,
sinewy arms working like pistons. Two Rebels shot off in pursuit, but the Wizards had caught them off guard. Danny fired a
baseball pass. Gary looked back just in time to see the ball, grabbed it, dribbled once, and laid it in for two points.

The Wizard fans cheered, waving their banner, and Seth found that he was cheering, too. He and Lou exchanged grins.

The Rebels moved the ball upcourt more deliberately, while one muscular, heavyset boy moved into the paint under the Wizard
basket. Lou leaned over to Seth and said, “It must be hard to force a guy that big outside.”

Seth nodded. “Yeah, looks like size and strength
make a huge difference in wheelchair hoops, just like in regular basketball.”

As the Rebels advanced, making use of several passes, the Wizard coach yelled out, “Where's the ball?
Watch the ball!
”

Sure enough, as Seth and Lou had expected, the Rebels got the ball to the big guy in the middle, and three Wizards converged
on him. But, instead of shooting, the guy passed to another Rebel directly behind him. Then he raised his arms, creating a
huge obstacle. Con tried desperately to get around him to block the shot.

Lou whistled. “Great pick! He's like a wall out there in the paint.”

The Rebel shot rolled off the rim. But the player who had set the pick grabbed the ball and passed to a teammate, who tried
to move toward the basket along the baseline. Con moved in to block him and the chairs collided.

A ref's whistle stopped play.

“That's a charge,” Lou guessed.

But Seth shook his head. “I think Con was still moving. It's on him.”

Sure enough, the ref pointed to Con. “That's blocking on black, number eight.”

Con winced but said nothing, and the Rebels in-bounded the ball.

As the game went on, Seth found himself getting more and more involved, cheering whenever the other Wizard rooters cheered,
exchanging high fives with Lou when his team (as he now thought of them) scored or made a good defensive play. He was fascinated
by the way in which the players set picks, screened off, went from man-to-man defense to zones, and, in general, played the
same kind of basketball he knew and loved.

At halftime, Lou asked, “You bored?”

“
Bored
?” Seth laughed. “Are you kidding? This is great.” He thought for a moment. “Uh, I guess I was wrong about this game, wasn't
I?”

Lou smiled. “I guess so. How about finding out how you can start playing yourself?”

“Absolutely!” Seth felt more excited, more alive, than he had in a long time. “Right after the game, I'm going to talk to
Danny and those guys about what I should do.”

During the second half, the lead moved back and forth, never going above four points. Both coaches substituted freely, and
every player got in some time. Danny scored two baskets, but his main role was setting up plays and passing. Gary seemed to
be the fastest of the Wizards, while Con played stubborn defense and forced some turnovers. The Wizards finally went ahead
to stay and won the game, 39–36.

After members of the teams had shaken hands and fans were talking to the players, Danny and Gary came up to Seth and Lou,
who congratulated them.

Seth was so excited, he couldn't find words. “This was … You guys are… “

Danny and Gary grinned at each other. “Guess you liked it, huh?” Danny said.

“
Liked
it?” Seth wheeled closer to the two Wizards. “I want to play! Is there any way I could get on your team?”

Danny raised his hands. “Whoa! Take it easy. There's no way you're ready yet.”

“But —”

“First of all, you're not old enough to play on a team like this,” said Gary “And you're not in shape.”

Seth felt terrible, and it showed in his face. Danny noticed.

“Don't get us wrong. You
can
play this game, someday. But you're going to have to get yourself ready. You need to train for it. Don't think it'll be easy,
either. It's a tough road. But you can do it, if you want to.”

Gary nodded agreement. “Like I said before, it's, all in the attitude. Set yourself a goal, get your head in the right place,
and it'll happen.” He glanced at Danny. “We'd better get to the locker room.”

Danny shook hands with Seth and Lou. “Listen,” he said, “I'll be in touch.”

Seth watched them go, feeling let down. Lou looked curiously at his friend. “What's the matter? I thought you'd be pumped
about tonight.”

“I was,” Seth said, “until they blew me off like they did.”

“Oh, come on! They didn't do that at all! They just said you have to get ready. And you
can
. If it's worth it to you.”

“Are you kidding?
Sure
it's worth it!”

Lou smiled. “Then do it! You're the
man!
”

B
rian Murtaugh leaned back in his chair and studied Seth. ‘Well, how's it going?”

“Pretty good, I guess,” Seth replied. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Why?” Brian smiled. “I just asked you how it's going and you said, ‘Pretty good.’”

“Yeah. So?”

“So, that's the first time since you started coming here that you've had anything positive to say. You took me by surprise.”

“Really?” It was Seth's turn to be surprised. “The
first time
?”

Brian nodded. “I think I'll mark it in red on my calendar. So, naturally, I want to know how come you feel pretty good.”

Seth thought for a moment. “I don't know. I just … feel better today, that's all.”

“Uh-huh.” Brian ran a hand through his hair. “You just woke up this morning and decided you felt better? That's it?”

“Well,” Seth said, grinning, “there
was
something else.”

Brian snapped his fingers. “
A-hahl
I had a hunch there
was
something else. What was the something else?”