Advantage Disadvantage (6 page)

After things settled down and the cousins finished
catching-up, Bobby turned to Marcus and thanked him for
intervening. He listened to Marcus’ arrest situation and
sympathetically stated that Marcus should not have been arrested
for a misunderstanding like that. He befriended him and in the next
few hours, they talked about the parts of the city where each grew
up. Marcus talked with great pride about Jamal, his 7
^th
grade son.

Bobby G. asked if his son was a baller and without
disclosing his line of business, he told Marcus that he was loosely
associated with high school basketball.

“Jamal is an ok player, but certainly not
spectacular.”

“How big is he?” the street agent asked.

“6 foot 2.”

“Shit. I wish I had that size in 7
^th
grade. Hell, I wish I were that tall in high school. Why can’t he
play?”

“Well, I’m thinking that he isn’t getting proper
coaching on his middle school team,” answered Marcus.

“Is he playing on an NAU or travelling team?”

“No, we recently moved out to the suburban town of
East End, and when I asked about travelling basketball, the ass
wipes told me the team was formed in 5
^th
grade and there
were no current openings.”

“Look, I know lots of NAU coaches in the city who
owe me something for one reason or another. If you want I could
have one of them check out your boy’s game.”

“Really? That would be huge. He needs the
experience. I would be grateful for that.”

“No, Holmes, we’d be square. You took care of me
when cuz Davis was melting down. Remember this phone number and
call me on Monday. I will get him his shot; the rest is up to
Jamal.”

Marcus stayed up all night despite making friends
with Bobby G. and Davis. The other people were scary, and he did
not dare fall asleep in the holding tank. Some of the men in the
cage acted like animals and slapped or punched a fellow detainee if
they snored or made any kind noise while sleeping. Around six in
the morning, the guards told all the arrestees to move to the back
of the cage. One guard stepped back and the other opened the cage
door.

Bobby G. had called his mouthpiece to spring Davis
Fryer and himself. He was hoping that the Heeb got him bail in the
night court. No luck; someone else pulled the strings a little
faster.

“Marcus Imari, step forward. You have made bail.
Money came in all the way from Las Vegas. You’re out of here.”

Chapter Five. Amateur Beginnings

Somewhere along the way, the National Athletic Union
(NAU) ceded the Olympic Team responsibilities to the US Olympic
Committee and had to makeover its mission. The organization made a
decision to focus on high-level youth sports. The NAU was looking
for partners to help accelerate its foray into expanding its
support of elite young athletics.

For many years, most high school and college players
were wearing “Chuck Taylors”, a relatively low-cost high top
sneaker with virtually no ankle support. Wealthy kids in the
neighborhood wore the more stylish, low top “Jack Purcels”,
originally sold as a tennis shoe for clay courts and certainly not
well suited for the rigors of basketball. Adidas shoes were
beginning to cross the Atlantic at high retail prices. The market
was screaming for better-built basketball shoes selling in between
the Chuck Taylors and Adidas price points.

In the middle seventies two companies emerged and
seized the opportunity.
Vole
was originally incorporated in
upper state New York. Kerbe Athletic Company started in San Diego.
Each company developed their own version of high top basketball
shoes with a hardened leather shell to add support to the ankle in
order to protect against sprains. Both Vole and Kerbe met with
moderate success, as they became the choice of wealthy kids. Middle
America did not embrace the new price points charged for these
shoes, and neither did poor people. They raced to sign endorsements
with the professional basketball stars of the time. These
investments added to the bottom line at first, but in a minor
way.

Fate brought together the desire to sell shoes and
to succeed in NAU’s new mission. Shoe companies partnered with the
NAU to create a consumer buzz with elite athletes. NAU, in
conjunction with Vole and Kerbe, created well-funded
by-invitation-only summer camps for elite high school players. It
was quite an honor to participate in these overnight basketball
compounds. Originally, the camps began in eight major cities around
the country: four Vole camps and four sponsored by Kerbe. Sponsors
fitted players who attended these camps with logo’d clothing and
matching shoes. College coaches prowled the courts looking for
their next recruits. Seeds were planted.

As the years progressed, NAU programs expanded in
multiple directions. NAU tournaments grew from the elite eight to
the hundreds. Vole and Kerbe increased their expenditures as the
basketball community forked over ever-increasing dollars for shoe
purchases. Consumers of all economic strata were lulled into paying
three or four times the cost of the original “Chuck Taylors”.
Eventually, NAU year-round clubs sprouted up as travelling teams,
which played intact in many tournaments. The NAU continued to
conduct the elite camps as well.

NAU teams came to cover more than 25 sports around
the United States. Some of the coaches were professional, in the
sense that they received payment by either the NAU or local
sponsors. Playing on NAU teams had become nearly essential in and
around urban areas for players who wished to compete in high
school. Excellent coaching and intense competition prepared the
athletes much better for the rigors of high school athletics than
any park district “house” leagues.

Chapter Six. What a Battle!

T.J. Battle worked his day job as a Chicago Police
Detective. After his sons left high school, he missed teaching
basketball to young people. He derived pleasure in contributing
back to the primarily poor Westside community in a positive way.
Basketball coaching provided the perfect diversion away from the
gritty day-to-day encounters he had with citizens on Chicago
streets and courthouses. Kerbe Shoe Company recruited him to form a
travelling team on the Westside, an area where young basketball
talent was aplenty, but the parents could not afford sports
expenditures. Each player on his team was given team warm ups and
uniforms. Of course, they received complimentary Kerbe shoes. Coach
Battle received compensation with both in-season cash, and pay as a
counselor at the elite Kerbe summer camps. Detective Battle
probably would have coached free, but the money came in handy. A
high school near the western border of Chicago provided the
practice and game facilities for the team.

Bobby G. kept his word when Marcus called about
Jamal. Bobby G. had already talked to Coach Battle and because of
their longtime relationship, Jamal was asked to tryout. When Jamal
and his dad walked into the practice gym, they found a very
organized team running through sophisticated drills. Jamal’s
seventh grade team never was so well organized. Each player wore a
pair of blue Kerbes. Half the players wore their workout jerseys
blue-side out, the others showed white. Coach Battle greeted Jamal
and his dad.

Coach Battle turned around and saw that the boys had
stopped their drills to look at Jamal. In an instant, his face
became flush and he yelled to the team, “WHO TOLD YOU TO STOP THE
CRIP LINE? All right, young men give me five minutes of suicides.
Let’s go!”

Jamal was flabbergasted, especially when the coach
said, “Son, if you want to try out for this team, get your butt out
there and run some suicides!”

He joined the other boys at the end line. They ran a
short distance and bent down to touch the free-throw line. Then
back to the end line, to the midcourt to bend over and touch the
line, back to the end line, to the far free-throw line, then back
to end line to the opposite end line and back, sprinting and
bending repeatedly for punishment and conditioning.

At the end of practice, Coach Battle walked over to
Marcus and said, “He’s got potential and size but he needs lots of
work. He hoists his jump shots from his hips and his footwork is
clumsy. Marcus, I can help develop your boy but he has to be
committed to my team.”

“That’s fantastic coach. Count him in.”

“Not so fast brother. You need to understand my
expectations for this NAU team. We practice two nights a week and
Sunday afternoons during the school year. Games could be on any
evening or weekend. We go to two away tournaments during the
summertime. He must attend all team events – that is a big
commitment for both of you or whoever will be driving him. Parents
are allowed, even encouraged, to attend practices but cannot
interrupt the players or me. I ask that his teacher sign off on his
grade commitment. He needs at least a “C” average to be on this
team. Kerbe handles all of the kids’ fees, but if you or anyone
else comes to watch games or tournaments, you have to pay for
yourself. Jamal needs to respect his teammates and me. I will not
discuss his playing time during a practice or a game. If Jamal is
concerned about anything relating to team matters including his
playing time, he needs to make an appointment with me first. In
case the meeting with me proves unsatisfactory to your son, then,
and only then, I will have a discussion with you.”

“I gottcha.”

“Take this handout. It has my rules, philosophies,
practice schedules, games and tournaments for you and Jamal to
consider. If he still wants to be part of this team, call me before
our next practice.”

“He’ll want to join-up, count on that Coach”

“Just make sure. It could be a great thing for him,
but it most certainly is a huge commitment. Oh, another thing … if
he comes back tell him to bring his swimsuit."

Marcus asked, “What does swimming have to do with
basketball?”

“You’ll see.”

Jamal was leafing through the handout during their
twenty-minute car ride back to their suburban home.

“What do you think, son?”

“Dad, this guy’s like an army drill sergeant. It
seems ridiculous. In addition, did you see how much better those
kids were? They have skills. I can’t play with them.”

“Coach Battle says that you’ve got potential. He
knows you can become a competitive player. And the discipline stuff
- part of it is for team unity, the excessive stuff is just to
scare you. Don’t you want to get better?”

“I think so, but…”

“Look, in life you only get a few opportunities. I
know it. You know my history. Don’t toss it away out of fear. “

“I’m just not sure it’s for me.”

“What else are you going to do? This is your chance
to prepare to play high school ball.”

“I don’t know if I want to …”

Marcus could not comprehend his son’s reluctance.
Basketball meant so much to his own future when he was a teenager
even though he never had the opportunity to exploit NAU-quality
training. He was not going to let Jamal back out of playing on this
team under any circumstance.

“Jamal, join the team. You’ll get some really phat
Kerbe clothes and shoes, and I know you’ve got game, but Battle
will help you improve. Here’s the deal: After a month, if you still
don’t like being on the team,
we
can quit.”

He was physically tired from practice and mentally
worn down. He finally gave in and told his dad, “
we
will try
it for a month”.

Chapter Seven. The Legal Strategy

Jon Handelair retained expensive downtown attorneys
for business as usual at the Board of Trade. He used his leverage
as President and CEO of the Board of Trade to lean on one of the
firms to represent Marcus in resolving the legal mess associated
with his gun incident at O’Hare Airport. The DA secured an order to
temporarily pull Marcus Imari’s Illinois concealed gun permit until
this matter was resolved. This order made Marcus frustrated because
for all practical purposes, he could not perform his work duties
unarmed.

Jon arranged a meeting to discuss Marcus’ legal
predicament. It began after-hours in the executive conference room
at the Board of Trade. Jon Handelair, Marcus, Elizabeth and several
attorneys participated in the strategy session. The legal team
presented a complicated strategy to fight the prosecution.

The attorneys would file intricate motions to delay
the trial. Then the lawyers would ask the judge to recues himself
because of some obscure conflict of interest claim. When the new
judge resumed the preliminary motions, the legal team would ask for
a series of continuances. Ultimately, they would ask for a change
of venue away from the pool of Chicago jurors to, maybe, Peoria.
All of this would hopefully wear the prosecutors down and force
them to drop the entire matter.

Marcus listened intently and felt pushed around by
the attorneys and his father-in-law. He felt intimidated by the
well-educated crowd. The attorneys were collecting documents and
saying goodbye to everybody. Marcus had many questions and
concerns.

Sensing her apprehensive husband, Elizabeth
slowed-down the proceeding. “Gentleman, this stalling strategy may
ultimately be the way to go but I am really at fault here, not
Marcus. I should have been punished for this, if anyone. Your
solution doesn’t help him at all.”

“What do you mean?” cracked one of the
attorneys.

“This all seems normal to you, but he will be out of
work indefinitely because of prolonging the court proceedings. It
is just not fair. He can’t carry his gun, he can’t work …” she
stopped as she broke out crying. “It’s entirely my fault”.

Marcus reached over and hugged his wife. He felt
worse about her guilty feelings than the consequences of his
in-limbo status.