Tropical Hoops
A basketball story of sorts.
by
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The band began the fight song, Feed Mighty Bonefish, for about the twelfth time as Joey and the girls stood outside of the double doors of the gym ready to be introduced. It was packed, as usual. The entire school was there; the students grouped in all corners of the bleachers, according to grade level.
Deputy Rhineholt, the zany Resource Officer was running in circles at the center of the wood floor, holding the Spirit Stick above his head, pretending to be stumped as to which class was the loudest.
“Now remember girls,” Coach Foltz was instructing, “after we’re introduced, run through the banner, around the gym once and take a seat on our bench in front of the Eighth Grade.”
If Joey was nervous before, the thirteenth rousing rendition of Feed Mighty Bonefish almost caused him to vomit in his mouth. The girls were in their uniforms for the first time, the students were screeching, and Joey wasn’t with them up in the stands as he had been, leading the cheers with his exuberance, for the past two years.
“You ready?” Coach Foltz put her arm around him, obviously amused by his pale, nerve-racked face.
“Banana Key! Stand and cheer for your Eighth Grade Lady Bonefish Basketball Team!” Deputy Rhineholt was screaming so loud that the microphone buzzed with feedback.
Monique was the first to burst the banner and she led the girls around the gym, high-fiving the students in the front row as she ran. Each player received a round of cheers and applause.
The noise level reached an all time high when Joey ran out onto the court. Was there a second of silence? Was there a moment of confusion amid the chaos as their peer emerged from the tunnel as part of the coaching staff? Was Joey really wearing slacks and a tie with his dress shirt? Joey was running, pointing to the crowd and his friends, pumping his fist.
And then it happened. It actually seemed to happen in slow motion, Andrew would recall even years later. In fact, no one in the gymnasium that day would easily forget what happened next. Joey tripped and fell.
Actually, Joey stumbled and then seemed to regain his balance for a second as he turned around in a jerking motion. His arms and legs splaying, he pitched forward and slammed onto the gym floor, sliding for a few feet before coming to a stop right under the feet of the sixth graders in the first row.
The cheer Robin was in the middle of faded into eternity as she put her hand to her mouth in horror, whimpering softly before sitting back down. To look further at the unfolding scene was out of the question.
“No!” An unholy noise rose up from deep within Andrew Arevalo as he watched through the cracks in the fingers covering his face. He would one day tell his grandchildren that Joey had slid about six feet across the slick floor before coming to rest.
Formats Book Details Joey Amato’s middle school career was supposed to culminate with a spot on the eighth-grade basketball team. After all, he had worked harder than ever during the off-season, after he had been snubbed (probably for his puny size,) from the seventh grade squad the year before. Tropical Hoops opens with Joey discovering that the snubbing has continued during his final year at Banana Key Middle; his name is not found on the list of the Eighth Grade Bonefish Basketball players. A chance stroll into the gym, however, opens the door to a very unlikely new after school activity: serving as assistant coach for the girls' eighth grade basketball team. The Florida Keys serve as a backdrop for the exploits of a young man who dedicates himself to motivating a team in which losing has long been an attitude. He also works towards improving the morale of an entire school, understanding his strange, new feelings for a young lady whose role as his oldest buddy may be changing, and coming to terms with the budding relationship between his father and a very surprising woman who is already in Joey’s life. Since graduating from the University of Florida, Eli Jackson has taught Social Studies at both the high school and middle school levels. He also has been a winning varsity basketball coach, an avid college football spectator, a traveler, and an author. His adventures and stories are seasoned by the salty breezes of the Gulf Coast's Cracker Latitudes. He has currently relocated from the Sunshine State to Alabama, returning to school full-time to pursue a Master's Degree in Liberal Arts and marry his fiancée.
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