He Got Game Page #14

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- That's your last basket.

Yeah. I'm a lucky Negro.

You ready?

All right.

Oh, I forgot.

Payback is a b*tch, huh?

Yeah.

Oh, don't get mad. You're the one

that taught me to be a good sportsman.

Ball up.

What you want,

the jump shot dunk?

What?

Huh?

- Bottoms.

- What's that?

- Seven to a lucky five.

- Seven to a lucky five.

- Eight-five.

- Eight-five.

I'm about to send you

down there with them.

- Nine-five.

- You quittin'?

- I can take a loss.

- You just gon' give up, huh?

- I ain't givin' up.

- You just gon' give up.

I'm teachin', brother. I'm teachin',

son, like I always taught you.

Oh, you tired?

Get that outta here.

You're earnin' these two.

Ohh!

I thought you lifted weights

in Attica, in the joint. Huh?

Point game.

Just play the game.

Just play the game?

I learned that from you.

You better "D" up, Jake.

Point game.

This is your last chance.

Come on, move away.

Ohh!

Ohh!

Aah!

Game time.

What you lookin' around for?

That's game-- 11-5.

Jake.

Somebody call a stretcher.

Stick a fork in 'im.

He's done.

Take your old ass

back to Attica.

All right.

What?

Make you feel like a man now?

Huh?

Maybe you could stop hatin' me.

Is that gonna bring

your mother back?

- Maybe we could start bein'

father and son again.

- You ain't my father.

Let me tell you somethin'.

You look out for yourself.

You look out for your sister.

You ain't got to worry

about me no more.

But you get that hatred

out your heart, boy,

or you gon' end up

just another n*gger,

Iike your father.

It's your ball.

Well, Jake, I think it's time

for all of us to go back home.

- Okay.

- No. No, Jake.

Turn around.

Let's go.

Let him go. Huh?

Jesus.

Jesus!

I'm gonna read a, uh,

prepared statement from Jesus.

"I'm sorry for not bein'

with you this morning,

"but under the circumstances my family

and I have chosen to be alone.

"This past week has been

a very difficult week for me.

"I've done a lot of praying

and have asked for guidance from above.

"And I do believe that God

has shown me the way.

"My sister Mary

will be coming with me.

"She will attend seventh grade

at a neighboring junior high school.

"This September I will

be enrolled at Big State University...

- on a full--"

- on a full athletic scholarship."

- Yes!

- Bullshit!

Later!

This sh*t is bogus.

The boy did not go for the bucks.

Hold on.

"This is the right place for me.

"ln closing, my family and I send

our prayers out to my father.

"May God bless him.

Yours, truly,

Jesus Shuttlesworth."

"Jake Shuttlesworth...

- "a... convict--

- Convicted.

- convicted mur... der..."

- Murderer.

Gimme the paper, man.

You're irking me with that sh*t.

About to graduate,

you can't even read, dumb ass.

Can too read. Miss Janus says

I got problems readin' out loud.

- He's just nervous.

- Man, f*** that, Sip. Finish readin'.

Gladly.

"The father of the number-one basketball

prospect Jesus Shuttlesworth...

"was captured last night in the Coney

lsland section of Brooklyn, New York...

- "after a week-long manhunt.

- What?

"He had escaped the maximum security

Attica State Penitentiary...

"seven days before.

No official word yet

on how he escaped."

How could Uncle Jake have escaped when

they let him walk out the front gate?

There's gotta be some truth

to it if it's in the papers.

Oh, come on, man!

Yo, Shuttlesworth.

Warden wants to see you now.

He say what this is about?

Things didn't work out

exactly as we planned,

but the governor got

what he wanted.

I'm happy for him.

Why do you think my son did it?

I haven't had the pleasure of meeting

your son as yet. I can't speculate.

- Maybe someday you'll get

to ask him that in person.

- Someday.

And when will that be,

Warden?

The governor

has yet to inform me.

For your information,

technically...

you did not get your son

to sign the letter of intent.

Hopefully that's not gonna

make a difference.

- We need some time.

- Well, I got that, huh?

Dear Jesus, ever since you was born

I been pushin' you,

tryin' to make you the best ball player

that you could possibly be,

tryin' to make you the ball player

that I never was.

I finally came

to the realization...

that I was pushin' you

further and further away from me also.

I believe that things

gon' work out for the best for you,

- Jesus was a name.

- for Mary.

You got the game.

Sip, sip, sip on this.

Your great-grandfather always used to

tell me that you keep tryin' on shoes,

sooner or later you gon'

find a pair that fit you.

The... farmhouse...

Well, I'm here to testify

that I found a pair.

House. O-U-sss...

They hurt like hell, son.

- I love you.

- "l love you, son."

Your father,

Jake Shuttlesworth.

Five, four, three, two, one.

And the crowd goes wild.

Uh-oh. He's heatin' up.

You can't stop him.

You can only hope to contain him.

Jake, stop!

Stop right there!

Turn around!

Do it now, or you're a dead man!

Turn around and back up!

Yeah, that's right,

this cut goes out to all y'all...

that's been missin' us for mad years.

One love, yo. Hey, that's right.

He's got game.

P.E., 1998.

If man is the father

the son is the center of the earth

In the middle

of the universe

Then why is this verse

comin' six times rehearsed

Don't freestyle much

but I write 'em like such

Amongst the themes

controlled by the screens

What does it all mean

All this sh*t I'm seein'

Human bein's

screamin' vocal javelins

Sign of a local nigga

unravelin'

- Uh-huh

- My wanderin' got my ass wonderin'

Where Christ is

in all this crisis

Hatin' Satan

never knew what nice is

Check the papers

Well, I bet on ices

More than your eyes can see

and ears can hear

Year by year

all the sense disappears

Nonsense perseveres

Prayers laced with fear

- Beware Two-triple 0 is near

- It might feel good

It might sound

a little somethin'

But damn the game

if it don't mean nothin'

What is game, who got game

Where's the game in life

Behind

the game behind the game

I got game, she got game, we got game

they got game, he got game

It might feel good

It might sound a little somethin'

- But f*** the game

if it ain't sayin' nothin'

- Damn

Was it somethin' I said

Pretend you don't see

so you turn your head

Race scared of his shadow

Does it matter

The thought of reparation's got him

playin' with the population

Nothin' to lose

Everything approved

People use

Even murders excused

White men in suits

don't have to jump

Still 1,001 ways

to lose with the shoes

God takes care

of old folks and fools

While the devil takes care

of makin' all the rules

Folks don't even

own themselves

Payin' mental rent

to corporate presidents

- My man, my man

- One out of one million residents

Be a dissident

who ain't kissin' it

The politics

of chains and whips

Got the six missing chips

and all the championships

What's love got to do

with what you got

Don't let a win get to your head

or a loss to your heart

- Word

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