Chapter 178 An Off Night

Chapter 178 An Off Night
Marcus POV

Reporters were already waiting outside the locker room when Marcus arrived at the arena.

"Marcus, after your last game, do you feel like you're back?"

He didn't stop walking. "It was one preseason game."

The questions followed him down the hallway, but the doors closed behind him before anyone asked another. Inside, the atmosphere felt different from the last game.

Coaches moved through the locker room with scouting reports in hand while players taped their ankles and reviewed film on their tablets.

Tonight's opponent planned to play most of its regular rotation, and everyone knew the pace would be closer to a regular-season game than anything they had seen so far.

Marcus finished stretching when Assistant Coach Reynolds walked over."They've spent the last two days watching your film."

Marcus looked up."So they've got a plan."

"They do."

Marcus tied his shoes and stood.
"Good."

Reynolds smiled."That's the answer I wanted."

From the opening tip, Marcus understood exactly what the coach meant. The defense never gave him room to breathe.
Every catch came with a defender on his hip.

The lane closed the moment he put the ball on the floor, and every screen brought another body into his path. His first jumper hit the back rim.

The second spun halfway down before bouncing out. On his next drive, a help defender met him outside the restricted area and forced a difficult layup that missed.

A whistle sent him to the bench with two early fouls. Marcus leaned forward in his seat and watched the game continue. Nothing about it felt comfortable.

When he returned midway through the second quarter, he tried to force the rhythm instead of finding it. A pass skipped past his teammate and into the front row.

A contested jumper missed badly, and another drive ended with the ball stripped away before he could gather it. Philadelphia trailed by seven when halftime arrived.

Marcus sat quietly while the coaches reviewed adjustments. Kevin lowered himself into the chair beside him. "Trying to win the game by yourself?"

Marcus let out a quiet breath. "Maybe."

Kevin smiled."The game's already telling you what it wants."

Marcus looked over.

"You just haven't started listening."

Before Marcus could answer, the coaches called everyone together. Those words stayed with him as the second half began.
Instead of looking for his shot, Marcus focused on making the next simple play.

He fought over screens, boxed out on every possession, and kept the ball moving instead of holding it. The offense found its rhythm again because nobody was trying to do too much.

Late in the third quarter, the point guard got trapped near the sideline. Marcus flashed into open space, caught the pass, and immediately swung it to the opposite corner before the defense recovered.
Three points.

The next possession ended with Marcus diving across the floor for a loose ball. A few trips later, he rotated early and drew an offensive foul.

None of those plays filled the stat sheet, but each one gave Philadelphia another chance. Late in the fourth quarter, the defense collapsed on the point guard again.

This time, Marcus waited instead of drifting. The pass found him on the wing.
He caught it in rhythm and knocked down the open three. No fist pump. No stare at the crowd.

He turned and sprinted back on defense because there was still work to do.
Philadelphia closed the gap but couldn't finish the comeback.

After the final buzzer, Coach stood in the middle of the locker room."We'll watch the film tomorrow," he said. "Learn from it, then leave it here."

Nobody needed more than that. Marcus drove home in silence. The apartment smelled of garlic and fresh bread when he opened the door. Simone looked up from the stove and smiled.

"Tough night?"

He dropped his bag beside the door."They took away everything I wanted to do."

She waited until they were both seated before asking another question. "What happened after that?"

"I kept trying to score."

"And?"

Marcus smiled despite himself."It only got worse."

She reached across the table and slipped her hand over his."Some nights the game asks something different from you."

He thought back to the second half. Once he stopped chasing shots, everyone started playing better. After dinner, Marcus opened the game film on his tablet. This time he ignored every miss. Instead, he watched the defenders.

Two players shaded toward him whenever he came off a screen. Help defenders stepped into the lane before he reached it, and the weak-side defender rotated the moment he touched the ball.

They weren't reacting anymore. They were preparing for him. Marcus closed the tablet and sat back. For the first time since returning to the league, opposing teams believed he could change a game. That meant the next step wasn't becoming more aggressive. It was becoming more patient.

Tomorrow's practice suddenly had a different purpose. It wasn't about proving he belonged anymore. It was about learning how to beat the attention he had earned.