Not me writing a prologue for a fic I'll maybe never write about Steve being on the Dream Team lmao. I saw a pro basketball player Steve post a while ago and couldn't stop thinking about it. Anyways-
At the end of March Madness in 1989, the scout for the Pacers has lunch with the head coach of a community college basketball team that somehow made it to the first round before being pulverized. They sit across from each other, the coach seemingly a bit overwhelmed but not outright surprised. That's good, it means Jerry, the scout, doesn't have to worry about him freaking out or babbling too much.
The team captain had caught his, and possibly others', eye. Good layups, a few three pointers, solid defence, and a helluva lot of potential add up to someone to keep an eye on, except they can't because the guy plays for a rinky-dink community college and only had one televised game. The only reason Jerry saw the kid is because the Roane County Community College Ospreys had put in a hell of a fight the past three seasons. Jerry wonders why the hell the kid hadn't been offered a scholarship somewhere...not Roane County. Doesn't matter though, because they're here now.
"so. You wanted to talk about Steve?" Says the coach, August Nearaly, a bit weary.
Jerry nods, sipping his coffee. "Yeah. Wanted to get a sense of him before I actually talked to him."
August sighs. "As a player or as a person?"
Raising his eyebrows. "Is he that different off the court?"
"no! No, not like how you probably think. Harrington's a sweet kid, but also incredibly...well, not weird, but. Peculiar? He's got quirks. Bit paranoid, but not in a conspiracy way. In a 'no one should walk home alone in the dark' or 'hey, where'd John go? He was right here and then I did a headcount and he's not?' kinda way. Y'know? Like, they're all adults, but he does headcounts and worries anyways."
"huh. Oookay?"
"it-- I'm not saying this to rag on him, to be clear. It just too a while to get used to. Honestly, it's been good for team building. Makes them think of each other not as individuals, but part of a unit that needs everyone healthy and whole to work."
"that's good. He's a team player."
"oh yeah. It's not surprising, really. He's from Hawkins." August says the name like Jerry should know what that means. It's a town, sure, but other than that... Jerry's at a loss. Maybe something a few years ago about a fire? "He has most assists in Osprey history. Some of the guys joke that he's allergic to the ball."
"He's good on the court?"
"Jerry. I know you're here because you saw the March Madness game. You know he's good. He'd be even better if he could afford those fancy prescription goggles Horace Grant wears."
"seriously? Why not contacts?"
"don't make them for his prescription. You didn't see his interview? Kid's got thick horn rimmed glasses. Too many concussions apparently. God knows how he tells players apart when the jersey colours are similar."
"shit. That's why he was squinting the whole time? I thought he was just stressed."
He shrugged. "eh. Probably a bit of both. He takes it seriously, but not too seriously. Y'know? Half the guys were shitting themselves from nerves and Harrington stands up in the locker room, hands on his hips, and gives a speech worthy of the most melodramatic underdog sports movie."
Jerry laughs. "No shit."
Waving his hands, August nods. "no shit! He says all this stuff like 'we worked hard...we deserve this...we may not win but let's do our damn best. The worst that could happen is we lose, and that isn't the end of the world. So let's go out there and play some basketball!' or something, his was better, and the boys cheer. Then they put in fifty points to one-thirty."
Jerry winces. "Must have hurt, huh?"
August grins. "No way. One of the best games they ever played. You saw it. You wouldn't be here if you hadn't. They played their goddamn hearts out." He leans forward. "My boys don't have the same facilities as the big universities, or the funding to offer scholarships. They're at Roane Community because they want a degree or certificate but have other responsibilities. Parents or siblings to stay close to, jobs to work, people to take care of. They joined my team because they like playing basketball, loved the game and wanted to spend some of their precious time playing it. They put the work in on the court and off it. And we made it to the NCAA tournament because of it. We put in fifty points against the goddamn Michigan Wolverines! The champs! And they knew that. I've never heard of a locker room after an 80 point defeat so happy."
"seriously?"
It's all pride when Coach Nearaly says "yep. They may not be the best basketball players in college, but my god, they're probably the best team."
"because of Harrington?"
"partly. They all contribute, make sure they do things right. It's not a one man show, that's the point. They rally around him, but they all are part of the team, and know it. That's what Steve makes sure. Why I made him captain."
"So, you think he'd be a good pick for the Pacers?" This is, after all, a business meeting.
August nods, picks at his pancakes. "I'll be honest with you Jerry. You're not the first scout to talk to me about Steve."
"really? Who?"
"you know I won't say. But, between me and you, Steve's Indiana born and bred. His wife's planning on getting some lib Arts degree in Chicago or Indy, and your offer might be the deciding factor for them."
Jerry blinks. "He's married? At, what? Twenty-one?"
August nods. "Just turned twenty-two. High school sweethearts or something. Obsessed with each other." He chuckled, a bit ruefully. "I'm a bit jaded but damn. You mention her name? He lights up like the fuckin Fourth of July."
Jerry whistles. "Honeymoon phase gets us all."
"for almost two years? Nah. It's just love." It sounds a little wistful, coming from August. "Anyways. I dunno if the other team is serious about him, and if they are, they'll probably be disappointed. Kid isn't moving out of the Midwest. He's got family here, and is getting a goddamn elementary education degree. He won't uproot his life for a chance at the NBA. But, if you offer. Well. He'd at least seriously consider it."
Humming, Jerry chews his eggs as he thinks. "You think he'd be up for the lifestyle? The road games out numbering home ones?"
There's an air of seriousness when August levels Jerry with a look. "If he doesn't want to, he'll tell you. You gotta give him time to talk to his family though. This offer? It'll come out of left field for him, even if I give him a heads up. You get that, yeah? You want to recruit a kindergarten teacher to the NBA without any build up. He needs time to process that and then see where the people in his life are at with it."
"I guess it is unusual."
"try being the community college basketball coach getting two goddamn calls from NBA scouts. Thought I was hallucinating."
Jerry laughs, counts some bills for the tip. "Thank you. For your time and insights. Let Steve know I'll call tomorrow?"
"will do. He'll still probably drob the phone on you, though."
"as long as he doesn't hang up!"
400 notes
·
View notes
Keyframes Devlog #1
Long time no talk! (Or "Hey!" If this is the first time you're seeing a dev log from me ^^)
It’s already been a couple of months since we released a snippet of Keyframes for the Otome Jam and with it has been a lot of changes. Which includes something of a bad news. Instead of as soon as possible, players can expect the extended demo to be finished around Spring of next year. It’s not our favorite news to share, but after the jam I want to be sure that whatever we output is as close to polished as can be! Rest assured, production for the rest of the Spring Demo is still on-going but I’m currently funding the development myself so I hope you’ll be patient as we work on the project!
(Keep reading for some snippets, y'all!)
For now, I’m happy to report on the progress we’re making on our BGs! Game jams are not to be taken lightly— consider it a lesson learned haha— and because of the high-paced event there were some discrepancies with the game’s art style. As such, one of our goals with the extended demo is to update the style so that they’re all consistent! Some of the scenes are still a work in progress but as thanks for your patience, here’s some BG art for Keyframes!
Peep the study room on campus, a hot spot in a downtown area, as well as the inside of an adorable shop— all of which you can visit in the extended demo! One BG might look familiar if you played the current demo-- It's Reynah's backyard! Her space has been updated for the art style and to better tell the story, but we hope it still gives off sweet and cozy party vibes!
A lot of new hands have joined the project to help make this possible so please join me in a round of applause to roisale (who worked on the downtown related art), inkdem (the study room) and robin (Reynah's backyard) for their hard work! Bit by bit, the project's coming to life with their help so check out their work and say thank youuuuu <3
I’ll make another update post when we’ve made more progress on Keyframes, but for now: welcome to the game’s tumblr! Feel free to submit any questions you have about Keyframes or the cast! I’m happy to answer your curious thoughts if there are any. ^^ Thank you for reading up to here, that’s all from me and the team for now. Till next time!
56 notes
·
View notes