Always Fighting // Kyrie Irving

2015 NBA Finals- Game Two

Kyrie-

I am not allowed to come to the game today. Coaches and medical staff's decision. Apparently, it's too much for my leg to handle at this moment. Maybe it's just me, but I feel like I should be the one to make the call. It is my knee after all.

So, instead of being at the pregame right now, I am still sitting on my bed, face timing with Tristan. I can't see anything up close, since he put his phone on a chair, but its better than nothing. They run through play after play and practice their threes, insane layups, and then a dunking contest started by Tristan himself, just to cheer me up. I manage to stay relatively quiet through it all. Except when LeBron misses a windmill dunk, then I let him have it.

This is how I have spent almost the entire day. Watching our warm-ups, eating unhealthy food, and waiting anxiously till game time.

And if I'm anxious? How do the guys feel? Then again, I don't have the inspirational speeches 'Bron gives to us before games. That dude knows how to get you fired up. I don't know if it just comes naturally or if it rides from his experience, but he's a pro.

Then it's game time. I watch as the team goes through every ritual I've been a part of, wishing I was there with them. Bogut and Mozgov line up for tip off and Draymond nabs it.

We are about four minutes into the game and the score is only 9-6, in favor of Golden State. The only thing I can think right now is its a darn good thing they aren't getting their threes to fall.

Nine minutes in Curry gets a driving reverse layup shot to go in and puts them up five. That's my shot. My specialty. I have an ache to be in the game now, just to make those trick shots I've practiced since I could barely hold a basketball.

The first quarter draws to a close, tied 20-20. Leading both teams in scoring is LeBron with 10. It's a low scoring quarter, but I have yet to decide whether it's because of good defense, or missed players. Either way, the Cavs aren't surrendering.

We start the second with three turnovers in two minutes. Not a great way to begin. Within only a couple of minutes, though,the Warriors get their fourth.

I really, really hate sitting on this bed. Earlier today I wanted to be out there playing with the guys. Now it is a need. Ever since I was little, I told people I was going to be a professional basketball player. And I did it. I made the bigs.

Basketball is my passion. I live for playing the game, I live for the atmosphere, for the fans, for my teammates.

Yet here I lay, surrounded by flat hotel room pillow, waiting for a room service order of fries and a triple stacked hamburger. Worst of all, watching my team playing the game of their, our, lives over a crappy television screen.

You can't even be loud here. There is no team spirit among the other guests. Apparently, yelling at your team and the opposing is not exactly well looked upon here. If I can't be there in person, the least I can do is make some noise.

Sabrina-

'Chill, dude.' I think as Harrison Barnes saunters down the court after his dunk. 'Bron could top that anyday.'

Really the only reason he was so excited was it only put the Cavs up by two. Currently, I'm sitting behind the Warriors bench with just over a minute to go in the first half. Steve is ignoring me, like he is supposed to do. I know, I know, it sounds weird.

After he approached my mom and I, we agreed it was best we all tried our hardest to keep me out of the spotlight. So I could live a normal life, without having the press swarm all over me and  my actions.

I mean, yes, people know Steve Kerr has a daughter, and yes, they know it's me. But I so rarely make headlines and when people found out it wasn't a big deal. Steve and I don't interact, the players and I don't interact, at least in public view, so most tabloids find my life very un-newsworthy. Thank God.

From my seat, I'm able to hear most of what the team is saying. Kyrie comes up a surprising amount.

There seems to be some sort of mutual hatred already brewing between the two teams, but despite that, no player really ever enjoys seeing someone go out with an injury.

Unless your a dirty player, but then why would you be in the NBA?

When I arrived at the Oracle, I was slightly surprised to not see Kyrie. But then it kinda dawned on me that perhaps it wasn't the greatest idea for him to be moving around on that knee. Makes sense, now that I think about it. He has to do whatever he can to rest up and recover from that injury, even though it will inevitably take months of hard work. Over strenuous and conceivably unimportant tasks will do nothing to heal a fractured knee cap.

Still, part of me selfishly wishes he could be here. Just so I could say hi again. I'm not very nice, am I?

____________________________

You really don't want to know just how nervous I was when the game went in to overtime. I mean it was bad! Revisiting my childhood habit, I found myself biting my nails before I could stop myself. When Delly made the go ahead shots, I'm pretty sure you could hear the screams of excitement all the way from Cleveland. Or maybe I was just hearing myself. Either way, it was absolutely amazing. The entire game was intense, though perhaps those not thoroughly invested in a team found in boring. I mean, yes it wasn't very high scoring, and there were no huge deficits/amazing comebacks, but this was when the fans found out if we could beat the Warriors without our starting point-guard. And we came through!

Sure, someone might say it was barely won, but a win is a win, right?