Flying high last year but in a free fall this year, the players on Dodge High School's basketball team still hold on to the hope the game is a ticket to a better life.
More often than not that means college. And to get there, passing grades are just as important as shooting ability.
But on a recent report card day, the atmosphere was glum in the athletic office of the Crotona school where coach Stan Greengrass stood among a handful of struggling students.
"You guys need to get your grades up if you expect to play," Greengrass said.
This time last year, the Dodge Panthers were cruising with a 16-0 regular season record.
"Our goal was to score 100 points in a game," said senior Allan Bosch. "We went into each game with confidence and would win by 30, 40 or 50 points. Sometimes we even had the other crowd rooting for us!" But disaster struck when they made it to the quarterfinals. Luis Casado, Dodge's leading scorer, was banned from what would have been his last high school game when a knife was found in his borrowed gym bag.
The Panthers fell six points short of a semifinal berth.
"That's a game I'll always think about," said Bryant Chatfield, in a whisper. "One more game and we would have been in Madison Square Garden. Just to step on that floor, warm up on the same floor as Anthony Mason and Patrick Ewing..." This year the team slipped to a 2-14 record. "We only had three seniors this year," said Keith Ward, a senior. "You can't play at the same level with younger people." The Panthers had talent but no dominant player to lead the team, he said.
But these players realize that winning isn't everything.
"You can look on every corner in every neighborhood and see a playground legend who would have been a star in the NBA," said Bosch. "But, they're in the park because they just never graduated or don't want to go to college." "You have to have something to fall back on," said Bosch, who's thinking of a career in law. "As a freshman, I paid too much attention to basketball. Now I've matured."
For many students, it's pure love of the game that keeps them focused. "If I was playing in the NBA," said Ward, "I'd take whatever they could give me. If I could get a $500 check each week, I'm saying, 'Just give me enough to support my family.' That would make it worthwhile."