One Shot: Overtime Elite (2023) s01e04 Episode Script
The Check Writers are Here
1
[Somto] I don't like these trade rumors
and stuff. I don't like it.
[Somto] I don't think anybody's
gonna be here today.
Nobody's here.
[Somto] Hold on, hold on,
hold on, right here.
Know what I'm saying, man,
with trade rumors and everything
I don't wanna leave my team.
[Wilkins] I know a lot of you guys
have been hearing the conversations
around roster moves and all that stuff.
I just wanna say this,
I think you have been,
by far, the best big
that we have in this league.
Any roster moves that we've made,
have been solely about to help our balance
and to help us be more competitive.
Like right now you're on a team
with two top five draft picks,
and quite frankly, that team
is just almost too damn good,
and I think you have
a whole lot to do with that.
So this is your new team.
Cold Hearts has had
the most unavailable players
and we needed to make that team better.
You have any thoughts?
You can be honest.
City Reapers, those guys been my teammates
like from day one, so,
I mean, we have our ups
and we have our downs,
but I feel like they're my brothers.
I'm excited to see what it looks like
moving forward.
Thank you.
What the heck?
Like what the fuck?
Like, what am I supposed to do with them?
Am I like, I'm not Jesus,
I'm not going over there to save them.
This why I don't like shit like this, man.
They got guys that don't pass the ball,
they play solo basketball.
Hello? Hey, Ma.
Damien just called me right now,
we went into his office
and uh, he told me I got traded
to the Cold Hearts.
Let's say I'm doing like really bad,
I'd be like, "Okay, that's my fault."
Why would I get traded
because he says, "You're the most
dominant person in the league,"
Like, how am I gonna get traded
because I'm good?
[Wilkins] It's getting warm.
Spring Break coming up, man.
Feel like Florida.
You know what else coming up?
The playoffs!
You gonna just skip over that?
[Leitao] The end of the season is near,
positioning you know playoffs,
everybody's starting to talk about it.
[Wilkins] I don't think nobody wanna play
the Cold Hearts to get to the finals.
- [staff member] Healthy.
- [Wilkins] Yeah.
In the playoffs we gotta prepare
for everybody,
you don't know who's gonna win,
so, it's definitely a different feeling.
[Leitao] Cold Hearts are a dangerous crew.
What's wrong with you, man,
I lift weights too, man,
I lift weights too, Somto.
Stop it, stop it.
They've got some individual talent
that I'd like to have on my team.
[Wilkins] There's something wrong
with that dude, man.
And maybe the playoffs is that point
in time where they come together
and they realize they can be
the best team in the league.
[Gomes] So listen, the game will
be here before you know it.
And all the shit we went through
in the regular season,
there ain't nobody feeling sorry
for anything.
[Frazier] Cold Hearts. I'm more worried
about them than the YNG Dreamerz,
just because Bryce Griggs alone
and you got to guard, Rob Dillingham,
[chuckling] then you've got Somto
who's probably pissed that we traded him.
The game is gonna be played and somebody's
gonna win the finals, why not it be us.
We gotta be ready for the game,
we can't get ready at the game.
Game one is the most important game.
[Frazier] To do it under the lights
where NBA scouts are thick and heavy
[Cold Hearts] One, two, three. Work!
Work, work, work.
[Frazier] like the check writers
are really here.
A lot of it is trusting the work,
trusting the process,
and then doing it under pressure.
[Gomes] Set it, snake it, snake it,
wait, get out, lob, finish.
Here we go, same thing coming back,
We're fun, energetic, in-your-face
type of team
If they're gonna beat us, they're gonna be
something different.
Not the same shit
they beat us with last time.
Physicality at the rim
There we go. There we go. There we go.
Ah! Come on.
Ball pressure on the perimeter,
and I try to tell our guys to be free
and use your imagination.
Because in basketball,
you can't script everything.
Push yourself, over doing your reps.
I always just try to play loose,
play free.
Turn, turn. Boom, shot.
One, two. Nice. Nice.
All the little small things that
can give us the best chance of winning.
You good, you good, you good.
One, two. Bang!
[Wilkins] We had to suspend Jahki
for some behavior issues.
You're not fucking open!
Pass the fucking ball, bro!
Bro, I come late to anything,
I don't fucking play.
That's just very shit, bro.
Pick your fucking head up, bro! Bro, come
on bro!
[Wilkins] That was a tough decision
for us to make as a staff,
but we felt like
it was in the best interest
of both he and our culture here,
to just kind of remove him from it
for a while.
[Jahki] Oh, it's a horrible feeling.
It's a lot of different emotions,
there's a lot of stuff built up inside.
It's very difficult just, you know,
for me to figure out, like,
you know, what's my role again,
you know, just figuring all that out.
[Alisha H] His love for the game
is so strong,
it's something I've never ever seen, like,
he doesn't really have much emotion,
I've never seen him cry as a kid,
he's never been a crybaby,
he's never done that,
but when it comes to the game of
basketball, he takes it very serious.
[Wilkins] Jahki is part of the group
of guys that need a little push.
Us as a staff, we're responsible
for meeting him where he is,
and help him grow out of, you know, things
that he's struggled with.
It takes a village.
- It's time for- you need a haircut.
- [Alisha H] Let's go.
You gotta, you gotta get your hair cut
this week.
Got a haircut tomorrow?
All right, you need a haircut my boy.
I tried to get him to get his hair cut,
but he ain't wanna cut his hair.
[kid grunting]
[Jahki] I love spoiling my little brothers
and making sure that they don't have
to worry about anything.
[Alisha H]
He's more of a provider type big brother
instead of a babysitting type
of big brother.
Jahki thinks he can
just buy them the world.
[Wilkins] People don't understand,
he's still just a kid,
taking care of adults,
making more financially
than people in their family
has probably ever made.
That's a huge responsibility
to put on a young man.
It's probably the kids coming over
to ask for Jahki, let me just check.
[Alisha H] Hi.
- Mind if I come in?
- [Alisha H] Yeah, you can come in.
Would you like for me
to take off my shoes?
[Alisha H] No, it's okay, honey.
He was asking
He goes to Norcross High School.
You can come in, honey.
- You gonna play basketball?
- Yeah.
Been watching you, Trey, OTE,
you definitely inspire me man, a lot.
[Jahki] I got you.
Oh, your mom actually gave me one of your
shoes, I still, like I be hooping in it.
[Alisha H]
Yep, I gave him a pair of your shoes.
Those ones. I actually got those
for Norcross, I remember that.
These, these are hard.
- What size you wear?
- [Rashawn] I'm size 14.
I got another pair for you, hold up.
- [Rashawn] For real?
- [Jahki] Yeah, I got you.
I remember I was hooping, and I seen him
hoop over there one time, and I was like
Ohhh And that's when I
really started watching him more
and seeing how explosive
and, like, that bounce.
[dramatic music throughout]
[Jahki]
My desire to be back, I don't know,
I just have a special bond with
a lot of guys on the team, you know?
I've learnt that, like,
the more you're gone from the game,
the more you want the game.
It's not the same, you're not playing,
you're not with your teammates,
you're not practicing every day,
you're just working out.
Like, damn, I'm ready
to get back on the court.
[trainer] Chest up, chest up.
Like you're trying to pick your chest up
off of the bench, there you go.
[exhaling]
[trainer] Keep benching them up.
[Wilkins] Man, those little ass weights.
[laughter]
- We can make some adjustments for you.
- [Bryce] Appreciate it.
[trainer]
I'm just glad you're not 180 anymore.
[Wilkins] He was 180?
- [Bryce] I was never 180.
- [Davis] Yeah, you were.
- [Wilkins] Bro, it's okay.
- [Davis] Too damn light.
You a little dude, you a little dude!
- [Bryce] I'm 195.
- [Davis] Yeah, now.
- You back to where you're supposed to be.
- [laughter]
195 boy!
Bryce Griggs is one of our guys
who went the pro route,
giving up his college eligibility.
He had a tough first year.
Bryce in year one was a rebel,
just doing his own thing, often times
late, to everything,
or not showing up.
Just breaking all the rules, right?
[Davis] You gotta at least make it look
like you're strong,
there you go, that's easy work.
[Wilkins] You know you're put in
a lot of money in his pocket,
you know, and a social media star
that's tough for any kid to handle
when you're not ready for it.
[Wilkins] What would you say is your like
biggest regret?
I would say I really messed up last year,
like just umm
- like, with the off-the-court stuff.
- Yeah.
But now since I fixed that,
I feel like it helped me today.
[Wilkins]
To his credit, came back his year two
and has been a totally different person,
super focused, body has changed,
and with that you can tell
his whole mindset is different.
And it shows out there on the court,
he's just proving
that he can make big shots,
can make big plays
when the game is on the line.
How he was able to deal with adversity,
how he was able to self-correct.
I think if he continues to do that
the NBA isn't um, something
that's out of reach for him.
If there's anyone that I can believe
betting on themselves, it's him.
But he's out right now going
through some injury stuff.
- [Wilkins] How is that?
- [Bryce] It's getting better.
- [Wilkins] Right one?
- Yeah, it's the right one. It's a little
- Gotta stop using that guy so much, so
- [laughter]
[Bryce] I hurt my wrist, you know,
I've been out for a whole month.
Yeah, it's been kind of weird.
I'm thinking I can hoop
and I'm trying to lay the ball up
and I'm still fumbling the ball.
I was in tip-top shape ready to roll,
like coming off a triple-double game,
all that hard work, whole season
it's like a whole month of just watching.
[Wilkins] Every game matters,
every game counts for him,
and you know every game that he's out,
it's a detriment not only to him,
but it's also to his team
because they need him.
He's their best playmaker.
Rotate, Tyler! Box out! I see you, Tes!
Go box out, Tes!
[Bryce] The team ended up losing
a lot of games.
I feel like I definitely could have helped
because they needed little leadership.
[Wilkins] You know,
they say he's improving every day,
you know,
we just have to wait and see.
[Bryce] My whole goal,
to come back stronger.
I need a big show-up in the playoffs.
I wanna leave my best impression
for the NBA scouts.
[Jasmin] Okay, this is gonna be
very uncomfortable, suck it up.
Ready? Deep breath in.
Hold on, hold on.
[Jasmin] All the way out.
[man yelling]
Oh, shit! Oh, what the fuck, oh, my God!
[Wilkins] Somto, he's like a big kid,
always joking and playing around.
Nothing, oh, shit, Jesus.
I feel like she just know how to hurt me.
Oh, my fucking God. She's just smiling.
[Somto screaming]
[Wilkins] He has a great personality
off the court,
on the court, he's an animal, man.
[audience cheering]
He's blessed, like he's 6'11",
he jumps higher than everybody.
He blocks every shot, dunks everything.
He's just hooping.
[Wilkins] The things that he does
with his size, athleticism.
- Defense, his effort
- [announcer 1] Two handed block!
[Wilkins] just a dominating, fearless
guy.
[cheering]
There's quite a few Division I schools
that are interested in Somto.
I don't know if he knows yet,
or understands how good he is.
And, you know, I'm waiting
on that light bulb to go off in his head.
I feel like I'm so strong
but she make me feel weak.
Don't, don't feel yourself. [screams]
[Wilkins] Because he's a jump hook away
from being in the league.
Like, he's that good. I can't wait to see
what the finished product is.
[pained laughing] Oh, dude.
[Somto] What's up. man, you ready?
Coach Cam already text me saying,
"Where you at?"
- He texted your brother?
- [Somto] Yes.
[Stephen] Wait. Where's my phone? Lemme
check that out.
[Somto] He don't know where he drop his
phone?
[Lisa W] When Somto moved in with us,
he was actually my first Nigerian student.
He's a gentle giant,
he'll kill me for saying this,
but he's my big baby, he would kill me,
like kill me, when he hears me say this.
Oh, that's my son, that's my first son.
Before I gave birth to the twins,
the Thompson twins, he was my first son.
[Lisa W] He's very much the big brother.
He was my first, first victim, I put him
on the poster.
Even the big brother
that drives you crazy.
[laughs] Wow.
[Stephen] Since I was born, we've always
had, like, additional kids in the house,
like, my mom's house in the neighborhood
is "The House."
We've said that she has a Nigerian embassy
in her home,
because she had,
you know three Nigerian boys in her house.
[Somto] We're going to see my strength
and conditioning coach here,
when I was in my high school,
my old school so
I told him I would be in town,
and he said he wanted me to come in there
and put in some work
so right now we're headed down there.
Back in Nigeria like,
I was like 12, 13 years old.
Basketball, basically, became my life.
I did that like every day.
I grew up around people I didn't want
to turn out to be when I grew up.
I wanted a better life
for my mom, myself, yeah.
I I had to do what I had to do.
Coach Cam, he been on my behind
since I got here, never let me slack.
- [laughter]
- [Coach Cam] You messed it up.
This is where it all started,
like all the workouts and everything.
[Coach Cam] Here we go.
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven,
eight, nine, ten.
[rope tapping]
[chain clinking]
Yeah, it's been a minute, dog.
Hop it, go. Relax.
[Somto] I left home
because, yeah, my mom, a single mom,
and she don't have enough money and stuff.
I had to like, I stayed with strangers,
she did her best to support me from home.
I'm not gonna sit there and be like
"Ah, it was fine," no, it was pretty tough
cause I'd go without eating like for days.
We all stayed in this building like
[vehicles honking]
I don't know how I did it, I don't know
how I survived, but I just did it.
I think I have a picture of the house.
[chuckles]
Yeah, it was a
It's just like a place you stay
when you don't have any other option.
I spent like months over there.
Probably a year.
I didn't really, really feel comfortable
going to sleep in a place like that,
so I Yeah, some days I'd stay up late.
3 AM, sometimes 4 AM
before I'd go to sleep, like, then I'd
have to wake up late to play basketball.
[speaking foreign language]
I sit down to myself when I think,
I didn't even know I would make it
this far, so yeah.
I
Yeah.
[heavy sigh]
[Stephen] Me and Somto connected
probably in June of 2020.
He's been wanting to get over here
for a very long time,
he's just been denied entry to America
through the embassy.
Finally, he had called me
at 4:00 one morning,
he was like, "I got bad news for you,"
and I'm like, "What's the bad news?"
He was like, "I'm coming to America!"
[laughter]
[Somto] We here at the football game.
He got me out here, I never go out
but he always take me out,
he say, "Let's go, bro."
I'm a homebody, I don't really like
to go out I just like to chill,
I enjoy my own company
so I don't really go out.
[Lisa W] When Somto first got here,
he was very reserved,
and not very trusting of people,
it's a very new culture for him.
He came here not knowing anyone.
- [man] How's OTE?
- Good.
- How you know I'm at OTE?
- [man] Bro, you're famous.
Oh, okay.
You wanna picture though?
[Lisa W] We knew that,
possibly, this was an avenue
to make life better for himself
and his mom.
He's just like so grateful, to be able
to come to America number one,
and to just meet the people that he's met
and had the opportunities that he's had.
[laughing, humming]
He's talking like
[Lisa W] I think that Somto
is a very determined young man.
That determination is gonna take him far.
- [Bryce] Hey.
- [Bryce's Mom] Hey, Bryce.
Hey, Mom.
- [Bryce's Mom] What's up?
-Not much.
[Bryce's Mom] So how are you dealing
with your wrist injury?
It's fine, just doing treatment right now,
and I'm still conditioning
to stay in shape.
[Bryce's Mom] Well, I know that you're
anxious to get back on the court,
but, you know, do what you're supposed
to do and just stay focused.
You know, just remember
what your dad always told you,
that it's gonna be greater later,
you know?
Oh, my God.
[Bryce's Mom]
Okay, so don't talk about that.
No.
[Bryce's Mom] Bryce, I'm try Okay.
[Bryce] You know, my dad was a coach, so
that's how I really got into basketball.
He built that toughness.
He's not here no more,
he passed away from cancer so,
he passed like my 8th grade year.
He didn't ever come
to my high school game. It's sad bro.
I don't even like to remember it. But I
feel like all those games he was with me.
I dominated high school. Every year.
Let's go! I told them I'm gonna fuck you
up!
Me dominating all those years,
like, that's what got me to go to OTE.
- [announcer 1] Three. Deep three.
- [announcer 2] Bryce!
[announcer 1] Oh, my goodness! Oh, my
goodness! Wow, buzzer-beater!
[Bryce's Mom] This too shall pass,
you know, you've faced many adversities,
you've held your head up
and you've worked through all of that,
so just know that,
you'll be back on the court soon.
[Bryce] My dad passed, you know,
I could a gave up,
I could a quit, you know,
but why would I do that?
I feel like that's my mindset
in any challenge.
I wanna be in the NBA bad, just
and I won't stop until like it's done.
- [Bryce's Mom] I love you, Bryce.
- All right, love you too.
- [Bryce's Mom] All right, take care.
- All right.
[Bryce's Mom] Love you, bye.
[buzzer buzzes]
JGort, JGort!
- [man] Hey, hey, hey!
- [JGort] Hey, let me shoot out.
[Somto] Get the fuck outta here boy!
[laughter]
Somto, forget him, forget him,
we ain't worried about them,
we ain't worried about them.
Heads up, heads up, heads up.
[Gomes] Playoff basketball,
it jumps up another 15, 20 percent.
Bryce, yours worth two. Bryce, yours
worth two. Bryce.
All six of our teams
being in one building,
all the guys shooting on the basket.
- Fuck!
- Guard him! Guard him! Guard him!
- Go, Alex! Go, Alex! More! More!
- [crowd whooping]
This time it's for the money.
Knock down, it's last chance.
Your physicality, your mental sharpness,
all the things you do
throughout the season
kind a comes to fruition at this moment,
because it's the highest level.
I see you, Somto. Work on your dribble
hand though. Good hit.
Rob Dillingham, was lights out from the
perimeter.
Somto, he loves to be in the paint.
Then we had a dynamic leader
in Bryce Griggs, back from injury.
[Bryce] Is my wrist going work tomorrow?
I'm playing through it,
I ain't coming out the game with all
them scouts in the stands, like
What I need is to go hoop
and show toughness,
cause you know they love, like,
guys who compete.
Hey! Hey! Hey!
I always just try to stay positive,
you know, that was very hard, you know,
because you know I hate losing.
Oh, my God!
You know I told the other guys,
just like stay together
and you know everything will be fine
if we stay together.
[Bryce] You know,
we gotta work with what we got.
Let's go, we gonna get this win.
[Somto] It's just another game
with a title on it,
like, you just call it playoff basketball
but it gets intense a little bit,
because there's a lot on the line to lose.
- Get back, get back, get back, Somto!
- [Somto] Ahh!
- [woman] Boom!
- [Byrce] Boom!
[Bryce] Feel like we had a good practice,
it's like we locked in the details
and we had fun so, that's the most
important thing about it, we had fun.
Come on. Hike! Hike! Hike!
Throw the ball under your legs.
- Football. Football.
- Through my legs? Oh, yeah.
[Bryce]
Feeling great emotionally, physically.
And we got some extra shots up
after practice, my shot feels good,
my guys, we're ready to roll.
[announcer 1]
Game one of the OTE semifinals,
from OTE Arena in Atlanta, Georgia.
[Somto] Of course I love
the Thompson twins,
but the moment you put
on a different jersey
and I have a different jersey,
I am coming at you.
[Bryce] It's very important.
It's full of NBA scouts.
Oh, yeah, they in the building tonight.
[announcer 1] This place is up,
this place is loud and here we go.
So this is the fourth meeting
between both these teams
but really the first with a healthy
Cold Hearts squad
as Bryce Griggs misses the lay-up there.
That's Amen Thompson, and Nate Missia-Dio
with authority.
[Nate] I'm strong.
[announcer 1] That's Bryce Griggs going
on the other way with speed.
[announcer 2] Yeah. Oh, my
[announcer 1]
With the dish and the finish!
[announcer 1] And the honey dip, Somto
Cyril!
[announcer 2] I'm telling you
he's the game changer for this team, man.
[Gomes] It's alright, we got it. Hey. Hey!
[announcer 1] Throws it up!
And throws it down.
The twin telepathy.
[announcer 1] Bryce has no points,
Cold Hearts looking for their second
score, I need Bryce to shoot that.
[crowd jeering]
[announcer 2] It seem like the Reapers
got like defensive answers
for everything the Cold Hearts
Take it out!
[announcer 1] Bryce Griggs!
[announcer 1]
They gotta hit their shots, they should
[announcer 2] Yeah, yeah,
they just gotta hit their shot.
- [announcer 1] Yeah.
-Yeah, yeah, it's they shots.
[announcer 1] Reapers going the other way.
Beautiful feed and a beautiful finish
from Trey Parker.
Here we go.
[announcer 2] It won't be
a step back three, don't get me wrong.
Somebody from the Cold Hearts needs
to hit this three
- to get the momentum going.
- [announcer 1] Trey.
Throws it away. Three seconds left.
Rob going the other way, gets it off!
Connects!
- Gracious!
- [announcer 2] Rob Dillingham!
That's who we needed! Right now!
Wow, it was a tough bucket.
[Gomes] Hey, one thing I gotta say, man,
keep finishing, keep finishing,
they're scared.
We good, we good. We're good.
[Bryce] Energy on three, coach!
- One, two, three, energy!
- [all] Energy.
- [Gomes] Here we go.
- [Rob] Let's go, let's go.
[Bryce] Keep, keep dunking, yeah.
[announcer 1]
Cold Hearts going the other way.
[announcer 1] Somto!
[hip hop music playing throughout]
[Bryce] Hey, ref, you like that, huh?
Yeah, I know! I know you like that!
[crowd yelling]
[announcer 1] Cold Hearts playing a little
more of their half court game.
Rejected.
Bryce Griggs.
[announcer 2] I see Amen
maybe getting a little frustrated.
Oh man, he's got the ball on a string.
[announcer 2] Oh, Johned.
[announcer 1] Johned, oh man. That's just,
that's just fundamentals.
- [announcer 1] Cold Hearts storm back,
- [Somto] Let's fucking go!
storm back and take the lead, a one point
game heading into halftime.
Cold Hearts hasn't really been healthy the
whole year, they have a lot of talent,
but they really haven't had the time
to gel until the playoffs.
[Somto] Hey, one more half, y'all.
We can win this game, y'all,
we can win this shit.
[Gomes] Looking real good, stay together.
Right now, Rob got the hot hand,
it's the moment.
He got it going right now,
so whether he shoots it
or he draws the attention,
everybody else gotta be alert.
[Leitao] If somebody wanna get pissed off,
get pissed off at why the fuck
we can't guard Rob Dillingham.
Is he too quick? Is he too fast?
Is he too good?
Because all I know, he's fucking,
I don't care who, it's not anybody,
11 guys think. Stop talking to each other!
So, so we become the Cold Hearts.
Because we're bitching and we're moaning
to something that don't fucking matter.
And now we gotta do two things,
we gotta return back to who we are,
and we gotta take away
their positive emotion.
[announcer 1]
We have the second round of the playoffs
and, boy, do we have a good
game on our hands. One point game.
Let's go!
- City Reapers are going the other way.
- [announcer 2] Showtime.
[announcer 1] Amen, to Ausar!
They they literally,
look like they're flying.
Get back bro.
[announcer 1] That's Rob going to work.
The floater connects.
Get back! Get back!
[Gomes] Hey, come on. Let's get a stop
now.
Nas, Nas hands, Nas hands. Corner.
- [announcer 1] Trey
- [announcer 2] Whoa!
- That's a Oh, wow. Wow, wow, wow.
- [Somto yelling]
[announcer 1] And a foul.
[announcer 3] Chat, how do
we feel about that call, chat?
[Somto] Fuck!
- [announcer 1] It's intense.
- [announcer 2] Yeah, yeah.
Great energy.
Cold Hearts have to find
their groove, I guess.
[announcer 1] Oh, Johned, air ball.
- [announcer 1] Rob
- [Gomes] Watch your back.
- Eli Ellis, the save. And the finish.
- [announcer 2] Oh wow, he saved it.
[announcer 1]
And the City Reapers, on a 10-0 run.
[Bryce] Hey, there's some BS-ass
turnovers and missed layups,
we're playing good, shit,
I'm missing, you missing,
we still making shots though,
you know what I'm saying,
it's just a little ass turnover.
[announcer 1]
Huge possession. Oh, my goodness.
This what you wanted playoff
basketball, ladies and gentlemen?
[announcer 2] Rob, Rob's coming back.
[announcer 1]
Yeah, he's got that look in his eye.
- [announcer 2] Oh, no!
- [announcer 1] Throws it away.
[announcer 2] Now they gotta get a stop
right here.
[Gomes] Got 'em Somto, elbow!
Match up! Match up!
[announcer 1] Ausar Thompson driving,
kicking, Amen, hit me!
Amen Thompson with a dagger.
- That's Amen
- [announcer 2] Oh, good.
[announcer 1]
Oh, and they called a foul on Somto.
- [announcer 2] Man. Man, man, man.
- [announcer 1] And he is beside himself.
[announcer 2]
I feel, I feel Somto, the emotion.
[announcer 1] You know, this building
was rocking in the first half,
and there's a real nervous energy in here
right now, you know?
Here we go, 30 seconds left,
four point game, Rob
that's Bryce Griggs stripped,
Thompson's going the other way, Amen!
- Oh! Amen Thompson!
- [announcer 2] Wow. Two point game.
[announcer 1] Amen and Rob exchanging some
words, an intense game one at OTE arena.
[announcer 2] You know what, if you a
Cold Heart right now,
your frustration is through the roof.
[announcer 1] And also, I gotta say,
Cold Hearts have kind a looked like
the better team tonight.
[announcer 1] Walker off the mark.
That will do it for Game One,
City Reapers 104, Cold Hearts 97.
We will be back here Friday night
for Game Two.
[Gomes] Go!
Go!
[Bryce] You know,
it could be my last game.
You know, it's a lot of pressure,
only because there's a lot of people here
who I'm doing it for,
and the things I'm doing it for,
so just keeping that in mind
and just playing my game,
and leave out with a good impression.
They're up 1-0 on us so it's like,
y'all gotta win.
[Gomes] All those games
in the regular season,
they don't mean nothing.
Everything else counts right now.
The intensity gotta be higher.
Might be due for one.
But are we gonna let them take the game,
or are we gonna go win the game?
Those are the things
we need to have in our mind,
but that's the team we play,
it ain't nobody else, ain't no other team.
We worried about just them nine guys
that they got on that squad.
- One, two, three.
- [all] Together!
[announcer 1]
Game Two of the OTE semi-finals.
- Bryce Griggs going the other way.
- [announcer 2] They're running.
- Oh, that's great find.
- [announcer 1] Rob cutting.
[announcer 2] [gun noises] Boom!
[announcer 1]
He's locked in, he's ready to play!
Johned Walker. Somto!
[cheering]
[announcer 2] Somto Cyril! This is
ridiculous.
[announcer 3] It's high stakes, man,
you lose, you go home,
I feel like they're playing like it.
[announcer 1] Ausar says, "Quiet please!"
[announcer 2] He is in a bag right now.
Ausar is hot.
[Gomes] Time out, time out.
[Gomes] Hey, we all right, we all right!
Get into transitions, I'm telling you
Hey, another thing,
Ausar got it going a little bit,
so we gotta close out to him
a little bit more tighter. All right?
Hey, here we go, work on three.
One, two, three work!
[announcer 1] Rob? Oh.
[tense music throughout]
- Oh, oh, good D. Good D.
- [announcer 2] Oh, man.
[announcer 1] A little out of control
here. Thompson going the other way. Eli.
[announcer 2] More turnovers than a
bakery.
[Bryce] Put me back
in the fucking game, bro!
[announcer 3] Boom! That's the last thing
they need, for him to heat up!
- [announcer 1] There it is, Amen
- [announcer 3] Skip pass.
[announcer 1] Eli. That's his spot. Boom!
[announcer 3] Can't let that man open!
They are literally leaving the paint.
Letting them get wide open dunks.
Cause they're so afraid
of Eli Ellis getting open threes.
And the flood gates have opened.
[announcer 1] We got bodies falling
everywhere. Whoa!
[announcer 2] I need to see some urgency
from the Cold Hearts.
They gotta play like their season's
on the line, because it is.
[announcer 3] Oh, man, very, oh
-Yo, they're not playing like
- [announcer 1] Oh, man.
[announcer 3] Man, they're not playing
like they want it, man, I think it's over.
[hip hop music throughout]
- Eli with the floater.
- [announcer 1] That's a dagger.
[announcer 3] One legged floater
from the free throw line. It's over, yeah.
[announcer 1]
City Reapers 89, Cold Hearts 75,
and the City Reapers
are going to the finals.
[announcer 3] Hey, look man,
I love the Cold Hearts as a team,
I just really wish they would've
played harder this game man,
I think they really had a good shot
at winning the whole thing,
unfortunately,
this is where their season ends.
[Somto] I don't know how to deal
with losing, but like, it is what it is.
I have to move on to what's next,
gotta prepare how to be a man,
take care of, you know,
myself right now, yeah.
People around me too.
[Gomes] Man, I know you guys
are upset with the loss,
and upset with the way, you know,
we ended the season,
but we can't forget about
all of the things
we went through throughout the season.
Everything is not fucking fair out here
in the world, but you still get to hoop,
you still get to play the game
you love to play and enjoy
and supposed to have fun out there,
shouldn't be no tension on anything.
Use it as a positive,
use it as a negative,
but don't put yourself
in the same situation
the next time you approach the game
of basketball.
[Bryce] Sad, bro.
Terrible, man, this ain't over,
this ain't the last opportunity,
I feel like, it helped me,
and I actually grew like,
little things I needed in life.
Hopefully, like, the NBA's next.
[Wilkins] I think he's trying to do
the best that he can
and, sometimes, we think our best
is good enough.
And, unfortunately,
in a lot of cases it's not.
[announcer 1] What a performance
by the Thompson twins.
What a season
and the City Reapers aren't done yet.
Finals match-up is the Dreamerz versus
the City Reapers.
- Yes, sir.
- Yes, sir.
[Wilkens]
A lot of people probably expected that
based on how the season has gone.
You know, the tale of two teams, two
coaching styles,
I'm looking forward to seeing
how it all shakes out.
[Eli] Family on three,
one, two, three
[Reapers] Family!
[hip hop music throughout]
[Somto] I don't like these trade rumors
and stuff. I don't like it.
[Somto] I don't think anybody's
gonna be here today.
Nobody's here.
[Somto] Hold on, hold on,
hold on, right here.
Know what I'm saying, man,
with trade rumors and everything
I don't wanna leave my team.
[Wilkins] I know a lot of you guys
have been hearing the conversations
around roster moves and all that stuff.
I just wanna say this,
I think you have been,
by far, the best big
that we have in this league.
Any roster moves that we've made,
have been solely about to help our balance
and to help us be more competitive.
Like right now you're on a team
with two top five draft picks,
and quite frankly, that team
is just almost too damn good,
and I think you have
a whole lot to do with that.
So this is your new team.
Cold Hearts has had
the most unavailable players
and we needed to make that team better.
You have any thoughts?
You can be honest.
City Reapers, those guys been my teammates
like from day one, so,
I mean, we have our ups
and we have our downs,
but I feel like they're my brothers.
I'm excited to see what it looks like
moving forward.
Thank you.
What the heck?
Like what the fuck?
Like, what am I supposed to do with them?
Am I like, I'm not Jesus,
I'm not going over there to save them.
This why I don't like shit like this, man.
They got guys that don't pass the ball,
they play solo basketball.
Hello? Hey, Ma.
Damien just called me right now,
we went into his office
and uh, he told me I got traded
to the Cold Hearts.
Let's say I'm doing like really bad,
I'd be like, "Okay, that's my fault."
Why would I get traded
because he says, "You're the most
dominant person in the league,"
Like, how am I gonna get traded
because I'm good?
[Wilkins] It's getting warm.
Spring Break coming up, man.
Feel like Florida.
You know what else coming up?
The playoffs!
You gonna just skip over that?
[Leitao] The end of the season is near,
positioning you know playoffs,
everybody's starting to talk about it.
[Wilkins] I don't think nobody wanna play
the Cold Hearts to get to the finals.
- [staff member] Healthy.
- [Wilkins] Yeah.
In the playoffs we gotta prepare
for everybody,
you don't know who's gonna win,
so, it's definitely a different feeling.
[Leitao] Cold Hearts are a dangerous crew.
What's wrong with you, man,
I lift weights too, man,
I lift weights too, Somto.
Stop it, stop it.
They've got some individual talent
that I'd like to have on my team.
[Wilkins] There's something wrong
with that dude, man.
And maybe the playoffs is that point
in time where they come together
and they realize they can be
the best team in the league.
[Gomes] So listen, the game will
be here before you know it.
And all the shit we went through
in the regular season,
there ain't nobody feeling sorry
for anything.
[Frazier] Cold Hearts. I'm more worried
about them than the YNG Dreamerz,
just because Bryce Griggs alone
and you got to guard, Rob Dillingham,
[chuckling] then you've got Somto
who's probably pissed that we traded him.
The game is gonna be played and somebody's
gonna win the finals, why not it be us.
We gotta be ready for the game,
we can't get ready at the game.
Game one is the most important game.
[Frazier] To do it under the lights
where NBA scouts are thick and heavy
[Cold Hearts] One, two, three. Work!
Work, work, work.
[Frazier] like the check writers
are really here.
A lot of it is trusting the work,
trusting the process,
and then doing it under pressure.
[Gomes] Set it, snake it, snake it,
wait, get out, lob, finish.
Here we go, same thing coming back,
We're fun, energetic, in-your-face
type of team
If they're gonna beat us, they're gonna be
something different.
Not the same shit
they beat us with last time.
Physicality at the rim
There we go. There we go. There we go.
Ah! Come on.
Ball pressure on the perimeter,
and I try to tell our guys to be free
and use your imagination.
Because in basketball,
you can't script everything.
Push yourself, over doing your reps.
I always just try to play loose,
play free.
Turn, turn. Boom, shot.
One, two. Nice. Nice.
All the little small things that
can give us the best chance of winning.
You good, you good, you good.
One, two. Bang!
[Wilkins] We had to suspend Jahki
for some behavior issues.
You're not fucking open!
Pass the fucking ball, bro!
Bro, I come late to anything,
I don't fucking play.
That's just very shit, bro.
Pick your fucking head up, bro! Bro, come
on bro!
[Wilkins] That was a tough decision
for us to make as a staff,
but we felt like
it was in the best interest
of both he and our culture here,
to just kind of remove him from it
for a while.
[Jahki] Oh, it's a horrible feeling.
It's a lot of different emotions,
there's a lot of stuff built up inside.
It's very difficult just, you know,
for me to figure out, like,
you know, what's my role again,
you know, just figuring all that out.
[Alisha H] His love for the game
is so strong,
it's something I've never ever seen, like,
he doesn't really have much emotion,
I've never seen him cry as a kid,
he's never been a crybaby,
he's never done that,
but when it comes to the game of
basketball, he takes it very serious.
[Wilkins] Jahki is part of the group
of guys that need a little push.
Us as a staff, we're responsible
for meeting him where he is,
and help him grow out of, you know, things
that he's struggled with.
It takes a village.
- It's time for- you need a haircut.
- [Alisha H] Let's go.
You gotta, you gotta get your hair cut
this week.
Got a haircut tomorrow?
All right, you need a haircut my boy.
I tried to get him to get his hair cut,
but he ain't wanna cut his hair.
[kid grunting]
[Jahki] I love spoiling my little brothers
and making sure that they don't have
to worry about anything.
[Alisha H]
He's more of a provider type big brother
instead of a babysitting type
of big brother.
Jahki thinks he can
just buy them the world.
[Wilkins] People don't understand,
he's still just a kid,
taking care of adults,
making more financially
than people in their family
has probably ever made.
That's a huge responsibility
to put on a young man.
It's probably the kids coming over
to ask for Jahki, let me just check.
[Alisha H] Hi.
- Mind if I come in?
- [Alisha H] Yeah, you can come in.
Would you like for me
to take off my shoes?
[Alisha H] No, it's okay, honey.
He was asking
He goes to Norcross High School.
You can come in, honey.
- You gonna play basketball?
- Yeah.
Been watching you, Trey, OTE,
you definitely inspire me man, a lot.
[Jahki] I got you.
Oh, your mom actually gave me one of your
shoes, I still, like I be hooping in it.
[Alisha H]
Yep, I gave him a pair of your shoes.
Those ones. I actually got those
for Norcross, I remember that.
These, these are hard.
- What size you wear?
- [Rashawn] I'm size 14.
I got another pair for you, hold up.
- [Rashawn] For real?
- [Jahki] Yeah, I got you.
I remember I was hooping, and I seen him
hoop over there one time, and I was like
Ohhh And that's when I
really started watching him more
and seeing how explosive
and, like, that bounce.
[dramatic music throughout]
[Jahki]
My desire to be back, I don't know,
I just have a special bond with
a lot of guys on the team, you know?
I've learnt that, like,
the more you're gone from the game,
the more you want the game.
It's not the same, you're not playing,
you're not with your teammates,
you're not practicing every day,
you're just working out.
Like, damn, I'm ready
to get back on the court.
[trainer] Chest up, chest up.
Like you're trying to pick your chest up
off of the bench, there you go.
[exhaling]
[trainer] Keep benching them up.
[Wilkins] Man, those little ass weights.
[laughter]
- We can make some adjustments for you.
- [Bryce] Appreciate it.
[trainer]
I'm just glad you're not 180 anymore.
[Wilkins] He was 180?
- [Bryce] I was never 180.
- [Davis] Yeah, you were.
- [Wilkins] Bro, it's okay.
- [Davis] Too damn light.
You a little dude, you a little dude!
- [Bryce] I'm 195.
- [Davis] Yeah, now.
- You back to where you're supposed to be.
- [laughter]
195 boy!
Bryce Griggs is one of our guys
who went the pro route,
giving up his college eligibility.
He had a tough first year.
Bryce in year one was a rebel,
just doing his own thing, often times
late, to everything,
or not showing up.
Just breaking all the rules, right?
[Davis] You gotta at least make it look
like you're strong,
there you go, that's easy work.
[Wilkins] You know you're put in
a lot of money in his pocket,
you know, and a social media star
that's tough for any kid to handle
when you're not ready for it.
[Wilkins] What would you say is your like
biggest regret?
I would say I really messed up last year,
like just umm
- like, with the off-the-court stuff.
- Yeah.
But now since I fixed that,
I feel like it helped me today.
[Wilkins]
To his credit, came back his year two
and has been a totally different person,
super focused, body has changed,
and with that you can tell
his whole mindset is different.
And it shows out there on the court,
he's just proving
that he can make big shots,
can make big plays
when the game is on the line.
How he was able to deal with adversity,
how he was able to self-correct.
I think if he continues to do that
the NBA isn't um, something
that's out of reach for him.
If there's anyone that I can believe
betting on themselves, it's him.
But he's out right now going
through some injury stuff.
- [Wilkins] How is that?
- [Bryce] It's getting better.
- [Wilkins] Right one?
- Yeah, it's the right one. It's a little
- Gotta stop using that guy so much, so
- [laughter]
[Bryce] I hurt my wrist, you know,
I've been out for a whole month.
Yeah, it's been kind of weird.
I'm thinking I can hoop
and I'm trying to lay the ball up
and I'm still fumbling the ball.
I was in tip-top shape ready to roll,
like coming off a triple-double game,
all that hard work, whole season
it's like a whole month of just watching.
[Wilkins] Every game matters,
every game counts for him,
and you know every game that he's out,
it's a detriment not only to him,
but it's also to his team
because they need him.
He's their best playmaker.
Rotate, Tyler! Box out! I see you, Tes!
Go box out, Tes!
[Bryce] The team ended up losing
a lot of games.
I feel like I definitely could have helped
because they needed little leadership.
[Wilkins] You know,
they say he's improving every day,
you know,
we just have to wait and see.
[Bryce] My whole goal,
to come back stronger.
I need a big show-up in the playoffs.
I wanna leave my best impression
for the NBA scouts.
[Jasmin] Okay, this is gonna be
very uncomfortable, suck it up.
Ready? Deep breath in.
Hold on, hold on.
[Jasmin] All the way out.
[man yelling]
Oh, shit! Oh, what the fuck, oh, my God!
[Wilkins] Somto, he's like a big kid,
always joking and playing around.
Nothing, oh, shit, Jesus.
I feel like she just know how to hurt me.
Oh, my fucking God. She's just smiling.
[Somto screaming]
[Wilkins] He has a great personality
off the court,
on the court, he's an animal, man.
[audience cheering]
He's blessed, like he's 6'11",
he jumps higher than everybody.
He blocks every shot, dunks everything.
He's just hooping.
[Wilkins] The things that he does
with his size, athleticism.
- Defense, his effort
- [announcer 1] Two handed block!
[Wilkins] just a dominating, fearless
guy.
[cheering]
There's quite a few Division I schools
that are interested in Somto.
I don't know if he knows yet,
or understands how good he is.
And, you know, I'm waiting
on that light bulb to go off in his head.
I feel like I'm so strong
but she make me feel weak.
Don't, don't feel yourself. [screams]
[Wilkins] Because he's a jump hook away
from being in the league.
Like, he's that good. I can't wait to see
what the finished product is.
[pained laughing] Oh, dude.
[Somto] What's up. man, you ready?
Coach Cam already text me saying,
"Where you at?"
- He texted your brother?
- [Somto] Yes.
[Stephen] Wait. Where's my phone? Lemme
check that out.
[Somto] He don't know where he drop his
phone?
[Lisa W] When Somto moved in with us,
he was actually my first Nigerian student.
He's a gentle giant,
he'll kill me for saying this,
but he's my big baby, he would kill me,
like kill me, when he hears me say this.
Oh, that's my son, that's my first son.
Before I gave birth to the twins,
the Thompson twins, he was my first son.
[Lisa W] He's very much the big brother.
He was my first, first victim, I put him
on the poster.
Even the big brother
that drives you crazy.
[laughs] Wow.
[Stephen] Since I was born, we've always
had, like, additional kids in the house,
like, my mom's house in the neighborhood
is "The House."
We've said that she has a Nigerian embassy
in her home,
because she had,
you know three Nigerian boys in her house.
[Somto] We're going to see my strength
and conditioning coach here,
when I was in my high school,
my old school so
I told him I would be in town,
and he said he wanted me to come in there
and put in some work
so right now we're headed down there.
Back in Nigeria like,
I was like 12, 13 years old.
Basketball, basically, became my life.
I did that like every day.
I grew up around people I didn't want
to turn out to be when I grew up.
I wanted a better life
for my mom, myself, yeah.
I I had to do what I had to do.
Coach Cam, he been on my behind
since I got here, never let me slack.
- [laughter]
- [Coach Cam] You messed it up.
This is where it all started,
like all the workouts and everything.
[Coach Cam] Here we go.
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven,
eight, nine, ten.
[rope tapping]
[chain clinking]
Yeah, it's been a minute, dog.
Hop it, go. Relax.
[Somto] I left home
because, yeah, my mom, a single mom,
and she don't have enough money and stuff.
I had to like, I stayed with strangers,
she did her best to support me from home.
I'm not gonna sit there and be like
"Ah, it was fine," no, it was pretty tough
cause I'd go without eating like for days.
We all stayed in this building like
[vehicles honking]
I don't know how I did it, I don't know
how I survived, but I just did it.
I think I have a picture of the house.
[chuckles]
Yeah, it was a
It's just like a place you stay
when you don't have any other option.
I spent like months over there.
Probably a year.
I didn't really, really feel comfortable
going to sleep in a place like that,
so I Yeah, some days I'd stay up late.
3 AM, sometimes 4 AM
before I'd go to sleep, like, then I'd
have to wake up late to play basketball.
[speaking foreign language]
I sit down to myself when I think,
I didn't even know I would make it
this far, so yeah.
I
Yeah.
[heavy sigh]
[Stephen] Me and Somto connected
probably in June of 2020.
He's been wanting to get over here
for a very long time,
he's just been denied entry to America
through the embassy.
Finally, he had called me
at 4:00 one morning,
he was like, "I got bad news for you,"
and I'm like, "What's the bad news?"
He was like, "I'm coming to America!"
[laughter]
[Somto] We here at the football game.
He got me out here, I never go out
but he always take me out,
he say, "Let's go, bro."
I'm a homebody, I don't really like
to go out I just like to chill,
I enjoy my own company
so I don't really go out.
[Lisa W] When Somto first got here,
he was very reserved,
and not very trusting of people,
it's a very new culture for him.
He came here not knowing anyone.
- [man] How's OTE?
- Good.
- How you know I'm at OTE?
- [man] Bro, you're famous.
Oh, okay.
You wanna picture though?
[Lisa W] We knew that,
possibly, this was an avenue
to make life better for himself
and his mom.
He's just like so grateful, to be able
to come to America number one,
and to just meet the people that he's met
and had the opportunities that he's had.
[laughing, humming]
He's talking like
[Lisa W] I think that Somto
is a very determined young man.
That determination is gonna take him far.
- [Bryce] Hey.
- [Bryce's Mom] Hey, Bryce.
Hey, Mom.
- [Bryce's Mom] What's up?
-Not much.
[Bryce's Mom] So how are you dealing
with your wrist injury?
It's fine, just doing treatment right now,
and I'm still conditioning
to stay in shape.
[Bryce's Mom] Well, I know that you're
anxious to get back on the court,
but, you know, do what you're supposed
to do and just stay focused.
You know, just remember
what your dad always told you,
that it's gonna be greater later,
you know?
Oh, my God.
[Bryce's Mom]
Okay, so don't talk about that.
No.
[Bryce's Mom] Bryce, I'm try Okay.
[Bryce] You know, my dad was a coach, so
that's how I really got into basketball.
He built that toughness.
He's not here no more,
he passed away from cancer so,
he passed like my 8th grade year.
He didn't ever come
to my high school game. It's sad bro.
I don't even like to remember it. But I
feel like all those games he was with me.
I dominated high school. Every year.
Let's go! I told them I'm gonna fuck you
up!
Me dominating all those years,
like, that's what got me to go to OTE.
- [announcer 1] Three. Deep three.
- [announcer 2] Bryce!
[announcer 1] Oh, my goodness! Oh, my
goodness! Wow, buzzer-beater!
[Bryce's Mom] This too shall pass,
you know, you've faced many adversities,
you've held your head up
and you've worked through all of that,
so just know that,
you'll be back on the court soon.
[Bryce] My dad passed, you know,
I could a gave up,
I could a quit, you know,
but why would I do that?
I feel like that's my mindset
in any challenge.
I wanna be in the NBA bad, just
and I won't stop until like it's done.
- [Bryce's Mom] I love you, Bryce.
- All right, love you too.
- [Bryce's Mom] All right, take care.
- All right.
[Bryce's Mom] Love you, bye.
[buzzer buzzes]
JGort, JGort!
- [man] Hey, hey, hey!
- [JGort] Hey, let me shoot out.
[Somto] Get the fuck outta here boy!
[laughter]
Somto, forget him, forget him,
we ain't worried about them,
we ain't worried about them.
Heads up, heads up, heads up.
[Gomes] Playoff basketball,
it jumps up another 15, 20 percent.
Bryce, yours worth two. Bryce, yours
worth two. Bryce.
All six of our teams
being in one building,
all the guys shooting on the basket.
- Fuck!
- Guard him! Guard him! Guard him!
- Go, Alex! Go, Alex! More! More!
- [crowd whooping]
This time it's for the money.
Knock down, it's last chance.
Your physicality, your mental sharpness,
all the things you do
throughout the season
kind a comes to fruition at this moment,
because it's the highest level.
I see you, Somto. Work on your dribble
hand though. Good hit.
Rob Dillingham, was lights out from the
perimeter.
Somto, he loves to be in the paint.
Then we had a dynamic leader
in Bryce Griggs, back from injury.
[Bryce] Is my wrist going work tomorrow?
I'm playing through it,
I ain't coming out the game with all
them scouts in the stands, like
What I need is to go hoop
and show toughness,
cause you know they love, like,
guys who compete.
Hey! Hey! Hey!
I always just try to stay positive,
you know, that was very hard, you know,
because you know I hate losing.
Oh, my God!
You know I told the other guys,
just like stay together
and you know everything will be fine
if we stay together.
[Bryce] You know,
we gotta work with what we got.
Let's go, we gonna get this win.
[Somto] It's just another game
with a title on it,
like, you just call it playoff basketball
but it gets intense a little bit,
because there's a lot on the line to lose.
- Get back, get back, get back, Somto!
- [Somto] Ahh!
- [woman] Boom!
- [Byrce] Boom!
[Bryce] Feel like we had a good practice,
it's like we locked in the details
and we had fun so, that's the most
important thing about it, we had fun.
Come on. Hike! Hike! Hike!
Throw the ball under your legs.
- Football. Football.
- Through my legs? Oh, yeah.
[Bryce]
Feeling great emotionally, physically.
And we got some extra shots up
after practice, my shot feels good,
my guys, we're ready to roll.
[announcer 1]
Game one of the OTE semifinals,
from OTE Arena in Atlanta, Georgia.
[Somto] Of course I love
the Thompson twins,
but the moment you put
on a different jersey
and I have a different jersey,
I am coming at you.
[Bryce] It's very important.
It's full of NBA scouts.
Oh, yeah, they in the building tonight.
[announcer 1] This place is up,
this place is loud and here we go.
So this is the fourth meeting
between both these teams
but really the first with a healthy
Cold Hearts squad
as Bryce Griggs misses the lay-up there.
That's Amen Thompson, and Nate Missia-Dio
with authority.
[Nate] I'm strong.
[announcer 1] That's Bryce Griggs going
on the other way with speed.
[announcer 2] Yeah. Oh, my
[announcer 1]
With the dish and the finish!
[announcer 1] And the honey dip, Somto
Cyril!
[announcer 2] I'm telling you
he's the game changer for this team, man.
[Gomes] It's alright, we got it. Hey. Hey!
[announcer 1] Throws it up!
And throws it down.
The twin telepathy.
[announcer 1] Bryce has no points,
Cold Hearts looking for their second
score, I need Bryce to shoot that.
[crowd jeering]
[announcer 2] It seem like the Reapers
got like defensive answers
for everything the Cold Hearts
Take it out!
[announcer 1] Bryce Griggs!
[announcer 1]
They gotta hit their shots, they should
[announcer 2] Yeah, yeah,
they just gotta hit their shot.
- [announcer 1] Yeah.
-Yeah, yeah, it's they shots.
[announcer 1] Reapers going the other way.
Beautiful feed and a beautiful finish
from Trey Parker.
Here we go.
[announcer 2] It won't be
a step back three, don't get me wrong.
Somebody from the Cold Hearts needs
to hit this three
- to get the momentum going.
- [announcer 1] Trey.
Throws it away. Three seconds left.
Rob going the other way, gets it off!
Connects!
- Gracious!
- [announcer 2] Rob Dillingham!
That's who we needed! Right now!
Wow, it was a tough bucket.
[Gomes] Hey, one thing I gotta say, man,
keep finishing, keep finishing,
they're scared.
We good, we good. We're good.
[Bryce] Energy on three, coach!
- One, two, three, energy!
- [all] Energy.
- [Gomes] Here we go.
- [Rob] Let's go, let's go.
[Bryce] Keep, keep dunking, yeah.
[announcer 1]
Cold Hearts going the other way.
[announcer 1] Somto!
[hip hop music playing throughout]
[Bryce] Hey, ref, you like that, huh?
Yeah, I know! I know you like that!
[crowd yelling]
[announcer 1] Cold Hearts playing a little
more of their half court game.
Rejected.
Bryce Griggs.
[announcer 2] I see Amen
maybe getting a little frustrated.
Oh man, he's got the ball on a string.
[announcer 2] Oh, Johned.
[announcer 1] Johned, oh man. That's just,
that's just fundamentals.
- [announcer 1] Cold Hearts storm back,
- [Somto] Let's fucking go!
storm back and take the lead, a one point
game heading into halftime.
Cold Hearts hasn't really been healthy the
whole year, they have a lot of talent,
but they really haven't had the time
to gel until the playoffs.
[Somto] Hey, one more half, y'all.
We can win this game, y'all,
we can win this shit.
[Gomes] Looking real good, stay together.
Right now, Rob got the hot hand,
it's the moment.
He got it going right now,
so whether he shoots it
or he draws the attention,
everybody else gotta be alert.
[Leitao] If somebody wanna get pissed off,
get pissed off at why the fuck
we can't guard Rob Dillingham.
Is he too quick? Is he too fast?
Is he too good?
Because all I know, he's fucking,
I don't care who, it's not anybody,
11 guys think. Stop talking to each other!
So, so we become the Cold Hearts.
Because we're bitching and we're moaning
to something that don't fucking matter.
And now we gotta do two things,
we gotta return back to who we are,
and we gotta take away
their positive emotion.
[announcer 1]
We have the second round of the playoffs
and, boy, do we have a good
game on our hands. One point game.
Let's go!
- City Reapers are going the other way.
- [announcer 2] Showtime.
[announcer 1] Amen, to Ausar!
They they literally,
look like they're flying.
Get back bro.
[announcer 1] That's Rob going to work.
The floater connects.
Get back! Get back!
[Gomes] Hey, come on. Let's get a stop
now.
Nas, Nas hands, Nas hands. Corner.
- [announcer 1] Trey
- [announcer 2] Whoa!
- That's a Oh, wow. Wow, wow, wow.
- [Somto yelling]
[announcer 1] And a foul.
[announcer 3] Chat, how do
we feel about that call, chat?
[Somto] Fuck!
- [announcer 1] It's intense.
- [announcer 2] Yeah, yeah.
Great energy.
Cold Hearts have to find
their groove, I guess.
[announcer 1] Oh, Johned, air ball.
- [announcer 1] Rob
- [Gomes] Watch your back.
- Eli Ellis, the save. And the finish.
- [announcer 2] Oh wow, he saved it.
[announcer 1]
And the City Reapers, on a 10-0 run.
[Bryce] Hey, there's some BS-ass
turnovers and missed layups,
we're playing good, shit,
I'm missing, you missing,
we still making shots though,
you know what I'm saying,
it's just a little ass turnover.
[announcer 1]
Huge possession. Oh, my goodness.
This what you wanted playoff
basketball, ladies and gentlemen?
[announcer 2] Rob, Rob's coming back.
[announcer 1]
Yeah, he's got that look in his eye.
- [announcer 2] Oh, no!
- [announcer 1] Throws it away.
[announcer 2] Now they gotta get a stop
right here.
[Gomes] Got 'em Somto, elbow!
Match up! Match up!
[announcer 1] Ausar Thompson driving,
kicking, Amen, hit me!
Amen Thompson with a dagger.
- That's Amen
- [announcer 2] Oh, good.
[announcer 1]
Oh, and they called a foul on Somto.
- [announcer 2] Man. Man, man, man.
- [announcer 1] And he is beside himself.
[announcer 2]
I feel, I feel Somto, the emotion.
[announcer 1] You know, this building
was rocking in the first half,
and there's a real nervous energy in here
right now, you know?
Here we go, 30 seconds left,
four point game, Rob
that's Bryce Griggs stripped,
Thompson's going the other way, Amen!
- Oh! Amen Thompson!
- [announcer 2] Wow. Two point game.
[announcer 1] Amen and Rob exchanging some
words, an intense game one at OTE arena.
[announcer 2] You know what, if you a
Cold Heart right now,
your frustration is through the roof.
[announcer 1] And also, I gotta say,
Cold Hearts have kind a looked like
the better team tonight.
[announcer 1] Walker off the mark.
That will do it for Game One,
City Reapers 104, Cold Hearts 97.
We will be back here Friday night
for Game Two.
[Gomes] Go!
Go!
[Bryce] You know,
it could be my last game.
You know, it's a lot of pressure,
only because there's a lot of people here
who I'm doing it for,
and the things I'm doing it for,
so just keeping that in mind
and just playing my game,
and leave out with a good impression.
They're up 1-0 on us so it's like,
y'all gotta win.
[Gomes] All those games
in the regular season,
they don't mean nothing.
Everything else counts right now.
The intensity gotta be higher.
Might be due for one.
But are we gonna let them take the game,
or are we gonna go win the game?
Those are the things
we need to have in our mind,
but that's the team we play,
it ain't nobody else, ain't no other team.
We worried about just them nine guys
that they got on that squad.
- One, two, three.
- [all] Together!
[announcer 1]
Game Two of the OTE semi-finals.
- Bryce Griggs going the other way.
- [announcer 2] They're running.
- Oh, that's great find.
- [announcer 1] Rob cutting.
[announcer 2] [gun noises] Boom!
[announcer 1]
He's locked in, he's ready to play!
Johned Walker. Somto!
[cheering]
[announcer 2] Somto Cyril! This is
ridiculous.
[announcer 3] It's high stakes, man,
you lose, you go home,
I feel like they're playing like it.
[announcer 1] Ausar says, "Quiet please!"
[announcer 2] He is in a bag right now.
Ausar is hot.
[Gomes] Time out, time out.
[Gomes] Hey, we all right, we all right!
Get into transitions, I'm telling you
Hey, another thing,
Ausar got it going a little bit,
so we gotta close out to him
a little bit more tighter. All right?
Hey, here we go, work on three.
One, two, three work!
[announcer 1] Rob? Oh.
[tense music throughout]
- Oh, oh, good D. Good D.
- [announcer 2] Oh, man.
[announcer 1] A little out of control
here. Thompson going the other way. Eli.
[announcer 2] More turnovers than a
bakery.
[Bryce] Put me back
in the fucking game, bro!
[announcer 3] Boom! That's the last thing
they need, for him to heat up!
- [announcer 1] There it is, Amen
- [announcer 3] Skip pass.
[announcer 1] Eli. That's his spot. Boom!
[announcer 3] Can't let that man open!
They are literally leaving the paint.
Letting them get wide open dunks.
Cause they're so afraid
of Eli Ellis getting open threes.
And the flood gates have opened.
[announcer 1] We got bodies falling
everywhere. Whoa!
[announcer 2] I need to see some urgency
from the Cold Hearts.
They gotta play like their season's
on the line, because it is.
[announcer 3] Oh, man, very, oh
-Yo, they're not playing like
- [announcer 1] Oh, man.
[announcer 3] Man, they're not playing
like they want it, man, I think it's over.
[hip hop music throughout]
- Eli with the floater.
- [announcer 1] That's a dagger.
[announcer 3] One legged floater
from the free throw line. It's over, yeah.
[announcer 1]
City Reapers 89, Cold Hearts 75,
and the City Reapers
are going to the finals.
[announcer 3] Hey, look man,
I love the Cold Hearts as a team,
I just really wish they would've
played harder this game man,
I think they really had a good shot
at winning the whole thing,
unfortunately,
this is where their season ends.
[Somto] I don't know how to deal
with losing, but like, it is what it is.
I have to move on to what's next,
gotta prepare how to be a man,
take care of, you know,
myself right now, yeah.
People around me too.
[Gomes] Man, I know you guys
are upset with the loss,
and upset with the way, you know,
we ended the season,
but we can't forget about
all of the things
we went through throughout the season.
Everything is not fucking fair out here
in the world, but you still get to hoop,
you still get to play the game
you love to play and enjoy
and supposed to have fun out there,
shouldn't be no tension on anything.
Use it as a positive,
use it as a negative,
but don't put yourself
in the same situation
the next time you approach the game
of basketball.
[Bryce] Sad, bro.
Terrible, man, this ain't over,
this ain't the last opportunity,
I feel like, it helped me,
and I actually grew like,
little things I needed in life.
Hopefully, like, the NBA's next.
[Wilkins] I think he's trying to do
the best that he can
and, sometimes, we think our best
is good enough.
And, unfortunately,
in a lot of cases it's not.
[announcer 1] What a performance
by the Thompson twins.
What a season
and the City Reapers aren't done yet.
Finals match-up is the Dreamerz versus
the City Reapers.
- Yes, sir.
- Yes, sir.
[Wilkens]
A lot of people probably expected that
based on how the season has gone.
You know, the tale of two teams, two
coaching styles,
I'm looking forward to seeing
how it all shakes out.
[Eli] Family on three,
one, two, three
[Reapers] Family!
[hip hop music throughout]