Summer Ball

Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2007

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Chapters 15-16Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapter 15 Summary

When he rejoins the boys, Will asks Danny, “‘how’d it go with you and your conscience?’” (141), underscoring the effect Tess has on Danny. Nick Pinto questions the boys, catching them coming in from the lake. However, Zach invents a story to cover for them. Nick unhappily accepts the story, and “Danny couldn’t decide whether Nick was mad about whatever he thought they’d done on the water, wherever they’d gone, or because of the whole deal with his knee the day before” (143). Danny, refreshed after talking to Tess, takes Zach out to practice. Zach holds a broom, pretending to be a taller player, and Danny works on a shot that will soar over the tallest players and fall into the basket to score. Once satisfied, Zach and Danny retire for the night.

Chapter 16 Summary

After a Celtics player suffers an injury, Danny gets more playing time in the scrimmages. Excited, Danny remarks “he was a point guard again, with the big boys this time” (151). Even Rasheed and Danny start playing well together: “It was if he and Rasheed, for this one game, had thrown out everything except this: Winning the game” (151). However, Danny, running out of time in the game, attempts his new shot instead of passing to Rasheed, and the shot falls short. Disgusted, Rasheedleaves Danny on the court.

Chapters 15-16 Analysis

These chapters show the ups and downs of sports. Yes, Danny does return to camp with a positive attitude, but Tess’s warning proves correct: Danny will have to work very hard to win over his teammates. On the positive side, Danny develops a new shot to hang over taller players, preventing them from blocking his shots. He also teaches the shot to Zach and gets to see what a positive impact he has on the younger player: “They stayed there an hour, switching off sometimes so that Danny had the broom—he told Zach that he might as well start putting this shot into his game now. No sad face on Zach now. Just determination” (147). Zach’s drive gives Danny back some of his own missing courage.

However, the downside comes during a game. At first, Danny gets more playing time and gets into a good groove with Rasheed on the court. However, missing a shot at the end of the game, instead of passing, costs his team the game. Despite his amazing performance, Danny goes back into the doghouse with Rasheed and Coach Powers. In basketball, Danny finds that just one mistake divides the hero from the loser on any given day. Danny’s shot comes up “About six inches short” (154), which defines Danny’s struggle: too short to make it good.