“LeBron, what’s going on?” Cedi Osman said as he entered the locker room, looking in confusion at the nameplates above the lockers. “The stupid people who work here don’t know what our roster is.”
“Yeah, it’s messed up,” LeBron James answered evasively, purposely looking away from his rookie teammate. “Don’t worry about it too much.”
“I don’t see Jae’s name anywhere,” Cedi continued, scanning the names again. “And why do they think that George Hill plays for us?” He set down his bag at the locker which had his name above it and began to prepare for the game, but he was still perturbed. “Come to think of it, I didn’t see Jae at all during the whole plane ride. Did he get sick?”
LeBron was still avoiding eye contact as he aimlessly shuffled around his belongings in the adjacent locker. “Uh, maybe. Dunno.”
More players were walking in, including George Hill. Cedi stared as the newly traded-for Cavalier walked past. “Wait. I don’t recognize him. Who’s that?”
“Probably a janitor or something,” LeBron answered.
Cedi began to realize what was going on, and he felt a lump start to form in his throat. “Did we…did we trade Jae to another team?” When he thought about the possibility that he might never see his friend Jae Crowder again, his eyes began to water. “Did we, LeBron?”
LeBron sighed heavily. “Kinda. Yeah.”
This admission from the superstar caused Cedi to fully burst into tears. He let his jersey fall from his grip and held his face in his hands, muffling his next words. “I d-d-didn’t even get to say bye-bye! Now I’ll never see him again!”
“You’ll see him in Utah probably,” LeBron said gruffly, feeling uncomfortable as some of the Cavs’ new acquisitions observed the scene with confusion. Disclosing Jae’s new team only caused Cedi’s tears to intensify and his wails to become louder and longer.
Through watery eyes, he tried to take stock of the situation, and when he noticed that his friends Dwyane Wade and Channing Frye were also absent, he ran over to huddle next to LeBron. “They’re not going to trade you too, are they?” he asked between shuddering sobs.
Gently pushing Cedi away while providing him some awkward pats on the back, LeBron shook his head. “No more trades, man. But you gotta get used to it. Rosters get shaken up all the time.”
“I don’t like it,” Cedi sniffled, trudging back to his locker and sitting down in it, then staring sullenly at the floor. “I wish they had traded me too, so I could be with my friends.” He said these words defiantly, even though he didn’t mean them. When he felt LeBron’s hand on his shoulder, he looked up to find him smiling.
“What if I told you that Isaiah Thomas got traded too?” LeBron said.
Cedi’s frown was immediately replaced with a wide grin which was a mismatch with his tearstained cheeks, and he began to jump up and down in excitement, clapping his hands. “Yippee! Yay! Now coach will give me minutes!” Then he remembered what Jae always told him: you had to take basketball seriously or nobody would take you seriously. He sat back down and put on his shoes, tying them extra tight in preparation. “I’ll be ready for the game. I’m always ready. You can count on me, LeBron.”
LeBron nodded. “For sure, man.”