I didn’t want there to be any problems.” —Diana Ross, famed Motown recording artist whose family moved into the Brewster-Douglass Housing Projects in her early teens CHAPTER FIVE MALCOLM McBRIDE 7:25 P.M. [CT] Trailing by a bucket, even the offensive-minded Malcolm is determined to clamp down on defense, denying his man the ball. “Nothing for you,” Malcolm tells Roko, as he cuts him off from receiving a pass. “If I wanted to make it happen, you’d never touch the rock. You’re lucky my game’s about putting points on the board or I’d be living inside your jersey.” The Spartans’ defense smothers the Trojans’ attack. With the thirty-five-second shot clock about to expire, Troy is forced to heave up a bad, off-balance shot. Grizzly snatches the rebound, clearing out space with a vicious swinging elbow. Then Malcolm rushes over to him to claim the ball. Stalking the sidelines, Coach Barker signals a play by raising a fist into the air. Malcolm grimaces at the sight of it, grinding his teeth in disgust.
