At the novel’s conclusion, Lonnie reflects that he is going to have to “learn to deal with” good and bad people if he wants to be a successful basketball player. Why does Lonnie feel this way? Who helped Lonnie along the way, and who hindered him? Why do you think these people are important to Lonnie’s growth over the course of the novel? How would Lonnie’s life have been different if he had not met each of these people?

Teaching Suggestion: Consider permitting students to use the novel or their completed chapter questions as a guide in generating a response. Students may find it useful to create a T-chart to identify the novel’s characters in the left column and respond to the questions about the characters in the right column before discussing.