On the Roarers' bench, Coach Crawford's voice cut through the noise like a blade. "Double Hardell!" he barked, eyes blazing. The Starships' lineup leaned heavily on Hardell's playmaking, with Amin as their only other real threat—but Amin's offense paled next to Hardell's.
Shut down the maestro, and their attack would stall.
The timeout ended, and the game roared back to life. Hardell dribbled past halfcourt, his left hand snapping the ball with lethal intent. Kamara, abandoning Amin, surged forward, joining Ryan to trap Hardell in a double-team.
Hardell, eyes sharp, read the clamp coming and flicked a quick pass to Amin before the vise could close.
Amin caught it, unguarded.
Like Stanley, Amin was a defensive bulldog, but his rookie-year three-point shooting was abysmal—14%, worse than Stanley's. Fans called him a young Stanley, but Amin had grit.
