LOONEY TUNES & SPACE JAM BELONG TO WARNER BROS.
Was it easy for a mouse to play basketball? Not at all. In fact, it was rather complicated. There were rodents of considerable size out there but as for Speedy and Sniffles, that was a problem. They couldn't handle a ball so much bigger than they were; bounces and their partners playing without minding their step were a threat to their integrity.
However, Speedy was convinced that he had handled the situation very well. Señor Jordan was reluctant to let him play but he showed him that he was a decent player, even if he had never played that sport before. Speedy trained hard for weeks until he was able to bounce and handle that ball, gigantic from his perspective. He was quite strong for mouse standards. Though unable to throw the ball into the basket, he showed the superstar that he could also be a valuable member for the team.
He couldn't do much, but running was his biggest asset. Same for Roadrunner. Two days before the match, during the trainings, Jordan had a small conversation with the two of them and designed a plan which required speed and thinking fast. They were just perfect for that task.
Sat on the bench, next to Granny, Speedy was surprised to find that he wasn't nervous. Behind him, all the town cheered. They were all there, with no doubt. Small and big, popular and obscure, all folks from Warner wanted to see the match. That match in which they were risking so much.
He turned around to look for his kinfolk. His eyes met his cousin Slowpoke and waved his hand to him, but Slowpoke didn't seem to notice, because he kept looking into space–he did notice, but took him almost a minute to respond, and by then Speedy had forgotten about it. Somewhere in the stands were his girls, eager to see him play. But for the moment Jordan didn't require his services. They seemed to do well.
Uh…Not exactly well, actually. Just a couple of minutes and the Monstars already had a considerable advantage. As minutes passed, that difference became overwhelming. No wonder the team went to the showers looking so grim; even Speedy felt it was probable that they couldn't win this one after all. It had to be the first time the Looney Tunes couldn't escape unscathed from one menace. If only Jordan gave him the chance to try!
His prayers seemed to take effect. After the intermission Jordan required toons who hadn't played yet and Speedy and Roadrunner finally moved into action. Speedy's heart beat with such intensity it almost seemed it was going to explode. He heard the mouse public applaud. Oh, the adrenaline!
He was sure the audience would remember their game for years. As soon as Marvin blew the whistle, Roadrunner grabbed the ball and, with a "beep beep" darted towards the rival basket. Cheering, Speedy followed. The only thing those brutes probably saw was a lightning. Since the path was blocked, Roadrunner stopped and passed the ball to Speedy delicately. When that stupid Blanko wanted to react, the ball was in Speedy's hands and he was heading to his objective, right under his own legs. The blue Monstar tried to stop him but when he was bending his knees, the mouse had already vanished. His partners shouted, telling him to stop the blue bird, and it was useless too: before his damaged brain could interpret the orders, he was gone. The Monstars could do nothing to stop them. Speedy passed the ball to Roadrunner and he jumped gracefully, threw it into the basket. The stadium roared. The two fast toons celebrated it with a quick hug, for there was no time to loose.
But Speedy could hear the people admire their speed. It would be too easy from now on.
Oh, but unfortunately, he didn't hear what the Monstars were plotting.
He found out when it was too late, after three more scores. Pound, that big, nasty thing, had waited patiently, in a place which was not casual. All of his partners had learned fast. They made Roadrunner run in zig-zag, until he inevitably met Pound. He was waiting with his hand open. He closed it all of a sudden, trapping the bird's neck. Nawt stole the ball, while Pound squeezed the Roadrunner; Speedy saw an expression of shock and suffocation in his face. Then, Pound lifted him in the air and smashed him against the court, like some crazy rock stars did to their poor guitars.
The audience exclaimed and Speedy was petrified for a second. His friend's neck looked like an accordion, and his tongue stuck out. The medics quickly took him out. He saw those beasts laughing.
"¡Cerdos!" Speedy was angry now. He may have been small, but he was going to make them pay for that. Oh, they would pay!
Jordan was shouting something but he didn't listen. Probably it had nothing to do with him, maybe he was telling him to run before they scored. Anyway, that's what he did: he ran as fast as he could to reach the ball, steal it, and maybe gnaw their ankles on the way.
He would have never suspected that those beasts had considered the smallest detail until it was too late.
Nawt kept running towards their basket and his partners Bupkus and Bang covered his back. Speedy didn't have time to see what they dropped to the floor. He didn't have the chance to jump or change his direction. All he knew that next there was a snap! and the world stopped.
He heard gasps from the audience and his team. He would have sworn a lady from the stands let out a heartbreaking cry, "¡SPEEDITO!". Next…oh, he didn't know. He couldn't move. His vision was blurred. His leg had spasms. He kept enough conscience to hear voices around him without really understanding them, feel a somehow dull pain in his neck and, most of all, bear that harrowing pain.
He had failed.