Rebound: A 2nd Chance

While Jason was with Kyle and the rest of his group as they celebrated his dominant performance on the Neuro trainer Patricia was with some of the other researchers as they discussed their findings.

Patricia looked at the lines of data that were presented on the tablet that she was holding "If the results that we got from Jason are true then it could mean some big things.

The big myth before was that lactic acid was produced by the human body as a response to strenuous activity.

And that it was the cause of muscle soreness and cramps. But advances in modern medical science have taught us better.

Lactic acid is a huge contributor to the bodies recovery process. Most people are able to use somewhere near 75 percent of the lactic acid that their body produces.

The rest is simply released into the body before it is disposed of. Some of the higher tier athletes have been found to be able to use up to 85 percent of the lactic acid that their body produces.

This is major in the fact that it reduces the amount of time that they need to recover after training as well as how long they are able to remain active in high intensity activities.

So if Jason is actually capable of using 90 percent of the lactic acid that his body produces then his ability to recover would be above even those of the highest caliber athletes.

The affects of training will have a smaller impact on him compared to his peers and the wear and tear of the season would pose a smaller threat to him."

Carter nodded his head as he listened to Patricia "If Jason's Lactic Mitochondrial burn rate is actually 90 percent then not only would this help him outside of games.

It would help him tremendously in games. He would tire and get fatigued at a much slower rate. He could literally play with more energy than anyone else on the floor."

Patricia nodded her head "Exactly, but I don't want word of this leaking out to anyone outside of this room until we can confirm this with much more precise and fine tuned tools understood?"

Carter as well as all of the other researchers there nodded their heads enthusiastically under the pressure that Patricia exuded.

- - -

Jason was surrounded by Kyle and the others as they all cheered him on and hyped him up. Kyle had a huge grin on his face as he ruffled Jason's hair.

"You were crazy out there bro! It was like you could see everything that was happening!"

Danilo nodded his head "It really was. You were catching the tennis balls like it was nothing. They couldn't even slow you down!"

Rudy patted Jason on the back "That was pretty cool I have to admit. But just wait till it's my turn. I'll unleash the demon that's sealed within my right eye and-"

3D bumped Rudy to the side before he could finish what he was going to say. He then stuck his fist out toward Jason.

"Nice job out there. I already knew that you would kill it because of how good you are on defense but I didn't know you were going to be that good."

Jason chuckled as he bumped 3D's fist back with his own "Thanks 3D. Honestly I might have had a bit of an unfair advantage.

I did this drill a couple months back during Kawhi's training camp in Moreno Valley. So this is actually my second time running the drill."

Alex laughed "Nah bro that was all you. The fact that you had a chance to do the drill once before don't make much of a difference.

Even if me and Rudy tried a hundred times I don't think that we would be able to even get close to what you did."

Rudy threw his arms to the side "Hey speak for your self! If I really wanted to I could totally beat Jaya!..... Probably."

Jason laughed before taking a drink from his sports bottle "Thanks Alex. But Rudy is right. You shouldn't be so down on yourself.

You haven't even tried out the drill and you're already talking about how you can't beat me. It's one thing to have an understanding of your own abilities.

Knowing your limits and knowing the capabilities of your opponents is important. That's what allows you to play while making the right decisions.

But you can't let your spirit yield before you even fight. You need to make sure that your fire is burning as hot as it can if you want to win."

Alex listened closely to what Jason had to say "Thanks Jaya. You're right. I've always had the tendency to take a back seat and play things safe.

That's why I've always let Dlo take the lead. I'll try to change my mentality so that I can help my brother by carrying more of the load."

Jason nodded his head after hearing Alex say that. As the boys were reveling in the aftermath of Jason's brilliant performance they heard Patricia's voice call out.

"Alright boys! We are done recording the data for Jason and Monty. Will the next two please come forward."

All of the boys from Jason's group as well as Monty's group turned to her with surprised expressions on their faces.

Patricia giggled "What? Surprised that we're doing another head to head assessment?" Although none of the boys said anything their silence spoke louder than any words that they could have possibly said.

Patricia once again had a mischievous grin on her face as she looked out to all the boys "Since we have the extra machine set up here I feel like it would be such a waste to do all the assessments one by one don't you think?" 

The boys fell silent once again as they simply stared back at Patricia. She then clicked her pen "And after having Jason and Monty do their assessment head to head the idea has somewhat grown on me.

From now on all of the assessments that we will do today will be done head to head. This should help to foster a bit of a competitive streak within all of you."