Dhruv Trivedi
‘Swagger’ follows high school athlete Jace Carson’s journey through the amateur basketball circuit as he hopes to someday play for the NBA. Episode 3, titled ‘Mano a Mano,’ sees the young athlete face-off against his most formidable rival yet and learning an important lesson in the process. There also seem to be big things around the corner for the team as a professional NBA player considers sponsoring them. “You win some, you lose some” seems to be the lesson of this episode, so let’s take a closer look at what goes right for Jace and what doesn’t in ‘Swagger’ episode 3. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Swagger Episode 3 Recap
The episode opens with a brief flashback of Ike in high school, where we see him winning a trophy and subsequently having a bitter argument with his coach and throwing his medal into the river. Back in the present, Jace and his mother get into a fender bender while on the way to school, and the former injures his thumb. However, the young basketball player hides his pain from his mother so as to not worry her even more. Soon after, Jace gets the incredible news that NBA star Lester Davis is interested in meeting him and his coach, Ike.
This episode also introduces us properly to Nick Mendez, who is currently the number 1 ranked high school basketball player on the DMV circuit. Hailing from Costa Rica, the boy and his mother show a fierce ambition, which is comparable to Jace and Jenna’s when it comes to basketball. Nick is also proud of his heritage and brings it up multiple times, including mentioning that the three-point shot was invented by a Costa Rican.
Swagger Episode 3 Ending: Does Ike Reject Lester Davis’ Offer?
Finally, Jace and Nick face off on the court, and the competition is fierce. The two teams remain neck and neck on the scoreboard, but the focus of the game soon shifts to the personal confrontation between the star players on either side. Both Nick and Jace try to outdo each other until the end of the match, which ends in favor of Swagger DMV. However, Jace’s team is upset with him despite the victory, leaving our hero confused and frustrated.
Following his meeting with Lester Davis, who promises to sponsor the team if they win the next match, Ike discusses the offer with his wife. Though he admits they need the money, he remains apprehensive about dealing with Lester. Although not elaborated, it is revealed that the two were teammates in their younger days and subsequently had a falling out. After winning the match, Ike meets once again with Lester to finalize the deal, but the two soon have an argument, and the episode closes with Ike angrily walking out from the NBA star’s house.
It is a crushing end to the episode to see Ike walking out from a deal that would have enriched the team and skyrocketed their popularity. However, the coach seems to have his reasons, and though he doesn’t elaborate, his disdain for Lester is apparent. It is clear from their first meeting that Ike is wary of Lester and has possibly had a bad experience with him. However, the wealthy NBA star’s offer is too good to ignore, and Ike finally decides to take it. Just as they are finalizing the deal, Lester asks Ike to apologize for a past incident, and the latter leaves in a huff.
Since it is not known what their argument was about, we don’t know exactly why Ike leaves. However, from what we’ve seen so far of Lester’s (seemingly manipulative) character, Ike was likely wronged by him, which is why he gets furious when Lester asks him to apologize. Before leaving, he fumes that he will never apologize and that he never wants to look back and regret partnering with someone like Lester.
What is Lester Planning for Jace?
Lester claims to want to help Ike and his team and has repeatedly congratulated Jace on his skill, saying that the youngster will have a very successful career in basketball. However, it becomes clear that the NBA player is scheming along more ominous lines when he says to himself that he is going to make sure Ike apologizes. He then shares a picture of Jace on social media, causing the young basketball player’s account to blow up with likes and follows.
It seems like Lester has a long-standing grudge against Ike and plans to use Jace as a means to get to the Swagger DMV coach. Jace, as expected, looks up reverently to the NBA player and is likely to listen to him against the wishes of his coach. Therefore, by helping Jace raise his online following, Lester is getting closer to the young athlete and will likely try and undermine Ike and steal his team’s star player. In the end, it seems like Lester is not really interested in helping Jace but is more concerned with getting revenge on the boy’s coach.
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