Her heart leaped when she spotted Thunder forward Serge Ibaka hunkered over the steering wheel inside the distinctive blue bus. The wide-eyed little girl scampered toward the steps as if there was a clear path to the basket for an easy layup.
As she got near, the double-doors suddenly closed shut catching her off guard like an Ibaka denial at the rim.
The third grader’s face contorted into a pout before Ibaka shot her a mischievous smile through the glass and reopened the doors to welcome her with a hearty laugh and a high-five.
Slightly bowing his head inside, Thunder guard Anthony Morrow was meticulously scanning and plucking out books from the shelves with a boy crowned with a punk rock multi-colored mohawk in its loud, flamboyant glory.