"Curtain Call"

What is most closely the meaning of the underlined part of the paragraph?

Most people don’t get to wake up every day and do something they’re passionate about. You always feel you can give more, but at some point you have to do what’s right for yourself. Maybe every athlete goes through that when they retire. It’s hard to open up your hands and let go of what you know. You hold on because it’s so much a part of your routine—and your life. I’ve always been training for something. What happens when that’s gone?

• Once Cash steps away from the game of basketball, she does not think that she will stay attached to it in any way.

• Teaching children how to play basketball does not come naturally to Cash.

• Cash has prayed hard on this decision.

• Retiring means Cash giving up control of what is perhaps her greatest skill.

Tags

CCSS.L.8.5A

CCSS.RL.8.1

CCSS.RL.8.4

Which of the following best explains the underlined section?

We—the players—had to fight for the union, and fight to make it better. This is critical to our success. Many don’t understand but those are things we don’t get paid for.

• Cash is seeking sympathy for how difficult it has been to be a WNBA player.

• Cash is threatening that there may be an upcoming strike.

• Cash is calling out the first generation of players for not making a sacrifice.

• Cash is emphasizing efforts she made that were driven by her values.

Tags

CCSS.RI.8.1

CCSS.RI.8.4

Which of the following best explains the significance of the following passage (paragraph 15)?

• Cash’s skills as a player allowed her to accomplish goals that worked toward a greater good.

• Cash expects her career to springboard her to even greater success upon retirement.

• Cash found the greatest inspiration from the players who came before her.

• Cash’s strongest asset as a player was being able to drive to the basket.

Tags

CCSS.RL.8.1

CCSS.RL.8.2

How mainly does the following passage (paragraph 5) add to the development of the text?

I remember coming into the league and seeing some of the players who helped launch the WNBA—players like Lisa Leslie, Sheryl Swoopes, Teresa Weatherspoon. They were playing not just for the love of the game, but because it was so important for the future. Futures that weren’t even theirs.

• Cash is boasting that her generation will someday be known for providing the greatest impact on the future of the WNBA.

• Cash shows how she was inspired to work for the future of players that came after her by the effort put in by her predecessors.

• Cash is demonstrating the ways in which she broke away from previous players so that she would not live in their shadow.

• Cash wishes that she had come into the league years earlier than she did.

Tags

CCSS.RI.8.1

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.8.1

CCSS.RL.8.2

Which of the following best states a main idea of the text?

• Cash is more focused on the future of women’s basketball than she is in her own accomplishments.

• There is a chance that Cash may return to playing at some point in the future.

• Cash has lingering frustration that she was not able to win more championships.

• Cash believes that WNBA players get as much respect as their NBA counterparts.

Tags

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RI.8.6

Which of the following inferences is best supported by the text?

• Cash knows that she will be remembered most for being influential in causing a strike.

• Cash is anxious about life after the WNBA.

• Cash believes that the greatest days of the league are behind it now.

• There are many choices Cash made throughout her career that she wishes she did differently.

Tags

CCSS.RI.8.1

CCSS.RL.8.1

Which word is the best synonym for inaugural?

• indifferent

• crucial

• first

• enable

Tags

CCSS.L.8.4A

CCSS.RL.8.4

Which of the following is true about Swin Cash?

• Part of the first wave of WNBA players

• Created a charity with her name on it

• experienced nothing but enthusiasm toward the WNBA

• Announced retirement after the final game she ever played.

Tags

CCSS.RI.8.1

In the sentence, "At the end of your career, you do a lot of reflecting." Which context clues help to identify the meaning?

• "This is real"

• "I've played for multiple teams in the WNBA, and they've all felt like home..."

• They're the reason I'm announcing my decision now

• I came into this game unapologetically fearless, as the woman I felt I was called to be.

Tags

CCSS.L.8.4A

CCSS.RL.8.1

What figurative language is "Basketball gave me the vehicle to inspire and empower."?

• hyperole

• personification

• simile

• metaphore

Tags

CCSS.L.8.5A

CCSS.RL.8.4