How is this disruptive? This isn’t as traumatic as son being ripped away from father, but in a movie about two neighbors who juggle a friendship and relationship amidst budding basketball careers, their first meeting is the undeniable ignition point of the story.

How does this ignite the story? They’re already discussing basketball and one of the first things Quincy says is: “I never knew a girl could play,” which happens to be one of the central obstacles and themes of the story.

Note how Prince-Bythewood makes Monica the one with the gory injury and the one who takes a bigger scoop of frosting from the cake. This is a childhood meet-cute with nuanced characters.