Object

White House Pickup Game Basketball

A regulation adult-size orange composite-leather basketball with black ribbing and a faint, scuffed manufacturer logo; well scuffed from frequent pickup play on the White House outdoor court. It is dribbled, passed, shot and contested under floodlights; narrative beats include a dramatic attempt by Toby that hits the backboard and is emphatically blocked, sealing the game's outcome and producing stunned reactions from staff.

2 appearances

Appearances in the Narrative

When this object appears and how it's used

2 moments

S1E5 · The Crackpots and These Women

Teasing, Truths, and Quiet Reassurance

The basketball functions as a conversational prop and symbolic shorthand: it anchors a preceding, physical metaphor (fundamentals, team play) that segues into moral language about 'demons' and 'better angels' during Bartlet's talk with his aide.

Before: Referenced in conversation; implied to be recently used or in memory from earlier play.

After: Remains a rhetorical device in the exchange; no physical action on the ball occurs during the described moment.

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S1E5 · The Crackpots and These Women

Toby's Quiet Reckoning with the President

The basketball (game ball) is discussed in Bartlet's opening banter about fundamentals and later referenced in the confession as a metaphorical moment ('the other night when we were playing basketball'), tying leisure competition to moral introspection.

Before: Referred to conversationally during the reception's banter about fundamentals and previous play.

After: Remains a conversational reference; physically unchanged and not used during the private exchange.

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