Rahm Emanuel’s parable of the playoff

Had a little sit-down with Rahm over the weekend.

For two hours, the leading Chicago mayoral candidate and I sat across from each other and I just let him go.

And he lost it.

The game, that is.

Or at least his team did.

Our encounter was at UIC Arena. Rahm Emanuel was on one side of the court. I was in the stands on the other, with about 8,000 people.

Emanuel was there Saturday night sitting in a courtside seat at the “City vs. Suburbs” high school basketball game.

The state’s number one prep team and defending state 4-A champions (and currently USA Today’s number three team nationally) from Simeon Career Academy was representing the city. The state’s number two-ranked team from Benet Academy in Lisle was representing the suburbs.

For his sake (and the sanity of those around him) I hope Mr. Emanuel isn’t the kind of guy who believes in superstitions, like those that say if one thing goes a certain way then something else will follow, such as the stock market and the Super Bowl.

Mr. Emanuel does seem to be the kind of guy who is a closet believer in superstitions. Considering his fabled temper, he may even secretly carry a rabbit’s foot ... personally torn from the hind of a fleeing cottontail.

But back to the Emanuel loss over the weekend.

He better hope tomorrow is a different story.

The game was quite a spectacle. With a full house at UIC, people scrounged for tickets at the corner of Ashland and Harrison like squirrels for acorns.

Mr. Emanuel, despite growing up in North suburban Wilmette and attending New Trier West High School, eschewed his suburban roots and cheered for the city school in Saturday night’s showdown. Of course, to do anything else would have been blasphemous for a Chicago mayoral candidate three days before an election where he needs 50 percent of the vote plus one to win outright.

As a devout fan of the game of basketball, he could have cheered for either side – both played marvelous basketball throughout – but he didn’t. He cheered for Simeon as if he were an alum making a triumphant return at homecoming.

Emanuel sat on a front row, courtside folding chair wearing a gray sweater, blue jeans and jogging shoes. For most of the game he sat stretched out like a board with his arms crossed tightly atop his chest. His shoulder blades were propped up across the top of the chair and his feet were resting on their heels. Had he been taller, he could have tripped the players.

It was quite a sight for all of us on the opposite side of the court as fingers pointed at Rahm and you could hear people around you talking about him. Perhaps his flat-as-a-plank position is a stretching move from his days as a ballet dancer, I thought.

He cheered with each Simeon steal, shot and basket. He just sat there with every Benet bucket. It was a good thing that the suburbanites can’t (or shouldn’t) vote tomorrow, because Rahm’s partisanship was overwhelming.

Apparently Mr. Emanuel intended to simply enjoy the well-hyped game with his wife and two daughters. His campaign staff did not alert the media that he would be there, unlike his opponent Gery Chico. Then again, Mr. Chico is trying harder, given his number two position in all the polls.

I did not see Mr. Chico at the game, even though he is a much larger and imposing figure than Mr. Emanuel. Rahm’s shadow seems bigger.

Unable to contain himself even on a night out with his family, Mr. Emanuel worked the crowd between periods, shaking hands and posing for pictures. If he is elected, a week from now he will be on the job 24 hours a day and have no choice.

The best photo op was when Simeon’s cheerleaders surrounded the candidate and they all mugged for the camera.There they were in that picture, captured for all time, still giggly and giddy with minutes to go in a game that was either team#146;s to win. That is how it is when there is still time in a close contest.

When it was over though, Rahm had nothing to cheer. Benet won the game 58-54 to remain undefeated, and the mayor-in-waiting left quickly, like the runner-up in a class spelling bee. One moment he was there, the soon-to-be-king by his court... the next he was gone into the night.

Perhaps Mr. Emanuel knew that Saturday night#146;s game wasn#146;t the end-all for Simeon and Benet. The two teams could well meet again during the state playoffs in a grudge match for the title.

The thought of a runoff isn#146;t something that Rahm Emanuel can stomach.

bull; Chuck Goudie, whose column appears each Monday, is the chief investigative reporter at ABC 7 News in Chicago. The views in this column are his own and not those of WLS-TV. He can be reached by e-mail at chuckgoudie@gmail.com and followed at twitter.com/ChuckGoudie