Athena is the company that heavily courts Terrell as the story progresses, and it is revealed that many of the people in Terrell’s life have accepted Athena’s bribes and have agreed to influence Terrell’s choices on the company’s behalf. This dynamic reveals the issue of Valuing True Friends over Fair-Weather Friends. Athena’s single objective is to obtain as many high-profile basketball players as possible to improve its own profits and public image. In the beginning, Athena is subtle about its goals and only approaches players during high-traffic times to avoid detection. However, when Athena takes things to a personal level, they imply that they have Terrell’s best interests in mind and offer a reasonable range of benefits. Later, after Athena has tightened its web around Terrell, the company relies on more aggressive tactics, such as offers with dollar amounts in the millions and access to insurance for sports-related injuries. The mounting pressure around Terrell combined with the increasing intensity of Athena’s efforts to recruit him, and this process shows that such companies are only interested in enriching themselves and will use unethical means to do so.

Athena's partnership with the University of Atlanta also highlights the corruption present in college athletics. When Terrell visits the University of Atlanta, he learns that the school’s basketball team skates dangerously close to breaking NCAA rules. The many contingency measures built into the college’s partnership with Athena show that power and influence can compel governing bodies to overlook such transgressions. In this way, the University of Atlanta’s partnership with Athena reveals that such arrangements do not value players as individuals. Instead, players are expendable assets who are only important as long as they garner positive attention and extensive profits.