On Monday, Tre is still hungover and exhausted. At lunch, he sits in his car to escape. Wes gets in, and after a tense silence, Tre confronts him about Khiana. Wes claims that their relationship just happened and that Khiana never had romantic feelings for Tre. He advises Tre to focus on basketball and school and to stop partying with Mason and Mike. Enraged, Tre tells Wes not to direct his life and orders him out. Wes retorts that Tre is ruining his own story and slams the door.

That night, before the game, Coach Whitefeather informs Tre that a coach from the University of Minnesota is in the stands. Early on, Tre is shoved to the floor without a foul being called. On the next play, Kevin is slammed down hard, injuring his knee, again with no whistle. In retaliation, Tre shoves the player who fouled Kevin, triggering a brawl. The referee issues Tre a technical foul. Dallas warns him not to blow his chance with the college coach watching.

During a timeout, Coach Whitefeather scolds Tre for his hotheaded behavior, especially in front of the recruiter. With Kevin injured, Coach moves Tre to center and subs Mason in as point guard. Tre struggles in the unfamiliar position, and Mason repeatedly refuses to pass him the ball. Without Kevin to protect the paint, Clearbrook exploits the mismatch. The first quarter ends tied at 24. The rest of the half is disastrous, with poor shots and weak defense. They enter the locker room down 38-51. Coach storms in, berating them for cracking under pressure and telling them to figure it out. He orders Tre to play with hustle, as if still proving that he belongs.

The next morning, Tre spots Wes and Khiana laughing together across the parking lot. Kevin, on crutches, confirms that his injury is only a sprain. In the hall, Tre receives a text from Blair Howe, a journalist for Slam magazine, saying that he has been selected for an upcoming feature. Nate sees the message and shouts the news just as Wes and Khiana approach. Tre quickly leaves to avoid talking to them. He texts Blair back, accepting the honor and successfully requesting that the story and photo shoot include his team.

In English class, a student named Sean complains about reading Shakespeare. The principal interrupts over the loudspeaker to announce the Slam magazine feature and a celebratory pizza lunch with ice cream and cake. Tre’s class applauds him.

At practice, Coach Whitefeather warns that the magazine article will make them a bigger target. He introduces a new offensive system called ma’iingan (the wolf) to counter teams that have scouted their old plays. After practice, Dallas invites Tre to a party at Shane Brown’s to celebrate the magazine news. At the gathering, Shane toasts the team. Mason then delivers an emotional speech about his desperate desire to win the state championship, as this is his last opportunity to play meaningful basketball.

The small party grows as more classmates arrive, including Kevin, who shows up to keep his teammates out of trouble. Wes and Nate arrive later. Drunk and angry, Tre complains to Kevin about Wes. Ignoring Kevin’s advice to let it go, Tre confronts Wes as other partygoers circle and record them on their phones. Wes warns Tre about the consequences of drinking, and Tre insults him, claiming that he’s only safe at school because Tre protects him, and throws his empty beer can at Wes’s head. Wes punches Tre in the jaw. Tre tackles Wes, punching him repeatedly until Mason pulls them apart.

The next day at school, Tre has a black eye. Dallas offers to say he accidentally elbowed Tre in gym class, providing an alibi. Tre uses this excuse when his civics teacher, Mrs. Hendricks, asks about the injury. Exhausted, Tre falls asleep during class. After the bell, Mrs. Hendricks wakes him and, though supportive of his basketball success, encourages him to focus on his education as well.

The principal, Mr. Thomas, pulls Tre into his office and reveals that he knows about the party and the drinking. He recounts the story of Tre’s father’s high school team, which won the district tournament but then partied so hard that they lost badly in the next round, a failure that still haunts some of them. Mr. Thomas offers Tre a deal: He’ll ignore the drinking incident if Tre and his teammates promise to stay sober for the rest of the season. Tre quickly agrees, feeling immense relief.

Outside, Khiana confronts Tre about the fight with Wes. She explains that she and Wes connected only after Tre became distant at the season’s start. Tre accuses her of lying about not wanting a relationship because she was planning to move after graduation, but Khiana insists that her feelings changed over time. She cries, but Tre is unable to form an apology. She tells him to leave her and Wes alone.

On the day of the Slam magazine photo shoot, Tre asks his mother to cover his fading black eye with makeup. She agrees, on the condition that he explain what happened. Tre confesses his jealousy over Wes and Khiana’s dating. His mother reminds him that Wes has been his loyal friend since kindergarten and urges him to apologize, warning him not to let pride prevent him from doing the right thing. She smudges Tre with sage and tells him to offer tobacco to the Creator for courage.

At the gym, Tre meets Blair Howe for their interview. She reveals that Wes contacted Slam and sent them footage from his documentary about Tre. Stunned and overwhelmed with guilt, Tre realizes that he must make amends. After the interview and photo shoot, Tre sits in his car and texts Wes, apologizing to him and thanking him. Wes responds, and they agree to meet.

Tre buys snacks as a peace offering and goes to Wes’s basement. Wes shows him a video sequence he edited, splicing together clips of Tre and Jaxon playing basketball to highlight their nearly identical movements and playing styles. Tre is moved to tears, feeling a strong connection to his late brother. The video ends with footage of Jaxon’s team holding their district championship trophy. Wes says he needs a matching shot of Tre’s team with their trophy to finish the documentary. Tre apologizes sincerely. Wes advises him to give Khiana space, and they laugh together, their friendship restored.

Tre has an early morning workout in the gym with his father. As they run through shooting drills, his father asks if he’s nervous about the upcoming playoffs. His father explains that the playoffs are far more intense than the regular season: Teams scout more thoroughly, the games move faster, players compete harder, and the crowd noise is deafening. He praises Tre’s remarkable season and impressive statistics, and then confesses that watching Tre play has been a healing experience for him, providing a welcome distraction from the grief of losing Jaxon.

Tre’s father becomes emotional. To give him a moment, Tre looks up at the championship banners hanging from the rafters: three from his father’s era and two from Jaxon’s. Tre expresses his hope that he can add a banner of his own. Dad tells Tre not to worry about matching his or Jaxon’s legacy, expressing his gratitude for the healing season Tre has already given his family, school, team, and the entire reservation. Encouraging Tre to play for himself, live in the moment, and be proud, he gives Tre an awkward side hug before telling him to resume his drills.

The team arrives at Bemidji State University (BSU) for their first playoff game against Baudette. A massive crowd of cheering fans, bundled against the cold, lines the walkway with homemade signs. Tre sees Wes filming and Khiana standing with him. They exchange a brief, cool greeting before Tre heads inside with his teammates. Coach Whitefeather warns them not to feel special yet because they haven’t won anything.

The locker room at BSU is far nicer than their home facility, featuring carpeted floors and individual spaces with chairs and cubbies. Tre feels the weight of win-or-go-home stakes. Coach Whitefeather gives an unusually calm pregame speech, telling the team to dominate their weaker opponent so that the seniors can get playing time in a playoff game.

In the sold-out arena, on the massive court, Red Lake defeats Baudette in a blowout, winning 127-49. The team celebrates in the locker room with music and dancing until Coach Whitefeather interrupts, reminding them that Clearbrook (a team that has already beaten them once this season) awaits in the district championship.

Later, Dallas and Tre park by a lake and drink beer. Dallas confesses that he’s scared for the first time in his playoff career because this is his last chance to win a state title. He worries about his future after basketball, fearing that he’ll become just another forgotten reservation star, working at the casino or bagging groceries. Dallas becomes emotional, explaining that winning the state championship would be a historic victory for their people against centuries of oppression and would make the team legends on the reservation forever.

At the district championship against Clearbrook, Eyabay, a drum group from the reservation, plays the tribe’s flag song after the national anthem. The drumbeat calms Tre’s nerves and connects him to his ancestors. The game begins at a frantic pace, as both teams trade baskets in an evenly matched battle. The first half ends tied at 47.

At halftime, Coach Whitefeather fires up the team and orders Tre to run the new offensive set, ma’iingan. The unfamiliar plays confuse Clearbrook, and Red Lake builds a lead. When the defense adjusts by guarding Tre heavily at half-court, he adapts by driving and assisting his teammates for easy baskets. Clearbrook rallies, and the third quarter ends with Red Lake ahead by only six points, 77-71. The teams continue trading baskets throughout the fourth quarter.

With one minute remaining and Red Lake clinging to a two-point lead, Tre passes to Kevin, but a defender steals the ball and throws ahead for a layup, tying the game at 99. Tre dribbles into the frontcourt and waves his teammates clear. He crosses over his defender and pulls up for a jumper that rattles in and then out. Clearbrook grabs the rebound and runs the clock down for a final shot.

With 20 seconds left, Mike tips a pass toward half-court. Dallas dives on the floor and throws the ball blindly overhead toward the basket. Robert catches the pass and scores a finger roll, putting Red Lake up 101-99. On the final possession, Tre stays low on his defender. With seconds remaining, he reads a crossover move and steals the ball. The buzzer sounds. The Red Lake Warriors win the district championship.