“I’d shoot even more if they’d let me,” Chris Wondolowski said. “That’s my favorite part of practice.”



It was Oct. 5, the day before the Earthquakes were to face the New York Red Bulls, and Wondolowski was one of the last players to step off the team’s training field, just as it’s been for nearly 10 seasons. This was nothing new. Coaches going back to his rookie year of 2005 have tried to manage his efforts so he wouldn’t overexert himself or suffer burn-out.



But for the man known simply as Wondo, finishing his craft is something he enjoys more than any other aspect of the game. Standing on the endline, as the last of the loose balls had been retrieved and stashed away, signaling the end of training, he flashed a smile.



“I love coming to practice, and I know it sounds cliché, but I love seeing the guys in the locker room.”



It is a moment of happiness that is his defining...