Kobe stepped forward, scanned the crowd, and then fixed his gaze on Yao Ming. "Yao, when you guard Tang Long in the paint, you better bring the same intensity as when you play against us."
Yao Ming had given many teams a lot of trouble, and these guys knew how terrifying Yao Ming could be when he got serious.
"No problem, I won't hold back."
Yao Ming nodded seriously. They were on opposing sides now, and he certainly wouldn't hold back.
In fact, the Western players had a lot of respect for Yao Ming's skill and character.
The game resumed with post-ups, creating space for one-on-one matchups between Yao Ming and Tang Long.
Yao Ming's height and reach made him incredibly difficult to defend in the paint. With the added weight he had deliberately gained, he was like a mobile, human dragon in brute force plays.
"Brother Yao, stop pushing so hard," Tang Long said, defending and trying to disrupt Yao Ming.
"Stop messing around," Yao Ming glared at Tang Long, then turned and took a mid-range shot.
Swish!
It went in clean.
"Brother Yao, that's not fair."
"Play ball properly, don't do all that extra stuff."
Yao Ming shot Tang Long an exasperated look, but couldn't help but smile.
This kid was something else.
"Tang, need a hand?" LeBron James walked over and patted Tang Long on the shoulder. Even he wasn't sure he could stop Yao Ming one-on-one, especially since Yao Ming was undeniably the league's top center at the moment.
"No need. Making a shot or two isn't everything. We've faced him before."
LeBron nodded and said no more.
Back when they played against the Rockets, it was mostly just McGrady, and the others had inconsistent shooting.
But now, facing a lineup of top stars, a one-on-one situation would be incredibly difficult to defend.
Sensing LeBron's lack of confidence, Tang Long chuckled. "Don't worry. We just need to try our best. If we lose, we lose."
"That's true."
LeBron's tensed nerves gradually relaxed under Tang Long's reassurances.
...
"See? What 'top center'? He's just a little brother in front of Yao Ming."
"Haters upstairs, stop spewing nonsense. Tang Long isn't the only one who's played Yao Ming before. They both have different offensive moves. Don't try to pit them against each other here."
"Exactly, haters are blind. Didn't you see LeBron and Tang Long just getting started?"
"If they were really that good, why wouldn't the coach play them? Surely the head coach isn't clueless."
With the East trailing by a large margin, the haters of Tang Long finally found their opening and emerged in full force, feeling triumphant.
Compared to the online trolls in the forums, the fans on the discussion boards were more rational. The older users, with more life experience, naturally had different perspectives.
"If they lose this game, the post-game news will be spectacular. LeBron and the others will definitely lash out at Doug Rivers."
"I think if they keep this up, Doug Rivers might not get another chance to coach the All-Star game. He's too biased, not playing the starters voted in."
"I knew something was up when they cut to commercials earlier. We'll get an explanation after the post-game interviews."
"I just don't know if the East can still win."
"Win? Are you kidding? They're down by so much, and every star player on the West has the ability to change the game. It's going to be really tough to make a comeback."
Even seasoned fans didn't believe the East could win now. At best, they hoped for a smaller deficit.
...
"LeBron with a super long three-pointer! That shot was absolutely beautiful. At this critical moment, it's LeBron who steps up!"
As the commentator's excited shouts echoed, the scoreboard changed again.
"Stay calm. Their shooting percentage can't stay this high forever. Let them shoot threes, and we'll focus on our scoring."
Kobe's judgment of the situation was seasoned.
Three-pointers couldn't stay this accurate constantly. Yao Ming's field goal percentage in the paint was over 80%.
The Western All-Stars' current strategy was to wear them down, conserve time, and then when the moment was right, feed the ball to Yao Ming for a one-on-one against Tang Long.
Using a fouling strategy wasn't suitable at this point; they could only pressure them as much as possible.
This, however, easily gave the opponents space to drive, and the Western stars were waiting for the East to overcommit.
Kidd didn't steal Kobe's drive, but Kobe had already penetrated the lane in the blink of an eye.
LeBron and Wade rushed to double-team Kobe. At that moment, Kobe directly passed the ball to Yao Ming in the three-second area.
"Yao Ming is open again."
The commentator sighed regretfully. "After Yao Ming makes this basket, the lead will continue to widen... Oh, this ball was stolen! Let's watch the replay."
"The moment Yao Ming caught the ball, Tang Long's hand was there. Yao Ming couldn't control it, and Tang Long stole the ball."
"Cavs' fast break. Dwight drove to the basket."
"Layup!"
"Well done, Dwight! That shot is good."
At this point, the scoreboard read 112-127, with the East only trailing by fifteen points.
"Stay calm, don't rush. We're still in the lead," Kobe said. However, this wasn't the Lakers, and after Yao Ming inbounded the ball, Anthony went for a fast break. Before he crossed half-court, Kidd intercepted the pass.
"Kidd with the steal! That's fantastic. Who says old players are done? Kidd just gets better with age."
"Dwight is bringing the ball up. There are three players under the basket for the West."
"The Flash drove in!"
"Oh, Yao Ming blocked it!"
The commentator sighed. If that shot had gone in, the East's momentum would have surged, and with five minutes left on the clock, there might still have been a chance to turn things around.
"Alas, Dwight shouldn't have been so selfish. Bosh was in the elbow area, and his mid-range jumper is very good. He should have passed to Bosh. Now... Tang Long rushed in and grabbed the rebound! Oh my God, Tang Long actually got the offensive rebound under the triple team of the Western stars!"
"Is he going to pass? A direct layup is clearly impossible... Tang Long is jumping!"
Tang Long's legs were like springs, and he leaped into the air, becoming an elf soaring through the sky.
Facing the triple team, time seemed to stand still. The opponents' movements slowed down like a slow-motion replay as Tang Long, clutching the ball, weaved past three burly hands.
Everyone's mouths dropped open, and they held their breath, staring intently as Tang Long hammered the basketball into the hoop like a cannonball!
"Oh my God, what did I just see?"
The fans' mouths hung open in disbelief, stunned for a long moment before they could react.
Tang Long, surrounded by Yao Ming, Duncan, and Kobe, had still managed to make the shot.
At this moment, Tang Long had conquered every fan in the arena!