102-105.
The crowd went wild.
Dazhi had made two three-pointers in a row.
"Was that luck?"
Paul, the young guard, looked incredulously at Dazhi, who had jumped up, fists clenched, roaring in exhilaration. He glanced at his teammates, unsure whether to switch to man-to-man or continue with a 2-3 zone.
"I guess so?"
Wade said uncertainly.
"Even an NBA sharpshooter can't hit consecutive threes like that. If he could, this Dazhi would already be in the NBA."
"I think he's been there before."
Kobe said this.
"I haven't heard of him."
Kobe shook his head. "I'm not too sure of the details, but he might have played in the league."
"So, what do we do now?"
The others looked at Kobe.
At this moment, Kobe was the one who could make decisions. James wasn't "Old James" yet; though he was the "Little Emperor," in front of Kobe, he was clearly a junior.
Kobe glanced at Coach Krzyzewski, who was by the sidelines, gnawing on his fingers, still hesitant. Kobe thought for a moment and said, "Let's stick to the coach's strategy for now. The main thing is for us to make our shots. Everyone, focus."
Kobe spoke, and he felt that he needed to step up when China was making a comeback.
Paul brought the ball up to half-court with ease. Kobe received the pass outside the three-point line. Facing Sun Yue's defense, Kobe used his superior physique to drive past Sun Yue.
Facing Dazhi and Yao Ming under the basket, Kobe shot without hesitation.
Two points made.
102-107.
Basketball is indeed a sport that emphasizes player talent. Even a superstar like Kobe, with a boost, is incredibly hard to defend.
Sun Yue looked enviously at Kobe's graceful and stylish layup, admiring his exceptional talent and understanding that his current status was no accident.
He wished he could be that awesome too.
Of course.
Sun Yue didn't know that the team's owner was also watching the game.
His performance on the court had greatly pleased Jeanie. Especially his recent drives and off-ball movements, which were good enough to be Fisher's backup, or even contend for a starting spot.
The main reason was Sun Yue's Chinese nationality.
He was the teammate of that detestable guy. 138 Reading Network
"See that? Jeanie's looking at Tang so lustfully. I bet after the game, she'll invite Tang out again."
"No way. If China wins tonight, Tang will definitely be celebrating. If they lose, he won't be in the mood to entertain her."
"You remind me, did you prepare any champagne?"
Scarlett looked at Gal Gadot.
"Uh, no."
Gal Gadot spread her hands helplessly.
"You didn't tell me either."
"Do I need to remind you about that?"
Scarlett gave Gal Gadot a look of "you're so weak." Swift, standing nearby, whispered, "Ladies, we're American, and public figures at that. Is it appropriate for us to celebrate Tang? Aren't you afraid of the domestic media seeing it and how they'll bash us? They might even blame us for the loss."
"So you didn't prepare anything either?"
Scarlett breathed a sigh of relief.
Since no one had prepared anything, they would just pretend the topic was never brought up.
"I did."
Swift looked timidly at the two of them. "Can we say we prepared it together?"
"That's more like it."
"Look at this shot..."
As they were talking, Gal Gadot and Scarlett exclaimed, pulling each other's attention back to the court. Tang Long, defended by three Americans, shot the ball into the hoop.
"That was so cool."
Swift cheered with her arms raised. The Americans around them glared angrily in her direction.
"You want to die?"
Scarlett quickly pulled Swift's arm and covered for her, "She means our players are so handsome, they should keep fighting."
Swift playfully stuck out her tongue.
She then quietly muttered, "Tang, keep it up."
As if sensing her words, Tang Long, who had just made the shot, looked towards them. Even through the crowd, Tang Long's eyes found them, like stars illuminating the night, their brightness instantly noticeable.
Tang Long chuckled, a slight smile playing on his lips.
"Look, Tang is waving at us."
"Taylor, keep it down."
Scarlett felt that if Swift continued to be so excited, the surrounding American spectators would eventually get angry.
"Got it."
Swift said, but her bright eyes couldn't hide her excitement.
The game had reached a stage of intense one-on-one battles, with both sides fighting fiercely. Tang Long scored under pressure, and Kobe retaliated in kind.
104-109.
Dazhi's shooting touch was excellent. The reason he hadn't continued with the previous strategy was that he was worried about the opponent adapting too quickly. So, Tang Long had driven strong first, and after regaining possession, he returned to his previous tactic.
He didn't rush to drive. After drawing two defenders near the free-throw line, he passed the ball to Dazhi, who had been waiting at the top of the arc.
Dazhi shot again.
107-109.
"One more shot, and we can tie the score."
The players hugged each other excitedly, and the roar of the crowd was deafening.
The only one with a dark expression was Coach Krzyzewski on the sidelines.
This guy had hit three consecutive three-pointers. China's outside shooting had been activated.
However, Krzyzewski was still reluctant to call a timeout.
He didn't believe Dazhi could make another three-pointer. If this shot missed, the rebound would likely go to the Americans.
His main reason was that he couldn't believe Chinese players would have such good shooting ability.
Krzyzewski was like a gambler now. He had already lost a lot. If he didn't gamble further, his previous losses would be in vain. But if he continued to gamble, he might lose even the little capital he had left.
After a long hesitation, Krzyzewski decided to continue gambling.
Chinese players couldn't be that good.
Absolutely not.
Krzyzewski stared intently at the Americans' current possession. Paul was directing his teammates on the court. After Kobe and James switched positions, an open space appeared, and Paul passed the ball to Kobe.
Tang Long moved to defend. Kobe didn't hold the ball and passed it back to Paul, who was at the three-point line.
"Oh, somebody's open."
The audience's hearts were in their throats. Paul was unguarded at the top of the arc. After catching the ball, he faked and shot.
Clang.
It missed.
"Fuck."
Kobe, James, and Wade rushed to the basket to fight for the rebound. The ball bounced around but nobody could grab it. Everyone knew they couldn't get their hands on it, so they kept tipping it upwards.