Chapter 1 The Showdown

　　Lower Merion High School basketball gym.

　　Coach Gregg had deliberately not scheduled training this morning because Philadelphia 76ers head coach John Lucas was coming to scout this afternoon.

　　"Alright, listen up, guys, I'm going to have you play half-court 5-on-5 in a bit!

　　Those on Kobe and Su's team, remember to pass the ball more." Gregg said, looking at the players before practice began.

　　Actually...

　　Even if Gregg didn't arrange it this way, who among Lower Merion's "ball hogs" would dare not pass to Kobe and Su Feng?

　　One with a death stare, one with fiery eyes; even demons and monsters would have to eat their pride in front of these two.

　　Moreover, the players at Lower Merion weren't stupid.

　　They knew that apart from being fans in the future, they had no other chance of getting involved with the NBA.

　　So, everyone was happy to help Su Feng and Kobe.

　　Because this way, when Su Feng and Kobe made it big, they could pat their chests and proudly say:

　　"I once fought alongside Su Feng and Kobe in high school!"

　　Speaking of which, inside the basketball gym, apart from the Lower Merion players preparing for training, the small squad of three had also come to the gym today.

　　"Director Zhang, have you heard? Today, the Philadelphia 76ers' head coach will be here to scout Little Su and Kobe."

　　Su Junyang said, pushing up his glasses, a little excited.

　　"Yeah, I wonder what professionals like them will think of Little Su." Zhang Weiping said with a smile.

　　"Hopefully, Little Su won't mess up today and can perform as well as he did in the high school league before." Xu Jicheng said.

　　Unfortunately, Su Feng, who was warming up at the moment, couldn't hear the small squad of three's conversation, or Su Feng would definitely tell them:

　　Don't take this kind of scouting to heart.

　　Because if Su Feng remembered correctly, in his previous life, when Kobe was a senior in high school, John Lucas used his daughter as an excuse to watch Kobe play at least ten times.

　　After all, being close to the water makes it easier to get the moon (first come, first served).

　　It was a pity that although the Philadelphia fans in Su Feng's previous life really wanted to get Kobe, the lottery pick that the 76ers got was too tempting.

　　High school players in the 90s were like gold of unknown purity, the hole card in Texas Hold'em.

　　No one dared to gamble with fate, because the risk of developing a high school player was too great.

　　Therefore, Su Feng, who was always calm, didn't feel any ripples in his heart about John Lucas coming to scout.

　　Because Su Feng knew very well that John Lucas would come again in the future, and this wouldn't be the only scouting trip.

　　And if Stern was already watching him, then more scouts would come to Philadelphia next.

　　In Su Feng's opinion, it was meaningless for John Lucas to come scout unless he brought Stackhouse with him.

　　Because Su Feng also wanted to use this legendary NBA supporting actor to test the purity of his gold.

　　...

　　Walking on the campus of Lower Merion, Stackhouse vaguely felt like he was back in his North Carolina days.

　　Tsk, tsk, looking at these high school girls, Stackhouse couldn't help but think of a famous quote from Shakespeare:

　　What you think is a small path shaded by trees, is actually a busy road.

　　Of course, Stackhouse couldn't possibly be this philosophical.

　　But if you translated his lewd thoughts, that would be roughly the meaning.

　　"Jerry, do you miss March Madness?" On the way to the basketball gym, John Lucas asked his beloved disciple.

　　"Of course, Coach, I won't lie to you, what I miss the most is that battle with Duke.

　　I dodged two people in the air at the time and completed a reverse dunk.

　　The whole arena was cheering for me when I finished the dunk." Stackhouse said with a smile.

　　This kid is very confident, this was John Lucas's biggest feeling after coaching Stackhouse for more than a month.

　　As long as you dare to give him the ball, he dares to shoot.

　　At this moment, John Lucas even thought of Stackhouse's NBA debut.

　　At that time, he originally arranged for this third overall pick to be a substitute, but unexpectedly, Stackhouse got up, stared at him, and said to him: "North Carolina people, either become superstars, or get out of the league."

　　Okay, don't doubt the level of chuunibyou (delusions of grandeur) of players from North Carolina.

　　Because in the future, there will be a man named Vince who will say this.

　　Especially after Michael Jordan completely pushed North Carolina to the altar, players from North Carolina seemed to have the aura of Jordan's successor.

　　...

　　Soon, the 76ers scouting team arrived at the school basketball gym.

　　"Dear Gregg, you look like you're lacking some exercise lately."

　　John Lucas and Gregg met at a coaching gathering in Philadelphia this June.

　　At the gathering, John Lucas had asked Gregg about Kobe and Su Feng.

　　There was no way around it, this duo was too popular in Philadelphia.

　　John Lucas knew that if he knew nothing about these two, he would probably incur the hatred of Philadelphia fans in the future.

　　"John, welcome to Lower Merion." Gregg walked towards John Lucas with a smile.

　　"Those are Kobe and Su?" John Lucas asked, looking at the two people on the court who were playing a fast break.

　　"Yes, John, look how great they are. To be honest, being able to coach them is the luckiest thing in my life." Gregg said.

　　As a former NBA first overall pick, John Lucas had an eye for talent. "No wonder the fans like them so much, they're good-looking, and they can fly and jump."

　　"Haha, they can do more than just fly and jump." Gregg said.

　　"Oh, that fadeaway is good!

　　You know what, buddy, Su's fadeaway just now reminded me of Michael Jordan." John Lucas said.

　　"Hoo hoo, is this what the reporters often call Kobe, flying in the air?

　　My God, you've really hit the jackpot being able to coach these two young men, Gregg."

　　John Lucas was getting more and more surprised as he watched from the sidelines.

　　There was even a moment when John Lucas felt that Kobe and Su Feng could skip college and play in the NBA...

　　There was no way around it, if Kobe and Su Feng were juniors or seniors in college, John Lucas would at most say "they play well".

　　But 17 years old...

　　No one knew better than John Lucas how important age was in this league.

　　On the side, Stackhouse felt like his coach was being deceived, seeing John Lucas almost praising Su Feng and Kobe to the heavens!

　　Coach, wake up, you must have judgment!

　　The other players at Lower Merion were clearly deliberately creating opportunities for Su Feng and Kobe to perform!

　　Stackhouse couldn't stand it anymore, because if he continued to endure it, he would turn into Ma Jingtao (an actor known for his over-the-top acting).

　　"Coach, you can't tell anything just by watching." Stackhouse said to John Lucas.

　　John Lucas frowned, and after thinking for a while, he felt that Stackhouse had a point.

　　After all, making a conclusion just by watching a practice session, then what was the difference between him and that damned Alvin who directly copied the Philadelphia Evening News report?

　　"We have a high school league game tomorrow, do you want to come and watch it? John." Gregg said, looking at John Lucas who had suddenly stopped talking.

　　"No, we have a training session tomorrow." The NBA has 82 games a year, and to be honest, John Lucas didn't have many opportunities to steal a moment of leisure in the middle of the season.

　　"I see..." Gregg didn't know what to say for a moment.

　　Just then, Stackhouse said with a smile: "Gentlemen, if you don't mind, I can practice with them."

　　"Oh?" John Lucas thought this suggestion sounded pretty good.

　　"But, Jerry, what if you get injured?" John Lucas asked.

　　"It's okay, Coach, the opponents are just high school students, I don't need to use my full strength, besides, I'm just playing with them." Jerry - I'm the senior - Stackhouse said with a smile.

　　"Then, Gregg, do you have any problems with this?" John Lucas glanced at Gregg.

　　"How about I call Su and Kobe over and ask?" Gregg said.

　　"Let's do that!" John Lucas was not someone who liked to dawdle and nodded readily.

　　...

　　On the court, after Gregg blew the whistle for a timeout, the other tools of Lower Merion went to rest knowingly.

　　Kobe and Su Feng came to the front of the 76ers' trio led by Gregg.

　　The small squad of three on the side was also full of question marks when they saw this scene.

　　"What does this mean?" Zhang Weiping asked curiously.

　　Xu Jicheng and Su Junyang shook their heads repeatedly, indicating that they were also confused.

　　Well, actually...

　　It wasn't just them who were confused.

　　Because after seeing that familiar face, Su Feng was already confused.

　　Holy crap!

　　Isn't this the big gift pack...

　　Bah, isn't this Stackhouse?

　　As a professional NBA keyboard warrior, how could Su Feng not know Stackhouse?

　　No...

　　Wait a minute!

　　"Looking at that guy's malicious expression, does he want to challenge me and Kobe to a one-on-one?"

　　Su Feng, who was a little sleepy in the afternoon, immediately perked up with 120% energy.

　　He saw that after Gregg introduced the 76ers' trio to him and Kobe, even Kobe's eyes lit up.

　　"Su, Kobe, how about it, do you want to spar with NBA-level players?" John Lucas said, looking at Su Feng and Kobe.

　　As expected!

　　"Of course!" Su Feng and Kobe answered in unison.

　　It's worth mentioning that Kobe kicked Su Feng a little, feeling a little dissatisfied when he heard that Su Feng's speaking speed was slightly faster than his.

　　"Su, let me have this opportunity!" Kobe winked at Su Feng.

　　"No, I can give you anything else, but please let me have this opportunity!" Su Feng signaled to Kobe with his eyes.

　　And just when Su Feng and Kobe were communicating through eye contact and eyebrow language...

　　Stackhouse, who had already taken off his jacket, struck a cool and dominating pose according to the script he had thought of before coming——

　　"Who wants to go first?"

　　Su Feng didn't give Kobe a chance to speak and stepped forward directly, "Me!"

　　Stackhouse looked at Su Feng with satisfaction, um...

　　He does look better than he does in the newspapers...

　　Then I'll go a little easier on you later.

　　On the side, Kobe was completely furious, he vowed that he would break off relations with Su Feng!

　　Fortunately, before starting the one-on-one with Stackhouse, Su Feng didn't forget to appease Kobe.

　　"Don't worry, don't worry, I'll go test his skills for you first.

　　If he can't even beat me, then what's the point of you challenging him?

　　Besides, do you know what I'm planning to make for dinner today?" Su Feng said, patting Kobe on the shoulder.

　　Hmm?

　　Su Feng's words immediately extinguished Kobe's anger.

　　"What are you making for dinner?" Kobe asked curiously.

　　"I'll tell you after I play." Su Feng said with a smile.

　　"Then go quickly, after you're done, it's my turn!" Kobe urged.

　　"Okay!" Su Feng stretched his muscles, ready to go on the court.

　　It's worth mentioning that just as Su Feng was about to go on the court, Swartz, who had been sent by Su Feng to make him a wolfberry tea, also ran back.

　　"Su, what are you doing?

　　I've made your tea, it's hot!" Swartz, holding a thermos cup, was a little confused looking at the empty basketball court.

　　Su Feng patted Swartz on the shoulder, "Just leave it there for now, I'll come back and drink it later."

　　Although he didn't understand what was happening at this time, Swartz felt that Su Feng's back looked extremely handsome.

　　On the other side, the equally clueless small squad of three plucked up their courage and came to Kobe's side.

　　Xu Jicheng asked curiously, "Kobe, what's going on?"

　　Kobe smiled, "You guys are in for a good show.

　　See that guy? That's Jerry Stackhouse, who was selected by the Philadelphia 76ers with the third overall pick this year.

　　The best high school player in the United States in 1993, North Carolina's ace."

　　The small squad of three nodded.

　　"He's going to have a one-on-one with Su." Kobe said.

　　"One-on-one?" The small squad of three instantly petrified.

　　"So, Little Su is going to challenge an NBA player one-on-one?" Zhang Weiping said in surprise.

　　"This is so exciting, as expected this is American basketball, so passionate!

　　Director Zhang, didn't you say before that Little Su was always missing an object of comparison?" Su Junyang excitedly pulled on the corner of Zhang Weiping's clothes.

　　Xu Jicheng's eyes lit up, "Old Su, remember to take pictures later!"

　　Su Junyang nodded, "No problem!"

　　"Old Zhang, look carefully, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!" Xu Jicheng reminded Zhang Weiping.

　　"I'm watching, I'm watching, don't talk!" Zhang Weiping said, squatting down and carefully staring at the court with a small notebook and pen.

　　At this time, on the court, Su Feng and Stackhouse had come to the left half of the school basketball gym.

　　"How about we play ten points, no rebounds, if the offense fails, we switch to the other side?" Stackhouse said, looking at Su Feng while dribbling to get a feel for the ball.

　　"No problem!" Looking at Stackhouse, Su Feng felt the blood in his body boiling.

　　Although he really wanted to criticize Stackhouse, Su Feng knew very well that at this moment, he was standing in front of a genuine NBA player.

　　Come on, let me measure the gap between me and the NBA!

　　On the court, Stackhouse originally planned to let Su Feng attack first, but unexpectedly, Su Feng actually gestured for him to go first.

　　"Are you scared? Do you want me to go easy on him? Okay, seeing that he's so sensible..."

　　Just as Stackhouse was thinking about showing mercy to Su Feng, Su Feng suddenly lunged at Stackhouse!

　　The posture was like a hungry tiger pouncing on its prey!

　　On the sidelines, Philadelphia 76ers head coach John Lucas didn't dare to continue chatting with Gregg.

　　Because every frame that appeared in front of his eyes next was so incredible.

　　Stackhouse dribbled, Su Feng followed, Stackhouse prepared to break through on the right, Su Feng followed, Stackhouse prepared to pull back for a jump shot...

　　Su Feng still followed!

　　This was the power of "magnetic defense"!

　　Clang——!

　　Su Feng successfully defended Stackhouse's first attack.

　　Stackhouse, who was defended by Su Feng, was a little flustered, because the defensive pressure Su Feng gave him was not at the level of an ordinary high school player at all...

　　Are you kidding me? Even in college, Stackhouse had never seen such a defense!

　　However, Stackhouse felt that he didn't need to take it to heart too much just because he didn't score on one attack.

　　After all, he was indeed underestimating his opponent just now and wasn't prepared...

　　Swish——!

　　On the court, just as Stackhouse passed the ball to Su Feng, Su Feng shot it with a flick of his wrist.

　　Stackhouse: "......"

　　Damn it, is this how you play basketball? Is this how you have a one-on-one?

　　"Um... Jerry, does this shot count?" After scoring, Su Feng scratched his head and looked at Stackhouse.

　　"It counts... Of course it counts!" Stackhouse almost gritted his teeth to say this.

　　You've already asked me that, could I, a dignified NBA player, say no to a high school student?

　　Do I still have any dignity?

　　1 to 0, the game continued, it was Stackhouse's turn to attack.

　　As the best high school player in 1993, Stackhouse was still very talented on the offensive end.

　　Don't look at his career 40.9% field goal percentage, that's because his name has "Stack" in it (implying he bricks shots)...

　　Cough cough, just kidding, just kidding.

　　On the court, Stackhouse decided to use his weight advantage to force his way inside this time.

　　But...

　　Su Feng unexpectedly withstood Stackhouse.

　　Don't be surprised, elbows are so easy to use under the high school rules. (HC)

　　In addition, Stackhouse hadn't developed his iron elbows yet at this time, and his weight was at most 4 or 5 kilograms heavier than Su Feng's.

　　And these 4 or 5 kilograms could be completely offset under the HC rules.

　　Stackhouse, the typical star-style player, knows everything, but is not good at anything.

　　He lacks his own signature move, which is why he can't become a superstar in the NBA.

　　The season he averaged 29+ points in Detroit, he relied on a large number of shots, his field goal percentage was only 40.2% at the time, and he averaged 15 missed shots per game.

　　Of course, to be fair, being able to take an average of 24 shots per game in the NBA is enough to show that Stackhouse has many offensive methods.

　　However, it still comes down to this...

　　No matter how many offensive tricks this guy has, it can't change the fact that he's a bricklayer.

　　This time, Su Feng withstood Stackhouse on defense, and Stackhouse was obviously careless when he turned around for a jump shot.

　　Stackhouse's shooting form hadn't changed in his rookie season, which made his shooting motion lean forward a bit.

　　Su Feng's long arms blocked it easily, like blocking a volleyball, and blocked Stackhouse's attack!

　　On the sidelines, the small squad of three erupted.

　　"Good defense! That movement speed, that footwork, Little Su is too amazing!" Director Zhang said excitedly.

　　"Being able to defend an NBA player twice in a row, Director Zhang, Little Su can definitely play in the NBA!" Su Junyang said excitedly.

　　"Indeed, this trip to the United States is really worth it, Little Su is simply a basketball genius given to us by God!" Xu Jicheng said with a smile.

　　On the court, it wasn't just the small squad of three and the 76ers coaching staff who were surprised.

　　Because Stackhouse was already a little confused.

　　Especially when he thought of Su Feng's deliberate feigning weakness before, Stackhouse immediately understood.

　　Damn it, I've been tricked!

　　This guy is simply a scheming bitch!

　　Stackhouse vowed that he would never give Su Feng another chance.

　　So, Stackhouse threw the ball to Su Feng.

　　And then...

　　Swish——!

　　Stackhouse: "......"

　　"Nice shot!" Kobe, who was often tricked by Su Feng using this move, couldn't have been happier when he saw this scene from the sidelines.

　　"I said... you, you like this..." Stackhouse felt that he had a lot of words stuck in his chest, but when he wanted to say them, he couldn't say a single word.

　　Su Feng looked at Stackhouse curiously, "Is there anything wrong with me like this?"

　　After a long time, after taking a deep breath and feeling the beauty and freshness of this world, Stackhouse smiled at Su Feng, "It's okay, let's continue!"

　　...