NBA: Rising Superstar!-Chapter 188 - 143: Is Scarlett coming to see Durant?

The next morning.

Zeng Xingyang got up from bed, dragging his exhausted body...

The sun was already high in the sky!

At noon, Scarlett had a quick lunch and drove away from the villa; she had a scene to shoot that afternoon.

Zeng Xingyang drove straight to the training facility.

On the way, Zeng Xingyang received a text from Scarlett to schedule another meeting.

Recalling last night and this morning, Zeng Xingyang couldn’t help but savor the experience.

Her figure and allure were top-notch, with a voluptuous chest and curvy hips, utterly seductive.

Like those supremely attractive actresses in previous movies, admired by countless men—sometimes that feeling was better than the person herself.

Upon arriving at the basketball gym, Zeng Xingyang began his routine training.

Even after the back-to-back games’ intense consumption and the late-night 1-on-1 match, Zeng Xingyang’s condition remained unchanged—his shots were as precise as ever.

Training, swish, making basket after basket.

At two in the afternoon, Jokic strolled in, holding his back: "Hey, Zeng, you’re here so early. Aren’t you tired from the back-to-back games? I’m so tired right now."

Zeng Xingyang glanced at Jokic, hardly convinced.

Despite Jokic’s complaints and sweating a lot, during games, he could play 50 minutes without his performance dropping.

Former Yugoslavs are stamina monsters. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Zeng Xingyang wiped sweat off with a towel and said, "Nikola, stop dawdling, change clothes quickly, let’s have a one-on-one match."

Jokic sighed and said, "Alright, just wait a bit."

Today the team was on holiday, so only the two of them came for extra practice.

.....

Playing against Jokic mainly trained the ability to defend mismatches in the paint.

Unfortunately.

If Jokic isn’t serious, he displays the old-timer skills you see in street ball...

But if this guy gets serious, Zeng Xingyang’s defense pales in comparison; all it takes is a series of back-down motions to dominate, as defensive techniques are futile in the face of absolute power differences.

Jokic’s back-down moves aren’t just about power; they include spins, fakes, and various fancy finishes at the basket.

However, many times Zeng Xingyang’s competitiveness in these one-on-one matches is evidently stronger than Jokic’s, and Zeng Xingyang usually ends up winning.

By around six in the evening, Zeng Xingyang and Jokic returned home to rest; the Nuggets had a home game to play the next day.

After the game tomorrow, they would embark on a series of road games.

At Pepsi Center in Denver, following the Nuggets’ consecutive wins over the Knights and Clippers, Denver fans’ enthusiasm for watching games was reignited.

The Nuggets welcomed a face-off against the Memphis Grizzlies.

Compared to the Knights and Clippers, the Grizzlies are much weaker.

This game wasn’t expected to be very suspenseful.

At the start of the game, the Nuggets exploded with a wave of offensive momentum, establishing an early lead.

Zeng Xingyang hadn’t even exerted much effort, yet his teammates nearly overwhelmed their opponents.

At the end of the first quarter, the Nuggets were ahead by 11 points.

During the second quarter, the Nuggets’ bench continued to shine, seizing the opportunity against a weaker team, bombarding them relentlessly.

The Grizzlies, now led by Marc Gasol, focus on tactical defense play, but their pace can’t keep up with the Nuggets.

Gasol’s defense is solid and can build a defensive system, but it can’t withstand the fierce onslaught of the Nuggets.

At halftime, the Nuggets led by 20 points.

This was a game where Zeng Xingyang and Jokic punched out early, with the final score fixed at 91-112, as the Nuggets beat the Grizzlies by a margin of 20 points.

Zeng Xingyang had a normal performance, playing 26 minutes and getting 18 points, 7 assists, and 5 rebounds.

The low scoring was because Zeng Xingyang didn’t need to exert much tonight, and he didn’t take many shots.

Jokic, meanwhile, attained a triple-double with 11 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assists; the Nuggets players are increasingly learning to cooperate with Jokic.

This gave Jokic more opportunities to rack up assists.

With this victory, the Nuggets ascended to sixth place in the West.

More and more media outlets believe the Nuggets will forcefully enter the playoffs this season, becoming a team in the West that no one can underestimate.

After defeating the Grizzlies, the Nuggets headed to Miami to challenge the Heat.

Although the Heat are also in a rebuilding phase, their strength should not be underestimated, as under Dragic’s leadership, they executed smooth offensive plays and defeated the Nuggets who were on the road.

The Nuggets players looked quite fatigued on the road, seeming not on top of their game.

Zeng Xingyang’s 37 points on this night couldn’t turn the tide, as teammates shot below 30% from the field.

The Heat showcased a staunchly tough defense, locking down Jokic and the team’s overall coordination, leaving Jokic with just 3 assists.

The Nuggets’ winning streak was halted.

After facing the Heat, the entire Nuggets team headed to Oklahoma to challenge the Thunder.

As soon as the plane landed in Oklahoma City, Scarlett Johnson messaged that she had also arrived, ready to watch Zeng Xingyang play the next night.

Zeng Xingyang grinned at the text.

Watching the game is just an excuse; wanting to play with him is the real reason.

Zeng Xingyang checked into the hotel at 1 a.m., and by 1:10 a.m., he was in Scarlett’s room.

By 1:15, they were in the bathroom together, sharing one bathtub.

.....

Zeng Xingyang continuously enjoyed the physical and mental pleasure brought by breakthroughs.

Demonstrating the fruits of his usual intense training.

Scarlett was being pushed to the point of shouting she couldn’t take it, but Zeng Xingyang continued to intensify the confrontation.

Zeng Xingyang has always gone all out when playing ball, knowing that female players’ verbal refusals are mostly in panic and denial, an act of wanting yet resisting.

Only until Scarlett cried out ’Daddy’ did he let her go.

Zeng Xingyang was younger than Scarlett by a cycle, yet Scarlett didn’t feel any age gap; conversing felt like engaging with a peer.

....

The next day, Oklahoma City, Chesapeake Energy Arena.

With one and a half hours remaining before the game began, the fans started arriving one after another.

Today’s tickets were sold out early, attesting to the fans’ love for the Thunder here.

In the new season, with Westbrook and Durant finally recovered from injuries, they had performed well; currently, the Thunder were ranked third in the West, just behind the Warriors and Spurs.

A West third versus a West sixth, such a matchup is a clash of titans; if the teams remain ranked like this entering playoffs, they would meet in the first round.

This kind of high-profile game was nationally broadcasted.

Domestically, CCTV and Penguin Sports broadcasted, CCTV on TV, Penguin NBA focusing on the internet.

The NBA’s official narrative of stars in a showdown was Zeng Xingyang + Jokic VS Durant + Westbrook.

Rising young duo challenging the powerhouse duo at their peak—it’s a sight to behold!