No.1 in basketball scoring-Chapter 198 - 112. The All-Star MVP whose brilliance was overshadowed_2

James’ impatience was ignored by everyone, who wouldn’t care for some AMVP when there was fun to be watched.

Zhang Yang leaned forward, then backed beyond the three-point line, unable to deceive his opponent anymore.

Kobe, with his height and wingspan advantage and even faster reaction speed, stayed tightly within the three-point line.

Using his body to suppress the shooting of smaller players like Zhang Yang was Kobe’s more effective strategy.

Kobe planned to jot down this defensive insight in his notebook later, as he might use it in the future.

While Kobe was awaiting any variation from Zhang Yang, he saw Zhang Yang beckon to Iverson.

Pick and roll on the perimeter? Why call for Iverson instead of Gerald Wallace?

Then Kobe saw Zhang Yang pass the ball to Iverson, and at the same time pointed to the right side of the free throw line before running over there.

Could it be...

Kobe followed, and that rookie really backed him down at the high post to the right of the free throw line!

Kobe didn’t go around the front, waiting for Iverson to lob the ball to Zhang Yang before closing in.

Zhang Yang, backing into Kobe, dribbled leisurely, then slowly stepped forward. Kobe immediately followed, and Zhang Yang suddenly increased his dribble speed. As the ball bounced up, he quickly switched to his left hand, pulling back and to the left, spinning, his speed shifting from slow to fast, a great contrast!

This was Kobe, after all; he managed to stop on a dime, retreating a step.

But Zhang Yang was turning on the spot! He caught the ball, stepped back... Kobe had lost his position, but he relied on his explosive strength to stop his retreat and close in again... Too late!

As Zhang Yang was coming down from his step-back, he had already raised the ball. As soon as his feet hit the ground, the ball was already on its way, and Kobe wasn’t able to successfully challenge it... "Clang"...

Kobe looked back at the ball bouncing off the rim, then turned to see Zhang Yang’s disappointed expression. He didn’t think the shot was bad; the opponent had successfully created shooting space, but this rookie was still young, his shooting fundamentals weren’t solid enough. After executing such a complex move, he couldn’t control his shot stability—hitting the rim accurately was already quite good.

This step-back move was familiar to him—it was the turnaround step-back shot of their team’s assistant coach, Frank Hamblen.

This technique, which didn’t rely on jumping and didn’t have high requirements for step-back speed, was something Kobe wanted to learn, but unfortunately, it wasn’t suitable for him, and he gave up after practicing it for a while.

Just like Nash and Ginobili had different points of interest in Zhang Yang’s previous attack, Kobe was focused on Zhang Yang’s step-back shot, while the sidelines’ God of Basketball and Bird were interested in Zhang Yang’s post-up itself.

Jordan turned to look at Bird, thinking: hiahiahia, did you see whom this rookie’s post-up resembles?

Bird had noticed, and he finally understood why Jordan had chosen Zhang Yang...

However, he wasn’t as frustrated as Jordan had expected; instead, he wondered if Zhang Yang was a fan of his. If so, maybe he could snatch him away from Jordan in the future!

Then Zhang Yang and Kobe played one-on-one for three more rounds, with only one basket scored. As Zhang Yang’s shooting percentage dropped to 3 for 6 and it was the Eastern team’s turn to attack, he pushed past the half-court line and passed to Iverson.

"I’m done, I’m done. I’m still young, don’t have the stamina, can’t play anymore. Humph, you just got lucky this time. Let’s say we tied," Zhang Yang declared.

Iverson, receiving the ball, burst into laughter.

Kobe rolled his eyes and caught up with the retreating Zhang Yang.

Although the other side hadn’t scored in the last three shots, Kobe was still surprised that a 17-year-old player could have so many offensive moves and was quite skilled with them.

He wanted to test Zhang Yang further, but since the rookie didn’t want to play anymore, he had to let it go. fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com

After all, there would be plenty of opportunities in the future.

Like Kobe, others were shocked to see Zhang Yang and Kobe go one-on-one six times, displaying different offensive routines each time.

Those who had seen Zhang Yang play before were even more shocked to realize that this rookie, who usually played simple balls and only occasionally relied on his mental strength for pressure situations, possessed such a rich repertoire of techniques!

Nash, the most excited on the court, thought: The pace of his drives is like mine! His spin dribble is like mine! His probing step is like mine! His ball protection is also like mine!

Suddenly, Nash had a realization and looked at Iverson, dribbling in front of him. Crap! Kobe, come back, I can’t handle this alone...

Luckily, Iverson didn’t go one-on-one against Nash. If it had been Kobe guarding him, he would have made a move, but against Nash... There was no point playing Nash in an All-Star game. He gestured for James to come out, passed him the ball, then happily moved away with the overjoyed Nash.

James caught the ball, hearing the crowd chant "Kobe," "Jack," and he felt a chill.

Tonight, even if he got the AMVP, what difference would it make? With the hype around the one-on-one between two high school players drafted at 13, who would care about an MVP in a game that, strictly speaking, was just for entertainment?

But still, he had to win the award, which would add another honor to his tally. At least it was a genuine accolade, not some ’made-up’ record, and it could also set a new one: the youngest All-Star Game MVP.

But the youngest...

James cast a glance at the 17-year-old rookie staring down Kobe on the sidelines...

...

After accidentally stealing the spotlight in the beginning, Zhang Yang reverted to being a spectator on the court, playing for a few minutes before being substituted out, then entering the game twice more. Including his starting appearance, he played a total of 14 minutes.

He didn’t show much interest in participating, and since he couldn’t outplay the others, he figured he’d let the big shots have their fun.

Zhang Yang played 14 minutes this evening, and in the remaining 9 minutes, he only finished two counterattacks and didn’t shoot any other balls. When he received the ball, he served as a point guard for James, Wade, Iverson, Carter, and others, finishing with a stat line of 11 points, 2 rebounds, and 1 assist on 5-for-8 shooting.

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