One Year Left to Play-Chapter 145 - 46: A Gentleman’s Revenge
At 3:29 PM, after the final pre-game preparations, Zhang Hao, Kenny Anderson, Graham, Levis, and PJ Brown took the court.
On the opposing side, Chales, Gilliam, Jason Williams, Vaughn Fleming, and Kevin Edwards also came onto the court.
In terms of top players, Zhang Hao felt that their Kenny Anderson was definitely the strongest on the team, but as for which of these two lineups was stronger, it was hard to say. Chales had played in Europe for a few years and was very good at organizing offensive plays in set plays, while Edwards and Fleming were the best substitute players for their team’s wing positions. Gilliam’s ability to play isolation at the tail end of his prime was unmatched within the team, and Jason Williams was a very tough interior player.
On their Team A side, the biggest advantage was youth and vitality.
"Go, go, go, let’s go crush those guys on the other side!"
Kenny Anderson had always yearned to be the leader, wanting to establish his status from the get-go, and the training game was the beginning of his efforts toward that goal.
Zhang Hao and Kenny Anderson, one inspiring teammates with their presence and the other guiding them with words, fueled Team A’s five players with intense fighting spirit!
PJ Brown and Jason Williams came to the center circle, looking at each other with a warlike glint in their eyes.
These two were actually rivals, or rather these two and Zhang Hao were mutual competitors. PJ Brown chose to join Kenny Anderson’s camp because, while the three were competitors, Zhang Hao could partner with either of the two. Both were athletic "lob and defense" players, and Zhang Hao was an off-ball shooter, meaning Zhang Hao could work with both.
At 3:30, the trainer acting as the referee blew the whistle to start the game, throwing the ball into the air, signaling the beginning of the training match.
Once the game started, the most significant difference compared to Zhang Hao’s expectations immediately presented itself—the intensity and level of the game far exceeded his expectations! The other nine players on the court were not weaker than any opponents he had faced in previous matches!
At the start of the match, he was a bit overwhelmed, finding that any player among these could cooperate and had more experience than the opponents he faced previously.
Trying to get rid of the defense wasn’t as simple as he anticipated. While attempting to position himself for a mid-range shot, opponents were tightly guarding him because of his demonstrated mid-range shot ability during training, willing to leave others unattended rather than give him a shooting opportunity.
On the defensive end, his lack of capability and experience became very apparent.
Fortunately, Kenny Anderson used his mid-range threat to create good shooting opportunities for teammates beyond the three-point line and in cuts to the basket, making both teams appear evenly matched for a time.
Team A relied on speed, Zhang Hao’s drawing of defenders, and Kenny Anderson’s control; Team B relied on Chales’ capability to organize set-play offenses, Gilliam’s ability to attack the basket, and capability in isolation plays.
Butch Baird watched the training game from the sideline, analyzing the two teams’ situations. It was visible that Team A, under Zhang Hao and PJ Brown’s internal and external containment, had Kenny Anderson organizing the offense well. For Team B, Chales’ capacity to organize set-play offenses was truly first-class.
However, all this was based on this being just an internal training match, where the two teams’ overall strength was closely matched, allowing them to play harmoniously. Should the opponent’s strength reach playoff levels, they likely wouldn’t have any meaningful resistance.
Moreover, should either team’s key players encounter problems, they wouldn’t even maintain this level of performance.
Just like that, as Zhang Hao found himself without scoring opportunities for a while, he began to grow impatient.
Unaccustomed to this lack of shooting opportunities, ever since his junior year in high school, he had been the team’s second-highest scorer. During his senior year, he even often scored more than Pierce. At the Adidas Training Camp Elite Competition, he was also the highest scorer of the match. Under the current circumstances, he felt very uneasy. Consequently, his running rhythm was thrown off, and he started sprinting recklessly, finally creating an open slot. Kenny Anderson seized the opportunity and passed the ball to him.
However! An opening does not equate to an open shot opportunity.
An open shot opportunity is a comprehensive result of space, rhythm, position... This time, Zhang Hao merely created an opening, and upon receiving the pass, his shot was off!
Jason Williams grabbed the rebound from the ball bouncing off the front of the rim, and Team B advanced quickly—not with speed, but with steady rhythm, as a whole.
Seeing Zhang Hao miss the shot just now, the recently rebounded Jason Williams was very excited. After getting to the frontcourt and seeing Zhang Hao chaotically retreat to the basket, his eyes lit up as he accelerated toward the basket!
The most athletically gifted on Team B was Jason Williams. His athleticism was on par with PJ Brown’s, and he had a great rhythm in his drives to the hoop. Chales seized the opportunity with a bounce pass to Jason Williams, who rushed to the basket. Zhang Hao didn’t have time to move aside, and his defensive stance wasn’t solid, allowing Jason Williams to push him back and completing a posterizing dunk!
Originally, Team A was trailing by 3 points, 10 to 13, only because of an Edwards three-pointer after losing the jump ball. Zhang Hao’s missed offensive opportunity this round and failure to stop Jason Williams on defense doubled the point difference to 5 points! Kenny Anderson called a timeout.
