One Year Left to Play-Chapter 38 - 12: Crowned Champion! (Third Alliance Leader Bonus - )
Another perfect score!
Carter and Zhang Hao both advanced to the finals with double perfect scores!
The other person advancing to the finals is the despondent Desmond Mason.
"Why did I have to run into these two? Why..."
Desmond Mason suddenly felt like the corner of the wall suited him well, as if a voice was telling him that he should squat in the corner, that he should fall in love with the circle...
"I’ve decided! If I ever get into the NBA, I’ll wear the number 0 jersey!"
What Desmond Mason was thinking wasn’t important. Amid the manic cheers of the audience, the host announced another advertisement, followed by a performance from the hired Lakers cheerleaders. This was advertising time, and there was sure to be a commercial break on the American Cable TV Station. A few minutes later, the host once again grandly introduced the three dunking experts who made it to the finals.
According to the rules this time, Carter wasn’t the last to perform. Zhang Hao was the first player to score 100 points in the first round, thus ranking first. Carter, although also with a perfect score, was second, and third was Desmond Mason with 95 points.
The first to perform was Desmond Mason.
Desmond Mason and his teammate stepped onto the court. After a brief exchange, he walked to the center circle.
His teammate stood to the left of the free-throw line, tossed the ball several times until it felt just right, and signaled him to get ready.
Desmond Mason nodded. What comes next would require great coordination, and this dunk idea came to him spontaneously. Since he decided to take the unconventional route, he thought he’d go all the way!
I, Desmond-the-emotionless-runner-Mason, step onto the battlefield! =≡Σ(((つ•̀ω•́)つ
Everyone was curious about what Desmond Mason would do this time, including Zhang Hao and Carter, who were watching intently, especially after the surprising delight from his second dunk in the first round.
In front of more than seventeen thousand eyes, Desmond Mason sprinted from the center circle towards the three-point line and took off! His teammate also tossed the ball.
A dunk from the three-point line?
Just when everyone was bewildered, Desmond Mason did a somersault in mid-air...
A mid-air flip to catch the ball!
As soon as Desmond Mason finished the flip, he caught the ball, smoothly continued towards the basket, and leaped outside the charge circle, slamming the ball into the hoop with both hands!
They got lucky; their first attempt at coordination was a success!
The dunk itself was so-so. Clearly, the flip consumed most of the energy. He didn’t jump very high and had forward inertia when dunking.
But this dunk indeed made everyone’s eyes light up!
Watching Zhang Hao and Carter’s battle had made everyone’s nerves too tense, but with Desmond Mason’s quirky interjection performance, the audience’s tension was significantly relieved, allowing them to better enjoy the historic strongest high school dunk contest between Zhang Hao and Carter.
points!
Although it wasn’t a perfect score like in the first round, Desmond Mason’s dunk still earned a high score of 46 points.
Seeing that the dunk born out of desperation scored more than his first meticulously practiced dunk in the first round, Desmond Mason felt... that this might be his true path for dunking. What about difficulty? What about flair? Does it matter?
Now, Desmond Mason felt a new sense of anticipation. If the following Carter and Zhang Hao perform below expectations...
One can only dream... damn it!
Next, Desmond Mason watched as Carter executed an under-the-leg switch to a windmill from the baseline, and received a perfect score!
Desmond Mason’s dunk slightly eased the tension of the audience, only for Carter to ignite them again!
Watching the replay on the big screen, where Carter launched from the baseline, soared high, switched mid-air under the legs, and at the highest point swung a single-armed windmill, smashing the ball into the hoop...
Listening to the crazy cheers of the audience...
Turning back to see the judges all standing and holding up tens...
Desmond Mason recalled the past dunk contests. Ever since the NBA began hosting them, he hadn’t missed a single live broadcast.
He wondered if Julius Erving, Dominique Wilkins, Jordan... could pull off what Carter just did? Maybe. But if Carter’s physique were more aesthetically pleasing and had more flair?
Even though Carter appeared frail and his graceful moves lacked power, it was enough to earn a perfect score at an NBA slam dunk contest!
"What kind of monster am I competing against? Oh, right, there’s one more..."
Desmond Mason looked at Zhang Hao, who was walking onto the court after applauding Carter, seemingly still confident. Once again, he felt out of place with these two.
Not only was Desmond Mason watching Zhang Hao, but Carter was also watching him.
Even Carter, at this point, had no more tricks up his sleeve. He’d already used his best dunk for his first attempt in the finals!
Indeed, to others, Carter seemed calm, as if he had more moves prepared, but he’d already given his all, bringing out his trump card dunk.
It’s not like he didn’t have other dunks to use, but their spectacle fell short of Zhang Hao’s previous dunks. With his intelligence, how could he not know that what limited his dunking flair was his physique, his age?
