Basketball miracles

Chapter 81 [Aunt Thirteen by Big Bear Lake]

The Lakers have a relatively easy schedule, and the team has been given three days of rest. To allow the veterans to recover their energy, Coach Pat Riley announced a day off.

Xiao Tu triggered a butterfly effect, leading to a slight change in Riley's coaching style and a period of self-reflection.

Riley doubted that his previous strategy of having players train intensely during the season was wrong; a balance between work and rest, ensuring players are in good physical condition, would be more conducive to a higher winning percentage.

Players who are ambitious and willing to work hard will train extra hours without needing supervision. Conversely, no amount of supervision from the coach will help if players lack ambition.

Xiao Tu didn't do any extra training. In the morning, he drove to Big Bear Lake with his African-American teammate Byron Scott to relax and go fishing. He had a cool new car, a CJ8 Scrambler, and wanted to drive it a bit further to test its performance.

This vehicle is convenient for carrying various fishing gear and is primarily designed for high-end hunting and outdoor fishing. Unfortunately, Madonna was out of town for work and couldn't accompany Xiao Tu; it was just the two of them.

Within the Lakers team, Scott and Xiao Tu had the best relationship and talked the most.

Scott usually acted like Xiao Tu's younger brother, which made Xiao Tu feel embarrassed, after all, he was almost five years younger than him.

But Scott has this problem: he always unconsciously adopts a very humble attitude when interacting with star players.

Xiao Tu knew that Scott would have a particularly famous meme in the future: he was the originator of the "bootlicking head coach" style.

After Scott became a coach, his coaching ability was lacking, and he was particularly adept at relying on star players. He liked to give the ball to the core players to handle, while he watched from the sidelines, and in-game adjustments were irrelevant.

Scott had an excellent record coaching the Nets and Hornets because the core of the teams were star point guards Jason Kidd and Chris Paul, who were good at controlling the pace of the game.

When he coached the Lakers, their record was abysmal. Kobe's shooting percentage was abysmal, yet he shamelessly and unscrupulously fawned over Kobe. The exaggerated descriptions, nauseating words, hypocritical behavior, and obsequious demeanor in his interviews were enough to make even die-hard Kobe fans nauseous.

Scott's personality was formed at a young age. He especially liked to curry favor with Magic Johnson and Shawn Xiao while on the Lakers, often making small talk and flattering them.

In professional basketball, playing the game is all about interpersonal relationships. The team's core players have a lot of influence, and role players need to know how to curry favor to secure their position within the team, and with a bit of luck, they might even rise to the top.

Scott is currently vying with Michael Cooper for the starting shooting guard position. Scott is offensively strong but defensively weak, while Cooper excels in playmaking and defense but is less offensively capable. Scott hopes to gain the support of the team's two core players and secure a starting spot.

Scott wanted a "good buddy" relationship, and Xiao Tu naturally wouldn't refuse. Who would dislike someone who always says nice things?

When playing away games, they always eat together and occasionally go out for a stroll. If nothing unexpected happens, they will remain teammates for a long time, and Scott is a future Lakers legend.

Xiao Tu wouldn't treat his friend unfairly; he suggested Scott develop his corner three-point shooting, which would make it easier for the team to win. With this variable in mind, Riley is unlikely to let Scott handle the ball and be the primary scorer in the future.

Big Bear Lake, located in the San Bernardino Mountains of California at an altitude of over 2,000 meters, is about a two-hour drive east of Los Angeles. It's considered Los Angeles' backyard and a renowned year-round tourist destination. Here you can enjoy fishing in spring, swimming in summer, moon gazing in autumn, and skiing in winter.

Anglers in Los Angeles love this place; you can catch rainbow trout and brown trout here.

At the lake, people can enjoy fishing, and the daytime temperature is around 14 degrees Celsius. Although it may get a bit chilly at night, it's still a great opportunity to connect with nature, so just bring extra layers.

In the evening, people can enjoy a barbecue or a hot pot at the campsite, or camp in tents if they don't want to go back that day. For those who can't cook, there are plenty of restaurants and cafes nearby.

The two found a secluded spot to sit, chat, and fish, undisturbed by outsiders and without paparazzi following them.

Scott quickly caught three brown trout, all of them quite large. His imposing presence swelled as soon as he arrived at the lake, making him seem like Xiao Tu's elder brother.

If Byron had not been born, the fishing world would have remained in perpetual darkness.

Scott said proudly, "How about it? The environment here is great, isn't it? The road we came on wasn't congested either, so we could drive fast, which was really fun."

Xiao Tu smiled wryly and said, "The environment is indeed very good, but there's only one problem: I don't know how to fish."

Scott offered some guidance. "Just pull the fishing rod less hard, you have to pull it up slowly, this isn't a dunk."

"You make it sound easy, but it's not so easy to do. I get a little excited when I see a fish bite the hook."

Xiao Tu has already pulled off three successful fishing stunts. As soon as he sees a fish bite, he reflexively pulls the rod, and the hook flies into the air, but there's no fish.

Scott revealed a horrifying truth: the fish didn't escape on its own; Xiao Tu had used too much force and torn its mouth apart. Xiao Tu also thought this was a great place, perfect for couples on a date. Especially for celebrity couples like him and Madonna, they wouldn't encounter so many fans here.

Their fame will grow in the future, so you might consider visiting this place.

However, there are still some fans here.

Not far from them, a Chinese boy recognized Xiao Tu and tugged at his sister's arm, asking her to help him get an autograph.

The round-faced Chinese beauty looked helpless. "I've never watched a basketball game, I don't know any NBA stars, I don't know how to talk to them. If you admire him so much, why don't you go and ask for his autograph yourself? That way you could at least talk to him for a bit."

"I'll definitely be too nervous to speak... You should ask for his autograph, maybe you can even become friends with him, or at least take a picture together." The boy was a little excited, his round face flushed.

"But I really don't know how to say it, his name is a bit of a tongue twister. He's a man, why are you so shy? Just go ask him yourself."

The younger brother exclaimed, "You have no idea how handsome he is; he's the kind of guy that would make any guy blush."

The pretty girl rolled her eyes and said, sweating, "You're gay at such a young age? Does your mom know?"

"What do you mean 'bent'... I just get nervous and can't speak. It's okay if you can't remember his name, you can call him Xiao. Please help me get his autograph and a photo. You're so pretty, Americans will definitely like you." The boy's tone was very sincere, which completely charmed the older sister.

The beautiful woman, having no other choice, slowly walked up to Xiao Tu with a small notebook in hand and a camera hanging around her neck, and asked in a low voice in English, "Mr. Xiao, excuse me, could you please sign this for me? I'm a fan of yours."

Xiao Tu turned his head and was immediately stunned.

This is a beautiful Chinese woman wearing a light blue coat and black casual pants. She has big, bright eyes, delicate features, and a tall figure.

She looks just like the kind of person Andy Lau described in his famous Pantene shampoo commercial... my dream girl, with long, shiny black hair.

Xiao Tu rubbed his eyes, wondering if he was dreaming.

No way, isn't that Aunt Thirteen?

What kind of dream did I have? Did it jump from a boring fishing activity to the movie "Once Upon a Time in China and America"? Where are Wong Fei-hung and Ghost Foot Seven?
No, this isn't a dream. She's not wearing period costume, and she looks much younger than when she played the Thirteenth Aunt.

It is said that there are three identical strangers in the world, and only a few people know each other. For example, Ming Dao and Ethan Juan, A Duo and Chen Hao, Guo Donglin and JJ Lin, Guo Da and Jason Statham, Zhou Dongyu and the little yellow duck…

So, this might be a Chinese-American living in the Los Angeles area, Rosamund Kwan's doppelganger?

This is actually the genuine product.

Rosamund Kwan was stunned when she saw Xiao Tu's face, and her breathing became somewhat hurried.

It turns out Andy Lau was right; there really are men so handsome that they can make people nervous and speechless.

She had never seen such a handsome man; he seemed unreal. His features were exquisitely sculpted, each individual feature delicate and refined, yet together they added a touch of ruggedness and cynicism.

This face is unforgettable; none of the male stars in Hong Kong can compare.

Xiao Tu came to his senses first and asked, almost as if possessed, "Miss, you said you're a fan of mine. Do you know which basketball team I play for and what jersey number I wear?"

"..." Rosamund Kwan was completely stumped by the question; of course, she didn't know.

Oh no, I think I said something wrong.

How do you get autographs and photos from sports stars in the US, and do you have to answer their questions correctly?

I'm just visiting relatives in the US, and I've never watched a basketball game before!
As Rosamund Kwan grew anxious, her almond-shaped eyes widened involuntarily.

Xiao Tu immediately realized that she was Thirteenth Aunt. Such round eyes, which seemed to say "no one can rival Liang Kuan," were extremely rare.

(End of this chapter)