Basketball Terminal

Chapter 12 Dunk
The game has reached a decisive moment, with the score tied between the black and white teams, and the white team has possession of the ball.

With 32 seconds left in the game, the White Team had enough time to launch a decisive attack. The White Team obediently handed the ball to Xavier Moon, and in less than 10 minutes, Moon used his skills and experience to become the leader of the team.

Unlike most of the young rookies who came to the training camp, Moon is a player with extensive professional experience. The difference between professional and amateur players lies not only in skills and physique, but also in the fact that professional players know what they are supposed to do on the field.

They are all soldiers who have undergone rigorous training and extensive combat experience; the discipline and demands of the game are deeply ingrained in their muscles. Although Moon isn't the kind of exceptionally talented, offensively powerful point guard, his defense, playmaking, and positioning are all highly professional. As a point guard, he has excellent team cohesion.

Before being invited by the Long Island Nets to participate in a team workout, Moon had already participated in workouts with several other teams. These included both team and individual workouts, and he reportedly received very positive feedback from all of them.

One team's scouts even believed that with further development, Moon would be qualified to play in the NBA. Teams often share resources, and the Long Island Nets' scouting team was clearly aware of the assessment of Moon, which, judging from this tryout, proved to be true.

Moon started playing basketball relatively late, at the age of 12 in 7th grade. At that time, his uncle, Jamario Moon, was also 27 years old. After years of playing in overseas and lower-level leagues, Jamario Moon was finally signed by the Toronto Raptors and became a member of the NBA, realizing his NBA dream.

It's hard to say whether Xavier Moon wasn't inspired by his uncle's story that year and embarked on his basketball career. As for why Xavier shares his uncle's last name, the reason is simple: he didn't know who his father was.

His uncle became his role model, and even now, Xavier Moon has embarked on a professional career, never giving up his NBA dream, just as his uncle achieved success at the age of 27.

Xavier Moon is very close to this goal; he has gained the approval of many scouts and is just one step away from the NBA.

But now, his eyes were only on the basket, only on scoring, only on that Chinese-American kid on the opposing black team. The situation changed dramatically after this guy entered the game. He wasn't particularly fast, and his jumping ability and strength seemed only above average.

But his defense is incredibly frustrating. He always anticipates your choices and positions himself perfectly. And his screens are like hitting a brick wall; every time you bump into him, it's like getting dizzy. His offensive rebounding is phenomenal; his anticipation is outstanding. Xavier Moon concluded that this guy is definitely a professional-level player.

He will be Moon's biggest competitor in this selection process, so Moon will set aside teamwork and selflessness, and in the final moments, American basketball will need a heroic one-on-one battle to decide the outcome of the game. Moon believes that on the crucial offensive possession, Levi will definitely come to defend him in a mismatch.

Sure enough, Moon had barely crossed half-court when Levi came running over, a one-on-one Cavaliers duel. At that moment, the two became the center of attention in Nassau Arena, the focus of all eyes. Moon dribbled the ball, the thumping sounds mirroring his state of mind. He glanced at the timer; twenty seconds remained on the shot clock—more than enough.

He planned his offensive route in his mind. He wanted to break through with his left hand, then fake a move, pull back, switch to his right hand, use his speed to get past Li Wei, and drive straight to the basket for a layup. Without Li Wei, the Black team's interior defense was completely exposed.

Time ticked by, and with seven seconds left he would launch his attack. Everyone stepped back to watch their one-on-one duel, but Moon's heart pounded faster and faster as an unprecedented sense of tension gradually enveloped him.

"Oh no, I don't think I can get past him..." Just a second before launching his attack, Moon hesitated, gripped by a strange fear. Levi pounced, closing in on Moon. This momentary hesitation cost Moon the initiative, forcing him to retreat. Seeing this, Levi spread his arms, continuing to close in and block Moon's path, forcing him into a corner of the half.

Li Wei is 2.01 meters tall, but his agility and speed are comparable to those of a 174cm player, no less than that of the 185cm Moon. Moon tried to shake off Li Wei using dribbling changes of direction and spin moves, but Li Wei, once he was on his heels, was determined to keep him there. Every move was predictable, leaving him nowhere to escape!
Seeing that he was about to lose possession, Moon could only hold the ball with both hands, resulting in a dead ball situation. This was the first time in the first 10 minutes of the match that Moon had been forced into a dead ball situation. Having made no mistakes throughout the game, he finally erred in his panic.

With three seconds remaining on the shot clock, and the ball dead, he held onto it until the clock ran out. Being called for a 24-second violation wouldn't matter much. Since the score was tied, and time was up, possession went to the black team, who would then have to serve again to regroup and launch their attack. The white team was perfectly capable of defending against this.

However, Moon was eager to shake off Levi's formidable, tenacious defense. He wanted to pass the ball to a teammate for the final shot, but the chances were slim and it was easy to make a mistake. Sure enough, Moon jumped to pass the ball to his teammate outside the three-point line, but Levi leaped up and touched the ball in mid-air, intercepting it.

After successfully intercepting the ball, Li Wei immediately caught up with it upon landing, then shook off Moon and charged towards the frontcourt. With no one guarding him and the basket wide open, Li Wei no longer modestly created opportunities for his teammates; instead, he leaped high. The AJ35 provided ample bounce, and Li Wei saw the basket getting closer and closer, very, very close. This was an experience he had never had when he was 174cm tall—he realized he could be so close to the basket, and so close to victory.

A powerful two-handed dunk!

Li Wei felt a burning pain in his hands; dunking always hurts, but he loved the feeling. He loved the catharsis of scoring with explosive power, loved hanging high above others, looking down on them. This powerful strike contained all the passion of basketball and the absolute desire for victory. Most wonderfully, this dunk actually brought victory to the Black Team.

Time was running out. The white team used a timeout but couldn't come up with any strategy, and they even made a mistake on their serve. Their mentality was completely ruined. Brett blew the whistle to end the second round, declaring the black team the winner.

Uncle Davis came over and gave Levi a high-five, laughing and praising him, "Fantastic, fantastic, your performance exceeded my expectations." The 62-year-old Davis came to the tryouts with the mindset of a journey and experiences, so he had a very good attitude, did his best to play, did his job well, and praised every young player who performed well.

The reporter who had just interviewed Davis came over to shake hands with Li Wei and introduced himself: "My name is Scott Mitchell, a contributor to the Daily Nets News. This is my business card. Can we chat for a bit?"

Li Wei's outstanding performance caught the attention of reporters, and Scott Mitchell felt that Li Wei's Chinese appearance could be used to create a story and add some color to his feature report.

Li Wei shook his head and said, "The test isn't over yet. Let's talk about it after I'm selected. It's not too late to do an interview then."

Davis opened his mouth wide in exaggerated disbelief, stared at Levi with his thumb, and said, "This kid is so arrogant, but I like him!" Scott Mitchell, on the other hand, felt more and more that this was a really interesting guy, and that he might even be worth writing a column about.

(End of this chapter)