The first punch that shocked the basketball world

Lin Fei composed himself.

Then I pressed connect.

A middle-aged man's voice came from the other end of the phone.

He sounded a little hoarse and a little impatient.

"Hello?"

Lin Fei quickly responded.

Hello, hello.

"It's like this." Lin Fei organized his thoughts, "Lakers scout, Mr. Ryan West, gave me your phone number."

"He said you might need to have players try out?"

"My name is Lin Fei, and I'm a swingman. Mr. West said I can contact you to see if you have a chance to participate in a tryout."

There was a brief silence on the other end of the phone.

He seems to be thinking about this.

A few seconds passed.

"Understood," the other person said, their tone still calm. "Report to the Toyota Sports Center at 9 a.m. tomorrow."

"Look up the address yourself."

"No need to come if you're late."

After saying that, the other party hung up the phone immediately.

Clean and efficient.

Lin Fei held his phone, stunned for a few seconds.

Then, he swung his fist hard.

Become!

Although it was just a tryout opportunity with the Los Angeles Defenders.

But this is just the beginning.

As long as I can step through that door.

The rest is up to you.

Lin Fei visibly breathed a sigh of relief.

He threw his phone onto the bed and lay down on his back.

Staring at the ceiling.

He couldn't help but smile.

...

the next morning.

4:.

Lin Fei opened his eyes right on time.

There is no alarm clock.

My biological clock is more accurate than an alarm clock.

He got up and washed up.

Go downstairs first and open the restaurant's roller shutter door.

Then, as usual, I went out for a run.

They ran from the south of the city to the north, and then turned back.

The entire route is approximately ten kilometers.

For the past two weeks, Lin Fei has been running every day.

Physical fitness is the foundation of all competitive sports.

Without good physical fitness, everything else is just empty talk.

Therefore, Lin Fei maintained his running habit after transmigrating.

Rain or shine.

I got back to the restaurant at about 6:30.

Lin Fei went into the kitchen and cooked the noodles.

Tomato and egg noodles.

The aroma is tangy.

He enjoyed a delicious meal first.

Put the rest in a basin and keep it warm on the stove.

I glanced at the time.

My aunt and uncle should be up by now.

Lin Fei simply went upstairs and knocked on the door.

"Aunt, Uncle, get up and eat."

"Here it comes, here it comes."

The two of them were washing up at that moment.

Lin Xiuqin opened the door and saw Lin Fei covered in sweat, and felt a little sorry for him.

"You get up this early every morning, Xiaofei?" she said. "You can also be lazy sometimes and sleep in a little longer."

Actually, Aunt Lin Xiuqin's feelings were somewhat complicated when she said those words.

Previously, she was worried that Lin Fei was too lazy and ate too much, sleeping until noon every day, which would ruin his health in the long run.

But now Lin Fei gets up too early every day, and she feels sorry for him.

That's how elders are.

There's always something to worry about.

Lin Fei simply smiled in response to his aunt's words.

"I'm used to running."

He said, "If I don't run for a day, I feel uncomfortable all over."

Lin Xiuqin smiled and shook her head, without saying anything more.

Then I went downstairs to eat with my uncle.

Before going downstairs, she also told Lin Fei.

Go to your sister's room and wake her up for breakfast.

"Understood," Lin Fei nodded in agreement.

Lin Fei arrived outside his sister's room.

I knocked on the door.

"Knock knock knock".

There was not a sound inside.

I bet he's still sleeping like a log.

Knowing that his younger sister usually wore pajamas to sleep, Lin Fei didn't stand on ceremony.

He just pushed the door open and went in.

Once inside, it was indeed as expected.

My younger sister, Zhu Xiuli, was still fast asleep, curled up in her blankets.

Her hair was a mess, her face was buried in the pillow, and only half of her head was showing.

Lin Fei looked around.

Zhu Xiuli's room perfectly matches the aesthetic preferences of a young Chinese girl.

The walls were covered with all sorts of posters.

Leonardo DiCaprio's.

And Justin Bieber's.

Besides male celebrities, there were also some Sailor Moon posters and Hello Kitty stickers.

The room's overall color scheme is predominantly pink.

The sheets, duvet cover, and pillowcases were all pink.

A cabinet against the wall displays various figurines.

It looks like an anime character.

She's clearly a typical energetic girl.

On the left side of the room, there is a computer and a gaming chair.

It was also decorated in pink and white.

The keyboard is pink, the mouse is pink, and even the mousepad is pink.

Near the head of the bed, there was a coin jar.

It's shaped like a pink pig.

When she has nothing to do, Zhu Xiuli likes to save the pocket money her aunt gives her in her pocket.

Because this guy is a bit of a penny-pincher and loves saving money.

Lin Fei walked over and picked up the piggy bank on the bedside table.

heavy.

next second.

Zhu Xiuli, the younger sister who was just sleeping soundly, immediately woke up in bed.

Before her eyes were even fully open, her hand reached out.

"Can't!"

Zhu Xiuli mumbled in a daze, "Brother, you can't do that! That's money I saved up for so long!"

She reached out to snatch the piggy bank from Lin Fei's hand.

pity.

Zhu Xiuli is only 1.68 meters tall.

Compared to Lin Fei, who is 2.01 meters tall, they are simply no match.

Lin Fei took a step back, holding the piggy bank in his hand, and raised it high.

This made Zhu Xiuli's act of snatching the piggy bank look so comical.

Like a bouncy little rabbit.

Zhu Xiuli tried to grab it twice, but failed.

His face was filled with despair.

She could only threaten loudly.

"Give me your piggy bank right now!"

Zhu Xiuli put her hands on her hips: "Or I'll go to your room later and throw all your sneakers away!"

Lin Fei's room contained a lot of sneakers.

After all, playing pickup basketball can wear out your shoes a lot.

He bought those shoes with the money he earned in the past two weeks.

Upon hearing this threat, Lin Fei simply smiled.

"Whatever," he said. "I only have two or three pairs of shoes anyway."

"But your money,"

Lin Fei shook the piggy bank in his hand.

"I need it urgently this afternoon."

Lin Fei acted nonchalantly, as if he didn't care about those few pairs of shoes at all.

Seeing that threats were useless, Zhu Xiuli simply sat on the bed and started throwing a tantrum.

With a sob in her voice, she began to act.

"Brother, how could you do this?"

Zhu Xiuli wiped away imaginary tears: "Do you know how hard it was for me to save this money?"

"I'm even thinking of saving up enough money to go to Taylor Swift's concert next month!"

"Please give me back my money, okay? If you really want it, I can give you some, but you can't take it all!"

She spoke with such emotion that she was almost in tears.

Lin Fei remained unmoved.

He shook the piggy bank in his hand, making a clattering sound.

"My dear sister," Lin Fei said, "I'm going to have a tryout with an NBA team later."

"You wouldn't want me to be so broke that I can't even afford the subway, would you?"

"Believe me, consider this money as your donation."

"When I make it into the NBA in the future, I'll pay you back tenfold. It's definitely a sure-fire investment."

Upon hearing this...

Zhu Xiuli stopped faking her tears.

She looked up at Lin Fei with a shocked expression.

"Are you going to try out for an NBA team?"

Her eyes widened: "Really? Are you trying to scam me?"

Lin Fei shook his head.

"I'm going to try out for the Los Angeles Defenders later," he said. "You know the Los Angeles Defenders, right? The Lakers' G League affiliate."

"I've already made an appointment with their head coach."

Upon hearing about the Los Angeles Defenders, Zhu Xiuli immediately perked up.

She jumped out of bed.

"Bro, are you really going to go pro?"

She circled Lin Fei twice, looking him up and down: "You play basketball so badly, how come someone invited you for a tryout? You weren't scammed, were you?"

I just finished saying that.

"Boom!"

Lin Fei flicked Zhu Xiuli's forehead hard.

"Aww!"

Zhu Xiuli covered her head and began to hum.

"How many times have I told you, don't flick my head!"

She protested loudly, "That'll make you stupid!"

Lin Fei said irritably, "Your brother is invincible in this area, you know that."

"Dare to say I play badly?"

"If there's a next time, I'll smash your head in."

Zhu Xiuli covered her head and protested with a few muffled groans.

Then he said, "You can borrow this money first."

"But you have to pay me back tenfold later!" she emphasized. "Otherwise, I'll tell my mom you tricked me out of my allowance!"

Hearing this, Lin Fei smiled.

On the contrary, they were not afraid at all.

"Believe it or not," Lin Fei said, "if you tell your mom, she'll say I lied well."

"So you won't spend all that money chasing after celebrities instead of doing anything productive."

"I'd rather use the money to buy two pairs of sneakers; that would be more practical."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Xiuli became even more upset.

"I knew you were a liar!"

She shouted, "Now you're just thinking about not giving me back my money! You big liar! Give me back my money!"

After saying that, she snatched the piggy bank from Lin Fei's hand.

Lin Fei, however, did not intend to continue arguing with her.

He laughed and dodged away.

"Don't worry," Lin Fei said. "Once I get into the NBA, I'll not only pay you back, but I'll also buy you a big house."

I'll take you to concerts every day.

Lin Fei skillfully made grand promises.

"I'll not only fill your display case with all the figurines, but I'll buy you anything you want."

Lin Fei felt no pressure whatsoever about making empty promises.

After all, he is quite confident about his chances of making it to the NBA.

His current physical abilities are quite extraordinary.

In addition, there was his experience from his previous life.

Go try out for the Development League. If you still can't get in...

He might as well just buy a block of tofu and smash his head against it.

Hearing this, Zhu Xiuli felt a little better.

She knew she couldn't compete with her older brother.

He could only grunt and say, "You said it yourself, so you can't go back on your word."

Then, like a child, she insisted on making a pinky promise with Lin Fei.

"Pinky promise, for a hundred years, never to be broken!"

Lin Fei naturally refused to do something so childish.

But no matter what, Zhu Xiuli refused to give him the money unless they made a pinky promise.

In the end, there was no other way.

Lin Fei could only childishly make a pinky promise with her.

After receiving permission, Lin Fei emptied the money out of his piggy bank and counted it.

Then he looked at Zhu Xiuli with a surprised expression.

"I didn't realize you were such a penny-pincher," Lin Fei said. "There's a full six hundred dollars here."

Six hundred dollars doesn't sound like much.

However, for a high school student, the amount of pocket money they save up is indeed quite substantial.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Xiuli looked smug.

"Then take a look."

She raised her chin: "This is what I saved up by being frugal with my daily expenses."

Then, Zhu Xiuli reluctantly straightened out each piece of money.

The sheets were neatly stacked one by one.

At last.

He handed it to Lin Fei with a solemn expression.

"elder brother."

She said, her expression more serious than ever before: "This is the first investment I've ever made."

"You absolutely have to make it to the professional scene!"

Seeing his sister's serious expression, Lin Fei was amused.

He reached out and touched her head.

"Don't worry," Lin Fei said. "It's just a job. I have a lot of confidence in your brother."

Zhu Xiuli suddenly closed her eyes.

He placed his hands on his chest and muttered something under his breath.

It appears to be a prayer.

Lin Fei was amused by her appearance.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

Zhu Xiuli opened her eyes at this moment, her face serious.

"I've recently started learning divination," she said. "I've just connected with the witch's power and prayed for you."

"You'll definitely pass this trial."

Hearing this, Lin Fei shook his head helplessly.

I just felt that my younger sister was hopeless.

Zhu Xiuli then looked up and asked him.

"Brother," she said, "why did you suddenly decide to become a professional gamer?"

this problem.

Lin Fei did not respond immediately after hearing this.

He glanced out the window.

The morning sunlight streamed through the glass, casting dappled patterns on the floor.

A few seconds passed.

Lin Fei said in a low voice.

It seemed to be addressed to Zhu Xiuli.

It also seems like he's talking to himself.

"Because everyone needs to have some aspirations in life."

"exactly."

"Basketball is my forte."

After saying that, Lin Fei stopped teasing his sister.

He returned to his room and began packing his gear.

She was carrying a black backpack.

Inside were training clothes, protective gear, towels, and water bottles that might be needed during the trial training.

After tidying everything up, he glanced at his phone again.

Search online to find out which subway and bus routes to take to the Toyota Sports Center.

Then I went downstairs and headed straight for the bus stop.

It's only a little past 6 a.m.

There are still three hours until the agreed-upon 9 o'clock.

But it's always better to start earlier.

Lin Fei didn't want to be late on his first day of training.

------------------

①: Toyota Center is the home arena of the Los Angeles Defenders, the Lakers' G League affiliate, located in El Segundo, California. Everyone in the Los Angeles area knows it. Unfortunately, Lin Fei, being a time traveler, has no sense of direction; navigation is essential.

②: The Los Angeles Defenders, the predecessor of the South Bay Lakers, were called by this name until 2017.

③: The G League regular season starts around November, but unlike the NBA, the tryout window is open year-round. January is considered the golden month for G League teams to aggressively recruit new players, often referred to as "Golden January." This is because January in the NBA is essentially the middle of the season, and teams are prone to injury gaps, often needing to recruit from the G League to bolster their rotations.