All I Really Want Is To Play Basketball - Chapter 16

Chapter 16: “EQ”

Translator: Atlas Studios

Editor: Atlas Studios

Truth be told, Su Feng’s shot after his movement, which went in,…

Was really an exception.

In the next moment, the entire basketball court went silent.

Clang!

As Su Feng and Kobe clashed, they orchestrated a symphony of clangs.

Brick shots, brick shots, and more brick shots!

All hail the hoop! All hail the hoop!

The noble Nefaria guard and noble Lower Merion forward had inherited the glorious tradition of their seniors!

Havlicek, Bob Cousy, and Elvin Hayes all seemed to possess them at that moment!

Su Feng and Kobe inherited the longstanding enterprising culture of the NBA!

At that moment, the two of them were not fighting alone!

Oh—No! It went in, the ball went in! Our youth has ended!

To be fair, the sheer intensity in which Su Feng and Kobe defended, where they both used the death coil, made it so that there was no way they could have a high field goal percentage.

If one had to use a song to describe how Su Feng was feeling then, it would be “clap along if you feel like a room without a roof…”

It was painful, but he relished the pain!

Who could understand this feeling?

After the first half, the score was 26-30. For Nefaria, Su Feng had scored 22 of their 26 points. As for Lower Merion, Kobe had scored 24 of their 30 points.

From the data, Su Feng was not that much worse than Kobe.

But in reality, Su Feng was clear that if not for Kobe’s poor form today, he would have gotten thrashed a long time ago.

Um… nonetheless, Kobe will have many more dry spells in the future…

Cough, cough.

Back to the topic.

All the scouts and reporters who had the fortune of watching this match today focused their attention on Su Feng.

Don’t be surprised. In the 90s, international players were treated like endangered animals, and that was especially so for Asian players.

If Su Feng was an American black or white male, the scouts would at most say, “Another genius has appeared…”

But just like how Su Feng had planned when he was planning his future course of action, being an Asian Chinese player was both a disadvantage and an advantage for him.

What was worth noting was that Su Feng’s status in his team could be said to have shot up during the half-time break.

Even the captain, Towns, was all smiles when he passed him a cup of water.

Meanwhile, Tony Johnson and Antony had worried expressions on their faces…

That was because they had discovered in the second period that on Lower Merion’s substitute bench, the Downer father-and-son duo were looking at Su Feng in a weird way!

Truth be told…

You could not even use the word “weird” to describe it…

We could only use three words to describe how Gregg and Drew Downer were feeling right now: full of regret!

That was especially because of the way Kobe looked at them during the half-time break…

To break the deadlock, Gregg decided to let his son, Drew, deal with the situation after staring deeply into his eyes for a moment.

After being dragged into a sticky situation by his father, Drew took three deep breaths, mustered up his courage, walked in front of Kobe, and told him, “Kobe, come here, there’s something I’d like to talk to you about.”

As for Kobe?

He put on his headphones and started listening to female R&B singer Brandy Norwood’s “Brandy”. His expression and behavior were obviously telling him, “Huh? What did you say? Speak louder, I can’t hear you!”

The Downer father-and-son duo might be the coaches of Lower Merion High School’s basketball team, but in reality, as high school Kobe got stronger and stronger, their status in the team was only a little higher than that of utility player Schwartz…

In Su Feng’s past life, when Kobe was in grade 12, Gregg Downer’s most famous ultimate move was “Close the doors, scramble away, and unleash Kobe”.

So as he faced Kobe now, Drew could not really put on the airs of a coach.

Moreover, he was only an assistant coach.

Hence, Gregg had no choice but to step in personally. He grabbed a bottle of Gatorade, twisted open the cap for Kobe, and handed it to him.

He was the head coach after all. After seeing Gregg eat humble pie, Kobe also did not continue making things difficult for him.

Kobe received the Gatorade, then looked at the head coach and asked, “Yes, Mr. Gregg?”

“Actually, there’s nothing much…” Gregg, who had not thought of how to speak to Kobe yet, was stunned by Kobe’s question.

“Then I’ll continue listening to my music. Tell me when you’re announcing the game plan for the second half.” Kobe put on his headphones and was going to continue listening to music.

Gregg got anxious.

Gregg had read the book “EQ” before after all.

“Kobe, you previously mentioned that Nefaria’s shooting guard, Su, was your friend, right? I remember you recommending him to me before,” Gregg said.

Kobe nodded.

“Kobe, that’s great. Su’s performance tonight has completely won me over. Drew and I both feel that if he could transfer to Lower Merion, we could definitely…” Just as Gregg told Kobe his objective, Kobe suddenly interrupted him…

“I know what you’re trying to tell me. But Coach, Su’s heart has been utterly shattered by the both of you,” Kobe said after drinking a mouthful of Gatorade.

“Wha… What? Kobe, did you tell your friend those… those unpleasant remarks I made about him?” Gregg panicked.

“Yes.” Kobe smiled and nodded.

“My God, my God. Kobe, I swear to God I was blind before. I meant absolutely no harm towards your friend,” Gregg told Kobe.

“But, Su…”

“I will talk to the school and have them give him a full scholarship.”

“But coach, Su…”

“I can guarantee you, Kobe, that he will be a starter for Lower Merion and our second trump card!”

“But, Su…”

“I will personally apologise to him!” Gregg said while looking at Kobe sincerely.

Kobe was overjoyed. Looking at Gregg, who seemed to be about to cry, the unhappiness Kobe felt towards Gregg dissipated.

“Alright, I’ll try to help you convince Su. But I hope you’ll be with me on this. Su is very important to us if we want to win the state championship,” Kobe told Gregg.

“No problem, Kobe. I previously said that you’re the best high school student in Pennsylvania. Now you’ve helped me find another piece of the championship-winning puzzle. Who knows, we might win the state championship this year.” Seeing how Kobe had given him an out, Gregg quickly agreed with Kobe.

After being bootlicked by Gregg, Kobe was feeling very good about himself.

But Kobe was considering whether to mess with Su Feng or not later.

And just as Kobe was feeling happy by himself, Gregg, who was calming himself down in the players’ tunnel after walking out from the changing room, was suddenly questioned by his son, Drew. “Father! Why did you have to do that?”

Gregg rolled his eyes at Drew. “Please call me Mr. Gregg.”

Although he was enraged, Drew suppressed his anger. “Mr. Gregg, Su’s performance did indeed exceed our expectations. But… but you’re still the head coach of Lower Merion High School!”

Gregg pat Drew on the shoulder and told him, “Drew, you’re trying to say that the way I spoke in the changing room earlier was very disgraceful, right?”

Drew nodded indisputably.

“Yes, even though Su’s performance tonight was outstanding, there’s no need for us to put our heads down and beg Kobe because of him. After all, we can still win the championship without him.”

“Yes.” Drew continued nodding.

“But, Drew, think about it. This is the first time I’ve seen Kobe care about someone so much.

“You also know about the dispute I had with Kobe when he was in the tenth grade. But did you know that I’ve regretted it ever since?

“I shouldn’t have talked to a child in that manner. Because of that statement, it’s like he’s been possessed.

“That statement became a permanent barrier between Kobe and I. That’s why I reflected for a very long time after that.

“See, it seems like my actions this time were very disgraceful. But if Su joins us, the relationship between Kobe and I could be repaired. Did you think about that?

“This is an opportunity! Do you really think I didn’t know what Kobe was thinking just now?

“But it’s worth it to give Su a full scholarship and a starting position. As for an apology?

“Drew, remember this. In this world, the thing that has the least value is your dignity,” Gregg remarked while looking at Drew with a profound expression.

Meanwhile, Drew was stunned.

He had been taught a valuable lesson by his father.

A lesson called “EQ”.

Instantly, everything seemed to make sense to Drew.

….

The half-time break ended and the match continued.

Before the third period started, Kobe purposely walked in front of Su Feng and told him, “Su, I kept telling my coach how great you are during the half-time break, you know.”

Su Feng was tickled pink. Because he was way too familiar with Kobe, he knew with one look at Kobe’s expression that he was messing with him.

So, Su Feng played along and asked, “Oh? What did your coach say?”

Kobe shook his head, sighed, and paced around. “My coach said…”

“Hmm?”

“Su, you idiot!” Suddenly, Kobe went close to Su Feng’s ear and growled.

Su Feng was speechless.

What the heck!

Seeing how Kobe ran away straight after messing with him, Su Feng initially wanted to chase after him.

But after thinking about it, Su Feng decided to let it be.

That was because Su Feng just could not bear to think about that scene.

Try imagining this—Kobe running in front Su Feng while saying, “Come catch me, come catch me. If you can catch me, I’ll…”

Ugh!

Well, Kobe was still 16 right now, and no one knew whether he would get embarrassed after thinking about the silly things he had done in the past in the future.

Actually, after seeing how the Downer father-and-son duo were looking at him, Su Feng could guess what had happened during the half-time break.

“Did they talk about me transferring schools?”

Su Feng took a look at Tony Johnson and Antony.

Although the coaches of Nefaria did not treat him too badly, Su Feng was not a saint either.

Su Feng was very clear that this transfer was very important for him.

After all, after he transferred, he could use his human cheat, Kobe, every day… No, he could be with Kobe for longer periods of time and deepen his friendship with him.

And the most important thing was: what better and faster way was there for Su Feng to gain fame while still in high school than playing basketball with Kobe?

After all, there were tons of scouts and reporters around Kobe.

By playing alongside Kobe, he could maximise his exposure.

“Well, I want to take things one step at a time, but life always seems to give me a shortcut…” Thinking back on his experiences during these three months, Su Feng felt that he was extremely lucky.

Cough.

Back to the topic.

The third period progressed similarly to how the later half of the second half progressed. However, due to the difference in ability between Nefaria and Lower Merion, Lower Merion gradually increased their lead in the third period.

When the match entered the fourth period, the scout and reporters were shocked by Su Feng once again.

That was because Su Feng’s stamina… was way too amazing!

For the entirety of the fourth period, Su Feng kept unleashing the death coil on Kobe.

With a heart of steel and body of iron, it was as though Su Feng was pushing Kobe aside and loudly announcing himself to the world!

Actually, Su Feng’s stamina was related to the nutrient fluid the system provided him everyday.

Coupled with his scary willpower, even Kobe thought it was a shame that Su Feng did not participate in marathons.

In the end, the match ended with the score at 49-69.

For Nefaria, Su Feng had scored 12 out of 30 shots, including three three-pointers out of five attempts. He had scored a total of 27 points, caught two rebounds, and had zero assists.

As for Lower Merion, Kobe had scored 15 out of 33 shots, including one three-pointer out of four attempts and six free throws out of eight attempts. He had scored 37 points and gotten nine rebounds and five assists.

Based on the score, Kobe’s statistics were still quite outstanding. However, to the scouts and reporters who had watched the whole match, they all knew that…

Even if Su Feng could not shut Kobe out, he was still a really outstanding defender!

In Pennsylvania, there appeared…

A Chinese international student who could match up with Kobe!

And not long after the match ended, after shaking hands with Tony Johnson and Antony, the Downer father-and-son duo walked in front of Su Feng and asked, “Hello, Su. Are you free later?”

Su Feng nodded.

Gregg Downer patted Su Feng’s shoulder while saying, “Market Street, Bizley Cafe. I’ll wait for you there in two hours.”

One had to say, Gregg was a sly old fox.

The way he had spoken to Su Feng just now was like a coach encouraging a player. If you did not know what Gregg had told Su Feng just now, you would probably think that even the coach of the opposing team wanted to congratulate Su Feng due to his outstanding performance.

After the Downer father-and-son duo left, Kobe walked towards Su Feng. As he did so, Duke University’s scout, Wesley, also walked towards the both of them…

….