Iverson drove to the basket but didn't go for the layup.

To talk about the tacit understanding with Wei Guo...

Iverson considers himself second to none, and there aren't many who dare to claim to be first, after all, they were teammates who spent a season together.

After Iverson's breakthrough, Wei Guo instantly slipped to the corner, and sure enough... Iverson made a no-look pass, and the ball ended up in Wei Guo's hands.

No one is defending!

Wei Guo caught the ball and shot.

"Whoosh!!!"

The basketball went into the net.

59:60!!

The Red Team has once again taken the lead.

There's even less time...

The Blue Team called a timeout, which was called by Duncan. Even without a head coach, they need to devise a tactic and at least reach a consensus.

......

The defense made a mistake on this play, but now is not the time to blame anyone.

This is a charity exhibition match, and everyone here is a star player from their respective teams. It's not good to criticize anyone... it will only create negative emotions. Instead, let's discuss how to attack.

Arenas asked, "There's only a little over a minute left, and every shot could decide the game. How should we play this attack?"

"1 minute and 39 seconds."

Billups refined the timeline.

Professional players know that even a second can decide the outcome of a game in crucial moments, and Billups felt that Arenas's statement of a little over a minute was inaccurate.

"right!"

Arenas glanced at the time. "We should have 3 to 4 offensive opportunities."

Offense is not the most important thing; defense is more crucial.

The Red Team is in the lead, and to win the game, they need to defend against at least one of the Red Team's attacks. After discussing among themselves, the five decided to adopt the simplest tactic: McGrady and Arenas as the offensive options on the perimeter, while Duncan and Garnett would compete for the team's leadership... This is currently the most reasonable tactic, and the Red Team also has Kobe, Iverson, and Carter on the perimeter.

But...

There's Wei Guo in the paint.

It is significantly more difficult to attack from the inside than from the outside.

......

The timeout has ended, and the game has resumed.

Blue team, attack!

Duncan orchestrates from the high post, drawing James' defense with the ball. McGrady and Arenas make runs, and Duncan passes to Billups. Billups receives the ball and makes a long pass, which ends up in McGrady's hands.

They are all top-level players with extremely precise timing.

McGrady catches the ball and pulls up for a jump shot!

*Smack!!!*

Wei Guo rushed over and blocked McGrady's shot!

McGrady: "???"

How did the State of Wei appear so quickly?

Wei Guo knew exactly what offensive tactics the Blue Team would use... When Garnett set a screen for McGrady, Wei Guo's attention was already on McGrady. When McGrady pulled up for a jump shot, Wei Guo stepped forward and jumped, blocking McGrady's shot.

If you have to blame someone, blame McGrady for having such a flat shooting arc.

If the arc had been any higher, even Wei Guo wouldn't have been able to block that shot from a meter away.

The basketball is now in Iverson's hands!

Billups quickly caught up. He may not be as famous as Iverson, but Billups is just as fast. By the time Iverson reached the paint, Billups had already caught up.

pity...

We caught up with them.

Billups couldn't stop Iverson from scoring; Iverson jumped, executed a reverse layup, and put the ball into the basket with a backhand.

59:62!!

The Red Team leads by 3 points.

Not a single spectator shouted or applauded; they were all caught up in the tense atmosphere and watched the game with bated breath.

The blue team serves from the baseline.

Duncan glanced at the screen; there were only 1 minute and 11 seconds left.

If the Red Team doesn't call a timeout, the Blue Team doesn't need to either... While winning or losing is important, saving face is also important. The Red Team's refusal to call a timeout, coupled with the Blue Team's constant calls for timeouts, puts them at a disadvantage in terms of momentum.

so...

The match is very likely to end within two minutes.

Billups received the inbound pass, dribbled past midcourt, and passed the ball to Arenas. Arenas suddenly passed the ball and cut into the paint, driving to the basket over James!

How strong is LeBron James...?

Arenas' movements were all distorted, but his core strength was very strong. Even with his movements distorted, he still managed to throw the ball towards the basket.

"Whoosh!!!"

The basketball went into the net.

61:62!!

The blue team is down by 1 point.

Arenas has several distinctive playing styles: excellent long-range shooting, unpredictable drives, and powerful layups. It is precisely the latter two characteristics that enabled him to make contributions when the Blue Team was behind.

Duncan glanced at the time again; only 52 seconds remained.

The Red Team is still leading by 1 point. Will they call a timeout?

If the Red Team scores on their next possession, it will be even more difficult for the Blue Team to win. Moreover... Duncan is worried that the Red Team will deliberately control the clock. If they finish an offensive possession within 24 seconds, they will only give the Blue Team one chance to score. If they miss, they will definitely lose... Even if they score, they may not be able to win.

so...

The Red Team must defend against this attack.

The red team didn't call a timeout; they just exchanged glances and understood that they needed to run down the clock!

Delay the attack for as long as possible, leave about three seconds, and then pass the ball to Wei Guo... As long as Wei Guo scores, the Red Team wins. Even if he doesn't score, it doesn't matter. As for defense... if we can defend against the Blue Team's attack, the Red Team will still be the victor.

There's only one way for the Blue Team to win!

First, defend the red team's shot, then score another goal. At this point, the red team has at least 4 seconds left to attack, and the blue team needs to defend another shot.

As for fouling tactics?

It's basically impossible. Putting aside the fact that this is an exhibition match, even in a formal match, since there's no coach, when a timeout is called, the tactics need to be discussed among the participants or arranged by one person. But they didn't agree on who would arrange the tactics if this situation occurred before the match.

At that time...

With everyone talking back and forth, there wasn't even enough time for discussion during the 90-second pause.

Besides, players are definitely not as professional as coaches when it comes to setting up tactics. When you're playing on the court, you don't have the mind to think about tactics.

There have been instances of players acting as coaches in manga. When Kenji Fujima was acting as a coach, he would sit on the sidelines. Once he was on the field, he was a player, not a coach.

The best way to reduce the time is to let Iverson dribble.

Wei Guo dribbles better than Iverson, but his center of gravity is too high. If double-teamed while dribbling, there is still a risk of being intercepted. Moreover, Wei Guo is the one who executes the offense. Even if Iverson dribbles, he can still find opportunities through off-ball movement.

None of the five players on the red team can be let go!

Iverson, Kobe, James, Carter... any one of them has the ability to close out a game, so the Blue Team adopted a 1-on-1 zone defense, which is one-on-one, and no one can foul.

Time ticked by, second by second...

Iverson only dribbled outside the three-point line and never went inside it.

With 7 seconds left on the shot clock, Kobe and Wei Guo suddenly started making a back cut. James, positioned at the top of the arc, received a pass from Iverson and flicked it to the left, immediately handing the ball to Wei Guo.

I knew they would pass the ball to Wei Guo, but I didn't expect them to let James orchestrate the play from the top of the key!

An oversight...

Wei Guo successfully obtained the basketball.

With only 5 seconds left on the shot clock, Wei Guo received the ball and stepped back to the left to draw the defense. After jumping, Garnett and Arenas both rushed over, but Wei Guo did not shoot. Instead, he passed the ball to the corner in mid-air.

Carter is hiding there!!!

Carter had several spectacular dunks in the first half, but he seemed to disappear in the second half, and the Blue Team completely ignored him... Who would have thought that Carter would make a crucial contribution at the key moment.

A wide-open three-pointer from the corner!

It's a piece of cake... Carter catches the ball, jumps, and shoots.

"Whoosh!!!"

The basketball went through the net cleanly.

61:65!!

The blue team is down by 4 points.

Duncan looked up at the time; there were 28 seconds left.

There was basically no chance left. If it were a regular game, they would have grabbed a three-pointer, fouled the Rockets, and sent them to the free-throw line. But this wasn't a regular game, and using a fouling tactic in the last few seconds was pointless. When Duncan passed the free throws to Billups, he said, "I'm done."

"oh..."

Billups responded, somewhat unwilling.

The game wasn't over yet, and the red team had already taken the initiative to hug the blue team, so it was just an exhibition match... Even though the second half was a real game, there was no need to take it to heart.

For Weiguo...

This exhibition match made him a fortune, and the key is that he can build several Hope Primary Schools and sponsor many impoverished students to go from primary school to university.

......

The audience left reluctantly, but the players' nightlife was just beginning.

These people have come all the way to China, so Wei Guo should at least show them some hospitality. If they're brothers, let's have a beer together!

After playing ball, take a shower to wash away all the fatigue.

All the players moved to Weiguo's venue. The summer night was cool and breezy, perfect for beer, barbecue, and crayfish. Weiguo treated everyone to this.

It's not that Weiguo is short of money...

I just wanted Kobe, Duncan, and others to experience Chinese culture.

These players are all millionaires. If someone else were to treat them to barbecue and crayfish, it would be seen as a sign of disrespect, and Garnett might even walk away in a huff. But it's different when Wei Guo hosts a banquet. Even if it's just plain boiled water with steamed buns, everyone would gladly attend. It's an opportunity to have a heart-to-heart talk with Wei Guo.

Pour out pitchers of beer!

Arenas took a big gulp and said, "Brother Wei, there's a question that's been on my mind for many years."

"you say..."

Wei Guo raised his glass, "I may not answer."

Arenas was speechless for a moment, then looked at Wei Guo's expression and knew he was joking, so he asked, "How do you manage to make 100% of your game-winning shots?"

I have a system; can I tell you about this?

These were Wei Guo's true thoughts, which he couldn't say out loud, especially since this was a perfect opportunity to show off. Wei Guo pondered, "I don't know either... Every time I shoot a game-winning shot, I pray in my heart, 'This shot has to go in,' and then it goes in."

Duncan asked, "Are you praying to God?"

"Only you Westerners believe in God..."

"Then who do you pray to?"

Everyone wanted to know the answer, and Billups was thinking to himself that he would have to try this trick when it was his turn to shoot the game-winning shot.

Wei Guo had never prayed; he was just giving an answer casually: "The Primordial Qi, the Supreme Golden Immortal, the Monkey King, the Great Sage Equal to Heaven."

Kobe asked, "Who is this person?"

"It's Sun Wukong from Journey to the West."

Wei Guo had a smile on his face.

Duncan, “…”

Arenas, “…”

James, “…”

Those who had heard of Journey to the West and those who hadn't were both silent. Wei Guo actually prayed to a monkey before taking the game-winning shot? The key point... his game-winning shot was really accurate!

Kobe was skeptical...

He always felt that Wei Guo was making fun of them, but he couldn't find any evidence.

The beer was still being poured out in pitchers, the lamb skewers were sizzling and dripping with oil, I took a small pancake, dipped it in some sauce, picked up two skewers of lamb, rolled them up with a scallion, and that was it!

The ten people sat together, chatting and getting happier as they went.

Garnett asked, "You're not coming back to the Suns next season?"

Wei Guo nodded, "Mm..."

Garnett said, "Which team are you going to? Come to the Timberwolves... I'll give you the leader's position."

Wei Guo laughed and said, "Hahaha...that's too embarrassing."

Everyone wants to know where Wei Guo will go next season. Knowing this in advance allows for better preparation. For example, if Wei Guo stays in the West, Garnett will have to consider whether to move to the East, meaning he will only encounter Wei Guo twice this season.

"Big brother, come join the Knights... take me with you, and I'll grow faster."

"You're the youngest among these guys, what's the rush? Once the older guys have all won the championship, the league will be yours to rule."

"With you here..."

A faint voice came from the corner, "How do we win the championship?"

Wei Guo has dominated the league for four years. The current situation is that if you want to win the championship, you just have to wait for Wei Guo to turn the tide. If Wei Guo turns the tide and you are lucky enough to become teammates with him, the championship will come.

The league has never had such a strong player before.

Russell, Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Johnson, Bird, Jordan, O'Neal... are all a level below Wei Guo.

"I can't play for many more seasons."

Wei Guo said, "The future of the alliance belongs to you."

Garnett laughed and said, "Then I'll have to take good care of myself and try to outlive you until you retire."

......

These ten are all top players in the league, and once they start talking, they can't stop.

They chatted until 5 a.m.

It was already broad daylight. Everyone, still tipsy, was taken back to their hotel to rest by the staff. The rest of their trip to China would be arranged by someone else.

Wei Guo hadn't had this much fun drinking in a long time.

On the court they are rivals, off the court they are friends. Even though the Spurs and Suns have a history of conflict, it doesn't stop Wei Guo and Duncan from becoming good friends. He cherishes these friends and will continue to grow closer to them after he retires.

sometimes...

Even Wei Guo felt lost.

Wei Dafa's wealth was enough for Wei Guo to squander for several lifetimes, but if there were no system and Wei Guo had not become a professional player, what would his life have been like?

Or rather...

He only knows how to play basketball, what should he do after he retires?

Even a player as strong as Wei Guo will indulge in melancholy after getting drunk, but once he sobers up, he'll continue to enjoy life. After all, he still has three more seasons to play, so he might as well enjoy his playing career first.