The longest river

Chapter 11 Ohio's Next NBA Player
According to the regional competition format, there are a total of 16 teams in the four regions of Ohio's 4A high schools. The teams are ranked in a round-robin format (the results of the regional preliminary rounds are carried over, and teams from the same region do not play each other again). Only the top eight teams can enter the championship.

Therefore, every match here is crucial.

The opening match was held at the home stadium of Chengxi High School.

On the night of the match, the gymnasium of Chengxi High School was packed to capacity, with even the aisles filled with fans.

West End High School is a regular in the tournament, and the Columbus fans are just as enthusiastic as, if not more so than, those in Cleveland.

Moreover, many college scouts were present at the event.

They all came for Antonio Daniels.

Yang Shuai's first impression of Chengxi High School since his transmigration dates back to his first pickup basketball game a month ago.

David Smith, who contributed a lot of points to him in that game, played for the same high school team, Josai High School.

Besides that, there's Daniels, a name that's well-known in Ohio high school circles.

Standing at 1.9 meters tall barefoot, Daniels is a combo guard who is considered perfect in every way except for his inconsistent outside shooting, which is typical of his era.

He possesses superior physical attributes, combining strength and speed in his breakthroughs, and his organizational skills are outstanding; even his defense is elite-level.

He is also considered the next Ohio player to make it into the NBA, following in the footsteps of Jim Jackson and Brian Grant.

The game started quickly, but to everyone's surprise, despite their superior strength and the deafening cheers of the fans, Chengxi High School did not gain much advantage at the start.

The main reason for this is that Daniels was restricted.

The person who restricted him was Mike Luther.

Over the past month, Luther, who watched as Yang Shuai gradually replaced him on the school team, has challenged Yang Shuai to one-on-one matches quite a few times, and each time he lost, he would say unwillingly, "I will definitely win next time."

In Yang Shuai's eyes, Luther had already become like the Big Bad Wolf.

However, despite losing every time, Luther's defensive ability improved without him even realizing it.

Ultimately, it comes down to his outstanding physical attributes; once he puts in the effort, the improvement in his defense is quite noticeable.

Luther's individual defense, coupled with his teammates' timely help defense, greatly suppressed Daniels' individual offense.

Moreover, the other players from Seishi High School were also having a mediocre night, unable to convert Daniels' passes into points.

Four minutes into the game, the score was only 4-2, which made the fans in the stadium very anxious.

It was at this moment that Chengxi High School made a substitution, bringing on number 22, a shooting guard whose height was similar to Yang Shuai's.

Number 22's off-ball cuts are very explosive, and he is also a left-handed player, making it very difficult for defenders to adapt when he drives to the basket.

His entry into the game successfully drew the attention of Cleveland High School's defense, relieving Daniels of the pressure and allowing West City High School to quickly gain the upper hand.

Yang Shuai had never heard of number 22 before, so he turned to his teammates to ask about the other person's identity. According to Rondo, the two teams had played against each other in the regional competition last season.

However, the teammates didn't know each other either.

In other words, number 22 wasn't at Chengxi High School last season; he must be a new recruit they just brought in this season.

Yang Shuai didn't know the newcomer's name until Johnson sat back on the bench.

Michael Reed.

Yang Shuai looked somewhat surprised when he heard the name.

Reed was a member of the Dream Team, an NBA All-Star, and a sharpshooter; he had heard of him in his previous life.

After watching for a while, he felt he might have mistaken the person for someone else, because Reed on the court never shot a three-pointer.

With 5 and a half minutes remaining in the game, Chengxi High School had already pulled ahead 10-2.

After a fast break dunk, Daniels taunted the Cleveland High School bench, saying, "Go home, you guys are done for!"

Johnson then gestured for Yang to stand up.

However, unlike in the past, this time Yang Shuai did not replace Luther.

This was also the first time Yang Shuai and Luther had been present at the same time.

In the first possession, Rondo advanced the ball up the court, Luther reached out for the ball, and Yang Shuai made an off-the-ball run.

After a beautiful inside cut feint followed by a reverse run, Yang Shuai successfully shook off Reed.

As he ran out of the three-point line, Rondo delivered a pass with a head start.

The attention of everyone else at Chengxi High School was on Luther, and Yang Shuai had a completely open opportunity after receiving the ball.

Without any hesitation, he decisively took a three-pointer.

"Shh!"

With a crisp click, the basketball landed perfectly in the pocket.

After the ball went in, Yang Shuai mimicked Bridges' three-point celebration gesture towards Daniels.

"Negative energy from Antonio Daniels +120".

Although Yang Shuai performed well in the regional preliminary rounds, those performances only attracted the attention of fans in that region.

Once they entered the regional competition, just as Yang Shuai didn't know Reed, in Daniels' eyes, Yang Shuai was just a newcomer.

The newcomer's provocation infuriated him, and in his anger, he turned around and violently overpowered Luther.

"Negative energy from Mike Luther +69".

Knowing that Reed wouldn't shoot three-pointers, Yang Shuai had already moved to help defend under the basket.

Upon seeing this, Daniels immediately pulled the ball high and leaped into the air, ready to thoroughly humiliate his opponent.

However, he quickly revealed a look of shock.

Because Yang Shuai was already in front of him before he even reached the highest point of the ball.

The enormous figure blotted out the sky, as if it were waiting for him in the air.

He tried to push Yang Shuai away with his supporting hand, but it didn't work.

"boom!"

Amidst the incredulous gazes of the fans at the scene, Yang Shuai delivered a powerful block, knocking Daniels to the ground!
There was an uproar at the scene.

Although Daniels is still playing in the NSAA, he is already considered to be at the NCAA level. However, in this just play, he was brutally pinned down.

After landing, Yang Shuai looked at Daniels, who had just gotten up, and said, "Didn't David Smith tell you not to try to dunk in front of me?"

Daniels was stunned.

Yang Shuai's words successfully evoked his memory. Two months ago, when Smith returned to Columbus, he did talk to him about a streetball player called "Yellow Nightmare".

He never imagined that the person who had given Smith such lingering fear was right in front of him!

The ball from the baseline of the Josai High School also failed to go in, and their attack ended in failure.

Yang Shuai turned around and grabbed the rebound, then immediately launched a fast break.

Smith attempted to steal the ball, but Yang Shuai dodged it with a beautiful behind-the-back dribble.

After leaving a stunned Smith behind, Yang Shuai surged ahead to the frontcourt and effortlessly delivered a powerful one-handed gliding dunk.

The scene was in an uproar.

They essentially got a fan experience card for Cleveland High School's past few opponents.

When Yang Shuai stood up from the bench, it was the moment that Cleveland High School sounded the victory horn!
Yang Shuai was also slightly excited after landing, and he pounded his chest hard.

This time, his experience on the field was completely different from his past matches.

His acceleration is faster, his speed is faster, and his changes of direction are quicker. He doesn't even feel breathless after a fast break.

This is partly due to the Reebok shoes he was wearing, but more importantly, it's the qualitative change that came from the quantitative changes after he trained according to Di Francesco's requirements.

He now has a completely new understanding of physical fitness.

Using a reservoir as an analogy, he used to think about how to add more water to the reservoir, but now he is not only adding water, but also reducing the outflow of water.

His superior explosiveness, better core strength, and faster speed all contribute to his ability to expend less energy when performing the same movements.

7:10.

After Yang Shuai scored 5 consecutive points, the point difference on the court was narrowed to one possession.

At the crucial moment, Daniels showed his composure and began to organize the attack.

Reed was using his teammates' screens to make cross-cutting runs, but he was unable to shake off Yang Shuai.

Just as Reed moved to the weak sideline, Daniels suddenly accelerated past Luther and drove into the paint for a layup.

Organizing the game involves more than just passing; it also involves reading the game. Using Reed's movement to draw Yang Shuai away and prevent Yang Shuai from having a chance to help defend is the ability to read the game.

Daniels made the wrong choice before because he didn't know Yang Shuai well. Now that he knows who Yang Shuai is, he will naturally not make the same mistake again.

It was at this moment that Luther, after failing to get the ball again, ran directly to Rondo and forcibly took the ball.

After receiving the ball, he immediately signaled to spread out and go one-on-one.

After being relentlessly attacked by Daniels, he had to fight back.

However, he doesn't even have an advantage in singles against Yang Shuai, let alone Daniels.

Just as he changed direction to break through, Daniels seized the opportunity and made a steal.

Because the steal happened so quickly, Yang Shuai didn't have time to chase and defend, and could only watch Daniels complete the fast break dunk.

7:14.

The point difference on the court instantly returned to 7 points.

Johns gestured for a pause, then came down and gave Luther a severe dressing-down.

He kept Luther on the court because Luther had a good defensive presence against Daniels at the start of the game, but in the past, Luther's presence on the court has been a complete liability.

After the timeout, Luther was substituted by Johnson.

"Negative energy from Mike Luther +456".

Luther looked at Yang Shuai with eyes full of resentment.

Yang Shuai's appearance took everything away from him. You know, there were so many scouts there tonight. If he had been able to showcase himself, he would have had a chance to get an offer.

However, his gaze quickly shifted from resentment to schadenfreude.

The West High School team is stronger than any team they've faced in the Cleveland division. Yang Shuai's previous performance was largely due to his presence on the court, which drew the team's offensive attention.

Now that he's off the court, Yang Shuai will inevitably be heavily guarded, making it impossible for her to perform like she did before.

Luther's judgment was correct. After the timeout, during Cleveland High School's offensive possession, Yang Shuai's off-ball movement failed to create any opportunities.

The person guarding him changed from Reed to Daniels.

Daniels is very fast and has a lot of defensive experience.

Fortunately, the NSAA does not have a time limit for each possession, so after receiving the ball, he can calmly wait for his teammates to create space before initiating his own attack.

Daniels acted quickly, and Yang Shuai started with her back to the basket, then turned and lobbed the ball from the right side.

Back when he faced Luther one-on-one, his turnaround jumper was still quite clumsy, so he could only opt for a step-back three-pointer.

However, he has now gained some mastery of this technology.

Moreover, after successfully scoring, he made a very bold choice that was beyond Daniels' expectations.

He quickly changed direction to the left.

His physical training over the past month was most vividly demonstrated at this moment; he almost effortlessly shook off Daniels with a change of direction.

Then, like a car with its accelerator fully depressed, he sprayed Daniels with exhaust fumes before charging straight to the basket and leaping into the air.

Reed quickly moved towards the basket to help defend, and after seeing Yang Shuai jump, he also jumped.

Yang Shuai's block on Daniels was spectacular, and he wants to do the same.

However, Yang Shuai is Yang Shuai, and he is him. After he jumped, he found that he couldn't reach the ball in Yang Shuai's hand at all.

Even the force transmitted from Yang Shuai made it impossible for him to maintain his balance in the air.

"Oh!"

Amidst the gasps of the fans, Yang Shuai dunked over Reed and slammed the ball into the basket!
(End of this chapter)