The longest river

Chapter 173 Your Boss Has Arrived
Sabonis continues to receive the ball in a low position.

Williams just made a three-pointer, and Yang Shuai's help defense on this play wasn't as decisive.

The bench players opted for a double-team inside, but Sabonis quickly passed the ball to Wallace on the weak side, who took a big step and slammed it home with a two-handed dunk.

After adjusting their playing style and returning to their familiar playing pattern, the starting team's offense began to find its footing.

Back on defense, they also began to double-team Yang Shuai.

After all, they are the starting team, so their mental fortitude and reaction speed are quite fast.

However, Yang Shuai was really unreasonable. He turned around and accelerated towards the side lane to face the double team. He used his speed to shake off the double team and forced Sabonis to extend out to help defend.

But at that moment, Yang Shuai passed the ball to Lister under the basket, who easily scored with a layup.

This kind of play is less about organizing and supporting the offense, and more about him using his strong individual skills to attract double teams and then assist his teammates.

Yang Shuai's current passing ability is more than sufficient to handle this kind of pass.

Now the starting team can no longer rely solely on double-teaming to limit the bench team's offense.

The score remained close throughout the match.

With one minute remaining in the quarter, Sabonis grabbed an offensive rebound and scored on a putback, bringing the score to 20-21, with the starting team trailing the bench team by one point.

At this moment, everyone watching from the sidelines looked a little nervous.

Carlisle and Whitsett certainly wanted Yang Shuai to win. Leading a bench team to beat the starting lineup is an incredible feat in any era or time.

Dunleavy, on the other hand, was worried that Yang Shuai would win, because if that happened, all the problems currently troubling the team would cease to be problems once Yang Shuai returned to the court.

Yang Shuai received the ball and was once again double-teamed, but this time he did not choose to pass the ball. Instead, he accelerated and broke through the double team.

This choice was quite unexpected. By the time the starting team reacted, Yang Shuai had already rushed into the free throw line.

Sabonis, as the last line of defense, hurriedly came to help defend, but Yang Shuai had already jumped up half a step away from him.

"Oh!"

When Yang Shuai slammed the ball into the basket over Sabonis with a fierce look, the arena erupted in chaos.

This is absolutely unbeatable!
Yang Shuai was very excited after landing, and he arched his arms and roared loudly.

He completely ignited the emotions of the entire bench team.

Kenny Anderson decided to take matters into his own hands, shaking off his defender Crotty and launching a three-pointer.

Unfortunately, his shot was clearly off target; the basketball bounced off the edge.

Sabonis once again demonstrated his skill, grabbing the offensive rebound over Lister's head and then launching a close-range hook shot.

However, just as the basketball reached its highest point, Yang Shuai suddenly appeared from the side, leaping into the air like a helicopter, and then slapped Sabonis's shot out of bounds.

With a dunk and a block, Yang Shuai completely shattered the morale of the starting team.

With Wallace missing a tough three-pointer, Yang Shuai leaped up to grab the long rebound, and the bench team ultimately defeated the starters 23-20!

The moment the game ended, the bench players all rushed towards Yang Shuai like madmen, shouting and yelling.

They really did it!
A group of players who basically never get to play managed to beat the starting team; they're going to have trouble sleeping tonight.

However, Yang Shuai appeared extremely calm at this moment. Compared with the Eastern Conference Finals and the game against the Bulls, this was a completely minor situation.

Moreover, the competition is not over yet.

After a brief rest, Carlisle immediately put the bench and substitutes in a second scrimmage.

Then, under everyone's watchful eyes, Yang Shuai led the bench team to defeat the reserve team.

The substitute team adopted a more extreme double-team strategy against Yang Shuai, basically treating him as one of the three.

Yang Shuai demonstrated his ability to draw defenders and pass the ball effectively.

However, the bench team's victory in this scrimmage was largely due to their defensive performance.

The substitutes didn't have any strong offensive options, relying on Grant to receive the ball in the low post and score one-on-one.

Yang Shuai blocked several shots from his fellow Ohio native.

After the two matches were over, the entire training hall fell silent.

A player leading the bench team to dominate the starters and substitutes is something no one would have dared to imagine before.

Even though it was just one quarter of the game and there was a certain element of chance involved, it was still incredibly impressive.

"Let's fight one more time."

Kenny Anderson was somewhat unconvinced.

Will your opponent give you another chance?

Yang Shuai's cold words immediately made Anderson blush.

Losing the game is one thing, but now they've even lost to their own bench team. They're really losing face.

Whitsit coughed, then looked at the starting team and said:

“You should be happy that Hansen is your teammate, not your opponent.”

After he said that, the frustrated expressions on the faces of the starting team players were noticeably relieved.

The more trouble Yang Shuai made on the court earlier, the more trouble he will make his opponents on the court later.

With such strong teammates, they really should be happy. "I said I would win a championship for this team, and I will definitely do what I said."

Yang Shuai also glanced at his teammates at this moment, his tone calm but his gaze firm.

A hint of anticipation flickered in the eyes of everyone on the Trail Blazers.

When they heard Yang Shuai's comment at the fan meeting that there was "more than one," most of them actually scoffed at it.

As the players said in the locker room, they felt that Yang Shuai would not be able to make a difference without the Pacers.

But after experiencing Yang Shuai's strength firsthand today, they realized that it wasn't unrealistic.

Moreover, after Drexler left the team, the biggest problem for the Trail Blazers was not even the major changes in the roster, but the lack of a true team core.

This resulted not only in a situation where no one could carry the team in crucial moments, but also in a situation where no one in the team was willing to submit to anyone else.

But after today, that situation will no longer occur.

They now have a capable and responsible team leader.

Carlisle breathed a sigh of relief; the thing he had been worried about hadn't happened.

Or perhaps he thought Yang Shuai would at most make things difficult for the starting team with the bench players, but he didn't expect Yang Shuai to take on both the starters and substitutes.

Yang Shuai is still too strong.

Before the Trail Blazers' practice was over, Carlisle then signaled to the starters and bench to continue playing full-court scrimmages.

Having just experienced that ordeal, the team members are now full of fighting spirit.

Just then, Yang Shuai and Whitsit went to the side to chat.

Yang Shuai asked Whitsett for permission to play, as he wants to return to action in tomorrow's game against the Jazz.

Whitsit was still somewhat hesitant, after all, whoever agrees to such a thing has to bear the risk.

"If any problems arise, I will take full responsibility."

Yang Shuai, of course, knew the key point here, so he readily laid it out.

Whitsit saw that Yang Shuai had already put it this way, and that the scrimmage showed that Yang Shuai had basically recovered.

He finally nodded, but he still reminded Yang Shuai not to be too reckless after his return, because if Yang Shuai got injured again, the Trail Blazers' season would really be over soon.

After Yang Shuai finished talking with Whitsit, the match between the starting team and the substitutes was almost over.

The starting team vented all their frustration from the previous loss on the substitute team, giving them a sound beating.

Once all the scrimmage games were over, the Trail Blazers' practice for the day also came to an end.

The team members all returned to the locker room to shower and rest.

The first thing Yang Shuai did upon returning to the locker room was to go to Sabonis' side.

"If you were at your peak, you would definitely have blown me away."

Yang Shuai was referring to the time he dunked over his opponent during a scrimmage.

What he said makes sense. Sabonis is someone who, despite a serious knee injury, was able to defeat the US men's basketball team and win a gold medal. The emergence of the Dream Team can be said to be directly related to him.

Sabonis was somewhat surprised; Yang Shuai's various behaviors on the field made him seem like a guy who was not to be trifled with.

News reports, including those about Yang Shuai, portray him as young, arrogant, and conceited.

However, this is just how Yang Shuai has changed. If he still doesn't know how to get along with his teammates after two years in the NBA, then his emotional intelligence would probably be on par with Pippen and McGrady.

After regaining his senses, Sabonis reached out and bumped fists with Yang Shuai.

For a veteran like him who has been through many battles, there are many things he doesn't actually care about that much.

His fist bump was more of an endorsement of Yang Shuai's actions.

On-field performance is only one aspect; to lead a team, managing relationships with colleagues is also crucial.

On the afternoon of the training day, the Trail Blazers officially announced that Yang Shuai would return to play in the game against the Jazz.

The news came somewhat suddenly, but it instantly excited Trail Blazers fans.

When a team is going through a tough time, nothing is more exciting than the return of the team's core player.

Moreover, they originally thought they wouldn't see Yang Shuai until before Christmas, but now it's almost a month earlier, which makes them extremely excited.

In addition, since it was Thanksgiving Day, Yang Shuai participated in the team's official Thanksgiving event as a player representative, which further heightened the fans' emotions.

On the day of the game, the Jazz arrived in Portland.

They held an open practice session at the Rose Garden Arena this morning.

Yang Shuai's return, coupled with his feud with the Jazz, has attracted a lot of attention from reporters.

After training ended, Russell was quickly surrounded by reporters.

"Hansen deliberately chose to return in the game against the Jazz. Will that cause you any trouble?"

"He had better pray that his injury heals completely, because I will personally give him a 'physical examination' tonight, and if he goes back to bed, he can't blame me for not warning him beforehand."

After getting beaten up in the Finals last season, Russell's frustration lingered all summer.

Keep in mind, he only pushed Yang Shuai a little.

(End of this chapter)