Kuroko's Basketball: I'm not the boss?

On camera, Bobo, who was just about to launch into a blatant compliment, almost lost his composure when he saw Xiang Yang's offensive move. Fortunately, he's a professional at praising players and immediately came up with the right words to comment on Xiang Yang.

Although Bobo reacted very quickly, his momentary bewilderment was still captured by many netizens.

Seeing the screen full of "hahahaha" comments, feeling a little embarrassed, Bobo cleared his throat and explained in a serious tone: "Actually, I've always thought that Xiangyang is a very intelligent player. What's his best skill? Shooting? Physical contact?"

"Neither! He's not the most physically imposing player in this draft class, nor is he the most accurate shooter, but what makes Xiang Yang so strong? He's strong in all aspects!"

"His arsenal is incredible. He can use any move, even footwork in the paint, with ease. He can outmaneuver big men with skill and outmuscle smaller men with physicality! Xiangyang is truly a smart guy!"

Bobo's earnest explanation actually fooled quite a few viewers. Upon closer inspection, isn't the point of learning so many moves to be able to choose different moves to deal with different situations and opponents? That makes perfect sense!

Seeing that the comments section was returning to normal, Bobo secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He almost failed to smooth things over, but luckily he was quick-witted!

"Let's turn our attention back to the game. It's Kaijo's turn to attack again. Xiangyang signals to his teammates to spread out, as he's trying to take on Akashi one-on-one again! Sigh... This time, Rakuzan actually switched defenses, and Akashi has moved to the corner instead, and instead of Akashi, he's facing off against Xiangyang..."

"Rakuzan's first freshman of the year, Hirakawa Takeshi."

Popovich was somewhat surprised, but his professionalism was still up to par. He scrolled through the player's stats and said, "As Rakuzan's starting power forward this year, Hirakawa Takeshi is a rookie, but his performance on the court is quite mature. He can keep his turnovers to less than two per game. For a rookie, that's no easy feat."

"Let's see what this matchup between these two players, one new and one veteran, will be like!"

With the intention of creating suspense, Bobo still tried his best to say some good things about Hirakawa Takeshi. However, in his heart, he did not think that this newcomer could bring any surprises to the audience.

After all, even Akashi couldn't do anything to Hikaru, so what can you, a first-year student with no reputation and mediocre performance on the field, do?

On the court, Xiang Yang was stunned when he saw that his defender had become Hirakawa Takeshi.

[What's going on? Is Akashi scared of me or is he setting a trap for me?]

Xiangyang was somewhat puzzled. He turned to look at Akashi, who was standing in the corner watching, and found that the latter had his hands on his hips, completely unfazed.

It means to provide backup for one's own descendants.

"What's going on? Does Luoshan have no one left? You're sending freshmen to guard against me? Are you looking down on me or have you already given up on the competition?"

Xiang Yang shrugged, feigning a provocative look, but inwardly he was pondering the reasons.

Given Akashi's personality, he wouldn't do anything meaningless, nor would he push his junior to take the blame just because he couldn't stop Hikaru.

So... there's only one possibility: Hirakawa Takeshi really can stop Hikaru! Or rather, Akashi thinks that having Hirakawa defend is more effective than having him do it himself!

Xiang Yang's heart tightened slightly, but on the surface he still looked down on Ping Chuan. He waved to him and said impatiently, "Alright kid, stop standing in the way. Get your boss over here to guard against me, or I won't be responsible if I break your ankle."

Xiang Yang's tone was aggressive, and his words were full of provocation. However, to his surprise, Ping Chuan remained expressionless, still standing in front of him with his head down, as if he hadn't heard him at all.

Is his mindset really that stable?

Xiang Yang frowned imperceptibly. He hadn't expected that trash talk wouldn't work, but in this situation, if he hesitated to fight because he didn't know Pingchuan's background, it wouldn't be good news for Haichang.

Without further ado, Xiangyang began to adjust his dribbling rhythm. Akashi's absence from defense relieved some of the pressure on him.

After all, while the "danger warning" is useful, Xiang Yang doesn't like the feeling of being about to be intercepted. As a pure ball-handler, he prefers to launch attacks through a variety of dribbling moves.

With continuous crossover dribbling, Xiang Yang constantly shifted his position, observing Ping Chuan's defensive moves. Even though they had never faced each other before, based solely on Ping Chuan's physique and power forward status, Xiang Yang could roughly judge that he was a power player.

As the distance between the two gradually shortened, Xiangyang's groin movements became more pronounced, but Pingchuan showed no intention of intercepting. He simply stood there with his arms outstretched, as if he had been dazed.

Taking another step forward, Xiang Yang launched a decisive attack, pushing the ball from right to left. Even though his increased weight caused a decrease in speed, his excellent offensive rhythm could completely compensate for this.

However, Xiang Yang had only passed Pingchuan by half a body length and had not yet made his next move when he suddenly felt a pressure coming from his right side!

Xiangyang frowned slightly, then suddenly pushed off the ground with his outside foot, stepping forward to counter! Unfortunately, Hirakawa was not Akashi.

Standing at nearly 190cm tall, Hiragawa Takeshi faced Xiangyang's challenge with some difficulty, but he managed to hold his own. After a brief adjustment, Hiragawa immediately stepped forward and pressed towards Xiangyang again.

This time, Xiangyang didn't continue with his back-to-the-basket attack. Instead, he did a half-turn, using the difference in pace to successfully get past Pingchuan, and then drove to the baseline for a mid-range shot, scoring two more points.

The referee raised his hand to signal to the technical table that the two points were valid, and the audience cheered for Xiang Yang in response.

However, at this moment, Xiangyang had not yet successfully scored a goal.

Overjoyed, he backed away as he looked at Hirakawa Takeshi, secretly astonished.

[So tall and strong, and most importantly... can this guy keep up with me?]

It's important to know that although Xiang Yang's speed isn't what it used to be, he still has the average level of a professional basketball guard. In the past, when facing weak opponents, he didn't even need physical contact; a simple breakthrough was enough to get past the defender.

But just now, Xiangyang was caught up by this first-year student from Luoshan.

"This guy... turns out he's a powerful defender?"

Xiangyang suddenly recalled the scene during the Freshman Cup when Hirakawa and Igarashi were vying for possession of the ball within the team. He shook his head helplessly and sighed, "Rakuzan is truly a place full of talent... They lost a replacement for Kuroko, and now they've got a powerful shot guard? Your coach probably never worries about player issues, right?"

Xiangyang's complaints weren't loud, but they were overheard by Yuki, who was standing next to him. He looked at the Rakuzan player on the opposite half of the field, who was about the same height as him, and a question mark appeared above his head.

[Is that person in my year really that good? Is he worth such high praise from Senior Xiangyang?]

Before Yuki could ask Xiangyang, she heard the referee on the sidelines suddenly blow his whistle.

Haichang applied for suspension

This is a privilege that Takeuchi gave to Xiangyang. As long as he stands on the court and gives Takeuchi a hint, he will use his timeout regardless of the situation.

"What's wrong, Xiangyang?"

Takeuchi sat on the bench with his arms crossed and asked Xiangyang.

The second quarter had just begun, and the score was only 32-31, with Kaisho even leading by one point. If Xiangyang hadn't hinted to Wu Nei, he would never have called this timeout.

"Well... something unexpected happened with me, but since I called this pause, it definitely won't be wasted!"

Xiangyang took the towel from his teammate, chuckled, and wagged his finger at Takeuchi. Under the latter's gaze, Xiangyang slowly opened his water bottle, took a sip, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and didn't rush to speak.

"If you're trying to provoke me by wasting time on pauses, then you've succeeded."

Takeuchi remained expressionless, his tone growing increasingly cold. Although he knew that Xiangyang was just deliberately being obnoxious, he still couldn't help himself.

"Don't be angry, Coach. I'm just thinking of a solution."

Xiang Yang raised his hands in a gesture of surrender, and after making a perfunctory apology, he stroked his chin and slowly said, "The plan has changed. The second quarter... can't be played by me anymore."

Upon hearing this, everyone at Kaijo was taken aback. Kise couldn't help but ask, "Why, Xiangyang? Didn't you just score four points in a row? You should be on fire!"

Kise voiced everyone's thoughts. Noticing several eyes on him, Xiangyang cleared his throat and said seriously, "No, I'm being restrained. I can't hit him at all."

Hai Chang: ? ? ?

"Oh dear, that Hirakawa Takeshi isn't as simple as you think."

Xiang Yang scratched his head, organized his thoughts, and explained, "That guy, I guess he used to play guard. He's tall, strong, and fast. When he was defending, he didn't try to steal the ball from me at all. He's exactly the type of player I hate playing against!"

"If I force an attack, I might be able to score against him, but that would be trading my stamina for points, which would be a huge disadvantage."

After explaining, Xiangyang looked at his teammates' somewhat confused expressions, clapped his hands, and said, "You don't need to understand so much. Anyway, I can't be the main attacker in the second quarter anymore. Let Kise handle it. I guess I'm just not cut out for this job!"

Rather than squandering their energy in the second quarter, Xiang Yang should conserve their strength and wait until the fourth quarter to work with the "King of the Final Quarter" to gain more advantages.

"Kise will be the main attacker. I'll organize more tactical plays. With your stamina, you should be fine."

Chapter 171: Yuuki as the Core

The timeout ended, and both teams' players returned to the field.

Xiang Yang looked at Pingchuan Yi, who had walked up to him, and couldn't help but click his tongue, feeling a bit of a predicament.

Even a fool would know that the player whose style could perfectly limit him was discovered by Akashi.

Just as Hikaru understands Akashi and knows how to play against him, Akashi is also very clear about the weaknesses in Hikaru's playing style.

Originally, Xiangyang had decided to take the lead in the second quarter to widen the score gap, but then this thing suddenly appeared, forcing Kaijo to activate Kise earlier.

[Seriously...why are the first-year students at Rakuzan so troublesome? Our new students aren't bad at all...]

While scratching his head, Xiangyang muttered to himself. He subconsciously glanced at his teammates. Ohara Hiroshi was standing on the flank, ready to step forward and set a screen at any time, while Yuki stood obediently next to Reo, also waiting for Xiangyang to give the order.

Without thinking too much, Xiang Yang walked to the backcourt to serve, ready to attack. However, he stopped abruptly after taking only two steps, turned around abruptly, and stared intently at Youji, which startled the latter.

"W-what's wrong, Senior Xiangyang?"

Yuki was startled, but before he could ask a question, Xiangyang walked up to him and pinched Yuki's face.

"What?! Senior Xiangyang, please don't do this!"

Poor Yuki had her cheeks pinched by Xiangyang and dared not resist. She could only mutter complaints in an attempt to stop Xiangyang's "groping hands".

Lingyang, who was standing to the side, was puzzled by what he saw, but as a player from the opposing team, he did not intervene and just watched quietly.

Xiangyang laughed, a very happy laugh. After giving Yuki's face a good squeeze once more, he turned his head and made a gesture to Kise, who was watching the show on the other side.

Xiangyang: The plan has changed, give me the ball.

Kise: OK!

The two exchanged a brief exchange. Since no complex tactics were planned during the last timeout, there was no need to waste another timeout opportunity this time.

"Listen carefully, Yuki."

Xiangyang patted Yuki on the shoulder, ignoring Shibuchi Reo who was peeking at him from the side, and whispered in Yuki's ear, "It's your turn to perform, little one."

……

……

"Okay, let's refocus on the game after the timeout. Haichang has the ball. Xiangyang dribbles the ball up the court. Will he continue with his one-on-one play...? Wait, Xiangyang passes the ball to his teammate on the wing and then heads straight for the baseline. What's he going to do??"

In the live stream, Bobo paused, and then Xiangyang walked towards the bottom corner while gesturing for his teammates to spread out.

However, unlike last time, this time, Xiangyang did this for Yuki.

"Ganbatte Yuki, if you don't score this, I'll be coming after you!"

With his hands on his hips and a playful smile on his face, Xiang Yang teased You Ji Dao.

However, what he didn't expect was that what he thought was just a joke put a lot of pressure on Yuki.

He was standing high up, holding the ball in both hands, looking flustered. He was completely different from the aggressive player he had been when he was attacking Xiang Yang during training matches.

"Hey, Xiangyang! You scared Yuuki!"

Kise was somewhat dissatisfied.

Xiangyang didn't tolerate him either, and the two immediately stood on the field and started bickering.

Akashi, who had been standing near the two, frowned slightly, his eyes constantly scanning Yuuki up and down, secretly on guard.

[This guy can make Hikaru and Kise chat so relaxed on the field, this guy...]