Chapter 4

At 8 minutes and 30 seconds into the third quarter, Zhou Yi’s 2+1 helped the Pistons widen the lead to over 10 points. Then, Zhou Yi contributed again on defense—he first stole Howard’s pass and followed up with an fast-break layup. After that, he set up a “Zhou-style hot pot” play for Bibby, who was trying to layup; after grabbing the defensive rebound, he passed to Prince, who didn’t waste Zhou Yi’s effort and dunked immediately.
In no time, Zhou Yi took control of the game. Under his leadership, the Pistons led the Eagles 78–63, by 15 points. Drew had to call another timeout. After the timeout, the Eagles changed their offensive strategy, focusing on Howard inside the paint. This strategy proved effective.
Monroe lacked experience defending Howard, and Dabben couldn’t keep up with him in terms of stamina or speed. Soon, Howard scored 8 points inside, dominating the Pistons’ front line. Although the Pistons still had a strong offensive game, the gap gradually narrowed to single digits.
With no other choice, Koester replaced Monroe and Dabben with Wilcox and McHill, hoping these two tough players could contain Howard.
This decision immediately paid off. Seeing the game slowly return to the Pistons’ control, Koester couldn’t help but smile slightly.
When the game went into a commercial break, Koester took the opportunity to bring in bench players. Zhou Yi wiped the sweat from his forehead and took a big gulp of water. Taking the towel handed to him by a staff member, he thanked them and quickly dried the sweat from his head. Although it was just a preseason game, the physical intensity was still very high. Fortunately, Zhou Yi had worked hard during training camp to adapt to NBA-level play, and with his prior mental preparation, he was able to handle it.
McHale sat down next to Zhou Yi, patted his shoulder, and said panting, “Next time we play, let’s coordinate like this…”
As he spoke, McHale gestured, and Zhou Yi nodded involuntarily. The two discussed some tactical issues before sitting on the sidelines and watching the game.
Watching the game, McHale thought to himself, “Zhou Yi’s skills are somewhat similar to mine, so our chemistry is great—we can both boost our teammates’ performance. Heh, this is the first time I’ve met someone who makes playing so comfortable.”
Zhou Yi, of course, had no idea what McHale was thinking; he was simply focused on watching the game.

A 18-point gap was enough to demoralize the opponent, especially since the Eagles were playing with all substitutes at that point. Although the Pistons weren’t scoring as wildly as before, their disciplined defense continued to be impenetrable, as if they had suddenly reverted to the defense-focused Pistons team under Larry Brown’s coaching.

Bynum was in high spirits, as his shooting form was absolutely hot. Whether it was quick stops and jump shots, layups, or three-pointers, Bynum handled them all. Before long, he had scored 13 points, helping the Pistons take a 30-point lead over the Eagles.

Drew wanted to make one last comeback attempt, so he brought in the starters. Meanwhile, the Pistons still had substitutes playing, with Coste even substituting Gordon for Summers and Bynum for White. Seeing this, the Eagles’ players became furious. Johnson hit two mid-range shots, and Smith also started to shine. Naturally, they wanted to take advantage of this moment to narrow the score. But how could they close a 30-point gap so quickly? Despite the Eagles’ starters fighting hard to catch up, they were still 21 points behind by the end of the third quarter.

When the fourth quarter began, the Pistons still didn’t bring in their starters; it was still the bench players fighting against the Eagles’ starters. However, the Eagles substituted Jamal Crawford for Williams to boost their offensive strength and try to close the gap.

At this point, the lineups were: Eagles –Horford, Smith, Crawford, Johnson, and Bibby; Pistons – McHale, Wilcox, Villanueva, Daye, and White.

Although the Pistons had a huge advantage, the game wasn’t over yet—anything was possible. Johnson led the starters in a fierce counterattack, but Villanueva’s two consecutive three-pointers quickly pushed the Eagles back into trouble. Perhaps eager to prove his worth to the head coach, White also had a solid performance in the fourth quarter, especially when it came to rebounding.

After stealing the ball from Crawford, White drove fast down the court, but was met with a strong block from Smith. Yet, White was relentless in rebounding, managing to grab an offensive rebound over the nearly seven-foot-tall Smith, then scored on the second chance and also drew a defensive foul from Smith.

White’s free throws also succeeded, and the Pistons’ lead quickly expanded to 28 points, with 9 minutes left in the game. Seeing the gap grow so large, Drew let out a deep sigh, called a timeout, and substituted out all his key players. This decision by Drew signaled that the Eagles had given up on the game. The remaining time became complete garbage time, so Zhou Yi and the others did not return to the court. The Pistons were happy to use this time for practice, so Jerrebko, who often acted as the “water cooler attendant” during the game, also came in during the final moments. In the end, the final score was 115:93. The Pistons thrashed the Eagles by 22 points, and the home crowd celebrated wildly.

Chapter 50: Heart-to-Heart Talk

In the game against the Eagles, Zhou Yi played for 22 minutes, hitting 3 out of 7 shots, including one three-pointer, and making all 6 of his free throws for 13 points. He also added 8 assists, 6 rebounds, 3 steals, and 2 blocks. However, Zhou Yi made quite a few mistakes, with 4 turnovers in 22 minutes. Additionally, he was penalized with 2 fouls. Nevertheless, he continued his impressive performance from the previous two games. With three consecutive outstanding performances and leading the Pistons to two wins in a row, the Pistons’ fans began to like this young player from China. Even fans of other teams started paying attention to Zhou Yi. Of course, coaches and team managers from other teams also kept Zhou Yi’s name in mind. In no time, Zhou Yi became quite famous in the NBA.

Zhou Yi’s rise in the NBA naturally caused a huge sensation in China as well. Since he entered the NBA, there had already been considerable buzz in China. Now, with his excellent performance in the preseason, the Chinese Basketball Association began to pay close attention to his news. Online, there was an overwhelming amount of information about Zhou Yi—any mention of his name immediately brought up countless articles, which is no exaggeration. All of his personal information was also spread wildly online, including details about his girlfriend, Mo Keer.

Although Zhou Yi learned about these things through phone calls with Lin Chixiao and others as well as by surfing the Internet, he didn’t react too much. The only thing that annoyed him was that those annoying people had also released Mo Keer’s personal information. This matter made Zhou Yi angry for several days. However, it was only with the comfort of Blake, Lin Chixiao, and others that he calmed down.

The day after the game against the Eagles, Zhou Yi spent the whole day in his room. Since there was no training for the team and he wanted to rest properly himself, he didn’t train on his own either.

Blake’s health was much better than the previous two days, and his complexion wasn’t as sallow as before. After breakfast, Blake went to the company to handle some business, while Zhou Yi returned to his room and lay in bed, thinking about various things.

After a while, feeling bored, Zhou Yi turned on his computer and logged into QQ, wanting to chat with a few friends. Unfortunately, none of his friends were online. By chance, he saw a familiar name with an active profile picture—Xia Tingting.

Zhou Yi smiled but didn’t initiate a chat. He casually opened NBA 2K10 and started playing enthusiastically. Suddenly, a QQ message caught his attention.

Zhou Yi paused the game and checked the message, a smile appearing on his face immediately.

“Are you there?” Xia Tingting asked, followed by a playful emoji.

Zhou Yi read the message, pondered for a while, and didn’t reply. Instead, he set himself to invisible in QQ.

“Not there?” came a disappointed emoji after the message.

Zhou Yi frowned slightly, showing signs of hesitation. After a long pause, he finally replied with “Yes.”

As soon as he sent the message, Xia Tingting replied right away.

“Why didn’t you reply to me just now?”

“Oh, I didn’t see it,” Zhou Yi answered.

“Are you busy? If so, I won’t bother you.”

Zhou Yi thought for a moment and thought to himself, “It doesn’t hurt to chat. There’s nothing to do anyway, so let’s chat with her.” Especially considering that Xia Tingting had secretly liked him for five years, he became even more determined: “It can’t hurt anyway.”

“I’m not busy,” Zhou Yi replied.

“Oh, then what are you doing? Hehe, you type so slowly!” Mo Keer teased Zhou Yi playfully.

“Hehe, I was playing games just now. There are no matches or training today, so I stayed at home to rest. Actually, I rarely use the internet, so I’m not very fast at typing. Please be understanding!”
“You’re playing against the Mavericks tomorrow, right? Go for it!”
“Hmm, how did you know?”
Mo Keer leaned over the computer desk by the bed, her face filled with a happy smile, and quickly typed a few lines.
“Of course. I’ll know about all your messages. I’ll watch you quietly from the corner.”
“Hehe.”
“I’ll watch every one of your games. If I can’t watch the video, I’ll watch the text-based live broadcast. Don’t worry, I won’t miss any of your games. I’ll cheer for you.”
Seeing the messages on the screen, Zhou Yi felt warm inside, but his expression remained uncertain. He said to Xia Tingting, “Xia Tingting, thank you! But I really don’t deserve this.”
“You do. You’re the first person I’ve liked. I believe I’ll stick with it until the end. If you really don’t like me, then I’ll wait until you get married, and then I’ll completely disappear from your world. Hehe, am I silly?”
“Very silly. Xia Tingting, you’re a really good girl.”
“Are you trying to give me a ‘nice guy’ card? Hehe, I don’t need that. Alright, let’s talk about something else. It’s not easy to chat with you! By the way, stop calling me Xia Tingting from now on. Just call me Tingting, okay?”
Sighing, Zhou Yi typed back, “Hmm.”
“Hehe. Actually, I’ve known you since I was very young.”
“???”
“Hehe, but maybe you don’t remember.”
Zhou Yi thought for a long time but couldn’t figure out how Xia Tingting knew him. So he asked curiously, “You’ve known me since you were little. How did you meet me?”
“Hehe, I won’t tell you. When you start to like me, I’ll share this memory with you. Don’t feel pressured!”
“Oh.” Zhou Yi was a bit disappointed but didn’t say anything. Suddenly checking the time, he saw it was past 10 a.m. That meant it was past 10 p.m. on Xia Tingting’s side. He paused and asked her, “Aren’t you going to sleep? It must be past 10 p.m. on your side, right?”
“It’s 10:56.”
“Then go to bed early. Don’t stay up late anymore. Girls get lots of wrinkles and dark circles from staying up late, and they age quickly. You don’t want to age, do you?”
“Really? Are you caring about me?”

“Of course, it’s true. You’re my friend, so it’s only natural for me to care about you! Remember, never stay up late again.”
“I’ll go to bed before ten o’clock from now on,” Xia Tingting promised firmly.
Zhou Yi laughed and said, “That’s what a good kid does!”
“Zhou Yi, will you chat with me in the future?”
“If no one else is around to chat with you, then I’ll chat with you! But to avoid disturbing your sleep, I’ll only agree to chat when it’s morning where you are.”
“Hmm, thank you!” Xia Tingting hopped around on the bed, holding her pillow.
“Hehe!”
“Then I’m going to bed. I’m very well-behaved, okay?” Xia Tingting said playfully.
“Hmm, get some rest early.”
“Bye!”
“Bye!”
Xia Tingting turned off her computer, and two lines of tears slipped down her beautiful cheeks involuntarily. She didn’t wipe them away, nor did she want to, because they were tears of joy and happiness.
“He finally… finally…”
Chapter 51: Fighting Spirit
“Hey, Zhou Yi, catch it!” Maddie swung his hand, and the basketball flew straight toward Zhou Yi.
While running fast, Zhou Yi caught Maddie’s pass and shot immediately. With a loud thud, the basketball hit the rim and bounced back. But Zhou Yi wasn’t discouraged at all. He caught Maddie’s quick pass again and shot once more, with the same result.
Maddie jogged over to Zhou Yi and said with a laugh, “Zhou Yi, don’t be discouraged. With more practice, you’ll definitely get better.” Zhou Yi glanced at Maddie and nodded.
At that moment, the two of them were on the practice court at the Auburn Hills Palace Arena, along with other Pistons players. They had arrived early at the arena to conduct pre-game training ahead of facing the Dallas Mavericks a few hours later.
Zhou Yi and Maddie’s training was specifically suggested by Koost, because Zhou Yi’s ability in catch-and-shoot was far from satisfactory. Although Zhou Yi was a point guard whose role was to create good opportunities for catch-and-shoot, Koost didn’t think so. He wanted Zhou Yi not only to do his job well but also master this skill so he could step up when the team faced an offensive crisis. That’s why Maddie was helping Zhou Yi with this kind of training.

Actually, Kuster initially wanted Hamilton to coach Zhou Yi on Catch—And—Shot, as Hamilton’s skills in this area were recognized by many coaches. However, after watching McGrady’s passing in games, he decided to have McGrady coach Zhou Yi instead.
McGrady was best at creating his own offensive opportunities, but his ability in Catch—And—Shot couldn’t be ignored either. What changed Kuster’s mind was McGrady’s passing.
During the Pistons’ first three games, Kuster watched those matches at least five times each. He was surprised to find that the Pistons’ offensive efficiency was highest when both McGrady and Zhou Yi were on the court. Moreover, both had excellent overall game awareness and control, along with strong passing skills. This was the main reason Kuster decided to have McGrady work with Zhou Yi on Catch—And—Shot.
After extensive practice, Zhou Yi improved his accuracy in this skill to some extent, but still fell short of Kuster’s standards, leaving him dissatisfied.
Seeing Zhou Yi sweating profusely, Kuster still smiled in satisfaction, even though his accuracy wasn’t up to par.
Slowly walking over to the group, Kuster said loudly with a smile, “That’s enough training for today. Everyone, take a break and get ready for the next game.”
Zhou Yi and McGrady headed toward the locker room when Kuster suddenly called out to Zhou Yi. After greeting McGrady, Zhou Yi quickly walked over to Kuster.
“For now, put aside all other training and focus mainly on improving your Catch—And—Shot skills. Once you meet the standards, we’ll move on to the next training item. As for what that will be, we’ll decide after you’ve mastered this one,” Kuster said, his eyes shining as he looked at Zhou Yi.
“Uh, I understand, coach. I’ll train hard,” Zhou Yi replied immediately.
Hearing Zhou Yi’s response, Kuster smiled and cast a gentle gaze at him, saying, “Well, I’ve been quite satisfied with your performance since you joined the team. I hope you can keep it up.”
Zhou Yi smiled sheepishly, scratching his head and saying, “Uh, thank you, coach!”
“Alright, go rest! I’m looking forward to seeing your performance.”
“Uh.”

Zhou Yi turned and rushed quickly toward the locker room, pondering over what Kuster had said.
…
In the blink of an eye, several hours passed, and the Pistons players arrived at the court for their final warm-ups. At the same time, the Mavericks players were also warming up on the court.
Kuster stepped up to Zhou Yi and whispered, “The player you’ll be facing today is Jason Kidd. I’m sure you’ve heard of his reputation. Moreover, the Mavericks are a team aiming for the championship this season, so this game will be the best test for you so far. You need to seize this opportunity.”
Zhou Yi glanced at Kidd and nodded at Kuster.
Soon, with the referee’s signal, the starting players from both teams stepped to the center of the court to get ready for the game. The large screen on the court displayed the starting lineups. Surprisingly, “The German Tank” Nowitzki wasn’t on the starting lineup, suggesting that Mavericks head coach Carlisle wanted to let him rest more to conserve his energy for the regular season.
Pistons (home team): Zhou Yi, McGrady, Prince, Monroe, and Big Ben;
Mavericks (away team): Kidd, Caron Butler, DeShawn Stevenson, Brian Cardinal, and Brandon Haywood.
Big Ben and Haywood did a jump ball, and Zhou Yi won it, announcing the official start of the game!
From the beginning, Zhou Yi played with great determination. He used his speed to break through Kidd’s defense, then drove to the basket and scored with a layup despite Cardinal’s defense. Next, Zhou Yi delivered his first “Zhou-style dunk” of the game to Stevenson, then caught a defensive rebound from Big Ben and drove fast, using Kidd as a shield before shooting a behind-the-back jump shot that scored.
Kidd was clearly unprepared for this young player from China to strike so hard right from the start. His eyes flashed with anger. Kidd drove past Zhou Yi, using his strength to push him aside, then passed the ball in a tricky manner behind Zhou Yi to Butler, who cut from the baseline, dodged Big Ben’s block, and scored with a right-handed pull-up shot.
Unperturbed by Kidd’s assist, Zhou Yi drove quickly forward, made a few dribbles under his body, then quickly passed the ball to McGrady. McGrady caught it smoothly and, even with defenders in front, still managed to hit a steady mid-range shot, scoring 2 points.

Kidd glanced at Zhou Yi, his expression growing even more serious. He slowly drove the ball across half-court, and Haywood set up a pick-and-roll with Kidd. After breaking free from Zhou Yi’s defense, Kidd gently threw the ball high toward the basket. Haywood, who had cut to the middle, jumped sharply and dunked the ball, completing the alley-oop pass.

McDuffie was fierce—he caught a pass from Zhou Yi and immediately shot a cold three-pointer from 45 degrees to the right. McDuffie and Zhou Yi high-fived excitedly before quickly retreating to defense.

Kidd passed the ball to Butler, who also tried to shoot a three-pointer, but it missed as the ball bounced off the rim. Monroe rebounded the ball and passed it to McDuffie. McDuffie drove past defenders and passed to Prince at the top of the key. Facing Butler’s defense, Prince’s long-range three-pointer missed—seemingly a wasted shot—as Kidd secured the defensive rebound.

Kidd entered the paint, but his layup was blocked by Zhou Yi and also missed. Big Ben rebounded the ball and passed it to Zhou Yi. Zhou Yi’s three-point jump shot missed, but Kidd was called for a hand foul, giving Zhou Yi three free throws. He made all three, and the Mavericks made substitutions—Rodrigue Beaubois replaced Kidd, Sean Marion replaced Butler, Ian Mahinmi replaced Cardinal, and Jason Terry replaced Stevenson. The Pistons made some key substitutions as well, but Zhou Yi remained on the court; it seemed Coster wanted to observe his performance to decide his role in the regular season.

Terry was fired up as soon as he entered the game, hitting two consecutive three-pointers—proving that the “Jet” nickname was well-deserved. But Zhou Yi played even more aggressively. The French point guard Beaubois clearly couldn’t keep up with Zhou Yi’s pace and couldn’t contain him defensively. Zhou Yi scored repeatedly in the paint and then hit another three-pointer after a clever pass from McDuffie. Beaubois is also a promising rookie, but against Zhou Yi today, his performance was far from his usual level. Not only was his shooting percentage abysmal, but he also made continuous passing mistakes. Zhou Yi took advantage of these opportunities to help the Pistons quickly build a lead.

With 2 minutes left in the first quarter, Zhou Yi was replaced by Bynum, McDuffie by Gordon, Prince by Daye, Monroe by Villanueva, and Big Ben by Wilcox.

The game continued, and before long, the first quarter ended. With Zhou Yi and McDuffie leading the way earlier, the Pistons took a 11-point lead, 34–23.

The team’s lead was largely thanks to Zhou Yi and McGrady. The two combined for 25 points, with Zhou Yi scoring 16 points on his own, accounting for nearly half of the team’s total score. In addition, Zhou Yi provided 3 assists, showing remarkable performance and great fighting spirit. When Zhou Yi left the court, the audience erupted in cheers, and his name was repeatedly mentioned by the game commentators. Chapter 52: Injured and Out