Chapter 5

The second quarter started quickly, with both teams still fielding their substitutes. Zhou Yi sat next to McGrady, resting his chin in his hands and quietly watching the game.

Terry was full of offensive energy and scored 7 points in no time since entering the game. However, due to his limited physical fitness and defensive awareness, his defense was not very satisfactory, allowing Gordon to score repeatedly against him. The two traded points fiercely, with their teammates happily passing the ball to them.

Suddenly, Terry accelerated and broke through. Gordon closely defended him, and Terry slipped and fell to the ground. Gordon quickly grabbed the ball and passed it to Bynum, who dashed into the opponent’s basket like lightning and scored with a one-handed dunk. Seeing Bynum score, Zhou Yi couldn’t help but smile. He had never seen Bynum dunk in previous games or practices, and now, seeing his dunking style, he couldn’t help but laugh.

Seizing the chance that someone was smiling maliciously, Bynum turned around and immediately saw Zhou Yi’s cheerful expression. He made a face and quickly stepped back to defend.

In fact, Bynum was Zhou Yi’s first friend he met in the United States. It was because of that tryout that Bynum respected Zhou Yi deeply, and the two formed a strong friendship. Especially when Bynum took Zhou Yi to the hospital last time, it moved Zhou Yi greatly, as after all, Zhou Yi was his competitor!

Suddenly, something very unfortunate happened to the Pistons. Gordon rushed into the opponent’s basket with the ball, aiming to dunk, and Masemini also jumped up at that moment. Although Gordon managed to score the dunk, Masemini landed right on him. His foot heavily stepped on Gordon’s right ankle, knocking him to the ground. Gordon showed pain and desperately held his right ankle with both hands.

Seeing this, Koost called a timeout and rushed onto the court. Zhou Yi and McGrady also rushed in, along with two assistant coaches. Soon, a tall, blond beauty appeared on the court—Jessica—along with several other team doctors standing beside Gordon.

Everyone scattered when they saw Jessica and the others. Jessica knelt down and gently rubbed Gordon’s right ankle with her long, fair hands. But as soon as she applied a little more pressure, Gordon couldn’t help but scream in agony, like an injured lion.

Jessica’s face, usually free of makeup with an appearance like dawn light on snow, immediately grew solemn. Her brows were tightly furrowed as she whispered a few words to the several team doctors who had also stopped beside Gordon. Then more medical staff arrived, carrying a stretcher. Gently, they laid Gordon on the stretcher. He had his brows tightly knitted, teeth gritting, and his face covered in sweat.

Watching Gordon being carried away by the medical staff, Cooster felt a tightness in his chest and sighed heavily. Despite this unfortunate incident, the game had to go on.

Cooster glanced at Summers, signaling for him to come on the field. A sense of joy arose in Summers’ heart as he thought to himself, “The opportunity has finally come.”

Zhou Yi glanced toward the player tunnel, his emotions complex, and murmured, “It seems Gordon’s injury is quite serious!”

Seemed stimulated by Gordon’s injury, the Pistons players fought fiercely on the field, especially Summers, who replaced Gordon. Such a rare chance to perform well, Summers was certainly not going to let it slip away easily.

At 8 minutes and 30 seconds into the game, an official timeout was called.

Cooster’s expression was extremely grim, and he was deeply worried. The team was in a rebuilding phase, and Gordon was supposed to be the main offensive force on the bench for the new season—a key weapon in their attack. Now that Gordon was injured, judging from his painful expression, it would take at least two to three months for him to recover, leaving the team even more strained in terms of player availability.

“It seems we need to make some moves before the regular season starts,” Cooster thought bitterly to himself.

Zhou Yi stared at Cooster’s face for a while before turning his gaze away and saying to McGrady sitting beside him, “Do you think Gordon’s injury is serious?”

McGrady turned his head to look at Zhou Yi, pondered for a moment, and then slowly said, “From what just happened, it seems Gordon is injured in his ankle. He couldn’t even walk and needed a stretcher. Based on my own past injuries, I estimate he’ll need at least 6–8 weeks of recovery, assuming things go well. In the worst case, he’ll need to rest for at least three months.”

“Is it that serious?” Zhou Yi asked in surprise, frowning deeply.

Seeing this, McGrady smiled and said, “There’s no need to panic. These kinds of injuries are quite common for us. Don’t worry too much.”

Zhou Yi nodded and looked at the game on the field, remaining silent.

The timeout ended, and White replaced Bynum, Jerrebock replaced Daye, and McHill replaced Villanueva; the Mavericks’ Jose Barea replaced Terry, and Tyson Chandler replaced Haywood.
Zhou Yi had no complaints about head coach Kuster’s decision not to substitute himself. The previous intense play had indeed drained a lot of energy, and he felt he needed some rest.
The fringe players who usually didn’t get on the court were naturally excited to play now. With no one under the basket, Jerrebock caught a long pass from Bynum, jumped quickly, and tried to dunk with both hands, but the ball bounced out of the basket and flew out of bounds.
This scene immediately drew laughter from the opposing players, and the Pistons’ fans couldn’t help but laugh too. Jerrebock felt his face heat up; he took a deep breath, tried to suppress his embarrassment, and stepped back to defend.
Both teams’ offensive efficiency was average, with the score difference staying around 10 points. However, what caught Kuster’s attention was White’s outstanding performance. In just over 5 minutes since he came on, he had already scored 5 points and provided 4 assists, with no turnovers. Kuster glanced at White a few times, then turned to look at Zhou Yi for a moment before lowering his head and thinking for a while.
With 2:30 left in the first half, Wilcox forced a foul on Chandler during an inside attack, earning two free throws.
At this point, Carlisle substituted in his starters, and Kuster took the opportunity to adjust the lineup in an attempt to widen the score gap in the final moments. Zhou Yi replaced White, Bynum replaced Jerrebock, Prince replaced Summers, and Monroe replaced McHill. Kuster didn’t bring Maddie back in, not even until the end of the game. The reason was simple: he wanted Maddie to rest properly and fully recover from his knee injury. There had been three reasons for bringing him in earlier: first, to observe the progress of his injury recovery; second, to help him adjust to the pace of the game so he could get into shape quickly in the regular season; third, to see the chemistry between Maddie and Zhou Yi, both of whom had excellent overall vision and organizational skills.

Judging from these four games, Koester has already come up with two answers. The first answer: McGrady’s injury is recovering well, but to ensure he fully recovers, Koester decides to have McGrady play only 10–15 minutes per game, never exceeding 25 minutes. The second answer: There is an excellent chemistry between McGrady and Zhou Yi; they play as if they’ve been teammates for years.

Koester is very satisfied with these two answers, which is why he tries to have the two play together. According to previous game statistics, when they play together, the Pistons perform at their best, both defensively and offensively.

Koester glanced at McGrady sitting on the sidelines, then stared intently at that seemingly thin but powerful figure, narrowing his eyes.

Chapter 53: Show Time

After receiving Monroe’s pass from the baseline, Zhou Yi rushed forward at high speed, looking for the right moment to pass the ball to Monroe in the paint. Monroe lived up to expectations—not only scoring but also forcing a foul from the defender. Monroe blew on his palms, took a deep breath, and made the free throw, turning a two-plus-one into a three.

Baria skillfully dribbled the ball. When he saw Chandler make an upward gesture, he immediately understood what was needed and smirked coldly. Baria pushed past Zhou Yi, then without looking, threw the ball upward above his head; the basketball flew toward the top of the basket. Chandler was well prepared—he jumped abruptly, caught the ball, and dunked it.

Kidd and Nowitzki sitting on the sidelines burst into laughter and applauded, while the Mavericks’ players also cheered.

With 18 seconds left in the game, Zhou Yi calmly dribbled past the frontcourt. He silently calculated the time, then suddenly accelerated, easily passing Baria. He cut through the middle and threw the ball upward toward the basket, then skillfully slipped past several defenders. After catching the ball bouncing off the backboard, he dunked with both hands, scoring.

The court fell silent as everyone’s attention focused on Zhou Yi. After a long while, the stands erupted in wild cheers, as if they might lift the entire arena off its foundation.

The Mavericks’ players stood frozen in shock—they never expected this young Chinese player to perform the same self-dunk move that McGrady had created right in front of them.

Maddie, sitting on the sidelines, was also stunned for a moment before an indescribable smile appeared on his face.
“This guy really knows how to perform.”
“He even pulled off T—Mac’s signature move, haha…”
“The Auburn Hills Palace will once again witness the rise of a superstar…”
“I’d say Dumars made a great decision…”
For a while, the court was filled with chatter, and the focus of the conversation was, of course, Zhou Yi. The referee also paused for a moment before announcing the end of the first half. At the end of the first half, the score was 57:44, with the Pistons leading by 13 points.
Zhou Yi remained calm, walking back to the bench with a composed expression and sitting down next to Maddie.
“Dude, what were you thinking at that moment?” Maddie asked curiously.
“What do you mean, what I was thinking?” Zhou Yi asked with a smile.
“I mean, just now, how did you come up with using that move?” Maddie’s tone was excited, causing him to speak in a somewhat broken manner.
Zhou Yi scratched his head, thought for a while, and replied, “I don’t know. Maybe it was because I saw the amazing teamwork between Jose and Tyson just now, so I wanted to show off a bit. Tracy, do you think I’m too showy?”
“Showy? Uh, good heavens, which player doesn’t like to show off? You’re amazing. Seeing you use that move made my blood boil. To be honest, it reminded me of my younger days. But now…” Maddie lowered his head, looking somewhat melancholic.
“I’m sorry, Tracy. I brought up something that made you unhappy,” Zhou Yi said hurriedly after noticing Maddie’s change in mood.
Maddie patted Zhou Yi’s shoulder and smiled, saying, “Why apologize? You weren’t at fault. On the contrary, I should thank you! You reminded me of my good old days. I hope you can keep performing like this in the future; the fans love to see such amazing shows. Look at the fans in the stands—they’re all staring at you, talking about you. You should be happy.”
Zhou Yi met Maddie’s gaze, then turned away, sighing inwardly before saying with a smile, “Sure. We’ll keep giving the fans such performances in the future. Tracy, I promise I’ll help you win at least one championship trophy. I never make promises lightly, but once I do, I’ll definitely keep them. Do you trust me?”

After hearing Zhou Yi’s words, McGrady focused on him, looked into his clear eyes, then nodded with a seriousness he had never shown before and replied, “I believe in you!”
The two exchanged smiles, hugged each other tightly like long-time friends, and then began chatting happily.
Soon, break time arrived, and the second half of the game was about to start.
In the stands, fans shouted toward Koester, “Let Zhou play! We want to see him play!” The screams continued nonstop. Koester gave a wry smile, nodded at Zhou Yi, and then, seeing McGrady’s eager desire to play, nodded at him as well.
Thus, Zhou Yi and McGrady walked onto the court side by side, joined by Dabben, Monroe, and Prince. The Mavericks’ lineup consisted of Kidd, Terry, Butler, Chandler, and Haywood.
When the second half began, the Mavericks gained possession. Butler served the ball from the baseline, and Kidd caught it.
The Pistons employed a half-court man-to-man defense. After all, they were leading by 13 points and didn’t need to use a full-court press.
After Kidd moved to the front court, Zhou Yi stuck closely to him, blocking any attempt he made to break through. Left with no choice, Kidd used his strength to push through Zhou Yi’s defense and slowly move toward the three-second line, then suddenly took a step back for a jump shot, but unfortunately missed.
Dabben grabbed the defensive rebound and passed it to Zhou Yi, who took charge of the offense. Through days of training and games together, most of the Pistons’ players had recognized Zhou Yi’s skills, so they willingly let him organize the attack. However, there were still a few players who weren’t very friendly toward him, such as Stuckey and, of course, White.
Seeing Zhou Yi’s performance improve and him receive more praise from his teammates, especially from head coach Koester, Stuckey felt extremely resentful, as Zhou Yi was likely to take his starting point guard spot in the new season. So, Stuckey harbored ill feelings toward him. But he also had his own plans. Since Koester wanted Zhou Yi to play, he certainly wouldn’t be foolish enough to compete with him—after all, this was just preseason, not the regular season. Watching Zhou Yi moving around on the court, a cold glint flashed in Stuckey’s eyes before disappearing again.
Zhou Yi drove with the ball, passed it to Prince, who, without any unnecessary movements, immediately took a jump shot, and the ball went straight through the hoop.

Kidd wiped the sweat from his face, slowed down, and carefully drove the ball across half-court. After taking in the situation on the court, Kidd thought quickly, then did a few crossovers before swerving, sending Zhou Yi to the side. Once he found an open spot, Kidd shot straight away to score 2 points.
This was all thanks to Kidd’s years of experience; dealing with Zhou Yi wasn’t difficult. However, he hadn’t expected Zhou Yi to be this tough, which is why Kidd became serious and played to his usual level.
Zhou Yi sneered and silently analyzed Kidd’s playing style. While holding the ball, Zhou Yi exchanged a glance with McGrady; their eyes met, and they understood each other without words.
Zhou Yi suddenly accelerated, and Kidd immediately followed up, putting in his best defensive effort. But Zhou Yi had no intention of attacking instead threw the ball at the backboard. It bounced back and was caught by someone leaping high, who then dunked it fiercely—it was McGrady.
The arena erupted in wild cheers once again, with some fans even shouting “MVP!” Zhou Yi was emotionally stirred and murmured to himself, “I never thought I’d stand on an NBA court one day, with fans cheering for my performance. It’s like a dream…”
As he thought this, Zhou Yi couldn’t help but think of the person who brought him to the United States—Blake.
“I wonder if Uncle Blake has recovered,” Zhou Yi said to himself.
Shaking off his thoughts, Zhou Yi focused back on the game.
Both teams had similar shooting percentages, not very high, so the score difference remained around 10 points. The most critical moment came when the Mavericks narrowed the gap to just 2 points. Fortunately, Zhou Yi and McGrady once again delivered a stunning partnership, scoring 10 points in a row to widen the gap to double digits.
It wasn’t until 4 minutes remained in the third quarter that Koester decided to substitute the players. Zhou Yi and McGrady walked back to the bench side by side, chatting happily.
The Pistons’ bench players also performed excellently, preventing the opponent from reducing the gap to single digits. By the end of the third quarter, the Pistons still led by 12 points, with the score displayed on the big screen as 78:66.
Chapter 54: The Cruel Outcome
Koester smiled and praised the players for their outstanding performance earlier. However, while he was talking to them, a medical staff member rushed over, handed him a stack of data, and whispered a few words.

Upon hearing what the medical staff said, the smile on Koester’s face vanished instantly, replaced by extreme seriousness. His eyes were fixed on the stack of papers, and his hands trembled slightly. Several assistant coaches of the Pistons immediately noticed Koester’s unusual behavior, rushed over to him, and after glancing at the papers in his hands, their faces also showed shock. Zhou Yi and McGrady exchanged a look; from the expressions on Koester and the assistant coaches, they realized the papers must be about Gordon’s injury report. Instead of approaching Koester, they sat quietly, waiting for him to announce the result. Koester closed his eyes for a moment, then gathered the Pistons’ players together to announce what he had found. “Guys, I have some bad news for you,” Koester said, pausing briefly with a clear tone of disappointment. “Gordon will be away from us for at least four months.” “What? Four months?” Zhou Yi was shocked. The others weren’t greatly affected by the news and began whispering among themselves. “Coach, what kind of injury requires four months of recovery?” McGrady asked curiously. Koester glanced at Zhou Yi and McGrady and replied gravely, “A severe fracture of the right ankle.” At those words, everyone fell silent, including Zhou Yi and McGrady. Koester scanned the group, his tone becoming slightly softer, and said, “Don’t worry too much. If he recovers better than expected, he’ll definitely return sooner. Alright, everyone, go back to your positions. The fourth quarter is about to start—get ready for the game.” Hearing this, everyone silently returned to their seats. Zhou Yi sighed inwardly and followed McGrady back to his seat, sitting down. In less than a moment, the final quarter began, with most players being substitutes. The Pistons had Prince as the starter along with four substitutes, while the Mavericks had Haywood as the starter with four substitutes as well. Zhou Yi didn’t watch the game; instead, he kept his head down, lost in thought. McGrady turned his head, saw Zhou Yi’s state, patted his shoulder lightly, and said with a smile, “Stop worrying. This kind of thing happens often. You have to learn to deal with it.”

Zhou Yi nodded, remaining silent. Maddie also said nothing more, focusing her attention back on the game. In fact, Zhou Yi was worried about whether he would encounter such situations, and if so, whether he could pick himself back up. That was why he remained silent—he was pondering these questions. After thinking for a while, Zhou Yi felt relieved and murmured, “Maddie is right. One must learn to face these things. I hope I won’t be defeated by injuries.”

Bynum was very active on the court. Although his shooting percentage was somewhat disappointing, the Pistons’ offense remained organized under his leadership. Barea drove with the ball, and at the moment he turned around, Bynum reached out and stole the ball. He then charged wildly toward the opponent’s basket, ignoring the defenders surrounding him, and managed to score a layup, even drawing a foul on Masemini. Bynum licked his lips, patted the ball twice, and then made the free throw. The Mavericks were still 14 points behind, and the game went into a commercial break.

When play resumed, the Mavericks gradually brought in their starters, while the Pistons substituted out their bench players. Zhou Yi nearly made a mistake with the ball, but after saving it, he quickly drove to the basket and passed it to Monroe, who scored a layup. On the Mavericks’ side, Haywood received a pass from Kidd but missed his layup, but Butler made a free throw to score.