Chapter 602: Natural Born Leader

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Rush in, throw, and miss.

Rush in, throw, and miss.

Rush in, throw, and score.

Rush in, throw, and miss. Draw a foul for a free-throw.

Rush in, throw, and miss.

Rush in, throw, and score…

If the free-throws weren’t counted, Wood’s field goal percentage was just 33%. For two-pointers, this was quite low. Most shooters’ field goal percentage for three-pointers were higher than that as well.

Although Wood’s knees had recovered, he had not regained his rhythm. His sense for the game had also not recovered. When he made a beautiful change-of-direction move, rushed towards the basket with quickness and explosive power, and overcame the tall defenders inside the three-point line, he still couldn’t put the ball into the basket.

On the sidelines, the Blazers’ assistant coach in charge of defensive training was embarrassed and depressed. Wood’s rushes were too incisive. The Blazers were not good at defending. Their defenses completely broke down when faced with Wood’s rushes.

Right next to him, the Blazers’ coach, Terry, looked at their lead of a dozen points. He looked worried. It didn’t seem like they were leading by a dozen points, but more like they were a dozen points behind.

“Wood’s knees have recovered!” The head coach of the Blazers, Terry, finally said.

Watching for this long, the recovery was impossible to miss.

Wood did too many change-of-direction moves, sudden stops and rushes, and jumps. He also attacked the defensive players with difficult moves. To make these moves, a person needed a good pair of knees.

Every change-of-pace dribble or sudden move put a lot of pressure on the knees. That was why Wood’s knees were those of a fifty-year-old. This was basically an irreversible injury. Once it appeared, it would only get worse and worse. It would not get better.

Wood began to use this offensive method at the beginning of the game. This was the style of offense he was best at. In the beginning, the Blazer’s head coach realized that his knees had had a season to recover. When the first quarter began, his knees were not under great pressure. The few difficult maneuvers were to be expected.

Terry reached the conclusion that Wood’s current style would not last long. He knew that Wood’s knees had been badly injured and they were already in a sorry state. He would at most be able to carry out several difficult moves occasionally. If he continued to play like this, his knees would definitely not last.

When he was on the court, Wood had been continuously using those type of difficult moves. He didn’t seem worried about his knees. His speed, explosive power, and control were telling everyone that his knees were in good condition.

The head coaches in NBA teams were definitely good at what they did. They spent their entire life working with basketball. A player could be deciphered in a single glance from the head coaches. The Blazers’ head coach was naturally able to analyze Wood in his current performance.

“Wood’s knees have recovered!” Terry, the Blazers’ head coach, had a complex expression on his face. It was in transition between doubt and shock.

“Coach, what did you say?” The assistant coach next to him asked.

“I said Wood’s knees have fully recovered!” Terry added the word “fully” this time.

The assistant coach thought for five or six seconds before he was able to understand the true meaning of what he said. “Impossible!”

He looked at Wood, who was on the court and recalled the difficult moves Wood had been using. His tone changed and he asked, “It shouldn’t be possible, right?”

The assistant coach’s tone shift illustrated that he had the same opinion as the head coach.

Terry didn’t answer. He just looked at Dai Li. He was sitting on the Clippers’ bench on the other side.

Dai Li had been the head coach of the Clippers for half a season, so the coaches of the NBA teams had already figured out some details about Dai Li. They knew he was very good at rehabilitation training and that players who had suffered serious injuries had fully recovered under his care. He was very good at leading older athletes into their second primes.

However, the Blazers’ head coach did not consider that through Dai Li’s rehabilitation training, Wood’s knees could recover!

Wood was the youngest MVP in history. He could be regarded as a superstar. His injury was no secret. Although the seriousness of each of Wood’s injuries had not been disclosed publicly, each team had someone responsible for estimating the severity of the injuries. The estimates were usually not far off.

Some of the team’s physical trainers and doctors even used Wood’s injuries as a case study to prevent their players from suffering the same injury. They studied how a player could recover from similar injuries.

Terry knew how serious Wood’s knee injury had been. He didn’t think Wood’s knees could recover and he didn’t think Wood would able to maintain his speed and explosive power. The media used the words “fifty or sixty-year-old knees” to describe Wood. They had told the world that the youngest MVP in history had become useless.

What happened today was beyond Terry’s understanding. Wood’s knees were fully recovered! If he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, Terry wouldn’t have believed it. Even now, he still had some doubts about what he saw.

How could such a severe injury go away just like that?

After a brief period of shock and confusion, Terry realized that the person whose knees had recovered was Wood. This was not some minor player, nor an ordinary good player, but the youngest player to get the title of MVP in a regular season in NBA history.

…

Rush in, throw, and score.

Rush in, throw, and score.

Rush in, throw, and score. Successfully created a foul for a free-throw.

Wood scored three times in a row.

What a familiar feeling! Wood quickly ran back to his half of the court, but he was still thinking of the previous shot in his head.

Wood used to use this scoring method to dominate in the NBA. Since his knee injury, he could no longer use this method to score. He had forgotten the feeling of rushing and scoring. It was only now that he had remembered the sensation he felt when he scored.

I’ve found my rhythm again! Wood felt joyful.

After the miraculous recovery of his knees, Wood started high-intensity training. He was eager to find his own rhythm and to get back into the flow of a match.

Such things could not be rushed. Even if he did well in training, without actual experience a player could never get their rhythm back.

This was the case with basketball players. They might be ferocious tigers in training, but they turned into dogs in an official game.

On the training grounds, many players were able to run fast, jump high, and shoot accurately. In a high-intensity game, if they could maintain that for ten minutes, they were considered a top athlete. For example, a certain NBA player who played inside the three-point line often released videos of him shooting free-throws. In training, he made all of his shots. In real games, he was lucky to make one out of two free-throws. If he made both of the free-throws, everyone on his team’s bench cheered for him.

This was the difference between training and competition. Simple free-throws became doubly difficult. The chance of scoring was reduced by half. Wood’s change-of-direction move, his confrontation with the defenders, and his layup required many attempts before he could get into the flow of regularly scoring.

Fortunately, Wood had recovered that flow. He had also recovered his confidence.

Each time he attacked, he became more and more determined.

Wood’s dribble made Damian lose his balance, and he lost his position as a result. Wood used the chance to rush towards the basket and make a beautiful throw. The ball went into the hoop.

Damian looked at Wood very unhappily. This was due to a mistake made by him, the defender.

Damian was not good at defending. His defense had received criticism. The Blazers’ backcourt duo was once described as the “backcourt leaking duos.” It was common for them to leave a gap in their defense accidentally. However, in the last two seasons, Damian’s defensive skills had improved a lot. He wasn’t the one responsible for leaving a gap in their defenses.

When facing the best players of the NBA, however, Damian’s defense left a lot of openings for the attackers.

It is just a two-pointer! I will get you back with a three-pointer! Damian thought as he gestured to his teammates to perform a pick-and-roll maneuver. He scored a three-pointer straight away.

The three-pointer was Damian’s best scoring method. After scoring the three-pointer, Damian looked at Wood provocatively, as if to say that a three-pointer would always be one point more than a two-pointer.

Wood quickly responded in the next attack. He made a very easy high shot, and the ball went into the basket. The attack also created a foul, so he received a free throw. In the end, he also received three points.

The game entered a phase in which the two point guards kept scoring.

…

Cassel looked at the scoreboard. The score was 63-63. He couldn’t help but say, “Wood has found his rhythm. Coach Li, your arrangement worked.”

Dai Li smiled and did not answer. “Pass the ball to Wood.” Although it was only a good lot from the Prophecy Request Box, it was not the best. It was similar to only getting second place in an exam. Getting second place was also good enough sometimes.

After a timeout, Dai Li sent out Gray, the center.

Gray was getting a lot of fouls, so he did not have much actual playtime. Whenever he was on the court, however, the Clippers had an advantage inside the three-point line. A good center was beneficial to any team that they were on.

On the court, the Blazers had gotten tougher defending against Wood. Wood changed his style. He no longer obsessed with rushing. He started to pass more often, and the person who benefitted the most from this was Gray.

Rushing forward and then passing to another player was a common strategy in basketball. The Rockets’ strategy of passing to another player to score at the last second turned an ordinary player inside the three-point line into a player with excellent scoring ability. Wood might not be as good as the backcourt duos of the Rockets, but Gray was better than the Rockets’ backcourt duo when it came to receiving the ball and scoring. He was able to split the pressure of attacking with Woods. This made it so that the Blazers’ players inside the three-point line did not dare to surround Woods.

At this point in the game, Woods had demonstrated why he was a regular season MVP.

…

“Whoomp!”

The basketball entered the basket was extremely crispily. Damian had allowed three three-pointers to get into the basket in a row.

Terry wanted a timeout to let Damian calm down but the rebound was caught by a player from the Clippers.

The ball was in Wood’s hands. He was very focused. With sharpness and calmness in his eyes, he was constantly observing the positions of his teammates. He directed where they should go with his hands.

Wood was like a general on the battlefield, waving the flags and mobilizing thousands of horses.

He is a natural leader! Dai Li let out a long sigh. He remembered a phrase on Wood’s evaluation of Wood when he participated in the NBA draft: “He is a natural leader!”

There weren’t many players in the draft that received such an evaluation.

A regular season MVP was indeed a good leader for a team. The responsibility of the leader was to lead his team to victory!

On the court, Wood looked at his teammates around him. There was Gray, who committed five fouls. There was Halls, who hadn’t gotten his groove back. There was Raymond, who was still trying to get used to playing in a proper game. Not one of his teammates were able to give much help. This made Wood feel like he was back on the Bulls. That was the season he won MVP.

That season was similar to right now. He had two all-star teammates who played inside the three-point line. Both of them had missed about 30 games and they played around 30 games with injuries. Wood had to carry the whole team. He played 81 games, scored 25 points, received 4.1 rebounds and 7.7 assists. This helped the Bulls achieve a record of 62 wins and 20 losses in the NBA. This record proved the value of an MVP.

He had a similar feeling to back then. His teammates were only able to offer limited help. He had to rely on himself to win victory for his team.

Wood was convinced that he could do it because he was the leader of this team. All he had to do was to carry out his role correctly.

…

Terry felt mentally exhausted. He sat in his chair and looked at the scoreboard.

Initially, the scores of both teams had been quite close but, in the last two minutes, the Blazers’ players kept making mistakes. The Clippers took the opportunity to seize the lead. The Clippers were now leading by six.

Six points. It was two three-pointers to tie. They needed not only strength but also some help from lady luck.

The youngest regular season MVP! The youngest leader! Terry looked at Wood with fear in his eyes.

The next second, he looked at Damian.

In terms of the honors that they received, the only difference between Damian and Wood was that one was a regular season MVP and the other was not. The title of “leader” also came with the honor of being a regular season MVP.

In Terry’s eyes, Damian was indeed strong. He was also capable of leading the team to victory, but he was not a qualified leader. He was far from being able to be described as “leader.”

Wood was different. He was a real leader. There was no doubt that Wood had proved this when he was on the Bulls. Even now, it was difficult to find such players in the NBA.

“How did he recover from such a severe injury?” Terry muttered to himself again.

On the bench on the other side, Dai Li said in a commentator’s tone, “Wood is different from other players. He is a natural leader, so I feel assured leaving the decisions on the court to him. He knows how to win. He does what needs to be done to secure victory!”

…

Someone needed to take control at the most crucial part of the game.

The Blazers sent out their All-Star player, Damian.

The Clippers sent out their leader, Wood.

The result was predictable.

In the first game of the season, the Clippers beat the Blazers 105 -101 and got their first win of the season.

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