Rapid Progress
*Sound Effects*
**Language**
'Thoughts'
"Dialogue"
(Point of View)
| Setting |
[System]
| Location: Practice Facility, San Antonio, Texas |
| Date: Sunday December 25, 2005 5:30am |
(1st Person - Javi)
After finishing my workout routine, I headed to the practice facility, eager to get in some extra practice before the upcoming game today. Glancing at my skills, I couldn't help but smile. I had just unlocked the next thing on my list. 'Penny's Scoring Surge' became available a couple of games after we faced the Lakers. During our game against the 76ers, I managed to score 21 points, although I may have received a bit of flak from Coach Popovich for putting up more shots than I probably should have just to reach my final 3 points.
Nevertheless, I knew enduring the scolding was worth it, especially since I didn't often get many scoring opportunities coming off the bench. Plus, I anticipated that unlocking the skill would significantly enhance my effectiveness on the court.
This turned out to be true, my stat's had gone from:
[Finishing: 86]
[Shooting: 85]
[Playmaking: 85]
[Defense: 80]
[Physical: 84]
[Overall: 84]
With the skill activated, my stats experienced a substantial boost:
[Finishing: 86 -> 90] (-)
[Close-Range Shot: 84 -> 88]
[Driving Layup: 88 -> 92]
[Driving Dunk: - -> 90]
[Shooting: 85 -> 88] (-)
[Mid-Range Shot: 86 -> 89]
[Three-Point Shot: 82 -> 85]
[Free Throw: 90 -> 92]
[Playmaking: 85 -> 94] (-)
[Pass Accuracy: 85 -> 92]
[Ball Handle: 85 -> 92]
[Speed with Ball: 85 -> 90]
[Defense: 80 -> 84] (-)
[Interior Defense: 80 ->84]
[Perimeter Defense: 80 -> 84]
[Steal: 80 -> 82]
[Block: -]
[Offensive Rebound: - -> 70]
[Defensive Rebound: 50 -> 75]
[Physical: 84 -> 86] (-)
[Speed: 88 -> 90]
[Acceleration: 85 -> 88]
[Strength: 80 -> 90]
[Vertical: 77 -> 85]
[Stamina: 90 -> 92]
[Overall: 84 -> 90]
[Status: Peak Penny Hardaway]
In the subsequent game, I managed to score 20 points with much greater efficiency. I made a conscious effort to take most of my shots with Penny's skill activated, maximizing the impact of my attempts. When activated, it completely altered my playstyle and habits. Moves that were once unfamiliar became second nature to me.
However, not everything was sunshine and rainbows. Obviously, I lost some of my previously acquired skills, including 'Larry's Motivation'. Surprisingly, though, I retained my 'Mamba Mentality' passive. I wasn't sure if it was because of its rarity being higher than Legendary or if it was because it was my first skill, but I wasn't about to complain. Though I was sure that whenever I had active skills, they would definitely not work.
Additionally, I noticed that some of the moves I used while in this state felt outdated. It made sense since Penny Hardaway was at his peak around 1995-1996. As a result, I wasn't able to execute moves like the Euro-step. While he did have some moves such as the step-back jumper, it wasn't utilized as frequently compared to today, which meant it wasn't really mastered to the extent that players have it today.
As for being able to dunk, I decided to activate the skill during an off day to test it out, and to my disappointment, I found that I could only manage some rim grazers occasionally with the skill active. So, that '90 driving dunk' was a fuckin lie.
However, in hindsight, it made sense. I had the stats but not the body of Penny Hardaway. I was slightly let down at the time, but I knew I'd eventually acquire a skill that would assist me in this area.
That skill finally integrated today after completing the last day of my workout routine. Next on my list was to integrate 'On the Laces' to improve my passing and assist my team more effectively.
Lost in my thoughts, I approached the court, turned on the lights, and retrieved my ball from my gym bag. The first thing I wanted to do was test out my new skill.
As I had expected, it did have an impact on some of my stats:
[Driving Dunk: - -> 70]
[Speed: 88 -> 92]
[Acceleration: 85 -> 95]
[Vertical: 77 -> 99]
A smile crept onto my face as I observed the new stats.
'I guess 99 is the maximum?' I pondered, knowing that a 48-inch vertical was amongst the highest recorded in history. As I suspected, the skill also significantly boosted my acceleration. I was concerned, though, as reaching 80 in my stats had made it increasingly challenging to enhance them further. Now, I wasn't sure how long it would take to increase my acceleration again.
Surprisingly, my speed didn't increase much, but I supposed it meant that the athleticism made me quicker rather than faster. Being quick meant I could reach my maximum speed in a shorter time. While speed represented the maximum I could sprint at full throttle.
As I laced up my shoes, I approached the court with a smile. I eyed the rim, preparing myself to attempt a dunk. I had tried before with Penny Hardaway's skill, and I almost pulled it off. So, with this new skill, I should definitely be able to.
Taking a deep breath, I dribbled the ball and sprinted towards the basket, feeling a gust of wind against my hair. I exploded upward towards the rim, aiming for a one-handed dunk.
I kept ascending until my eyes met the bottom of the net, reaching up to slam the ball down.
'Oh, shit!' I thought before disaster struck.
My arm collided with the front of the rim, causing the ball to slip from my grasp and hit the backboard before ricocheting off. I tumbled to the ground, landing on my side and barely managing to break my fall with my arms.
Gasping for air, I lay on my back, trying to catch my breath and collect myself.
'Well, that didn't go as planned,' I thought as I picked myself up off the floor.
"Now I understand why the driving dunk was a 70," I muttered. Unlike Penny, I didn't have much experience with dunking, resulting in poor positioning and incorrect timing. I didn't know where to jump, which caused me to leap further than necessary and collide with the rim.
Penny, who had likely been dunking for years, had mastered the timing, which is why I could execute it correctly when using his skill. However, despite having a higher vertical now, I lacked the muscle memory that Penny had developed with dunking and timing.
'Well, there's only one way to improve,' I thought with a small sigh. At this point, grinding had become second nature to me.
I continued to jump repeatedly for 20 minutes, attempting to refine the timing. However, I could only manage to dunk a few times.
'Damn, I didn't realize dunking would be this challenging,' I thought frustratingly.
'Fuck it,' I thought as I activated Penny's Scoring Surge. I wasn't sure if I'd be able to use it again in today's game since it could only be used 'once' per game. However, I needed to better understand the timing.
Checking my stats, my eyes widened to see that I still maintained my 99 vertical.
"Why wasn't 'Bird's Motivation' carried over?" I pondered. Then, it struck me that it might because it was a 'conditional passive'. However, I wasn't entirely certain if that was the sole reason. It could be due to the 'normal' passive's rarity being Legendary or higher. Alternatively, it's possible that some passives had fundamentally altered me physically, which couldn't be cancelled.
'I'll have to look into it more' I thought before I turned my eye back at the rim.
Now, utilizing Penny's skill along with my newly acquired athleticism, I dribbled towards the rim. As I leaped, everything felt natural, smoother, as I rose into the air. I even managed to get higher up, my eyes nearly reaching the rim. With ease, I slammed the ball down with a resounding bang as I fell to the ground.
I smiled at the sensation.
'I wonder if this is what it feels like for birds to fly,' I joked.
'Today's going to be a good day,' I thought as I continued dunking, gaining a better understanding of the timing through analysis and practice with the skill.
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| Location: SBC Center, San Antonio, Texas |
| Date: Sunday December 25, 2005 12:10pm |
(1st Person - Javi)
I took another look at my stats as I prepared to warm up:
[Finishing: 86 -> 86]
[Shooting: 85]
[Playmaking: 85]
[Defense: 80]
[Physical: 84 -> 91]
[Overall: 84 -> 85]
A/N: Now that driving dunk is unlocked, the average of finishing is comprised of close-range shot (84), driving layup (88) and now driving dunk (85), so finishing is still the same overall.
I had made significant improvement, going from a '70' driving dunk to '85'. It seemed like most of the progress came from refining technique. Feeling more confident, I noted that I could use 'Penny's Scoring Surge' for today's game, which was a relief.
Initially as I put up shots, I noticed that my shot was off. Every time I released, the ball would come out with too much force, often hitting the back iron or the backboard. Initially puzzled, I realized that my increased vertical also meant that I was jumping higher when taking a jump shot.
Adjusting by putting less power into my arms, I easily corrected the issue, although it was an interesting problem I hadn't initially considered.
'At least this means my release point is higher,' I thought.
Considering further, I had an idea. I stepped a little beyond the arc and released a shot. It went in smoothly.
I smiled, realizing that my range had increased as well because of the skill.
After finishing my warm-up, I prepared for the game.
'Maybe I should give the fans a Christmas gift,' I thought with a smirk.
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A/N: Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Stay tuned for the 'Christmas Gift' the MC has in store for next chapter!
On a side note, I noticed that some semblances of wanting more basketball instead of perspectives when it comes to the games. I initially planned on keeping the regular season games somewhat short as I wanted to save it for the Playoffs where the chapters will be much longer. However let me know your thoughts on this!