Godfather West

Bobby Jones was extremely irritated by their laughter. After scrambling to his feet in embarrassment, he even considered lifting Richmond, who was laughing the most, against the wall to give him a warning.

However... Coach Romar was already calling his name from over there, and he shot a malevolent look at Li Zhen before growling, "Just you wait," then hurried off in that direction.

At this moment, Bobby Jones didn't feel any discomfort... there was always this kind of light-headed reaction after a celebration.

For Jones, he had even grown accustomed to this indulgent feeling.

Once all the players gathered, Coach Romar began his pre-game pep talk. "Although Brandon won't be playing tonight, I still want you to give it your all to secure a victory. Only by becoming stronger can Washington go further in the tournament, understand?"

The players nodded unanimously.

Then, Coach Romar went on to analyze each player of the Stanford Cardinals team one by one, demanding comprehensive suppression from their matchups.

Among them, he particularly emphasized Scott and Bruce Li.

"Bobby, your competitor is Jonas Scott. Just like you, he's a talent, with extraordinary physical attributes. If you can't handle him, I'm sure your already unstable draft position will plummet."

This was Coach Romar's style of conversation; he was always adept at tapping into players' sense of crisis.

Bobby Jones jumped up like a rooster with its feathers ruffled, and raised his voice, "Taking him down is like easily plucking a hair. How could he possibly affect my draft position? I'll only soar higher and higher, and everyone will be astonished by my talent!!"

Bobby Jones was quite wild, much like his style of play.

Coach Rmar was very satisfied with Jones's response. He turned around and said to point guard Aurora, "This player named Bruce Li isn't actually that formidable. He's just a bit faster. In other aspects like strength, agility, explosiveness, coordination, flexibility, and jumping ability, he's quite ordinary. Brooks had a hard time against him in the previous game because Brooks himself is a slender and short point guard, and Oregon did a terrible job defending the pick and roll, which gave Bruce Li ample time to prepare for his speed. Tonight, as long as you stick closely to him, use your body to press against him, and prevent him from unleashing his speed, with his explosiveness and agility, he won't be able to evade your defense."

Aurora was a small but powerful point guard, strong in physical confrontations but average in speed.

"And even if he uses the pick and roll, Bobby Jones' mobility is enough to keep him from moving."

Coach Romar had full confidence in Aurora.

However, Brandon Roy, sitting on the sidelines, still felt worried.

Although... Coach Rmar was speaking the truth, that player named Bruce Li had quite ordinary athleticism.

But, after watching the video of Bruce Lee's game-winning shot against Oregon repeatedly at least a hundred times last night, he found that Li Zhen possessed a natural basketball instinct and touch. In that clip, he couldn't sense any mediocrity in athleticism. (T/N: He got that dog in him)

So, he believed... Li Zhen might be hiding some of his true abilities.

If it weren't for his slightly sore knee, he really wanted to step onto the court and challenge Li Zhen. (T/N: If only he was not ruined by injuries.)

As a staunch follower of Michael Jordan, Brandon Roy genuinely admired Li Zhen's game-winning move from the bottom of his heart. Moreover, Li Zhen's imaginative passing deeply impressed him. He even felt that in the fast break, Li Zhen had the crispness of Steve Nash combined with the elusiveness of Jason Williams.

He couldn't help but develop a sense of admiration for Li Zhen.

And that's why, when he saw Bruce practicing on the court, he took the initiative to approach. After this reserved Washington star had organized his opening words in his mind for a long time, in the end, it was Bruce who spoke first: "Hey, buddy, can you help me pick up a ball?"

"Uh, sure, no problem."

Brandon ran over with great joy, even feeling a bit exhilarated.

Then, they naturally started chatting.

To be honest, they genuinely appreciated each other. Roy really liked Li Zhen's passing and assist abilities, especially that game-winning shot against Oregon. Li Zhen, on the other hand, admired everything about Roy on the court.

Their personalities also clicked. Neither of them was the type to boast; they always had meaningful discussions about basketball insights. Moreover, from their conversations, it was evident that they were both very resolute individuals: a tough spirit wrapped in a mild exterior.

So, their friendship blossomed within thirty minutes.

When the conversation ended, they reluctantly exchanged phone numbers, promising to discuss further when they had the time.

...

For Li Zhen, gaining Brandon's friendship was an extremely precious thing.

But for Stanford, something even more valuable happened: "Brandon Roy will not be playing in this game."

Fifteen minutes before the game started, when Jamie Lin ran over to announce this news, the bench even erupted in neat cheers.

Everyone was very happy.

However, Li Zhen frowned. He felt a bit regretful, even though he knew that Roy's appearance meant the possibility of Stanford winning was reduced to one in a million. But deep down, he still had a restless heart; he wanted to face the strongest opponent.

It was like when he was in seventh and eighth grades in the United States, he always liked to find Olympiad questions from China to exercise his thinking... These things, at the time, seemed like they shouldn't exist in the world according to his American classmates.

...

Time Warner still broadcasted this game. There was no way around it, the momentum of this game had completely surpassed the other two qualifying matches.

In the California region, Bruce Li had already stirred up a storm. Although he wasn't a popular rookie and was completely unknown five days ago.

But now, everyone was hoping he could lead Stanford to create an NCAA Pacific Division comeback miracle: they were just one victory away.

This was the complete reason why the commentator Watson sat in the broadcast booth looking displeased. And sitting beside him, the analyst was still from the Lakers. This time, his credentials were even higher; he was the former Lakers superstar and general manager, Jerry West. (T/N: Are you sh*tting me? Why are all the guests from the Lakers? Is this foreshadowing?)

Although West had been working in Memphis for the past few years, he always appeared in Los Angeles for a period of time.

And with the weekend at his disposal, he was invited to the Time Warner commentary booth.

"Yes, I've heard Bruce Li's story. I've read the Slam Magazine and watched the video that's gone viral on the internet. Relative to the NCAA, he's definitely an outstanding point guard. He shouldn't be overlooked next season, and I've already given some advice to McHaney. He listened to my opinion. In fact, he's changed his mind, so... Stanford fans, rest assured, your Bruce Li will still be staying at Stanford next season."

Jerry West had a good relationship with the former Lakers assistant coach McHaney, so his words were like an authoritative announcement.

But Watson was particularly interested in another part of West's statement. He asked the godfather-level West, "Don't you think he'll appear in the NBA next season? I've heard that many NBA teams are interested in him."

"No."

West shook his head honestly, saying, "I know there are many fans in the California area who have been touched by his story, and everyone hopes that such a 'heroic' figure can enter the NBA. But we must return to a professional perspective for analysis."

"First of all, I'm very certain about his ball-handling ability, his court vision, and his passing skills. He possesses all the intelligence that a point guard should have. However, what hinders him from going further is his physical attributes. Not only is he physically slender, but the bigger issue is his lateral movement, agility, coordination, explosiveness, and even his jumping ability are all very average. And the NBA is a competition among the best 400-plus players in the world under high-intensity confrontations. He doesn't have the prerequisites for stepping into this arena, similar to a coliseum."

West's candidness finally put Watson at ease.

He thought to himself: This is why West was able to form the Lakers dynasty back then. Truly, he's a godfather-level general manager. His vision is even more sharp than those guys like Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

However, just two minutes after Watson felt so good, the narrative suddenly changed!