High-Level Game, Part 2

The game continued, and Shun continued to watch it from the sideline.

Antony had the ball, and he was in the inside area, but he was frowning as he tried to move.

Antony: "Geh."

Antony couldn't move as he had Rafael sticking so close to him. Rafael was in lockdown mode as he didn't give Antony any place to move.

Antony glanced at the shot clock and thought.

Antony: "Crap! there is much time left there; this could end up in a turnover."

He continued to struggle when he saw Carlos in his sight with his hands in a pass receiving stance. Antony immediately passed the ball to Carlos.

Carlos received the ball and jumped for a mid-range, face-up jump shot.

But, when he released the ball, a hand made full contact with the ball. His eyes widened as he saw Rafael and his hand, contesting his shot.

Carlos: "Ehh, weren't you with Antony. How did you get here?!"

Rafael didn't say anything and got to the floor and immediately chased the ball that he had blocked.

Three players chased the free ball, Antony, and Leonal from Team Red and Rafael from Team Yellow.

All of them were equally close to the free ball, and anyone could get the ball. If we looked at the probability, Team Red with two players would get the ball, but then you would be wrong as Rafael jumped forward towards the ball.

-*-*-*-

Shun jumped in his seat as he excitedly spoke.

Shun: "Ooh, he lunged for the ball!"

-*-*-*-

Rafael caught the ball, and before he hit the floor, he threw the ball to Ming, who was in front of him.

Ming caught the ball and threw a baseball pass to Roger, who was near the three-point arc.

-*-*-*-

Sarah clapped lightly after seeing Rafael's hustle on the court.

Sarah: "Rafael Garcia, the dirty worker, he is a selfless player that keeps the gritty work off his teammates.

He sets up screens, chases down players to block them, direct teammates to the exact spot they needed to be, and guard multiple positions, often on the same possession.

He is the ultimate defensive player, his presence disrupts the rhythm of the opposite team."

Shun nodded and was completely in agreement with her assessment of Rafael.

Shun: "Mad Respect."

-*-*-*-

Roger caught the ball and shouted while he charged towards the basket.

Roger: "Excellent pass!"

Roger looked at Douglas near the basket and then passed him with a pro-hop.

A pro-hop was a combination of a euro step and a jump-stop.

Roger picked up his dribble with a synchronized right-hand dribble/right footstep, ripped the ball to the opposite side of his body while landing on a jump-stop.

Douglas couldn't react, and Roger was already behind him.

Roger landed on both of his feet. He bent his knees, and with the ball in both of his hands, jammed the ball into the basket with a two-handed dunk.

-*-*-*-

Shun clapped in his seat and said.

Shun: "Oh, a pro-hop! I have never tried that. I should do that sometime, though the timing for the jump at the end is going to be difficult to get."

Sarah looked at Shun and said.

Sarah: "If moves were so easy to master, then gaining skills wouldn't be so hard."

Shun grinned and replied.

Shun: "Eeh~, I already know the euro-step, so a pro-hop won't be too far from that."

Sarah sighed as she spoke.

Sarah: "Kids these days."

-*-*-*-

Leonal and Bruno were outside the three-point arc. The ball was with Leonal, and Bruno was on the defense.

Leonal dribbled near his backfoot, away from Bruno's reach.

He looked at Bruno and dribbled the ball from his backhand to his front hand in a back-change.

Bruno decided to go for a steal and leaned towards the ball hand, but the moment Bruno leaned in, Leonal dribbled the ball back to his backhand and drove past from Bruno's opposite direction.

-*-*-*-

Shun's eyes widened as he saw the simple V-dribble, but he could see something that he was familiar with.

Shun: 'He reacted to it pretty quickly, was it a coincidence, or...'

Shun looked at Sarah for her usual explanation. Sarah didn't disappoint and gave information on Leonal.

Sarah: "Leonal Claude, is extremely talented in one-on-ones, you usually don't want to be his defender, or be his mark.

I have seen him play and reacts to moves very quickly. On top of that, he has worked on his dribbling skills to make good use of his reflexes.

He is an inside player and plays at the rim or at the perimeter. His fast reflexes help him weave through the crowd with ease."

Shun looked at Leonal and thought.

Shun: 'So, he can react, huh. I wonder what his limits are. The use that he showed was pretty simple. I have to observe him quite closely.'

-*-*-*-

Leonal passed Bruno and entered the inside area, and from mid-range, he pulled up for a jump shot.

Out of nowhere, Rafael came to contest the ball and was able to get a single finger on the ball.

Leonal clicked his tongue, and he knew the shot was going to miss.

The ball missed bounced off the rim, and Roger was just under the basket to rebound it.

Roger jumped for the ball, but his breath hitched when he saw a hand climbing up towards the ball.

The hand caught the ball and tipped the ball inside the basket.

Roger looked behind him and saw Gilbert with a grin on his face.

Gilbert: "Get out of here, this ball is mine."

Both of them got to the floor, and Gilbert announced to Roger.

Gilbert: "I am the Rebound King, no way you are going to get the rebound with me around."

-*-*-*-

Shun scratched his chin as he commented.

Shun: "Gilbert's height and vertical jump sure give him an advantage in rebounds."

Sarah nodded and explained.

Sarah: "Gilbert is primarily a defensive player that focuses on rebounds and blocks. The games he plays in are generally low scoring games.

Gilbert Knight is a player that would break the heart of opponents' offense and raise the morale of his teammates by providing them with a strong unbreakable shield."

Shun turned to Sarah and asked.

Shun: "But, didn't Ivan say that Serbia beat the USA in the U-19s?"

Sarah looked at Shun and smiled.

Sarah: "If there is an Unbreakable Sheild, then there would be an Unstoppable Spear to match it."

She turned to the court and gestured to Ivan.

Sarah: "And that Unstoppable Spear is Ivan Petrovic."

Shun turned to the court and saw the ball being passed to Ivan.

-*-*-*-

Ivan, with an indifferent expression, received the ball and ran towards the basket.

As he came near the three-point arc, he was met with Carlos, who came into Ivan's path.

Ivan glanced at Carlos and immediately came to a stop and switched the ball between his hands.

Carlos was not expecting a sudden stop and wasn't able to stop in time and gave Ivan enough space to drive by.

Carlos: "Ah, he got by~."

Ivan ran past Carlos, towards the basket, at the basket, Douglas and Gilbert both jumped for a block.

Ivan was going for an overhead layup, but Gilbert's hands blocked his path, so he decided to change the attack.

He brought the ball down in a double-clutch and stretched the ball hand in between Gilbert and Douglas's bodies and laid the ball into the basket from behind their backs.

Gilbert was stunned by the double-clutch and roared.

Gilbert: "Damn, you! You expressionless demon!"

-*-*-*-

Sarah looked at the court and Ivan on it and said.

Sarah: "There are many types of talents that can be used in basketball. A talent of vertical jump, a talent of court vision, a talent of physical prowess, or any myriads of talents out there.

What Ivan Petrovic has isn't those sort of talent, he only has a singular talent, and that is the talent for basketball.

He understands and plays the game, unlike so many of the others. His style is the orthodox style of basketball, which anybody could learn, but even with those common moves, he dominates the court.

He can shoot from the outside and yet can work as skillfully at the rim. He can guard you at the ground, or contest you in air.

Ivan Petrovic is a positionless player that rules the court."

She turned to Shun and saw him looking at the court, his eyes fixed at Ivan, and she heard him mutter.

Shun: "Rules the court, huh."

Sarah saw Shun get up, so she asked.

Sarah: "What happened?"

Shun shook his head and said.

Shun: "I am glad that I came here. I am so glad that I came here."

A wild smile made its way to Shun's excited face.

Shun: "I am just very excited to play and 'LEARN' from all these amazing players.

I can't wait for my turn to enter the court."