The sneaker contract

"Uh..."

Mario pondered, caught on to Jose's point, paused, and said, "Both were perfect offenses capable of killing the game, but the difference is... Rose scored 2 points with a layup, while Carlos scored 3 points with a three-pointer. Rose had a near buzzer-beater, and Carlos had a counter-buzzer-beater, ultimately securing the victory.

In my opinion...

Carlos won the game, but it doesn't mean Rose isn't strong. Both of these key shots were excellent and challenging, but the crucial three-pointer that secured the victory seems to signify a trend towards the small ball era. It seems to foreshadow... that in future games, the key moments deciding victories might be more effectively achieved with three-pointers."

After speaking...

Mario looked at Jose, who gave him a thumbs up and said, "Exactly, the small ball era is gradually approaching!"

...

The showdown between the Suns and the Bulls concluded with Carlos's long-range buzzer-beater. However, the intensity of this game was just getting started.

That night...

Twitter was abuzz with news.

"Oh my God, this rookie center Carlos is too strong. Those are the Bulls, the Eastern Conference leaders, the team that defeated the Heat's 'Big Three.'

A rookie like Carlos actually defeated them; it's truly unimaginable!"

"I'm so excited after watching the game. Carlos is too strong, especially that last long-range three-pointer buzzer-beater. It's like a logo shot—really, I can't describe my feelings. From today, I'm a lifelong fan of Carlos!"

"Haha, you've all been conquered by Carlos. It seems falling in love with Carlos was the right choice. Carlos, I want to have children with you."

"A center, two meters beyond the three-point line, hitting a long-range three-pointer buzzer-beater—unbelievable!"

"He's strong, that's all there is to it. Carlos is boundless in strength. He's the strongest rookie I've seen, without a doubt, even compared to Iverson, Rose, LeBron who peaked from the beginning.

Even 'the Basketball God' Jordan couldn't match him. Carlos is the strongest rookie!"

"Yeah, Carlos won against the 'Windy City Assassin,' that's truly strong!"

"Enough, enough—"

"Uh..." Fans passionately discussed Carlos, the focal point of the duel.

At the same time...

After celebrating with teammates in the locker room, Carlos returned to his villa, feeling somewhat exhausted as he slumped on the sofa. The system notification sound followed.

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for defeating the Eastern Conference leaders, the Bulls. Mission accomplished. Reward obtained: "Eagle Spear."]

"Very good!"

Although tired, Carlos was still happy to receive this reward. With a thought, he checked the introduction of the "Eagle Spear" ability.

[Eagle Spear: Enhances the host's stealing ability, and... with keen ball-sniffing senses, the host can have stealing capabilities even when facing away from the opponent, catching them off guard.]

Carlos continued to open the attribute panel.

[Stealing: 93.

Abilities: "Peak Anthony's jump shot," "Peak Curry's three-point shot," "Eagle Spear."]

"My stealing ability was 81 points before, and now it's 93 points, a significant improvement in overall stealing ability, in addition to the dataized attribute point increase.

This ability is something out of fantasy basketball. I think... using this Eagle Spear on the NBA court should yield unexpectedly good results. A center player with all kinds of steals on the court? What an interesting super basketball system."

Carlos tightened his fist, a slight smile playing on his lips, looking forward to the upcoming challenges.

...

The Next Day...

Early morning...

"Rookie Carlos scores 46 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 blocks, leading the team to defeat the Bulls, ranked first in the Eastern Conference and led by the 'Windy City Assassin' Derrick Rose. The strength is so impressive!"

— From "Foxsports."

"Carlos scored 46 points, hitting a long-range three-pointer to buzzer-beat the Bulls, leading the team to a 13-game winning streak."

— From "Milwaukee Sentinel Report."

"Two strong teams couldn't stop the Suns' winning streak. The Suns slaughtered the dual-headed Bulls and secured a 13-game winning streak."

— From "Miami Dolphins."

"Carlos, a center player, displayed extreme offense from the outside, defeating powerhouse teams such as the Celtics, Mavericks, and the Bulls in succession. Even centers have to attack from the outside. This momentum... suggests the arrival of the small ball era!"

— From "The Boston Herald."

"Uh..." It was only morning, and the sun had not fully risen, but reports about the game from last night were already flooding the headlines. They were written overnight by newspapers competing for hot topics.

Los Angeles training facility.

Kobe arrived at the training facility at four in the morning, even earlier than usual, half an hour before. This was because Kobe watched the Suns vs. Bulls game last night.

Carlos's strength surprised him.

Yes...

Even the current "first man in the league" Kobe, after watching Carlos's game last night and seeing him hit that long-range buzzer-beating three-pointer, was also very surprised.

"This center is a bit strong!"

While training, Kobe's mind was filled with various offensive moves from Carlos. Carlos displayed a strength surpassing Rose, making Kobe somewhat anxious. Not anxious about the promise to play against Carlos; even if fulfilled, Carlos might win.

The opponent was just a rookie, Carlos, and Kobe was not afraid of him.

What made him anxious was Carlos's terrifying talent, which would inevitably make significant progress in a very short time.

If not this season, then maybe the next.

After several seasons, Kobe almost certain that Carlos would become a player of TOP3 level in the league, or even further, becoming the strongest.

That was what made him most anxious.

So, before Carlos fully grew up, he must train even harder to further enhance his own strength.

A regular season MVP, two finals MVPs, three all-star MVPs, two scoring titles, five championships—after becoming the "first man in the league" following Jordan, it was not easy.

Now...

He no longer wanted to be second to anyone.

...

1:00 PM.

Carlos woke up, glanced at his phone, saw a missed call from Austin, returned the call, and as soon as he dialed, a knock on the door sounded.

Opening it, it was Austin.

It turned out Austin had arrived early but didn't want to disturb Carlos, so he waited in the car until Carlos returned the call.

"Carlos, with your divine performance last night, Adidas has reconsidered their offer, and Nike is also making a move. They contacted me last night, hoping to talk to you today. Are you available to meet with them?"

Austin got straight to the point.

"Um..."

Carlos agreed. Finally, the moment to finalize the sneaker contract had arrived.