The longest river

Chapter 36 The Allure of Journalism

They used American-style one-on-one, except they played with 11 balls.

Although Jackson said he was in a hurry, he still gave Fratello face.

Yang Shuai took the lead in the attack, but his first attempt to break through was thwarted by Jackson.

Jackson's defensive ability is much stronger than I thought.

Moreover, one-on-one duels are not a full-court game, so there are no tactics to use; it's just a head-on collision.

After possession of the ball changed, Jackson scored the first points with a three-pointer.

Previously, when Yang Shuai challenged others one-on-one, his opponents often had an information gap due to their lack of understanding of his skills, and were caught off guard.

What goes around comes around, and now it's Yang Shuai who was caught off guard.

Moreover, Jackson was different from Jordan; he was giving it his all from the very beginning.

Although Fratello said he was just asking Yang Shuai to test his skills, it wouldn't be good for him if word got out that he lost to Yang Shuai.

After five consecutive shots, Yang Shuai was unable to stop Jackson, and the score reached 0-5.

Jackson's shooting was incredibly accurate, and he was the kind of player who could still force his way in even under pressure.

"Is this the level of the top high school student nowadays?" Jackson started trash-talking.

Jordan is not an exception; trash talk is an essential skill for NBA players, the only difference lies in the level of skill.

Yang Shuai did not respond, but instead passed the ball to Jackson and then immediately guarded him closely.

Jackson backed down to protect the ball, then turned and drove to the mid-range before pulling up for a mid-range jumper.

His technique is not complicated, but it is simple and effective.

However, this time he was unable to score again because Yang Shuai anticipated his move and jumped first to block his shot.

"Is this the level of NBA players these days?" Yang Shuai stared intently at Jackson after landing.

Although he hadn't been able to stop Jackson before, he kept adjusting his defense to adapt to Jackson's offense.

His final conclusion was that shooting was Jackson's strongest point, especially with his excellent three-point shooting ability, and his playing style was very modern.

However, Jackson's weaknesses are also quite obvious. His dynamic talent is relatively average. Lacking explosiveness, his breakthroughs and changes of direction are not fast enough, at least not at the level that Yang Shuai can keep up with.

Moreover, his jumping ability is not outstanding, which allows Yang Shuai to provide strong interference after successfully predicting the situation.

In addition, Jackson clearly underestimated his opponent, giving Yang Shuai the opportunity to block the shot.

"Negative energy from Jim Jackson +412".

Yang Shuai's words successfully angered Jackson.

After the switch of offense and defense, Jackson calmed down, raising one hand and holding the other horizontally, his posture and eyes more serious than before.

Fratello, acting as referee, couldn't help but shake his head.

During previous training sessions, he could also see that Yang Shuai was extremely talented.

However, the young man was too hot-blooded and did not know that talent takes time to develop, and there was no benefit in provoking Jackson.

Yang Shuai once again made a move to drive to the basket, but then immediately opted for a pull-up three-pointer.

Jackson did not choose a close-guard defense in the first round, which Yang Shuai initially thought was just his defensive habit.

But now, he knows that Jackson lacks explosive power and is worried that Jackson will overpower him with speed, so he has reserved some time to get going.

After capturing this information, he successfully used it.

The reason he chose to pull up for a three-pointer was because the block earlier made him realize that he had an advantage in jumping ability.

Even if Jackson reacted and pounced, he wouldn't be able to block him.

As it turned out, Yang Shuai's judgment was correct. Although Jackson reacted and lunged forward, his interference with Yang Shuai's shot was limited.

"Shh!"

With a crisp sound, Yang Shuai sank the three-pointer.

After he made that three-pointer, Yang Shuai immediately gained the initiative in the offense.

To defend against Yang Shuai's three-pointers, Jackson had to move forward to defend, but his lack of explosiveness after moving forward prevented him from completely stopping Yang Shuai's dribbling and penetration.

Yang Shuai scored 5 goals in quick succession, bringing the score to 5-5.

Fratello was dumbfounded.

He finally understood why Cavallero had asked him for this favor.

Yang Shuai's talent lies not only in his physique and technique, but also in his basketball IQ, which is a prerequisite for becoming a great player.

Jackson ultimately had no choice but to adopt a defensive strategy of preventing drives and allowing shots, hoping that Yang Shuai would miss his shot.

This is a disgrace for a player with such excellent defense.

Finally, Yang Shuai's three-point attempt in the 9th possession missed, and possession returned to Jackson.

The score was 8-5.

Jackson breathed a sigh of relief.

Being pushed to this point by a high school student, even if he wins this one-on-one fight, it will still be somewhat embarrassing.

But as humiliating as it may be, the important thing is that he must seize the opportunity and win the game.

Otherwise, he might not be so lucky when possession changes again.

At this point, the one-on-one match turned into a pool game, a test of who could clear the table in one break. Jackson made another attack with the ball, and Yang Shuai's defensive strategy remained the same as before.

However, this time Jackson's choice was very different from before. He had no intention of shooting at all, but instead focused on driving to the basket.

Although Yang Shuai didn't understand why Jackson had suddenly changed his offensive style, he maintained his defensive position and didn't give Jackson an easy opportunity to make a layup.

Jackson drove to the basket, faked a shot, and then turned and floated the ball.

Yang Shuai provided strong interference, forcing Jackson to raise the arc of his shot.

The ball barely passed Yang Shuai's fingertips.

But it went in.

Yang Shuai thought it was just Jackson's good luck, but Jackson actually scored 5 more goals in a row in this way, changing the score to 8 to 10.

This beating made him question the meaning of life.

However, he also gained a deeper understanding of Jackson's abilities.

In this era, simply being good at shooting won't get you an average of 25+ points per game.

Take Price, whom he previously faced with the Cavaliers, for example. Despite being the three-point contest champion for two consecutive seasons, Price's season average score never exceeded 20 points.

Jackson was able to do this not only because of his accurate shooting, but also because of his superb flexibility, which allowed him to complete various difficult finishes during drives.

Jackson's match point.

It was at this point that Yang Shuai began to engage in intense competition.

He used his head to push against Jackson's head, his hands to hold Jackson's hands, and his body to constantly entangle with Jackson.

In terms of physical strength, Yang Shuai was at a disadvantage against Jackson. This is why, although he was able to maintain his defensive position and had a better jumping ability, he was ultimately unable to block Jackson's difficult shots.

Physical contact is always the foundation of basketball.

However, Yang Shuai's approach is now not just confrontational, but aggressive.

This sudden increase in aggression made Jackson feel slightly uncomfortable.

As a result of this maladjustment, Jackson's drive to the basket failed to penetrate further, and he was forced to stop at the free-throw line by Yang Shuai.

Just after discovering that Jackson was in a dead ball situation, Yang Shuai spread his long arms, covering Jackson's head like a giant net.

Jackson spun around in place for a few times but didn't get a good chance. His final shot barely avoided Yang Shuai's block, but it bounced off the rim.

Fratello's gaze at Yang Shuai at that moment revealed his undisguised affection.

Yang Shuai not only has the prerequisites to become a great player, but also has a great competitive spirit.

He couldn't help but want to recruit the other party directly into his ranks.

Possession of the ball changed hands again.

Jackson continued to pray for Yang Shuai to shoot from beyond the arc, but Yang Shuai's three-pointer once again swished through the net.

9:10.

Jackson was forced to use the same extreme defensive tactics that Yang Shuai had used before, trying to use his physical advantage to limit Yang Shuai.

However, Yang Shuai had been waiting for this moment. After turning and dribbling, he used his explosive power to overpower Jackson.

Jackson watched as Yang Shuai passed by, and when he reached out to grab him, he only managed to grab the hem of Yang Shuai's jersey.

Then Yang Shuai mustered all his strength, and he was pulled so hard that he staggered and fell to the ground.

Yang Shuai rushed into the paint, leaped high, and slammed the ball into the basket with a one-handed dunk.

"Oh!"

10 square meters!
After landing, Yang Shuai roared.

The pent-up frustration from the defense was released in an instant.

At this moment, Jackson had just gotten up from the ground.

It was at this moment that Fratello called a halt to the one-on-one duel.

His original goal was to have Jackson test Yang Shuai's abilities, and now that the two are evenly matched, he has achieved his goal.

As for the final outcome, if Jackson really loses, he will definitely lose face.

Yang Shuai's face darkened. Who would stop a match when the outcome is about to be decided?

He looked directly at Jackson, his meaning clear: let Jackson continue the one-on-one fight like a man.

However, Jackson avoided Yang Shuai's gaze and then quickly turned and left the training hall.

Looking at Jackson's back, Yang Shuai frowned at first, but then his expression relaxed.

Based on Jackson's growth rate in the first three seasons, he could theoretically have become an All-Star or even a superstar.

However, he had never heard of this person in his previous life, which means that the other party eventually faded into obscurity, so it is not surprising that he would make such a choice.

Just as Barkley once said, becoming a superstar requires not only skill, but also determination.

Although it was a bit of a disappointment, this one-on-one match boosted Yang Shuai's confidence more than the last training match.

Joe Dumars is right, he's ready to play in the NBA now.

Just a few days after Yang Shuai finished training with the Cavaliers, a little story spread like wildfire:
Hansen Young easily dominated Jim Jackson in a one-on-one match until Mike Fratello came in and stopped their fight.

(End of this chapter)