Basketball Terminal

Chapter 9 Black Brother
Brett kept his promise and took Levi into the Nassau Arena. After showing his health certificate, Levi went into the locker room.

Brett put on his mask and left. He took what Levi had said to him as just the kind of nonsense common among basketball players. He had had the same dream during his own years as a player.

Entering the NBA, standing at the top of the world, and lifting the Larry O'Brien Trophy—who wouldn't want that?

Brett was one of the few dreamers who came very close to making his dream come true. In high school, he was the best player on his team. In college, he was drafted by the prestigious Arizona Wildcats, but from there his dream was shattered, and he became a benchwarmer.

His basketball dream then led him to a coaching position. After graduating in 08, he stayed at the University of Arizona as an assistant coach. He was only 23 years old at the time.

Now, at least he has a championship ring and has taken the position of head coach in the Development League, which is a big step forward.

The trial players could only use the stadium's away locker room. The black, open lockers were already filled with discarded clothes, bags, and smelly shoes. A strange odor permeated the stuffy air inside. This was perhaps the first hurdle to becoming a professional player: could they endure the cramped and smelly locker room?

In the corner, there were some shoes and belongings piled up. Li Wei was about to put down his bag and change his clothes when a dark, tattooed leg stepped over and blocked his way, one foot landing in the corner. Li Wei turned around and saw a shirtless, burly black man with dreadlocks—the very, very dark kind.

In the United States, although anyone with Black ancestry is considered Black, many so-called Black people actually have skin color similar to white people, retaining only a few Black characteristics. This indicates that their ancestors were only a small number of Black people because their Black bloodline has been diluted significantly due to intermarriage with white people or other ethnic groups.

In the NBA, players like Stephen Curry, Blake Griffin, and Klay Thompson all have white mothers.

Others are about 50/50, with chocolate or light black skin. Their skin is dark, but their facial features no longer have the characteristics of a Black person.

Examples include Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, and Grant Hill. These two types of Black people often come from well-off families, belonging to the middle class or even wealthy families, and generally have a high level of education and character.

The remaining group consists of more authentic Black people, often born into poverty with several generations of Black ancestry. Their skin is jet black, and their facial features and hair retain strong Black characteristics: turned-up lips, flat noses, high cheekbones, and coarse hair.

Some of them were born into poverty and roamed the streets. They were athletically gifted, but their personal character was really not good.

When the guy with black dreadlocks saw that Li Wei was the only Asian person participating in the tryouts, he immediately got excited and wanted to provoke him so he could show off in front of everyone.

Do the two have any grudges? No. Is there any conflict between them? No. Does he have any grudges against Asians? Absolutely not.

But this black guy just wanted to cause trouble and make his presence known. Like a stray dog ​​on the street that wants to bite anyone it sees, for no other reason than that they have mouths to bite.

"I've already taken this spot, you'll have to find somewhere else." The black man tilted his head, gesturing for Li Wei to move. The locker room was almost full, except for the toilets and showers.

Li Wei spent his middle school years under such bullying. Although he was very tall, he was weak-willed and had a gloomy demeanor, often becoming the target of school bullies. Moreover, his tall stature only made the bullies more enthusiastic, because they wouldn't have to bear the stigma of bullying the weak. He was a big guy, after all.

Li Wei was different now. He ignored the black man completely, threw his bag on the ground, took off his coat to reveal his muscular physique, and started changing. The black man cursed a few times and tried to kick Li Wei's canvas bag away.

Li Wei shoved him aside with his elbow, pointed at his nose and said, "I'll give you a chance to go first. But unless you can knock me down with one punch, I'll smash your head into your ass later. Want to try? I bet you can't hit me, just like your trash shots never go in the basket."

Li Wei had already clenched his other fist, the bones cracking. A punch like that could crack a skull if it hit someone's face. Blackie was starting to back down. He saw a cold, murderous intent in Li Wei's eyes—eyes that showed no fear of anything.

But the others in the locker room started to jeer. They didn't know each other and were competitors. If they fought and were both eliminated, it would be a good thing. Why stop them?
Just as the black man was caught in a dilemma, someone came to interrupt the standoff. It was Nets assistant coach Shesen Allen, who had witnessed everything from the locker room door. Without making any judgments, he simply reminded everyone to hurry up, as time management was also part of the evaluation criteria.

"I don't want anyone to be eliminated because they're too slow changing and can't get on the court for training." Everyone scattered, some changing clothes, others warming up. The dreadlocked black guy had an excuse and went back to his locker to put on his jacket. Li Wei also changed into his jersey, putting on the AJ35s he'd gotten from his brother—a great pair of shoes that fit perfectly, hoping to bring him good luck.

Of course, Li Wei had no intention of letting this black guy off the hook. As he left the locker room, he glared at the black guy and grinned, saying, "You'll be sorry when you get on the court later."

The dreadlocked black man, encountering such a fierce Asian face for the first time, was already regretting his earlier provocation. Meanwhile, Li Wei, influenced by many past events, was now vengeful and had no intention of showing mercy.

Just like now, I didn't do anything, I just wanted to find a corner to squat down and change my clothes, but someone had to interfere and cause trouble.

If participating in the trial wasn't more important, Li Wei wouldn't have even threatened him; he would have just thrown a punch. His fist can now become incredibly hard for a short time, similar to the effect of Armament Haki, only not as exaggerated.

If basketball weren't more cost-effective, Li Wei could have easily chosen boxing. His anticipation, dodging, and strong physique would have been enough for him to become a boxing champion.

However, Li Wei wasn't very interested in boxing, and basketball offered him a much wider path. He didn't want to waste his past efforts and pursuit of his dream.

The renovated Nassau Arena can accommodate around 15000 fans, but the stands were empty at the moment. More than 40 players who were on trial came onto the field and found a place to warm up on their own.

Li Wei saw 62-year-old Kelvin Davis being interviewed by reporters on the sidelines; he was the real protagonist of this tryout. As for who would emerge victorious and become a member of the Long Island Nets, not many people cared.

At 10:00 a.m. sharp, Brett blew the whistle to call everyone to assemble in the center of the field, where he gave a brief speech to all the players participating in the trial.

Brett stated bluntly: "One of the most basic selection requirements for the team is that you can't be a team-disrupting jerk, a locker room bomb. No matter how good your size, talent, shooting, or dribbling skills are, if you are a troublemaker who disrupts the team, I will never let you into the team."

With that, Brett walked up to the dreadlocked black guy and said, "You just provoked others in the locker room for no reason. That's not what a team player should do. So, please leave. You're eliminated. Your registration fee will be refunded. Go now."

The dreadlocked black guy looked utterly incredulous. He tried to explain, plead, and then erupt in impotent rage, but to no avail. Brett's face remained expressionless, like a stone Buddha. In the end, the black guy could only stomp his feet and mutter curses as he left the field.

"This damn team is a pile of dog shit. Nobody cares about you guys. A bunch of trash! Pure garbage. I don't want to come to this garbage dump!"

No one paid any attention; everyone was silent and trembling with fear. Blackie's departure meant that the elimination process had already begun.

Brett then walked up to Levi, leaned close, and said, "Next time this happens, it's best to ask the assistant coach to handle it. Private disputes are taboo in our team."

"I'm not a primary school student anymore, and besides, it's no use talking to the teacher."

"If you just started, you might lose this selection opportunity."

"Then you will lose the best player in the league."

Brett laughed, shook his head helplessly, took two steps back, blew his whistle, and announced the official start of the trial selection.

(End of this chapter)