Returning to '97, creating a new life

Park In-ji glanced at the notebook in her hand and got off the bus somewhat absentmindedly.

He scratched his half-bald head and sighed to himself, "There aren't any good prospects this year."

"Hello, Ms. Park, I'm from No. 1 Middle School..."

The physical education teacher from Tieyi High School was already waiting at the bus stop. As the best high school in the city and a provincial key high school, Tieyi High School has a very limited number of sports specialty student slots each year, making them the most sought-after students. Although there are hard indicators of academic performance as the standard of measurement, Park In-ji, who has the ability to recommend, assess, and provide corresponding guidance, is a well-known figure in various middle schools in the city.

Because some special groups have rigid criteria that allow for some flexibility, this simple standard is where Professor Park's role becomes very important.

"Oh, hello, hello."

After shaking hands and exchanging pleasantries, Park In-ji was led into the school by a teacher from Tieyi Middle School.

"I heard there's a guy named Dong Bin at your school. How tall is he now?"

"Two meters and two inches."

I'm proud and happy. He's a promising student. If he gets into a high school through his special talent program, it will be a significant achievement for me as a physical education teacher. In return, I'll receive a substantial bonus and a generous gift of thanks from Dong Bin's parents.

Park In-ji frowned slightly: "A bit short."

"what!"

The teachers at Tieyi Middle School were dumbfounded. A junior high student who was not yet sixteen years old was already two meters and two centimeters tall, which was a bit short.

Park In-ji glanced at him, understanding his thoughts instantly, but offered no explanation.

He had handled many promising young players at the No. 1 High School in the city, and quite a few at the Capital University of Physical Education and Sports. Some of his students even went on to play for professional teams, and one of them was even selected for the national youth team. As a result, his horizons broadened considerably, and he witnessed the talents from all over the country.

In the current development plan, basketball is ultimately a sport for "tall people". It's not that Dong Bin's age and height are insufficient, but all young talents, true geniuses have already made their mark. If they haven't made their mark, they must have enough impressive height as an asset.

"Um?"

Upon entering the stadium, Park In-ji's eyes lit up as she looked at the towering figure warming up in the middle of the field, showing some interest.

It is robust enough.

It wasn't the kind of underdeveloped, thin, paper-thin physique he'd seen before, the kind that looked like it could be blown away by a gust of wind. Instead, it had the robust feel of an adult. Seeing the other person's impressive speed, Park In-ji became truly interested.

"Dong Bin also entered a period of rapid physical development in the second half of his second year of junior high school. After one summer vacation, he grew more than ten centimeters, but it did not affect his speed or agility. The key is his strength. We did tests and comparisons, and he is not much worse than adult athletes of similar height and build..."

Seeing that Park In-ji was in high spirits, the PE teacher quickly organized his thoughts and said the most flattering things.

Park In-ji casually agreed, but her eyes were fixed on Dong Bin, who was dominating the paint. She thought to herself that her old classmate might be unreliable, but he had unintentionally achieved something great.

Their classmate relationship, coupled with their shared ethnicity and being members of a minority group, has allowed the two, who had grown apart since school, to maintain contact over the years. When Yoo Da-sung came to Park In-ji's door saying he had a promising talent under his wing, Park In-ji didn't take it seriously. However, after drinking too much, she nodded and later regretted it.

During this period, all high schools are searching for promising talents throughout the region. Park In-ji is very busy. When she came, she was still complaining in her heart that Yoo Da-sung was wasting her time. Railway Middle School has declined sharply in the past two years and has long since run out of good students. Unexpectedly, this trip brought a pleasant surprise. Being over two meters tall is equivalent to having an absolute advantage in special recruitment in the field of basketball. If there is enough potential, No. 1 High School will have another good prospect in the provincial competition this year, which will store a good prospect for the next three years.

Park In-ji's ambitions go beyond just recruiting a few students with special talents. If she can cultivate a student who is specially recruited by a prestigious university or is favored by a provincial university, it would be natural for her to aspire to a national university.

As for that student with incredibly accurate long-range shooting that his old classmate mentioned, Park In-ji had long forgotten about him. Doesn't he understand the principle that shooting accuracy increases with distance from the basket? Spending too much time in a third-rate high school has probably ruined his brain.

Whether sitting or standing, as long as it doesn't affect the game, the basketball court at Tieyi Middle School can accommodate two to three hundred spectators. Because many students from Tieer Middle School came this year, the place was packed. When Xu Kai and others changed their clothes and entered the court, the students from Tieer Middle School cheered and gave them star treatment, which made the students from Tieyi Middle School also get excited and cheer for their own basketball team. The whole scene began to have the liveliness that is unique to this sport.

Liu Duosheng approached his old classmate. Outside, watching his classmate being fawned over, he could only stand humbly to the side, a smile always on his face, waiting for his old classmate to have time to greet him and then recommend Xu Kai.

"Old Liu, Old Liu, I don't like standing here like a lackey, and I don't think you'll like it either. Don't worry."

Xu Kai looked at Liu Duosheng and his eyes turned cold. He remembered Liu's careful teaching and the daily lunch that far exceeded his own food standards. How could his teacher stand in the corner like a lackey?

The former is now calm as still water, no longer arrogant, but doesn't mind being a little more assertive.

Let's start with a warm-up.

Dunking in junior high school is a rare occurrence, but it's not something that gets people excited, especially in front of professionals.

What about the standard drawn bow and battle axe?

The training, improved nutrition, and overall improvement over this period have made Xu Kai's past struggles with dunks a thing of the past.

Xu Kai patted the basketball, signaling his teammates to make way for him. To get the best opportunity to be seen by more people, he spread his arms, indicating that his teammates should cooperate with him, attracting the attention of the entire arena to cheer him on for what he was about to do.

After dribbling the ball and taking a few steps to get up, push off with one foot and leap into the air. If you're going to show off, you have to do it properly. Instead of sinking ten three-pointers in a row, given the current level of understanding, why not unleash a powerful tomahawk dunk? That's something 99% of people have never seen in real life.

Bang!

Wow! ! ! !

The entire venue erupted in cheers and screams.

Liu Duosheng suddenly straightened up, his slightly bent waist straightening.

Park In-ji's pupils dilated. The more professional one is, the more one can perceive how much physical talent is required to create a tomahawk dunk that combines strength, jumping ability, and body coordination. Not to mention the high school basketball level that he has been exposed to the most, how many professional players can dunk with such power and beauty?

"Dong Bin, give me one."

"Dong Bin, give us one!"

After their initial cheers, the students of Tieyi Middle School were filled with fighting spirit and resentment. What, are they here to intimidate us? Do they really think Tieyi Middle School has no one left?

With his square face, he exudes a maturity far beyond his years. According to the perception of young people of Xu Kai's generation, isn't this a typical comic book uncle coming into reality?

It doesn't have the exaggerated feel of Akagi and Uozumi from the manga, but rather the mature features and temperament of Maki Shinichi. The thick beard sprouting on his cheeks and chin, along with a few large pimples, are still struggling to proclaim that this face is young.

Even in defeat, one should not lose face. At this moment, the competitive spirit unique to young people emerged. Dong Bin took the basketball, took a few steps to run up, pushed off the ground with both legs, and soared into the air. Although it was not as graceful as Xu Kai's, it was just a pure, powerful, two-handed slam dunk, which was enough to ignite the entire stadium once again.

Those with a professional perspective might not be able to see it, but all you need to know is that our Tieyi Middle School also has an ace, and can respond to that arrogant guy from Tieer Middle School.

………………

"Is that the student you were talking about? He's physically fit, how tall is he?"

Park In-ji and Yoo Da-sung sat together on the sidelines, staring at Xu Kai for a few moments. Wearing a basketball uniform, his shoulders, neck, arms, and calves were clearly visible. The lines were far beyond what a middle school student could have, masking the lack of muscle strength. But thinking back to that tomahawk dunk, that power couldn't be conveyed by mere muscles.

"He was measured today. He's 185cm tall barefoot. He's grown more than ten centimeters in the past few months, from summer vacation to now." Liu Duosheng put aside his idea of ​​desperately recommending him to his old classmate. His incredibly mature student had already given the answer.

Are any recommendations truly useful if they have absolute strength?

"Old Liu, with his physical attributes, how can you tolerate him randomly shooting from beyond the three-point line? He needs more training, he has great potential. If he only thinks about long-range shooting, he'll ruin all the good prospects. No coach can allow a player like this to waste offensive opportunities on their team."

Liu Duosheng didn't explain, nor did he want to: "Old classmate, how about we watch the match?"

Park In-ji's lips curled up: "Oh, you're quite confident. Okay, I'll wait and see."

In the field.

The warm-up is over, and the official competition begins.

Xu Kai is the tallest player on the Tieer Middle School basketball team, and he's the one who jumps the ball.

Standing opposite him, the massive figure of Dong Bin lowered his head slightly and stared at Xu Kai: "Kid, your magic ends today."

Making threats?

Xu Kai remained calm. He didn't know the extent of his rebirth benefits, but as long as they didn't reach the world level, basketball would only be one path for him to advance his studies. The single advantage of being prescient was enough to allow him to accumulate financial freedom by his thirties, even if it took him a little longer. There was absolutely no need for him to struggle and fight in non-top-level fields.

The future is for enjoying life.

Striving is merely a means to enjoy life; it has no other added value. Between becoming famous and making a lot of money, he would choose the latter without hesitation. He also hopes to enjoy everything in this world for the rest of his life, eating, drinking, and having fun. This world is enough for him to live a lifetime of adventure.

Now that Park In-ji is here, let's go all out for the next few days and kickstart my high school journey in one go.

jump ball.

Despite being more than ten centimeters shorter, he managed to touch the basketball with both hands at the same time, creating a memorable scene.

When his teammates saw the basketball being knocked away, Xu Kai shouted and ran towards the frontcourt, turning his head to the side, his hands already ready to catch the ball.

The ball has arrived.

The opposing team has also returned to defend.

However, Xu Kai, who had just charged forward, suddenly stopped outside the three-point line.

Take off.

Park In-ji frowned. There was still a chance for a fast break. This kid's ball handling was too unreasonable. In my team, if anyone dared to do that, he would be benched for life.