Chapter 63: A Day of Sorrow

Chapter 75: A Difficult Day

If Terry knew about this, he would no doubt be fuming again. But yesterday, Su Feng was completely bewildered. He had no idea what to do.

What were he and William Adams Miller now? Friends, or something more distant than friends?

Su Feng shook his head, trying to cast these tangled thoughts aside. On the basketball court, William Adams Miller delivered a beautiful, no-look pass to one of the founding figures of the Cleveland Cavaliers dynasty, Scott Pippen.

Though Pippen had been retired for years, his figure was still strikingly fit. Somehow, once a top-tier professional league player, he retained that poise. Upon receiving the ball, his shot was steady, textbook-perfect—better even than some current stars.

“Great pass, girl!” Pippen pointed in thanks to William Adams Miller, who smiled in return.

Then the girl turned toward the auditorium. Behind the eastern bench, Su Feng was applauding her.

The Italian girl’s smile blossomed into laughter. It was her first time playing right under Su Feng’s watchful gaze.

Afterward, the game continued in a gentle rhythm. William Adams Miller was courageous, often charging into the men’s group and scoring successful layups. After all, in the Italian league and international competitions, she’d never relied on her looks to earn a place—she was a competitor.

When Vignali came down to sit on the bench, she would chat with Su Feng. Of course, this became a scene the journalists scrambled to capture—lovers on the basketball court! This was a first, even in the dazzling top league!

By the end of the semifinals, Vignali’s outstanding performance had shown many American fans that a pretty face and a fiery figure didn’t make a girl an easy target. She was a true professional on the court!

“Well played, keep it up in the second half!” Su Feng greeted Vignali during halftime, then rose to leave.

“You’re leaving now?” Vignali’s eyes brimmed with reluctance.

“I have to,” Su Feng nodded and dashed out of the stands. He had to prepare for the upcoming Rookie Challenge.

Wen Xue watched the Italian girl and her own son. The two little ones faced each other, unable to hide their feelings.

William Adams Miller gave Wen Xue a gentle smile before hurrying back to hear the coach’s tactics.

As for Su Feng, he no longer cared what the two women thought. He had already delayed joining his teammates in the locker room just to watch Vignali’s game.

The next challenge was Su Feng’s All-Star debut. With the league’s most talented young players gathered, Su Feng didn’t want to mess things up!

Even as he walked through the players’ tunnel, Su Feng could faintly hear the cheers from the basketball court. The celebrity game was just an appetizer. When the rookie game began, Su Feng was certain the roar would be several times louder.

Just as Su Feng approached the front door of the rookie locker room, a tall man brushed past him.

They both stopped and sized each other up.

To the public, the theme of this year’s rookie game was William Adams Miller—over and over again. This “repeat student” would represent the first-year team, and as the host and one of the most sensational rookies, William Adams Miller was undoubtedly the brightest star in the game.

Champions Wall and William Adams Miller would join forces against their opponents, drawing the focus of all fans. After all, this year’s rookie game was truly unique.

But if you thought the rookie challenge was only about these headliners, you’d be sorely mistaken. Everyone knew the relationship between Cousins and Su Feng was rocky. They’d even had physical altercations before. What would happen with both players on the same team? This had become a major talking point for the All-Star rookie tournament.

“I can’t believe they let someone like you into the All-Star game.” Naturally, Cousins didn’t hold back when they met.

“When you top the rookie rankings, you’ll understand why.” Su Feng spread his hands and walked into the locker room.

Though Su Feng’s tone wasn’t as aggressive as Cousins’, his words made the hot-tempered giant even angrier. In fact, Cousins had plenty to say about Su Feng, but Su Feng’s remark reminded him he couldn’t even compete with that “insufferable” Spaniard!

Opening the door, Su Feng saw several players already inside. As the most distinctive presence in the locker room, there was a brief pause when the others saw him, then they forced themselves to greet the All-Star rookie.

Before joining the NCAA, the Spaniard had spent most of the season as a rookie.

The warm-ups on the court were impressive—Su Feng and Wall practicing their shots, William Adams Miller and Cousins occasionally dunking and drawing gasps from the crowd. The Houston Rockets, having lost their draft pick, saw Gary Neal so nervous he sat chatting with a security guard to calm his nerves.

And this was only the warm-up—the fans and journalists were enthralled. When the game officially began, the entire Staples Center dome seemed to come crashing down!

William Adams Miller was no celebrity. She mingled with the fans, raising her arms and screaming for the yellow-skinned guy.

Cousins, William Adams Miller, Su Feng, and Wall—the four most famous players—entered the arena together, pushing the atmosphere to a fever pitch.

Landry Fields, a Californian now with the New York Knicks, was the least popular first-year starter.

With both teams’ starters in their designated spots, the arena lights dispersed and the entire stadium lit up. The referee stood between Cousins and Bryant, tossing the ball into the air.

Houston Rockets’ DeJuan Kobe Bryant was a second-round pick. Though the Spurs were good at finding hidden gems, as a second-rounder, Kobe Bryant had suffered some serious setbacks.

As a center, Kobe Bryant measured only 2.01 meters after putting on shoes, which was a key reason for his low draft position. He was too slow for the small forward spot, lacking shooting range, and too short to protect the rim effectively. If not for Duncan “cleaning up” all year, Bryant would have struggled.

In the game, the tall, springy Cousins delivered the ball to Wall. Wall’s quick dribble signaled the rookie team’s official debut!

Cousins, always eager, wanted his college teammate to give him the first shot. Wall obliged, sliding the ball inside.

Unlike Cousins, Kobe Bryant’s involvement in the rookie game was almost a joke. Only Cousins, anchoring a rebuilding team and a thinking man’s rookie MVP, could dominate. Kobe Bryant and Su Feng were targets, but what about the top-league champion?

Seeing Kobe Bryant slack off on defense, Cousins leapt up and flung the ball at the hoop. He felt good about his shot, but after a clean roll around the rim, the ball slipped out.

The second-year team’s starting power forward, Taj Gibson, was already bracing for the defensive rebound.

Just as number 22, clad in the Cleveland Cavaliers' red jersey, prepared to take off, a sudden breeze swept past—a yellow-skinned guard in a blue Cavaliers jersey jumped in front of Gibson. The number 1's leap made Gibson question his own eyes!

Su Feng snatched the ball in front of Gibson and dunked it with both hands!

“Bang!” As the crowd erupted, the fans’ expectations for this rookie game soared, and Su Feng’s first play did not disappoint!

“Wow, though he’s a point guard, he often appears under the rim in regular-season games. Now, he’s brought that signature move to All-Star Weekend. What a start—everyone must be thrilled!”

But William Adams Miller was mistaken. While Su Feng’s highlight play wowed the crowd, not everyone was thrilled.

Cousins, now sprinting back to his own half, was anything but pleased. His moment in the spotlight had just been stolen by Su Feng. How could William Adams Miller possibly be comfortable with this?

The second-year team launched their attack, and Jennings—part of the Bill Duffy agency—prepared to drive past Wall.

At this moment, Cousins had been drawn to the middle by Kobe Bryant. By All-Star game standards, Jennings assumed Cousins wouldn’t put up much defense—just enough to give the fans a dunk.

But as Jennings soared, stretching out for a rim-rattler, he brought the ball behind his head—only to have it smacked away by a mighty force!

From mid-range, Cousins delivered a resounding block, slapping Jennings’ shot away and leaving the Milwaukee star red-faced!

Cousins didn’t care if it was just an exhibition—he’d just been embarrassed by Su Feng, and now he needed to make up for it on defense.

“That kid is a real bruiser!” On the sidelines, the second-year assistant coach quietly shook his head at Cousins’ display. Would both sides take this game seriously from the start?

After the block, Cousins passed to Wall, already on the move. Wall delivered a precise long pass. Instead of heading straight for the basket, Wall lobbed the ball off the backboard. William Adams Miller came in late, leaping high, and slammed the rebound off the rim!

“Yes!” This time—