Chapter 55

While most people were focused on what Yang Mo and Pat Riley were discussing, the situation on the court quietly changed. Previously, the Heat had been dominating the Nets, but now the tide had turned. Vince Carter, after being blocked once, suddenly found his form from five years ago, capable of breaking through, mid-range shooting, and dunking with ease. Devin Harris had also evolved into Allen Iverson, scoring with various sharp 2+1 plays. And Nenad Krstic, facing Joel Anthony, was like a shark, taking whatever he wanted.

Soon, the Heat's lead of seven points turned into a ten-point deficit. All of this happened just because Yang Mo had a brief conversation with Pat Riley, which lasted less than five minutes.

Beep!

When Erik Spoelstra called a timeout and walked towards Pat Riley with a helpless look, Pat Riley finally looked up at the scoreboard. He was clearly furious: What the hell? A 18-2 run in five minutes?

"What's going on?" Pat Riley asked Spoelstra with a stern face.

Although Spoelstra was the head coach of the Heat, the real decision-maker was Pat Riley. So, the head coach seemed somewhat hesitant and said in a low voice, "Our rebounds are being dominated, and no one can stop Carter and Harris from breaking into the paint. Also, Dwyane hasn't found his rhythm yet."

Pat Riley took a deep breath, pointed at Yang Mo, and said, "Put Yang in, take out Haslem, Beasley, and Anthony. Put Dorrell and Chris on the court."

"But if we do that... we'll only have Yang in the paint. Isn't that...?" Spoelstra was hesitant, still thinking that Yang Mo alone wasn't enough to support the Heat's frontcourt. This lineup averaged less than 6'5", which was too small.

"Do you have any other ideas?"

Pat Riley glared, and the Filipino immediately became obedient, nodding quickly, "Yes, yes."

He quickly went to get the playbook to set up the strategy.

Soon, the whistle blew, and the game resumed. When Yang Mo and the others walked onto the court, the fans were stunned: Had the Heat been beaten senseless? They actually put on five small players? Were they not satisfied with losing enough?

No one was optimistic about the Heat's lineup, just as they had not been optimistic about Yang Mo before.

"Oppa." Amidst the boos and jeers, the girls of Girls' Generation stood up together, "Go, go, go!"

Nine young girls cheered for Yang Mo in unison, and they were currently the hottest girl group in the world. This treatment was something even Michael Jordan had never experienced.

At that moment, almost all the players on the court envied Yang Mo. In fact, every heterosexual man envied him. Who wouldn't want to share a bed with beautiful women? Who wouldn't want a harem of beauties? However, very few men could achieve this. Many men couldn't even get one woman, and could only silently envy Yang Mo's good fortune with women.

"Go!" Yang Mo turned and gave the Girls' Generation a V sign, then headed onto the court.

After entering the game, Yang Mo called his teammates together and said, "Later, when you have the chance, shoot threes. Don't hesitate; we're running a fast break, so we'll have plenty of ball possessions. And even if you miss, I'll be there to grab the rebound."

Yang Mo spoke like a leader, and Dwyane Wade didn't say anything. He wasn't a petty leader and had never asked the rookie Yang Mo to carry his bag. Of course, this was partly because Yang Mo had almost killed Marion, and since then, the veterans had never made Yang Mo run errands. Instead, Beasley and Chalmers were often the ones being ordered around, with Haslem even making Chalmers buy him burgers in the middle of the night.

Beep!

With the whistle, the Heat moved like a wound-up machine. They reached the front court, and the Nets' defense wasn't set. Dorrell Wright, who had run to the corner, received a pass from Chalmers and immediately took a three-pointer... clang!

Although Wright was a shooter, he wasn't the type to shine immediately. The ball predictably clanged off the rim.

The ball bounced high off the rim, and Krstic, who had positioned himself, was about to jump for the rebound. But just as he was about to jump, Yang Mo pushed him aside with a strong hip check and easily grabbed the rebound.

After grabbing the rebound, Yang Mo didn't immediately attack but threw the ball to Chris Quinn at the left corner, shouting, "Chris, try your shot."

Chris Quinn didn't hesitate, quickly jumping and shooting... clang!

The ball clanged off the rim again.

This time, Krstic braced himself and was ready to fake a fall. If Yang Mo used force, he would fall to the floor. From their previous encounter, he realized that although he was strong, he was still far from Yang Mo. Since he couldn't win with strength, he had to rely on acting.

However, Yang Mo didn't give him the chance to act. As the ball was about to fall, he suddenly spun around Krstic like a top, a beautiful move. Krstic was still unsure whether to fake a fall.

By the time he realized Yang Mo had taken the best position, Yang Mo had already jumped and grabbed the rebound with his long arms.

Yang Mo's consecutive offensive rebounds drew gasps from the Nets fans. It felt like they had just started and were already shouting, "I can't, I can't, I'm going to lose it, I'm going to shoot." Indeed, Yang Mo's two offensive rebounds were like a grip on their testicles, robbing them of their ability to climax.

But Yang Mo wasn't done yet. He threw the ball to Dorrell Wright, who had moved to the 45-degree angle, and shouted, "Dorrell, one more chance."

Wright caught the ball and shot decisively... clang!

The ball clanged off the rim again. Yang Mo quickly positioned himself under the basket. Just as he was about to jump, Krstic, unable to bear the taunting, pushed Yang Mo hard, causing him to stumble and almost fall.

At the same time, the ball bounced high and went into the basket.

Beep!

The referee blew the whistle, calling a foul on Krstic, the basket counted, and the ball went back to the Heat.

Boo!

The fans went wild with boos. Yang Mo's two consecutive rebounds had already annoyed them, and then Wright made a three-pointer. Finally, the referee called a foul on Krstic and gave Yang Mo another possession. It was like getting slapped a few times, then opening a bottle to find "Try Again" written on the cap.

Was there anything more frustrating?

Of course, there was. After the call, Yang Mo walked up to Krstic with a smile, patted his shoulder, and said, "Don't be down, buddy. You almost got that rebound. Really. The future is yours, keep it up!"

After Yang Mo said this, Krstic, who was already angry, turned beet red, his fists clenched. If not for his professional demeanor, he would have punched Yang Mo.

"Fuck! I've been in the league for nine years, and I need a rookie to teach me? What do you mean, 'the future is yours'? Is the future of the senior fitness center mine?"

Krstic cursed viciously in his mind.

He could only curse in his mind, while Yang Mo stood out of bounds to inbound the ball.

...

[Third update delivered. Please give me recommendations and add to your collection. Brothers, give me your votes, please! PS: A final request for a thumbs up!]