Staples Center. The game continued.
Leonard, as robotic as ever, kept his eyes fixed on Wang Yi.
He gave him no chance to catch the ball.
Especially with his long arms and big hands waving in front of Wang Yi.
It was like someone was constantly waving a small tree in his face.
How was Wang Yi supposed to catch the ball?
There was simply no way.
That was the terrifying thing about the Deathly Embrace.
But Wang Yi spun around and darted toward the paint.
Leonard naturally stayed right with him, following him into the paint.
Wang Yi ran into the Clippers' zone defense, through the paint, and around their Power Forward.
Then he sprinted toward the left corner, beyond the three-point line, to receive the ball.
Leonard was bigger than Wang Yi, so he couldn't get around his teammates as nimbly.
His teammates couldn't clear a path for him, either.
If they did, their zone defense would fall apart.
Seeing Wang Yi already reach the three-point line, Leonard hurriedly pushed past his teammates and chased him out there.
By then, Wang Yi had found some space.
He caught Caruso's pass and immediately raised his arms.
Leonard was still three meters away. Seeing Wang Yi about to shoot,
he quickly leaped high into the air, like a great bird, and lunged at Wang Yi.
There was no denying his height, leaping ability, and wingspan were all elite.
Even from three meters away, once he leaped, he could completely smother Wang Yi and leave him no chance to shoot.
But Wang Yi wasn't stupid.
It was only a pump fake.
Only after Leonard, soaring like a great bird, flew over his head
did Wang Yi calmly shoot the three.
Swish!
The three-pointer went in!
The lead was down to five.
The crowd erupted once again.
The big screen showed Wang Yi, who had just made the three.
The arena DJ's booming voice rang throughout the stadium.
"Three-pointer, by Wang—Yi—!"
The Clippers came back on offense.
Wang Yi stayed tight on Leonard.
After catching the ball, Leonard saw Wang Yi still glued to him.
He dribbled once while turned sideways, using his body to create space from Wang Yi as he prepared to rise for a contested mid-range jumper.
But Wang Yi had the Experience Card's Deathly Embrace boost, and his reflexes were lightning-fast.
As soon as Leonard bumped him away, Wang Yi quickly stepped back in.
Leonard had only just raised the ball and hadn't even jumped yet.
Wang Yi swung his left arm in a wide arc. Smack—
A huge block, right in Leonard's face, sent the ball crashing down.
Caruso, quick to react on the left, grabbed the ball at once and pushed up the court.
Wang Yi sprinted after him, heading straight for the left corner beyond the three-point line.
George had already caught up.
Caruso couldn't go straight to the rim.
He spotted Wang Yi in the left corner.
He immediately whipped the ball over to him.
Wang Yi caught the ball and was about to jump.
Beverley had already hustled back, too.
Wang Yi faked the shot again.
Beverley went flying as Wang Yi sent him up with the fake.
But Leonard had also caught up by then.
Wang Yi faked the shot again.
Leonard went airborne, too.
If Wang Yi shot now, Beverley would recover in time to block him.
So he dribbled a big step to the right.
He got past Beverley's fingertips.
He jumped, snapped his wrist, and shot!
Swish!
The three-pointer dropped!
The lead was down to two!
You could tell how spectacular that play was from the cheers and shouts pouring out of the crowd.
"Beautiful!"
"That was sick!"
"He blocked Leonard, then came back down the court and sent Beverley and Leonard flying with back-to-back fakes before knocking down the three!"
"Two-way player—that's the kind of 3D Player the Lakers need!"
"I'm starting to wonder who the real Deathly Embrace belongs to: Leonard or Wang."
The big screen replayed Wang Yi's entire sequence, from defense to offense, over and over.
The commentators kept exclaiming in amazement:
"Wang! He's absolutely the Lakers' biggest find this year!"
"That was a two-way play from Wang. A real pleasure to watch. I can't understand how a player like him went unnoticed before!"
One commentator said what he really thought:
"Because he's Asian, and certain coaches won't give him a chance."
Of course, the two commentators didn't dwell on the issue.
They let it pass with just that one remark.
Meanwhile, in the Tencent NBA Live Broadcast Room,
the two commentators were also thrilled.
Wang Meng said, "Wang Yi's three-point shooting isn't as explosive as it was last game. But he's showing what he's worth with his two-way play!"
Su Qun nodded. "That's right. If I remember correctly, Leonard hasn't scored since Wang Yi started guarding him. Look at his defense—he stays right on his man and won't let him catch the ball. He may be shorter than Leonard, and his wingspan may be shorter, too, but with that kind of tenacity, he's earned the name Deathly Embrace."
Wang Meng turned to Meina and said, "You must be happy now, right, Meina?"
Meina smiled brightly and said,
"Wang Yi's performance has been really impressive. I hope he can establish himself soon and make it into the Lakers' rotation."
As the host, Wang Meng posed the question:
"Teacher Su, do you think Wang Yi can make the rotation?"
Su Qun said, "If Wang Yi keeps playing at this high level, he'll be an excellent 3D Player. That's exactly the kind of player the Lakers need. Making the rotation shouldn't be a problem. If he gets to play again next game and can maintain this form, then a guaranteed contract is practically a sure thing."
On the live chat, some fans chimed in:
"Didn't someone just say Leonard was going to crush Wang Yi? What about now?"
"Yeah, where'd all the haters go? Come out, come on, say something."
"What about Brother Xiang? Didn't he say he'd livestream himself eating shit if Wang Yi hit two threes over Leonard? I'm waiting."
The haters had quietly shut their mouths.
That was how haters were. When you played badly, they'd tear you to shreds.
When you played well, they'd all pull their heads back into their shells.
Of course, there were still some haters.
Unable to criticize your skills, they'd just find something else to pick on.
"It's not over yet. Either team could still win."
"This is nothing. If he were really that good, he wouldn't have spent two years bouncing around the NBA."
"He makes one or two good plays, and you all act like he's the greatest. Idiots."
Staples Center.
Wang Yi guarded Leonard once again.
This time, with help from his teammates, Leonard finally finished an alley-oop dunk.
The lead widened to four.
Wang Yi's leaping ability was average, and he was ten centimeters shorter than Leonard.
There was simply no way to stop that one.
The Lakers came back on offense.
Wang Yi ran into the Clippers' paint again.
He weaved around all four players inside, darting this way and that.
Leonard was great at guarding the ball handler, but he rarely had to defend someone constantly moving without the ball.
You don't even have the ball. Why are you running around so much?
In the end, Wang Yi's movement threw the Clippers' interior defense into disarray.
Then he sprinted back outside.
Leonard had been burned last time.
This time, he chased Wang Yi at full speed.
But Wang Yi ran around James.
James handed the ball off to Wang Yi.
Wang Yi caught it beyond the three-point line and immediately rose to shoot.
As Leonard squeezed past James, he stumbled and bumped into Wang Yi's side.
But Wang Yi's confidence was so strong that he released the ball in an instant.
He didn't even have time to complete his shooting motion before the ball was gone.
Tweet—
The referee's whistle blew.
Swish!
The three-pointer dropped!
The referee signaled: foul on Leonard. Wang Yi's three-pointer counted, and he would get one free throw!
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