After Wemby pulled the ball back, Pang Bo didn't jump. He recovered and stayed with him.
But Wemby didn't gather the ball. He merely rocked upward, still managing to throw Pang Bo off balance. Then he suddenly lowered his body and pulled a Buddha Move, slipping past Pang Bo's side.
Pang Bo had never expected a 2.24-meter-tall guy to pull off such an outrageous Buddha Move right in front of him, so he couldn't stop him at all.
The move drew a collective gasp from the 100,000 fans in attendance.
Wemby was excited too. After charging into the paint, he leaped straight up for a Powerful Chop Dunk.
But just as he reached the peak of his jump, a huge hand rose even higher than he did and smacked down hard on the ball.
Smack!
The basketball was swatted away.
When Wemby turned to look, he saw none other than Wang Yi.
The whole arena erupted with excitement once again.
At least two-fifths of the more than 100,000 fans were Wang Yi fans.
They waved their hands excitedly and cheered.
In the VIP box with the best view of the court, Qatari King Tamim was watching the game with his wife, mother, and father. When they saw Wang Yi open the game with a huge block—against the league's tallest player, Wemby—they exchanged glances and smiled.
Tamim most of all.
Although Wang Yi hadn't agreed to become a player a whole tier above the other stars, a spectacular play like blocking the tallest player in the league right at the start was always welcome.
After that block, China Team got the ball and started their offense.
Zhao Rui passed it to Wang Yi, who quickly advanced up the court, but Team America got back on defense fast.
And once they'd recovered,