The audience had mixed feelings about the robot: some were puzzled, some were skeptical, some didn't understand, and others were supportive.
"Can Brother Yi really beat a robot?"
"Yushu Technology is the pride of China!"
"One is the pride of us Chinese humans, and the other is the pride of our Chinese AI robots."
"A showdown between those two sources of pride is certainly something to look forward to!"
"It's actually called War Dragon. What a domineering name!"
The lights shone down, illuminating the half-court at center stage.
Besides Wang Yi and the robot, there was now a referee on the court as well.
It was none other than Crawford, the famous bald former NBA referee!
The fans in the audience were once again astonished.
"The organizers really went all out for this game. They even got Michael Jordan, Barkley, and Shaquille O'Neal to commentate, and they brought in Crawford as the referee too."
"Yeah, who would've thought a one-on-one game could have this kind of star power?"
The bald referee, Crawford, walked onto the court with the basketball.
The microphone clipped to his collar was connected to the arena's speakers. He looked at the robot in surprise and thought, For a robot to be capable of this is astonishingly lifelike. Technology really is advancing by leaps and bounds, especially robotics in China. It's truly amazing.
He then motioned for the two players to meet in the free-throw circle for a jump ball, which would decide who got the first possession.
The bald referee, Crawford, raised the ball in both hands and tossed it high into the air.
It rose a great distance, reached its apex, and began to fall.
Wang Yi kept his eyes fixed on the ball, waiting for it to drop within his reach.
But just as