Chapter Summaries

Wang Yi brought the Kings’ key players together and organized the rest of the roster for training camp, impressing head coach Luke Walton with his leadership. With owner Ranadave’s approval, the team prepared to fly to the Denver highlands for altitude training.

• Wang Yi and Bagley emerged from their one-on-one game, and Wang Yi praised Bagley as strong without revealing the score.
• Wang Yi, Hield, and Barnes went to find Holmes, then held a video call that helped bring the available Kings players together.
• The reserves assembled at the Kings’ Training Hall three days later, while TT Thompson said he would need about another month before joining.
• Luke Walton and Ranadave arrived as the Kings began training camp, and Walton gave the players his training plan.
• Wang Yi proposed training in the Denver highlands to prepare for high-altitude arenas, and Ranadave approved the expense.
• The Kings flew to the Denver highlands the next day and kept their itinerary confidential.

The Kings trained in Denver, then stumbled to five straight losses to start the season as fans blamed Wang Yi for the team's struggles. Shaquille O'Neal defended Wang Yi's scoring efficiency and criticized Luke Walton's coaching, and Wang Yi prepared to break out in the Kings' sixth game.

• Dr. Rana warned Mitchell to forget his crush on Nicole, while Julie Hopp's supervisor told her to stop pursuing Wang Yi because Nicole was someone they could not provoke.
• The Kings trained in Denver for nearly three months, and Wang Yi reached peak speed and increased his weight to 95 kilograms.
• The Kings went 6–2 in the preseason, but opened the regular season with five straight losses as Wang Yi averaged 20.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 5.3 assists.
• Shaquille O'Neal blamed Luke Walton's egalitarian offense and poor defensive coaching for the Kings' struggles, arguing that Wang Yi needed more shots.
• On November 16, Wang Yi finally broke out in the Kings' sixth game after holding back for half a month.

The Kings trailed the Timberwolves by 20 at halftime, deepening the team's doubts after five straight losses. Wang Yi confronted Luke Walton over the coach's egalitarian offense, and Walton agreed to give him the ball.

• Before the game, Wang Yi promised the Kings he would help them win, and Hield and Barnes voiced their support.
• The Timberwolves led the Kings 67–47 at halftime as Wang Yi scored only nine points and Edwards scored 28.
• Wang Yi heard the fans and media criticize the Kings but blamed Walton's offense for limiting him to five first-half shots.
• Walton told Wang Yi to keep playing off the ball in the second half, but Wang Yi demanded that he abandon the egalitarian approach and give him the ball.
• Walton responded, “Then give him the damn ball!”

Wang Yi defied Luke Walton’s objections and launched a comeback against the Timberwolves with three consecutive long-range threes. After drawing the crowd’s attention, he used his speed to get past Edwards and hit another deep shot, leaving the Kings still trailing but energized.

• Wang Yi confronted Walton over the team’s losing approach, and Bagley, Barnes, Hield, and Mitchell backed Wang Yi’s plan to give him the ball.
• Edwards opened the second half with a powerful dunk, then Wang Yi answered with a Logo three that cut the deficit to 19 points.
• Edwards missed a three, and Wang Yi hit a second consecutive Logo three as the crowd and his teammates finally took notice.
• After Edwards made a midrange jumper, Wang Yi used his burst of speed to get past him and hit another deep three.

Wang Yi hit four three-pointers early in the second half, cutting the Kings’ 20-point deficit against the Timberwolves to 12 and forcing a timeout. He urged his energized teammates to keep pushing and give their all on defense.

• Wang Yi made three three-pointers in the first 70 seconds of the second half, reducing the deficit to 15.
• Chris Finch signaled for the Timberwolves to double-team Wang Yi, but Wang Yi blocked Edwards and forced a jump ball.
• Wang Yi outjumped Edwards, tipped the ball to Hield, then took a pass back and sank a logo three to cut the deficit to 12.
• Wang Yi’s fourth three energized the Kings, and Finch called a timeout.
• Luke Walton praised Wang Yi, who told his teammates to keep attacking and focus on defense.

Wang Yi sparked the Kings’ comeback against the Timberwolves with a dominant third quarter, scoring 32 points and helping Sacramento take a seven-point lead. As the fourth quarter approached, Wang Yi remained hungry to score more.

• The Timberwolves planned to double-team Wang Yi and force the Kings’ other players to beat them.
• The Kings tightened their defense, forcing a rushed miss that Bagley rebounded before Wang Yi raced ahead for a free-throw-line dunk.
• James watched Wang Yi’s dunk with Bronny and welcomed the possibility of Wang Yi becoming a rival.
• Wang Yi handled the Timberwolves’ double-teams by moving without the ball, shooting threes, and creating chances for teammates as the Kings held their opponents scoreless for three minutes.
• The Kings finished the third quarter with a seven-point lead, while Wang Yi scored 32 points in the quarter and reached 41 for the game.

Wang Yi convinced the Kings to use a fast-paced Run and Gun approach in the fourth quarter, while Chris Finch urged the Timberwolves to restore their Pick and Roll attack. Wang Yi stayed on the court and opened the quarter by evading Towns’s block attempt for a shot.

• Wang Yi proposed that the Kings keep moving and get him the ball in the fourth quarter, and his teammates agreed to support him.
• Chris Finch told Edwards and Towns to run their Pick and Roll and play with more energy.
• Chris Finch saw Wang Yi still on the court and realized the Kings would continue relying on him.
• Wang Yi prompted his teammates to run as the Kings began the fourth quarter, unsettling the Timberwolves defense.
• Wang Yi faked out Towns in midair and flicked the ball toward the basket.

Wang Yi overwhelmed the Timberwolves with evasive shooting and a lightning-fast solo fast break, while the Kings answered the Wolves’ pressure with a transition dunk of their own. After the Timberwolves called a timeout, the game remained a high-speed exchange.

• Wang Yi dodged Towns in midair and made a soft shot, then answered Towns’s three-pointer with a swished three of his own after faking out Edwards and the Timberwolves’ Small Forward.
• Edwards and Towns ran a Pick and Roll, and Towns caught Edwards’s lob and dunked over the Kings.
• Wang Yi took Bagley’s inbound pass, sped past the Timberwolves’ defenders, and finished a four-second coast-to-coast attack with a dunk.
• Edwards and Towns stopped Wang Yi’s next fast break by double-teaming him, but Hield and Holmes exploited the opening and finished with a fast-break dunk.
• The Timberwolves’ coach called a Timeout after Holmes’s dunk.

The Kings extended their lead over the Timberwolves by combining fast breaks with Wang Yi’s logo threes. Wang Yi stayed in the game, and Bagley capped another break with a soaring dunk.

• Holmes berated the Timberwolves during a timeout after they gave up three fast breaks, while the Kings celebrated their run and ten-point lead.
• Wang Yi refused Luke Walton’s offer to rest, and Holmes slammed his clipboard when Wang returned to the court.
• The Timberwolves disrupted the Kings’ first two attempts to run, and Wang Yi missed a layup and a three-pointer.
• Wang Yi urged his teammates to keep running, then hit a logo three after their advance forced the Timberwolves’ defense to retreat.
• The Timberwolves failed to score, and Hield passed to Bagley, who led the next break and finished with a soaring dunk.

Wang Yi erupted for 67 points to lead the Kings to their first win of the season, a 130–105 victory over the Timberwolves. After celebrating with his teammates and Towns, he looked for Edwards but saw him walking dejectedly toward the player tunnel.

• After Holmes launched a long pass, Wang Yi caught it in midair and dunked behind his head to restore the Kings' momentum.
• The Timberwolves called a timeout and chose to retreat on defense, curbing the Kings' fast breaks but giving Wang Yi room to make nine threes in the quarter.
• Edwards rushed his shots as the Timberwolves went four minutes without a field goal, while Wang Yi's performance helped the Kings pull further ahead.
• The Kings beat the Timberwolves 130–105, earning their first win of the season as Wang Yi finished with 67 points.
• Wang Yi leaped onto the scorer's table and roared in celebration, then encouraged Bagley and exchanged congratulations with Towns.
• Wang Yi looked for Edwards and saw him walking dejectedly toward the player tunnel.

After scoring 62 points, Wang Yi told a local reporter that the Kings would reach the Western Conference Finals, provoking ridicule in the United States while Chinese fans celebrated his return. The chapter ended with Xu Jingyu declaring that Wang Yi was certain to lead the Kings to the playoffs.

• Wang Yi told Vinik that the Kings would live by the creed “never give up, never abandon” and named the Western Conference Finals as their goal.
• The interview drew mockery from the Timberwolves, Edwards, the California Times, and American fans, but Wang Yi said he did not care and planned to prove them wrong.
• Chinese fans and sports commentators celebrated Wang Yi’s 62-point game, and Xiao Ke’s video praising his return quickly gained hundreds of thousands of likes.
• Xu Jingyu answered viewers’ questions and said Wang Yi’s minimum achievement should be leading the Kings to the playoffs.

After analysts predicted the Kings would struggle in the Playoffs, Wang Yi and Walton discussed how to improve the team’s offense. They settled on testing a run-and-gun system combined with One Star Four Shooters, leaving the strategy as an initial plan to try in a game.

• Xu Jingyu said the Kings would likely be eliminated early in the Playoffs because their roster was weaker than their Western Conference rivals.
• After the game, Walton told Wang Yi that relying on him for everything would leave the team vulnerable in the Playoffs or if he got injured.
• Wang Yi proposed building around himself, Hield, and Bagley, then suggested a One Star Four Shooters system using the team’s shooting ability.
• Walton acknowledged his egalitarian approach had been too stubborn but worried that a one-star system would fail if its star were unavailable.
• Walton suggested combining run-and-gun with One Star Four Shooters, and Wang Yi agreed that the team should test the idea in a real game.

Wang Yi and Walton agreed to pair the Run and Gun Tactic with the One Star Four Shooters system and decided Wang Yi would oversee the Kings' defense while they searched for a defensive coach. At practice, Wang Yi tried to lure his teammates into defensive drills by offering money to anyone who could stop him, and rookie Danny was tempted by the growing wager.

• Wang Yi and Walton agreed that the Kings would use the Run and Gun Tactic with the One Star Four Shooters system and recognized that the team needed to improve its defense.
• Wang Yi offered to handle the Kings' defense temporarily while Walton continued searching for a dedicated defensive coach, and Walton accepted.
• Wang Yi trained his running passes before Hield and Bagley arrived, then joked with them about their training habits.
• Walton announced the new system at practice, and the team struggled through its first session together.
• Walton left the afternoon practice to study the system, while Wang Yi offered increasing cash rewards to teammates who could stop his offense once; Danny was tempted when the wager reached $1,000.

Wang Yi offered rookie Danny a thousand dollars for stopping him, and Danny kept challenging him until luck earned him the money. The chapter ended with Wang Yi revealing that Danny could challenge him without limits, while everyone else was restricted to three attempts a day.

• Danny agreed to try stopping Wang Yi after confirming the thousand-dollar reward and that he could keep trying if he failed.
• Wang Yi repeatedly got past Danny, while his teammates teased the rookie and Nicole revealed a backpack full of cash.
• On his sixteenth attempt, Danny grabbed the ball after Wang Yi slipped, and Wang Yi paid him a thousand dollars.
• Danny kept challenging Wang Yi and stole the ball on his twenty-third try, earning another thousand dollars.
• Wang Yi told the team that Danny had unlimited daily challenges, while everyone else could try only three times a day.

Wang Yi ran an exhausting one-on-one defensive training session with the Kings, helping the players improve while sharpening his own offense. As the Kings prepared to host the Rockets, Jalen Green dismissed them in a pregame interview and predicted a thirty-point win.

• Danny challenged Wang Yi more than fifty times, stopping him six times before collapsing from exhaustion.
• Hield, Bagley, Holmes, Barnes, Mitchell, and the other Kings took turns challenging Wang Yi, who eventually fell exhausted after more than a hundred rounds.
• Wang Yi continued one-on-one training with the team, lowering the stakes and leaving openings as the players and Wang Yi unknowingly improved.
• The Kings prepared to face the Rockets, whose John Wall and Jalen Green had led them to a 3–3 start.
• Jalen Green said he would hold Wang Yi under thirty points and predicted the Rockets would beat the Kings by thirty.

Wang Yi brushed off Jalen Green’s challenge, then energized the Kings before their game against the Rockets. After checking in and receiving a McGrady Time Experience Card, he opened the game with a logo three, and the Rockets’ coach told Jalen Green to defend him.

• At the pregame press conference, Wang Yi calmly dismissed Jalen Green’s boast while reassuring Bagley and Hield.
• Wang Yi saw the larger crowd at the Golden 1 Center and urged his teammates to work together to fill the arena.
• Before tipoff, Wang Yi checked in and received a McGrady Time Experience Card, which he decided to save for a crucial moment.
• Bagley won the opening jump ball, and Wang Yi caught Hield’s pass at midcourt and sank a logo three.
• The Rockets’ coach reminded Jalen Green to defend Wang Yi’s logo threes, and Jalen Green promised to show him his defense.

Wang Yi helped Hield and Bagley answer Jalen Green’s challenges, turning the Kings’ defense into fast-break highlights. After Bagley blocked Green and finished Wang Yi’s alley-oop, Green was left facing more trash talk.

• Jalen Green scored over Hield, but Wang Yi passed Hield the ball so he could answer with a drive and layup.
• Hield poked the ball loose from Green, and Wang Yi sent a long pass ahead for Hield to dunk.
• Hield repeatedly stopped Green and taunted him by comparing his defense against Green to his one-on-one matchups with Wang Yi.
• Bagley blocked Green’s drive, and Wang Yi sprinted downcourt before tossing the ball off the backboard for Bagley to slam home.
• Bagley credited Wang Yi’s defensive advice for the block and told Green he was not good enough yet.

Jalen Green volunteered to guard Wang Yi, but Wang Yi beat him with strength and speed, then provoked him into losing focus. The chapter left Wang Yi driving past Green toward the basket again.

• Jalen Green asked Coach Silas to let him guard Wang Yi and promised to hold him under 30 points.
• Wang Yi drove past Jalen Green, powered through his contact, and dunked with both hands.
• Wang Yi taunted Jalen Green, who suppressed his anger after John Wall intervened.
• Jalen Green demanded the ball and tried to challenge Wang Yi, but Wang Yi told Hield to handle him instead.
• Jalen Green lost the ball out of bounds while driving, then charged at Wang Yi again on defense.
• Wang Yi used a Lightning Break to get past Green and drove toward the basket.

Wang Yi baited Jalen Green into a technical foul as the Kings took a five-point lead over the Rockets in the first quarter. After both coaches demanded their teams run their practiced systems, the second quarter opened with a rapid exchange of scores and shaky defense.

• Wang Yi faked a dunk, laid the ball in after Jalen Green jumped, and taunted him to go get his parents.
• Jalen Green charged at Wang Yi and cursed at him, so the referee gave him a technical foul.
• The Kings finished the first quarter ahead 35–30, with Wang Yi scoring eleven points.
• Walton criticized the Kings for relying on individual offense and told them to use the Run and Gun Tactic and One Star Four Shooters system.
• The Rockets' coach urged his team to play run and gun, while John Wall and Gordon worried about the pace.
• The Rockets and Kings traded quick scores after the break, with Hield making a fast-break layup as the defenses struggled.

The Kings and Rockets traded baskets in a run-and-gun game until Wang Yi urged the Kings to improve their defense and helped them maintain a narrow lead. Wang Yi dominated Jalen Green at the rim, and the teams entered the fourth quarter tied at 98–98.

• Wang Yi asked Coach Walton to call a timeout and emphasize defense, after which the Kings extended their lead to eight points.
• Wang Yi drove through all five Rockets defenders for a layup and taunted Jalen Green, whose teammates calmed him before he could lose his temper.
• The Kings struggled with their newly adopted run-and-gun offense but stayed ahead through better defense, finishing the second quarter with a seven-point lead.
• John Wall and round-faced Gordon hit consecutive three-pointers in the third quarter, while Wang Yi scored inside and passed to Bagley, Hield, and Barnes for threes.
• Wang Yi scored his 40th point and mocked Jalen Green, who had failed to stop his drives, as the teams finished the third quarter tied at 98–98.