Another Steal

Manhattan Beach, California, Skechers Sports Company headquarters.

Robert Greenberg muted the projector, then looked around at everyone present.

His eyes burned with excitement as he declared, "Ladies and gentlemen!"

The other Skechers executives all turned to look at Robert Greenberg, the founder of Skechers.

Seeing everyone's eyes on him, Robert Greenberg said excitedly, "This is our chance to rise rapidly."

"If we sign this Eastern player, we'll be able to open the doors to that mysterious, rising nation in the East. And you've all seen how he plays. This man is good at creating miracles, just like Skechers."

Skechers might not be very big right now, but its ambitions didn't stop there. It wanted to surpass Converse, Adidas, and Nike, and become the world's leading sports equipment company.

Everyone thought it over, then nodded in unison.

"Mr. Greenberg, what kind of deal should we offer this Eastern player?"

At the question from one of his subordinates, Robert Greenberg furrowed his brow slightly and fell into thought.

A moment later, his gaze firm, he looked at everyone and said solemnly, "We can follow Nike Company's example from the 1980s."

"Huh?" Everyone was stunned. In the 1980s, Nike Company had given up equity to keep Jordan.

Wouldn't doing the same cost them too much?

"Mr. Greenberg, wouldn't we be giving up too much by doing that?"

Everyone felt Li Chen wasn't worth giving up equity for.

Robert Greenberg smiled slyly. "Ladies and gentlemen, where in the world do you find a deal that good?"

Everyone stared at him in confusion, unsure what Robert Greenberg meant.

Robert Greenberg then explained his plan.

Triangle Sports Center.

After making the steal, Li Chen dribbled and sprinted up the court.

At the same time, several Jazz players, including Kirilenko, chased close behind him.

But Li Chen was incredibly fast, and they simply couldn't catch up.

As he neared the free-throw line, Kirilenko panicked and reached out, pulling Li Chen down.

Li Chen had plenty of experience shooting while falling. Before hitting the floor, he instinctively hurled the ball toward the basket.

The ball bounced on the rim three or four times before slowly tipping down into the hoop.

25–23. Not long after the second quarter began, the Clippers had cut the deficit to two.

The referee's whistle sounded at the same time, signaling that Kirilenko had committed a holding foul and awarding Li Chen an additional free throw.

Kirilenko, the young Russian, was completely dumbfounded. What the hell? How had that gone in?

"Chen played that perfectly," Coach Zhang praised.

Sun Zhengping smiled too. "Our Chen is still so lucky."

Then he shifted gears. "But what impresses me most is his awareness. Even while being pulled down, he didn't forget to throw the ball. That's what I admire most. The chance of scoring after you've taken the shot might be one percent or less, but if you don't shoot, the chance is zero."

Zhang Weiping nodded repeatedly. "That's the kind of spirit our players back home should learn from."

Meanwhile, fans back home erupted.

"Holy crap, he actually made that shot? With luck like that, if he ended up in a fantasy novel, he'd be the chosen one who walked out the door and found a divine artifact!"

That comment earned more than a million likes from fans in an instant.

At the free-throw line, Li Chen rubbed both hands against his jersey, wiping the sweat from his palms.

Then he caught the ball the referee tossed him, exhaled slowly, and sent it smoothly toward the hoop.

Swish! The ball went straight through the net.

The score changed to 25–24, leaving the Clippers just one point behind the Jazz.

Jazz head coach Sloan furrowed his brow slightly in the visitors' section, but didn't call a timeout. He trusted his players.

After making the free throw, Li Chen ran back on defense. Elton Brand came over, astonished. "Chen, that shot was amazing! How'd you do it? Fuck me, I'm about to become your fan."

Li Chen glanced at him, then grinned. "Train with me and I'll teach you. How about it?"

Elton Brand gave Li Chen a huge eye-roll, as if to say, You think I'm stupid? How could anyone train their luck?

This bastard's always trying to pull something on me. I'm not falling for it. With that, he quickly moved away from Li Chen.

Stockton dribbled the ball across half court for the Jazz.

But his brow was deeply furrowed. At first, he hadn't thought much of Li Chen stealing the ball from him.

Then he saw the slow-motion replay on the big screen, and he was deeply shaken.

That Eastern man had planned it all along.

Could he have figured out my passing patterns? If so, I'm finished. This game will be a problem.

With that in mind, Stockton decided to test him once more.

Li Chen also knew full well that his earlier steal had been a fluke. Maybe he'd just gotten lucky and guessed right.

But he knew he had to take another gamble. If he guessed right this time, Stockton would definitely start doubting himself.

Without Stockton, the Jazz's superstar point guard, the Clippers would be halfway to winning the game.

Stockton kept looking for a chance to pass. This time, he stayed alert. Even if Kirilenko came open again, he wouldn't pass to him.

Just then, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he was about to pass the ball without hesitation.

But in the split second before he did, his hand paused. He waited a fraction of a second before sending the pass.

You won't expect me to hold on to the ball instead of passing right away, Eastern Kid.

But as soon as that thought crossed his mind, a man in a Clippers number 16 jersey appeared in his line of sight again, like a nightmare.

Stockton's pupils contracted sharply. Impossible. This can't be happening. I changed what I was doing—how could he still steal it?

Li Chen didn't care how frustrated Stockton was. After stealing the ball from him, he dribbled and sprinted up the court.

But someone was even faster than him. It was Elton Brand.

Seeing this, Li Chen pursed his lips, then tossed the ball into the air.

Brand, already beneath the basket, leaped up, snatched the ball out of the air, and slammed it through the hoop.

The score became 25–26. For the first time that game, the Clippers had taken the lead over the Jazz.

After landing, Elton Brand clenched both fists and roared at the sky.

At the same time, the fans in Triangle Sports Center let out a unified chorus of boos.

Li Chen's steal and alley-oop had also forced the Utah Jazz to call a timeout.