As his thoughts raced, Barkley suggested, "Kenny, let's make a bet!"
Kenny Smith glanced at Barkley beside him. "What are we betting?"
Barkley perked up, practically bursting with eagerness. "I'll bet I'll kiss a donkey's ass. A bull's ass works too."
Kenny Smith raised an eyebrow and sneered inwardly. You wish. If it were something like treating the other guy to dinner, that'd be fine. It wouldn't matter much if I lost.
But Li Chen was a strange one. He had a knack for making the seemingly impossible happen, and Kenny Smith wasn't about to put himself on the spot just for ratings.
So Kenny Smith promptly shook his head. "No bet."
Barkley was dumbfounded. He cursed Kenny Smith under his breath for being such an old fox.
Just then, the timeout ended, and both teams returned to the court.
The game resumed.
The Timberwolves were still running their offense through Garnett, but Li Chen didn't let his success defending him moments ago go to his head. He wasn't about to foolishly try to guard Garnett again.
Wolf King Garnett was Wolf King Garnett. He really was a reliable guy.
After the brief adjustment during the timeout, he had regained his composure and scored again.
The score became 8–17.
At the same time, the Timberwolves had drastically changed their defensive strategy. They packed the paint and gave up the perimeter entirely.
They were trying to limit Li Chen's rebounding, and Coach Flip Saunders's strategy worked.
Although Li Chen had an 80 percent chance of grabbing a rebound, there were simply too many Timberwolves going after the ball. Every time, three of them focused on keeping Li Chen from getting it.
That sent Li Chen's rebounding efficiency plummeting. By the end of the first quarter, he had only 12 rebounds, a world of difference from the first half of the quarter.
But what left Li Chen most speechless was that his teammates had all been possessed by Little Blacksmith Kobe today. They were really bricking shots—clanging away so rhythmically they'd practically turned it into a song.
At the end of the first quarter, the Clippers were somehow down by three, 25–22. Could you believe it?
Clippers' bench.
Coach Alvin Gentry wore a dark expression.
Alvin Gentry was furious. These guys were absolutely useless. It pained him to watch Li Chen fight for rebounds among several Timberwolves players.
But these idiots just kept clanging shot after shot.
The other players wiped their faces with towels, heads bowed and silent. They were helpless too. If the shots wouldn't go in, what could they do?
Alvin Gentry thought for a moment, then said, "Second quarter..." He turned his gaze to Li Chen. "Chen, you're our main scorer."
Then he looked at the others. "Get under the basket and grab rebounds for me," Alvin Gentry said, his face dark.
Li Chen was a little exasperated. He had wanted to break Chamberlain's record, but since Alvin Gentry had said that, all he could do was nod.
Actually, his teammates bricking shots was ideal for him. That way, he could grab more rebounds.
But things got awkward when his own shooting luck went south at the worst possible moment.
At the start of the second quarter, Li Chen caught the ball beyond the three-point line and sank two open threes in a row.
The score instantly became 25–28, putting the Clippers up by three.
Li Chen's sudden attack from beyond the arc completely caught the Timberwolves off guard.
Weren't you just a rebounding madman? Why are you chucking threes from beyond the arc now?
At that moment, the Timberwolves players felt like Li Chen was a Hexagonal Warrior. How could he do everything?
Li Chen's three-pointers from the perimeter forced the Timberwolves to stop packing the paint. Garnett wasn't about to let Li Chen run wild, either.
So Li Chen went back to the same strategy he had used against the Timberwolves in the previous game: endlessly running Garnett around.
When Garnett saw Li Chen using the same trick again, he gritted his teeth. He couldn't figure it out. How did this Eastern Kid have so much stamina? Didn't he ever get tired of running around like that?
Garnett pushed himself on both offense and defense, and after just half a quarter, his ability to finish on offense had fallen off sharply.
Flip Saunders frowned as he watched. With no other choice, he told Garnett to focus on offense and left guarding Li Chen to the others.
But the others had no answer for Li Chen. His sense of timing was simply too good. Every time there was a screen, he could cut into the paint, then either pass the ball or take the shot himself.
If the Clippers hadn't been so ice-cold today, the Timberwolves would probably have been blown out already.
Flip Saunders rubbed his temples. Li Chen, this Eastern Kid, was darting around the court like a rabbit, tearing their defensive formation to pieces. It was incredibly annoying.
By the end of the second quarter, the score was 40–45, with the Clippers still leading by five.
At halftime, Li Chen grabbed another eight rebounds, bringing his total to 20.
Fans back home grimaced as they watched. The Clippers' shooting percentage was truly awful.
They felt that Li Chen had it rough, but even so, his team was still in the lead. They had to admit they were impressed.
The third quarter began, and the Clippers' shooting suddenly came alive. They went on a 16–5 run and forced the Timberwolves to call a timeout.
The score was 45–61, and the gap had widened to 16 points.
At first, Garnett had guarded Li Chen closely. After all, he had talked big at the press conference.
Li Chen had already scored ten points, but if the game ended like this, Garnett could just about save face.
If Li Chen scored much more, though, Garnett would be humiliated.
As always, Garnett had limited energy. He couldn't balance offense and defense, and trying to do both meant he did neither well.
Flip Saunders called a timeout and gave Garnett a thorough tongue-lashing. In the end, he could only give up on having Garnett chase Li Chen around.
With Garnett no longer hounding him, Li Chen was in his element. Thanks to his incredible stamina, he ran himself open for three three-point shots.
He was lucky enough to make all three.
Every time Li Chen scored, Garnett's heart gave a twitch. He thought to himself, I'd better not run my mouth like that again. This is way too embarrassing.
By the end of the third quarter, the score was 63–83. The Timberwolves had been blown out.
With no other choice, Flip Saunders had to give up on the game. Garnett had been affected far too much. He had scored 20 points in the first half, but from the start of the third quarter to the end of it, he had managed only five. There was no point in continuing.
Garnett simply couldn't single-handedly turn the game around.
Starting in the fourth quarter, Flip Saunders took out all his starters and sent in the bench players.
Alvin Gentry also pulled his starters.
But Li Chen stayed in. After all, he still needed to pad his rebound total.
Although "padding" his stats wasn't exactly respectable, Li Chen was determined to help Iverson remain "second to none."
The Clippers' bench players were something else. They really could brick shots!
But there was one player Li Chen found especially frustrating: his fellow countryman, Wang Zhizhi. The guy was shooting well today. Li Chen even wondered if he should suggest that Coach Alvin Gentry take him out.
But then he thought about how this might be Wang Zhizhi's chance—his chance to earn a spot in the rotation—so he let the idea go.
Before you continue