He had made 22 shots in a row.
That meant... at the fifth spot in the right corner, Su Yan also had to make all five shots.
It looked easy, but was actually difficult.
It looked difficult, yet Su Yan, who had already made 17 in a row, made all the players feel that it was entirely possible.
"Swish!"
"Swish!"
"Swish!"
In the blink of an eye.
Su Yan made three more in a row, bringing his streak to 20. Only the final two shots remained, but no one doubted Su Yan's shooting touch anymore.
Go ahead and shoot. That three-pointer was going in.
"Swish!"
"Swish!"
Every shot found its mark.
After missing the first three shots, Su Yan sank 22 consecutive three-pointers, bringing the test to a perfect close.
Overall, he made 22 of 25 shots, for a shooting percentage of 88%.
Using a classic phrase from literary fiction to describe it, there were four words: terrifyingly incredible!!!
Thinking about it again.
At his peak, Curry could make 96 of 100 shots during training.
Su Yan's [Max Level Three-Pointer], which surpassed Curry's, had only been 22 of 25 shots, 22 in a row... that was all.
That was perfectly normal.
Su Yan felt there was nothing special about it. It was merely routine.
The Knicks players, however, did not think so. Every one of them was left stunned as if they had seen a ghost.
"Th-that accurate!"
McGrady felt his scalp go numb.
"You call this an undrafted player?"
"Shooter" Gallinari was overwhelmed. He felt that Su Yan's three-point shooting was far, far more accurate than his own!
"Hahaha!"
Coach D'Antoni laughed heartily. "An 88% three-point percentage. If you set aside the first three warm-up shots, that's a 100% shooting percentage.
"These three-pointers are incredible!"
He was genuinely delighted.
If the Suns' "Run and Gun" was to sweep into New York, Su Yan's precise three-point shooting was essential!
This was the first step of the plan.
Now, the first step had been achieved, and... he had exceeded the target by a wide margin.
"Good!"
After the test ended.
D'Antoni happily gave Su Yan a thumbs-up.
In front of every player, he praised him. "Yan will be an excellent mismatch defender.
"He also has one of the best three-point shots in the league.
"Once those two things are combined,
"after Su Yan develops for a while and adapts to the intensity of NBA games, he'll become an elite '3-and-D' player.
"This is fantastic.
"Yan, in the next game, you'll replace Gallinari and start at small forward."
As he spoke.
He looked at Gallinari and asked, "Do you have any objections?!"
"None."
Gallinari shook his head. "Su Yan has displayed greater shooting talent than I have. He deserves to start."
Of course.
Gallinari had agreed so readily not merely because of Su Yan's three-point ability.
Su Yan had also treated him to a late-night meal the night before, which had earned him plenty of goodwill.
When you liked a player—or even felt favorably toward him—whatever he did, you would do your best to accommodate him.
W-was he starting already?
Su Yan was somewhat surprised.
The night before, he had still been begging the coach for playing time, imitating Mitsui Hisashi and pleading for a chance to get on the court.
Today, he had skipped the usual stint as a bench player and been promoted directly to the starting lineup.
This change... was truly enormous.
Gallinari had been a lottery pick the year before, and a high one at that—the sixth pick overall. In his first season, he had shot 44% from three-point range.
This year, he was averaging 2.4 three-pointers per game, ranking third on the Season Three-Point Leaderboard.
He was behind only the Rockets' Aaron Brooks and the Magic's "hundred-million-dollar man," Rashard Lewis.
As a second-year player, Gallinari's achievements in three-point shooting were already quite impressive.
In his Rookie Season, he had averaged 6.1 points, 2.0 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 0.5 steals, and 0.1 blocks.
So far this season, he was averaging 15.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.9 steals, and 0.7 blocks.
His growth over just one year had been astonishing.
With him playing so well, Su Yan had pushed him out of the starting lineup with only five minutes of game time and the results of the Second Physical Test.
How should one put it?
You could say Su Yan's three-point shooting was godlike, or that the coach had an eye for talent.
But you also had to admit that Coach Mike D'Antoni truly loved the "Run-and-Gun Tactics"!!!
The starting small-forward position had been settled.
Gallinari had no objections, and the other players had even fewer.
The Second Physical Test had also ended.
Everyone congratulated and praised Su Yan a few times before gradually returning to their daily training.
Su Yan went to the rest area to take a break.
His heart sank as he fell into deep thought.
"Good basketball skills let me go from begging the coach for playing time to being promoted directly to the starting lineup.
"Good relationships let me seize the position almost by force without making my teammates angry.
"Everyone even greeted me with smiles.
"Good relationships came from my generosity and treating everyone to a big meal, which earned their goodwill.
"Good basketball skills came from... the system's rewards.
"And if I want to improve my basketball skills, aside from daily training,
"the other method I know of is to keep raising my level and obtain Level Privilege Gift Packs.
"The LV1 privilege pack is [Max Level Three-Pointer], and the LV2 privilege pack is [Off-ball Movement lv1].
"They're all connected to basketball skills.
"To obtain privilege packs, I need to keep spending money and accumulate experience points. To spend money, I need to earn it.
"In short.
"The source of everything that currently makes me feel so comfortable, with everything going so smoothly, is... making money!!!"
With money, he could improve his basketball skills, earn the coach's favor, gain popularity, sign a huge contract, and land major endorsements.
With money, he could spend a little to handle social relationships, get along well with his teammates, enjoy both physical and mental comfort, and avoid a great deal of trouble.
The key point was that
the fastest way for him to make money right now was to play well and post Advanced Stats in every game whenever possible.
That would earn him the most money.
It would make the entire process form a perfect closed loop.
As expected of you, Crazy Money-Making System.
After sorting out his thoughts, Su Yan's love of basketball reached an unprecedented height—its absolute peak!!!
One day later.
9:00 p.m.
The Knicks were set to face the Pistons at home.
Two years earlier, the Pistons had still reached the Eastern Conference Finals, but that had also been their final peak after winning the championship in 2004.
Now.
Hamilton and Prince were old and frequently troubled by injuries.
Billups and Rasheed Wallace had left.
At 35, Ben Wallace could no longer compete with younger, stronger newcomers in terms of physical talent.
The "Pistons Five Tigers" had either left or been injured, and the second generation of the "Bad Boys" had lost its former might.
However.
Even a starving camel was still bigger than a horse.
With the East's eleventh-best record, they still looked far more respectable than the Knicks.
If the Knicks wanted to win, they could not afford to be careless—especially against the Pistons' "ferocious style of play," which was carved into every player's bones.
8:30 p.m.
The two teams were already warming up in the arena. Only half an hour remained before the game began.
The arena was almost completely packed, and the fans were fired up, screaming hysterically.
New York was America's largest city.
Even with their terrible record, the Knicks never lacked popularity. That was also why Su Yan could gain so many fans after just one game.
Listen carefully, and you could hear many female fans shouting Su Yan's name.
Look closely, and you could see a curvaceous blonde girl holding up a banner. You might have thought it was a normal message of support.
In reality.
It had a hotel room number written on it, along with... a request for Su Yan to visit her after the game!!!
Before you continue