Slam Dunk had stayed red-hot all week. Nearly everyone in the anime community had been inundated with news about it.
Meanwhile, Slam Dunk fans were gradually beginning to look forward to what was coming!
Slam Dunk's final week
"I wonder what happens in this week's episode. Sakuragi's playing through an injury—can he help Shohoku win this game?"
"They can't lose this game, can they? Last week's episode was tense, but Sakuragi's injury shouldn't be that serious. He should be fine after resting once he's off the court. Otherwise, does he just not play after the Sannoh game?"
"That should be the story of Slam Dunk's Second Season. Maybe Sakuragi rests for a day or two, then sits out the game against Aiwa the day after the Sannoh match. The other four starters and Kogure, the perennial benchwarmer, play instead. Then, in the fourth game, they have a showdown with their old rivals, Kainan, and get revenge while making it to the finals."
"Teacher Zhao Qinyin: Here, take the pen and draw it yourself!"
"But no matter what, Slam Dunk's Second Season is pretty much a sure thing. I just don't know—if Shohoku really beats Sannoh, will they even have the stamina to play the next day after going all out like that? Honestly, the All-Island Tournament's format is ridiculous. Five days of basketball in a row—how are a bunch of high schoolers supposed to have that kind of stamina? Even NBA stars would be exhausted playing back-to-back games for more than forty minutes each!"
"Can't be helped. They really do have tournaments like that over there, and that's how the format works. You can't expect a bunch of high schoolers to play a basketball tournament for ten days or half a month. Who'd cover the costs during the tournament? What