Leading

Indiana Pacers bench:

"Who is he, anyway? Since when did the Celtics have someone like him?" the Indiana Pacers' head coach shouted at his assistants.

The assistants: "..." We have no idea either!

In the middle of that awkward silence, one assistant suddenly remembered something. "I know who he is." As soon as he spoke, everyone turned to look at him.

"Do you remember last year's NCAA championship game? Kansas was down by three in the final moments, and Coach Roy put in a freshman who hit a game-tying three-pointer and sent the game into overtime."

"He dominated in overtime, too, hitting three after three. He played just over five minutes the entire game, went three for three, scored nine points, and helped Kansas win the NCAA championship. That player is Goodwin, who's wearing number 20 now!"

What!

Hearing the assistant's explanation, everyone on the Pacers was a little shocked.

So it was him!

Reggie Miller couldn't help turning to look at Goodwin, who was sitting on the Celtics' bench.

He'd heard about that game at the time. Later, he'd heard Goodwin had entered the NBA, but there'd been no news of him since. So he'd gone to the Celtics.

"Everyone, get over here." The Pacers' head coach called to his players, holding a clipboard.

Boston Celtics bench:

Doc Rivers praised Goodwin and the other players on the court, then immediately picked up his clipboard and began drawing up more plays for Goodwin.

In Doc Rivers's view, Goodwin had the hot hand, so they should give him as many shots as possible.

The other players had no objections.

But as soon as Doc Rivers finished speaking, Goodwin, the man of the moment, said, "Coach, I have a different idea."

Doc Rivers was a little annoyed. Goodwin had just played well, but that didn't mean he could question Doc's ability to coach.

Doc Rivers was smart enough not to chew Goodwin out right away. Instead, he asked, "Goodwin, what's your idea?"

Goodwin could tell Doc Rivers was unhappy, but he only wanted to win the first NBA game of his career.

"Coach, we should do the opposite." As Goodwin spoke, he casually took the clipboard from Doc Rivers's hands.

Doc Rivers: ???

Paul Pierce: "..." What's going through this kid's head? Taking the head coach's clipboard in front of everyone—does he want to go back to the bench again?

"The Pacers are definitely wary of my three-pointer now. They'll put a lot of defenders on me, so we can take advantage of that. Use me as bait to draw their attention and open up space for my teammates to attack."

In an instant, Doc Rivers's irritation vanished. He excitedly patted Goodwin on the shoulder. "Goodwin, I had no idea you had a coach's instincts!"

Goodwin's suggestion made Doc Rivers see him in a new light. He hadn't expected Goodwin to have such a strong feel for tactics.

Come to think of it, why hadn't I thought of that?

Does Goodwin have better coaching instincts than I do?

Doc Rivers couldn't help doubting himself.

"It just came to me in a flash," Goodwin replied calmly. In his previous life, aside from watching the NBA, he'd often played NBA 2K. He had one play after another up his sleeve.

"Fine, we'll do it Goodwin's way." Doc Rivers immediately changed the game plan again.

Goodwin couldn't help thinking more highly of Doc Rivers. Sure enough, no NBA championship-winning coach was a fraud.

The timeout ended, and both teams returned to the court without making any substitutions. They were still using the same lineups.

A few minutes later.

The Pacers' head coach clutched his head and shouted, "Fuck, we fell for it!"

Following their coach's instructions, the Pacers had spent the past few minutes closely guarding Goodwin. Every player was ready to help on defense at a moment's notice, determined not to let Goodwin get open.

But Goodwin had done the opposite. He hadn't taken a single shot. Instead, he'd moved without the ball, running the Pacers' defense ragged and allowing the Celtics' other players to score with ease.

The lead hadn't narrowed. It had only grown.

"Timeout!" The Pacers' head coach had no choice but to call another timeout.

"Great job, Goodwin!" As soon as Goodwin returned to the bench, Doc Rivers came over to praise him.

Doc Rivers knew exactly how good the Pacers were. They were one of the favorites to win the championship this season, and fans even said they could go toe-to-toe with the Los Angeles Lakers and their F4.

Before the game, Doc Rivers had braced himself for a hard-fought battle. He'd never imagined they'd be leading the Pacers by a full 16 points in the second quarter.

And it was all thanks to the handsome young man right in front of him—Goodwin, whose looks could rival those of all the readers here!

Unlike the excited Doc Rivers, Goodwin was perfectly calm. "Coach, it's time to take me out."

??

Doc Rivers froze for a moment. W-wait, what...? Then, as he thought it over, he suddenly understood and gave Goodwin a thumbs-up.

Doc Rivers immediately picked up his clipboard and set out the next plays.

"BEEP, BEEP." The timeout ended.

Both teams put their starters back on the court.

The Pacers' coach looked bewildered. Goodwin was already being taken out?

He turned to look at Doc Rivers, sitting on the bench across from him. Doc, what exactly are you planning?

At that moment, the Pacers' coach felt as if Doc Rivers had completely outsmarted him, and he couldn't help feeling a little annoyed. All he could do was hope his starters would make up the difference in the second quarter.

Led by Jermaine O'Neal and Reggie Miller, the Pacers slowly chipped away at the lead.

The two teams really did differ somewhat in overall strength.

With three seconds left, Paul Pierce caught Vin Baker's pass and forced up a shot with Ron Artest defending him.

"Clang!" The ball hit the rim and bounced high into the air. It reached its peak, then came down and dropped right into the basket.

Lucky!

Thanks to Paul Pierce's lucky shot, the Celtics managed to hold on to a double-digit lead.

58:48

"FUCK!" Ron Artest stared at the score on the big screen overhead, his eyes blazing as he cursed.

It wasn't just Ron Artest. Every Pacers player looked frustrated. They'd been on the back foot the entire first half.

Watching the Pacers players walk away, Goodwin had a strange feeling that the second half wouldn't be easy.