In the Duke University fan section, everyone had both hands clasped over their heads.
Just a second ago, Li Fei had been disrupting Hill's shot. The next, he was back in the Paint, blocking Parks.
That freakish shot-blocking would make old men's hearts race and little kids wet their pants. And the victim would suffer serious emotional trauma after getting blocked.
"I can hardly believe my eyes! Li Fei had clearly rushed to contest Grant Hill's midrange jumper, but the very next second, he was back under the basket, blocking Cherokee Parks' dunk!"
"That's right. Li Fei's defensive range is thanks to his quick movement and outstanding agility. Those are key factors that will make him an all-time great defender!"
Wilt Chamberlain was so excited that he had risen to his feet, cheering for Li Fei from the sidelines. He still had a camera in his hands, capturing every moment of Li Fei's performance.
NBC commentator Red Giant, Bill Walton, watched The Big Dipper's excitement and shook his head.
"I'm not trying to dispute Mr. Wilt's point, but in my eyes, when it comes to defense alone, Li Fei is already clearly better than Wilt Chamberlain at this stage!"
That was the assessment of Bill Walton, who had won an MVP award, made the NBA All-Defensive Team, and been named Blocks Champion.
Walton and Wilt Chamberlain had never faced each other in the NBA, but Walton began his rookie season the year after The Big Dipper retired.
So Walton had at least seen The Big Dipper play.
And in Walton's eyes,
Chamberlain's height and wingspan both fell short of Li Fei's, and he was also less agile.
In terms of physical tools on defense, Li Fei was half a step ahead of The Big Dipper. That was no exaggeration.
Of course, that only applied to defense. The Big Dipper wasn't a superstar known for his defense.
But when it came to offense,
Bill Walton wouldn't dare say Li Fei was inferior to The Big Dipper.
After all, in that era, basketball courts didn't even have a three-point line. The game was crude and outdated, and scoring forty or fifty points didn't carry much weight.
It was as if he'd heard Red Giant's words.
Li Fei followed up by hitting a pick-and-pop midrange jumper.
"I can't say for certain whether Li Fei will surpass Wilt as a scorer, but in my view, Li Fei has already surpassed him in the sheer range of his scoring skills."
"After all, in The Big Dipper's era, around 40% of his points came in the Paint. A player like Li Fei might not take many midrange shots from the free-throw line area in a game."
"Of course, using that to judge the two players' offensive abilities would be irresponsible. This is a clash between two eras, a collision of different basketball philosophies."
Bill Walton's words might draw pushback from fans who favored the old days.
But honestly,
Bill Walton hadn't sugarcoated anything.
When it came to scoring skills alone,
most centers in the league could dominate The Big Dipper.
If Li Fei had heard Bill Walton say all that, he probably would've grinned.
I've still got Dreamy Footsteps up my sleeve!
Now that March Madness was underway, Li Fei still hadn't used the Footwork Like The Dream skill package even once.
Because Li Fei hadn't yet come across an opponent he needed to beat with his footwork.
Even against Chelsea Parks, the 15th pick in the 1995 draft, Li Fei had done whatever he wanted over his head in the first half, finishing with a game-high 24 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 blocks.
Some might ask: Li Fei had racked up two blocks right at the start, so why did he have only four by halftime?
The reason was simple.
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For the next 18 minutes of the first half, Duke University was extremely cautious about taking shots in the Paint, and had almost abandoned attacking inside altogether.
After his early offensive attempts were repeatedly thwarted, Grant Hill had gained a clear understanding of Li Fei's defensive ability. He shifted his focus entirely to the perimeter and playmaking.
Against Lamond Murray, Hill used his outstanding physical gifts and offensive skills to score 14 points and dish out 4 assists in the first half, showing exactly why he was a top-five draft pick while Lamond Murray was a top-ten pick!
At halftime, Duke University trailed UC Berkeley by only eight points, 40–48.
That was the smallest halftime lead UC Berkeley had held so far in this year's March Madness.
In UC Berkeley's locker room,
the atmosphere was somewhat tense.
They had an eight-point lead, but they hadn't faced a situation like this before.
"Grant Hill's offense has caused us trouble. We've never seen anything like it."
In the locker room, head coach Todd looked at Lamond Murray and saw guilt in his eyes.
It wasn't that Lamond Murray wasn't good enough.
He could even make Big Dog Robinson struggle on offense, but Grant Hill had a size advantage over him.
"In the second half, I'm planning to double-team Grant."
After thinking it over, Coach Todd spoke up.
"Let's not do that just yet."
As soon as Coach Todd finished speaking, Li Fei, seated on the bench, suddenly cut in.
He rolled his neck, his bones cracking. "Leave him to me first."
"What?"
At those words, the Berkeley players all looked at him in astonishment.
Coach Todd turned and asked, "You mean you want to guard Grant one-on-one?"
"He's a small forward."
"I know."
Li Fei spoke with confidence. "But I don't think it'll be easy for him to get past me, either."
At 2.04 meters, Grant Hill played small forward alongside the 2.12-meter Cherokee Parks and the 2.04-meter Antonio Lang. He would continue to play primarily as a small forward after entering the NBA.
A 2.04-meter small forward had a clear height advantage.
That was also why Hill had dominated Lamond Murray.
It was also a key reason Hill could become a star point forward in the NBA.
But Li Fei knew Hill's weakness, too.
At 2.04 meters, he was an unusual height: tall or short, big or small, soft or hard, depending on how you looked at it.
He was a little tall for a small forward and a little short for a power forward.
Hill had settled in at small forward, but his speed wasn't ideal!
Li Fei believed
that with his current defensive ability, he might struggle to guard the fastest point guards.
But guarding the 2.04-meter Grant Hill—
that wasn't misplaced confidence.
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