Professor

Foster hesitated, and a wave of jeers and shouts erupted from the sidelines.

There were no time limits in streetball one-on-one, but you couldn't just hold the ball for ages!

Foster knew he couldn't just stand there indefinitely. He took a deep breath, took two steps forward, and went straight for a simple pull-up jump shot.

This was simplifying complex techniques, preparing to solve the problem with pure talent.

Simple offensive moves were sometimes the most effective.

"Slap!"

But just as he jumped to shoot, Tang Tian swatted the ball right out of his hands.

The ball hit the ground, and Tang Tian grabbed it.

Foster's fifth one-on-one attempt also ended in failure.

Tang Tian had won the match.

Foster landed and suddenly smiled.

When he missed the first shot, he thought he had underestimated his opponent. When he missed the second, he believed he still had a chance. When he missed the third, he was still unwilling to give up. But after the final shot failed, he felt a sense of release.

The opponent's defense was NBA-level; it was normal that he couldn't get past it.

"What's your name?" Foster asked.

"Gimme the money," Tang Tian said, holding out his hand.

Foster blinked, then turned and took $500 from his bag, handing it over.

Tang Tian counted the money, put it away, and said, "Tang."

"Tang?" Foster searched his mind but hadn't heard of that name.

"Which league do you play in?" Foster continued to ask.

"Why do you ask?"

"Don't misunderstand, my agent is working on getting me into the Summer League. If you're interested, I could..."

"Thanks, but no need," Tang Tian politely declined Foster's offer.

He was definitely going to play in the NBA, but it would be with Walker.

"Anyone else? 500 a game," Tang Tian turned and shouted to the crowd.

"..."

The players on the sidelines had initially admired Tang Tian; after all, not many people could defeat Foster here. But Tang Tian's expression, which showed he was only interested in money, made it hard for them to maintain their admiration.

"400?"

"300?"

"200?"

Tang Tian kept lowering the price, but the people on the sidelines didn't react.

They didn't think their offensive skills were better than Foster's.

"100?"

Just as Tang Tian called out 100, almost ready to give up, the white guard who had played against Foster earlier stepped forward.

This white guard was a genuine local streetball player with excellent dribbling skills.

"Okay, 100 it is," Tang Tian said with a hint of disdain. A 500-dollar game was worth five 100-dollar games, but any money was good money.

Seeing that Tang Tian had completely forgotten about him, Foster hesitated and prepared to leave.

However, he was stopped by someone wearing a hood after just two steps.

He initially intended to shake them off, but he immediately stopped when the other person spoke.

"Pro...fess..."

He was shushed by the Professor as soon as he uttered the first syllable.

"Wait until he's done. I have a small favor to ask of you," the Professor continued.

Since the Professor asked for help, Foster had no reason to refuse. He nodded and stood still.

Over there, Tang Tian's game with the white guard had already begun.

The rules were the same as when he played against Foster: Tang Tian would defend the white guard for five points.

The white guard's style was completely different from Foster's. His specialty was dribbling – behind-the-back, between-the-legs, front-of-the-body crossovers, even "shake and bake," "Sam Goode," and all sorts of moves. He played to show off.

Such dazzling dribbling drew cheers from the players on the sidelines.

Streetball had a low barrier to entry, and dribbling was its most fundamental and popular element.

But in the end, all of the white guard's shot attempts were blocked by Tang Tian.

There was already a height difference between them, and his dribbling couldn't fool Tang Tian, so he had no chance to score.

Tang Tian wasn't the type of slow-moving center, so forget about trying to dribble between your legs or doing a self-alley-oop.

After the last five balls were played, there was no suspense; Tang Tian shut out the white point guard as well.

The white point guard couldn't even beat Foster, so trying against Tang Tian was just a formality. After the game, he voluntarily shook hands and hugged Tang Tian, treating him as a player a tier above himself.

Tang Tian patted the white point guard's shoulder and then shouted to the others.

"Anyone else for $100?"

No one answered.

You just took down the two strongest players here, who would be stupid enough to come up and throw away money!

Tang Tian looked around but got no response, feeling a bit helpless. This trip only earned him $600 in cash value, less than when he played basketball games before.

However, he didn't lower the stakes further. On one hand, no one would play with him if he did; on the other hand, it wasn't worth it.

Seeing that no one else was stepping up, he decided to pack it in and leave.

But just then, someone wearing a hood walked up.

"One hundred dollars?" Tang Tian's eyes lit up, surprised he could earn some more cash points before leaving.

The hooded person shook their head and said, "I can help you earn more money."

Tang Tian's interest was piqued. He then walked to the side of the court with the hooded person.

To his surprise, Foster was also standing there, not having left yet.

"Let me introduce myself, my name is Grayson Boucher, and I'm a streetball player." The hooded person removed their hood and spoke.

Tang Tian got a clear look at him now – a point guard about 1.7 meters tall, with a buzz cut, a baby face, and quite a clean-cut appearance.

However, Tang Tian had never heard the name Grayson Boucher before.

"Of course, you can also call me Professor," Professor continued.

"Professor? You're the streetball player Professor?" Tang Tian said, somewhat surprised.

Among the famous figures in streetball, the older generation like Goat had become legends, and Alston had entered the NBA. After them, the most well-known was undoubtedly Professor.

But don't be fooled by the title "Professor"; he was actually just a young man in his early twenties. It was simply because his dribbling skills were so outstanding that commentators praised him as being able to "teach his opponents on the court," which led to him being called Professor.

Tang Tian had heard of Professor in his previous life but had never met him in person. He was quite surprised to see him now.

Of course, there was another point: in the pay-to-win system, there was Golden Right Hand (Professor), which was a blue skill. For an amateur player, this was already god-tier.

"You said you could help me make more money?" After the surprise, he was more concerned about the money-making aspect Professor mentioned.

Earning 氪金值 by playing streetball one-on-one games like this was too slow. Who knew how long it would take to reach $50,000. If Professor really had a way to make money, that would be fantastic.

"I'm hosting an exhibition game in New York this summer, and I'd like to invite you to play as my teammate. Don't worry, this is a standard commercial game, and you'll get a contract with insurance clauses. The money might not be a lot, but it will definitely be more than playing these one-on-one games," Professor said, glancing at the two of them.

Commercial game?

Hearing Professor's words, a look of disappointment flashed across Tang Tian's face. NCAA players couldn't participate in commercial games, meaning he couldn't play.

But summer? By then, he would have finished the draft, and he probably wouldn't be restricted anymore.

ps: Ah, I've become a lazy bum, can't get up without recommendation tickets. It's up to you guys!

Thanks for the tip, Heartbreak.