Furthermore, Takenori Akagi, the core player of Shohoku, has long since integrated himself into Shohoku's unique tactical system. Data is not a meaningful criterion for him, because behind him stands the confidence of the entire Shohoku.
Therefore, no one would refute Kiminobu Kogure's assessment: the current Shohoku Five Tigers are theoretically the strongest lineup.
As for their ceiling? That's right now. After this game, they'll only have two more games left as a team, and then this new Shohoku will be a thing of the past. But the title "Strongest Shohoku " will forever be associated with these five players.
Once the players were in position, the difference in height became apparent. In the national tournament, Shohoku's average height was already quite respectable; apart from Ryota Miyagi, the other four were all over 184 centimeters tall, with Takenori Akagi almost reaching two meters.
Although they had an advantage in height when playing against Shoyo, their height advantage looked pathetic against the Shohoku Chariot Country today.
Of the five positions, only Shirasawa was two centimeters taller than the opposing point guard, and that was a negligible two centimeters; the rest were all much shorter.
Especially in the paint, where it's all about physical battles, Takenori Akagi 197cm tall, 15cm shorter than Brad on the other side; Sakuragi is 189cm tall, 26cm shorter than Hoffmann. The difference is obvious to the naked eye.
To put it bluntly, the inside combination of Sakuragi and Akagi against Brad and Hoffmann was simply an unfair matchup.
" Gorilla ~"
Sakuragi leaned close to Akagi and called out, his tone clearly tentative.
He was asking who should jump ball, but he already had a plan in mind. First, it was his boundless confidence at play—the other side was so much taller than him, if he could win the jump, wouldn't that cause a sensation? Second, Sakuragi had really matured, and he was afraid that Akagi would be upset if he lost.
If he lost, he could just laugh it off and the fans wouldn't say anything. But Akagi is different. These are Shohoku's last two games with Akagi, and he doesn't want Akagi to leave with regrets.
"Don't overthink it, just stay where you are."
Akagi's mouth was fierce, but the corners of his mouth secretly curled up; he understood Sakuragi's thoughts.
He knew exactly what the kid was thinking. A player's growth is never just about skills; mental maturity is key. Now it seems that Sakuragi has taken another step forward, and he, the Gorilla captain, was extremely pleased.
"Ready!"
Akagi shouted from the center line, instantly igniting the morale of his teammates.
Even the players from the Chariot Country on the sidelines paused subconsciously. They weren't intimidated by the shouts, but rather by the overwhelming aura of certain victory.
"Beep--"
The referee blew his whistle and tossed the ball into the air. When the ball reached its highest point, Akagi and Brad jumped at the same time, and the game officially began.
Brad Akagi, but that's just static height. Don't forget wingspan! Akagi's wingspan is average for his height, even on the short side, but Brad is different; his wingspan is elite. With that extension, the difference is more than 15 centimeters. Akagi has the advantage in jumping, but he didn't box out the ball in the jump ball, giving him no time to adjust, and the ball came down.
"Smack!"
As expected, Brad reached out with his long arm and touched the ball first, giving the Chariot Country possession.
"Defense!" Akagi shouted before he even landed, showing no surprise at the outcome.
Speaking of maturity, Akagi is already at Fukazawa Sports University, so his mentality is incredibly stable. Why would he care about the gains or losses of a single possession? He doesn't care about how explosive his dunks are or how many rebounds he gets; he just wants to win, a simple and direct win.
From winning against Kainan in the county tournament to Meihou in the national tournament, Akagi transformed from an inside dominator into the pillar of Shohoku. Not all centers have to be a super core Shota Sugiyama; a mainstay like Akagi can still achieve great things.
That's precisely why Akagi's value is so outstanding. Besides Fukazawa, several prestigious schools have extended offers to him, making Fukazawa a little panicked. Akagi turned to defend, and his teammates all retreated steadily to the backcourt, but one figure was different.
" Shirasawa has intercepted the ball!"
A shout came from the stands, Shohoku's number 9 charged out like a wild horse, heading straight for the basketball.
"Snap!" A crisp sound rang out as Shirasawa sliced the ball out of the hands of the Chariot Country player.
The player from the Chariot Country didn't even have time to react. In all his life, he had never seen anyone play like that from the very beginning. Even though they lost the jump ball, they should have rushed back to defend and cover, but even if they didn't, couldn't they at least have pressed high up the pitch in midfield?
What kind of move is this, charging straight into the opponent's half? That's way too reckless!
By the time he reacted, Shirasawa had already sprinted far ahead with the ball. With a whoosh, Shirasawa didn't even stop for half a second, relying solely on his speed to break through the defense and rush to the three-point line in one breath, with only one person left who could barely keep up with him— Wagner, the Chariot Country.
Although Wagner is the shortest on the team, he is 187 cm tall. In Shohoku, that would be equivalent to Kaede Rukawa being the shortest player on the team, which is ridiculous to even imagine.
However, Wagner's playing style and physique are completely different from Kaede Rukawa's; his main strength is his "bulky" build! To be honest, he looks about as big as Shinichi Maki. In the last game against the Cheetah Team, he charged around quite a few times. Shirasawa is also strong, but standing next to Wagner, he looks a bit thin.
With a bang, Wagner was fast, but Shirasawa was even faster! Seeing that he couldn't catch up, Wagner simply took the initiative to move his body forward, trying to knock Shirasawa off balance and disrupt his rhythm to complete the defense.
But he didn't expect that, despite looking a size bigger than Shirasawa, Shirasawa was so tough! With this collision, Shirasawa didn't budge an inch, while he himself swayed and almost tripped over his own feet and fell flat on his face.
Wagner was immediately alarmed. The Chariot Country had indeed underestimated Shohoku, only considering the Cheetah Team as their opponent before the game, but they certainly hadn't underestimated Shirasawa! After all, he was the number one player in their country's high school league, and his stats were ridiculously high.
Unlike the top player from Kimchi Country, whose stats are mediocre and clearly just the best of a bad bunch, Wagner felt that they had underestimated Shirasawa's strength in this first round!
Seeing that he couldn't stop him, Wagner grabbed Shirasawa's arm in desperation! The referee's whistle blew immediately. Wagner's eyes, perched on his high nose, widened instantly.
Everyone knows that a team's ceiling depends on its star player, but its floor definitely depends on its point guard. Whether they can connect with their teammates and understand the game situation, the point guard is the team's "brain on the court."
Every strong team needs a capable point guard. Take last season's top four teams in the country, for example: Shohoku, Sannoh, and Ryonan all had point guards who were all among the top ten in the nation. Meihou Industrial's point guard wasn't very famous, but his role was significant— Hiroshi Morishige was able to dominate in the paint, thanks to his point guard's playmaking. It's a pity that Meihou ran into Shohoku, and he was completely shut down by Shirasawa; otherwise, he might have been able to show off his skills.
Of course, even against Kazunari Fukatsu or Sendoh, there's nothing they can do; opportunities aren't that easy to come by. The same goes for other strong teams; Hakata Shodai's Hajime Chiba and Kainan's Shinichi Maki are both formidable figures. So, the point guards of strong teams are definitely not minor players.
Wagner is a well-known point guard, but this time he was completely intimidated by Shirasawa! He always relies on strength to gain an advantage, but this time he suffered a great loss.
He grabbed Shirasawa's right arm, thinking he could forcefully stop the attack. Besides, it wasn't just him who was careless; otherwise, how could Shirasawa have made it to the basket?
But reality was quite different. He couldn't stop Shirasawa; instead, he was thrown off balance by Shirasawa's impact! Wagner felt like he was trying to stop a sports car; he was lucky he didn't fall over.
Then Shirasawa raised the ball with his left hand, and with the force of the impact, it floated forward in the air. With a flick of his wrist, the basketball lightly fell into the basket—2+1!
The roar of angry fans came from the stands:
"That's tough! Shirasawa! 2+1!!"
"Great shot! They can't stop Shirasawa at all!"
"This is our nation's number one high school student!"
"Go Shohoku!!"
This play sent everyone's adrenaline soaring. Just seconds into the game, Shirasawa's first offensive play completely put the anxious fans at ease. Shirasawa is still the strongest Shirasawa; as long as Shohoku has him, they won't lose!
A unified shout came from the stands:
" Shohoku! Shohoku!!"
The fans' confidence was completely ignited; their goal for the match changed from "just to play" to "victory!"
"That's way too much!"
"That strength and coordination are incredible!"
Wagner was secretly shocked, suddenly thinking of Alex, the Cheetah Team who had made them lose face a couple of days ago.
In fact, when it comes to Shirasawa, or any national championship team's ace player, you have to look at the basketball culture—especially in the Lighthouse Country. No matter what level of league, the players you randomly pick from the Lighthouse Country are all top-notch, which is the terrifying aspect of their basketball culture.
Past major international tournaments have already proven this. In the recent World Championships, the Lighthouse Country sent a national team composed of NBA All-Stars, who effortlessly slaughtered their opponents in every game. From the group stage to winning the championship, they didn't encounter any teams that could be called "opponents." The status of Lighthouse Country basketball in the world basketball are indeed incomparable.
That super team, known as the " Dream Team " by fans worldwide, was a team so outrageous it seemed unreal, whether you called it a dream or a fantasy.
While the Cheetah Team of the Lighthouse Country may not be as extravagant as the Dream Team, they are still the champions of their national high school league. That title alone is enough to make them invincible in the world high school leagues.
As the Cheetah ' star player, Alex's strength is undeniable. That's the reality; when the Chariot Country faced the Cheetah Team, they had absolutely no answer for Alex; his scoring depended entirely on his own will.
But at this moment, Shirasawa's attack reminded Wagner of Alex, and he immediately put the two in the same league. He was certain that Shirasawa, number 9 of Shohoku, was not someone they could easily defeat.
This is what it means to be an expert. Wagner is a top player on a global scale, and he can understand his opponent's strengths and weaknesses after just one match.
Seeing Wagner looking lost, Hoffmann leaned over and asked, "What's wrong?"
Hoffmann hadn't participated in the defense just now, so he didn't know how much of Wagner's strength he had used, and naturally couldn't figure out what Wagner was thinking at this moment.
Wagner composed himself and said in a low voice, "Nothing else, we just need to keep a close eye on that number 9, or we'll suffer a huge loss."