Chapter Thirty-Six: The Basketball Game

Did the fathers spend the entire afternoon just drinking, eating, and chatting with their idol? Of course, the production team would never let the dads have such a comfortable time. Once the children returned with all the gathered ingredients, the fathers' tasks began.

Although they knew the production team wouldn't be kind enough to grant them a relaxing afternoon, the dads—despite their mental preparations—were still ready to complain. However, once Chen Lei announced the afternoon's mission, the fathers forgot all about complaining, replaced entirely by excitement. After all, playing basketball with an international basketball superstar is an opportunity most people only dream of.

Indeed, the fathers' task for the afternoon was to play a basketball game. The competition was divided into two stages. The first stage involved the five fathers plus Chen Yang, divided into two groups, to engage in a shooting contest. The second stage was a half-court three-on-three match. Since Chen Yang’s skill level was far too high, he served as the referee for the second stage, and the five fathers had to select one person from the production staff to join one of the teams.

There was no regulation basketball court in the village, only a lonely hoop standing by itself. The production team marked a line approximately seven meters away from the hoop, and all contestants were required to shoot from behind it. The first stage was a head-to-head knockout format: each team sent one person at a time, the loser was eliminated, and the team would then send in another player to continue against the winner. The team with the last person remaining would win. The shooting contest also required the children's participation. Before each shot, the basketball was placed about ten meters behind the contestant. The child had to run from the contestant's side, grab the ball, and deliver it to their parent, who could then attempt the shot. If the shot missed, the child had to retrieve the ball and return it to their parent before another attempt could be made. As Chen Yang had no child present, he selected a child from his team to help him retrieve the ball.

Through a draw, Xiao Siqi and Sun Zhihao were luckily assigned to the same team as Chen Yang, and Xiao Yao naturally took on the role of Chen Yang's ball retriever.

In the first round, Xiao Siqi faced Lin Shaohua. When Chen Lei blew the whistle, Xiao Yao and Lin Qisan sprinted out, grabbed the basketballs from the markers, and ran back to hand them to their respective fathers. Xiao Yao’s speed was clearly superior. Xiao Siqi received the ball and took a moment to compose himself before shooting. The moment the ball left his hands, Xiao Yao ran toward the hoop, having realized that Xiao Siqi’s shot lacked both power and arc, and would clearly be an "airball."

As expected, Xiao Siqi shot an airball. Lin Shaohua, standing to the side, had no intention of mocking him; eyes fixed on the rim, he saw Xiao Siqi shoot and also jumped up with all his might to throw his ball.

Xiao Yao retrieved the ball from under the hoop and ran straight back. As he was running, a basketball came flying directly toward him. It turned out that Lin Shaohua had also thrown an airball, and the descending ball was headed straight for the returning Xiao Yao.

"Ba Yi! Watch—" Lin Shaohua cried out, but before he could finish the word "out," he saw Xiao Yao nimbly step to the right, dodging the falling ball, and continue running back.

"Phew..." Lin Shaohua breathed a sigh of relief, then suddenly realized and hurriedly shouted to Lin Qisan, "Quick, Qisan, go help Dad pick up the ball!"

"Dad, here!" Xiao Yao handed the ball to Xiao Siqi and added, "Use more force, get a higher arc. If that doesn't work, just aim for the middle of the backboard."

Xiao Siqi took the ball and nodded. He jumped and pushed the ball out with effort. The arc was higher, but his release was clearly off; the ball drifted significantly to the right, resulting in another airball. However, the difference was that while the previous ball landed in front of the rim, this one landed to the right.

Xiao Yao had sprinted out again the moment Xiao Siqi released the shot; seeing it drift right, he had run directly to that side of the hoop. After retrieving the ball and handing it to Xiao Siqi, he advised him again, "Control your direction, don't let it drift."

Lin Shaohua’s second shot also missed, and Xiao Siqi’s third attempt followed, but unfortunately, he missed again. Xiao Siqi and Lin Shaohua were arguably the least athletic of the five fathers. Xiao Siqi had shot five times and Lin Shaohua four, yet neither had made a single basket. Because Xiao Yao’s retrieval speed was faster, Xiao Siqi had managed one more attempt than Lin Shaohua.

Xiao Yao realized that Xiao Siqi had probably only watched basketball games but never actually played. His shooting form was not standard, clearly mimicking what he’d seen on television. Furthermore, after five consecutive shots, his stamina was dropping, and his strength was clearly waning.

"Dad, stop shooting with one hand. Switch to two hands. Your strength is lacking, and it’s very hard to make a one-handed shot," Xiao Yao said to Xiao Siqi.

"Two-handed shot?" Xiao Siqi was puzzled.

Xiao Yao helplessly took the ball from Xiao Siqi and demonstrated, saying, "Like this: hold the ball with both hands, palms facing out, and push forward from your chest using both hands simultaneously. Make sure the force is even so the ball doesn't go off-course. Pay attention to the upward angle to adjust your arc. This method is used more often by female basketball players, which is probably why you haven't seen it much. Since women generally have less strength than men, this method is more efficient. It’s better for you to use this method right now."

"Alright." Although Xiao Siqi hadn't played basketball, he was quite clever. With Xiao Yao’s detailed explanation, he understood immediately. Following Xiao Yao’s instructions, Xiao Siqi switched to a two-handed shot, and the results were much better. Although the ball still hit the rim and bounced out, he was clearly one step closer to scoring.

Finally, on his seventh shot, Xiao Siqi banked the ball into the hoop. By this time, Lin Shaohua had only finished five shots. According to the rules, Lin Shaohua still had two attempts, but he missed both and was eliminated by Xiao Siqi.

"Oh yeah!" Xiao Siqi happily squatted down and gave Xiao Yao a loud high-five.

However, the good times didn't last long. Xiao Siqi’s first shot against his second opponent hit the rim, while the newly entered Zhao Tao sank his first shot immediately, eliminating Xiao Siqi.

Xiao Siqi helplessly took Xiao Yao to the sidelines to rest, watching the match between Sun Zhihao and Zhao Tao.

Zhao Tao seemed to be in great form; his first shot against Sun Zhihao went in, immediately increasing the pressure on Sun. Fortunately, Sun Zhihao had decent luck; his first shot bounced on the rim twice and somehow went in. Zhao Tao made his second shot as well, and sinking three in a row drew cheers from the crowd. Zhou Lixing even jokingly shouted, "Brother Tao, are you not even going to give me a chance to step on the court?"

Sun Zhihao’s luck didn't hold for his second shot; the ball hit the junction of the backboard and the rim and bounced away, leading to his elimination.

Now, the pressure on Chen Yang increased significantly. This seven-meter distance was roughly at the three-point line. Although he was a professional basketball player, he was a center. While his mid-range jumper was decent, he had no record of making three-pointers in games, and only occasionally shot them for fun during practice, with very average accuracy.

Chen Yang stepped onto the court under pressure. Zhou Lixing seemed to notice, deliberately provoking him by shouting, "Brother Tao, take down Chen Yang!"

It seemed Zhou Lixing’s shout sparked Chen Yang’s competitive spirit. Chen Yang pointed at Zhou Lixing and said, "Don't worry, I’ll definitely let you on the court. If you don't play, how can I teach you a lesson?" Both were leaders in the sports world and had met many times at various events and award ceremonies, so they had a certain personal friendship, which made their banter less formal.

"Chen Yang, go for it!" Xiao Yao encouraged him while handing him the ball.

Although Chen Yang received the ball first, he didn't rush, instead waiting for Zhao Tao to shoot first. Whether it was nervousness or a loss of touch, Zhao Tao missed his first shot. Chen Yang then shot, but also missed.

For the second shot, Zhao Tao went first and made it. The pressure on Chen Yang intensified, but having judged the landing spot from the first attempt, he adjusted his form and made his second shot as well.

For the third shot, Zhao Tao asked Chen Yang to go first. Chen Yang smiled and said, "The pressure is higher for the one shooting second, it’s better to go first." Zhao Tao waved his hand, insisting that Chen Yang go first. Chen Yang stopped declining and shot decisively, hitting the mark. Zhao Tao, clearly under increased pressure, missed his shot.

"Zhou Lixing, it’s your turn!" Chen Yang crooked his finger at Zhou Lixing, full of provocation.

Zhou Lixing stepped out feeling a bit guilty, preparing to shoot.

The outcome of the high-spirited Chen Yang facing the low-confidence Zhou Lixing was predictable. On the first shot, both missed; on the second, Chen Yang scored and Zhou Lixing missed. Zhou Lixing was eliminated, and Chen Yang won the final victory.

Although he had only beaten a few celebrities who were amateur basketball enthusiasts, Chen Yang, who hadn't won the long-distance shooting contest easily, was very happy and excited, high-fiving the other four in his team to celebrate the victory.

For the second stage, Chen Yang stepped down to become the referee. Xiao Siqi and Sun Zhihao selected a cameraman from the production crew—who was about 1.85 meters tall and claimed to play basketball—to join them in a half-court three-on-three match against Zhao Tao, Lin Shaohua, and Zhou Lixing.

This match did not require the children’s participation; they only needed to cheer for their fathers from the sidelines.

The fathers played with great effort amidst the cheering of their children. However, due to the uneven skill levels of the players, the match was rather chaotic. Although the cameraman on Xiao Siqi’s team had an advantage in height and weight, and decent skills near the basket, the game was so disorganized that he didn't gain much of an edge.

Chen Yang, acting as the referee, found the chaos amusing and was shaking his head in speechlessness when a different voice came from the children’s cheering section.

"Dad, Uncle Sun, don't go to the paint! Leave the paint to the cameraman uncle. Cameraman uncle, just hold your position in the paint, stand your ground, and don't come out and waste your energy."

"Dad, throw a high-lob pass inside!"

"Dad, go help Uncle Sun with a pick-and-roll, let him drive inside!"

"Cameraman uncle, pass behind you, my dad is behind you, he's wide open!"

"Referee! Why are you watching me? Uncle Lin double-dribbled, blow your whistle!"

Watching Xiao Yao dancing and directing the game from the sidelines, Chen Yang was shocked. He even shifted his attention from the six people on the court to Xiao Yao, staring at him for a long time.

In his previous life, Li Hao’s best sport was basketball. During his university years, he was a "quasi" official member of the school basketball team. The reason for the "quasi" was that his physical condition was too poor—his strength, speed, and ability to withstand physical contact couldn't compete with the official members. But when it came to basketball technique and game awareness, he could crush everyone on the scene except for Chen Yang. Seeing the mess on the court, especially his father’s team—which had a clear advantage in personnel yet was trailing in the score—he finally couldn't help but start loudly directing the three adults.

A five- or six-year-old child giving coaching-style basketball instructions to three adults? Chen Yang was absolutely stunned to witness such a scene, and it was no wonder he had neglected his duties as a referee. Only after Xiao Yao called out to him did he regain his senses and refocus on the game.

"Timeout!" Zhao Tao was the first to raise his hand, complaining to Chen Yang, "How come they have a coach giving instructions from the sidelines? That’s unfair!"

As soon as Zhao Tao took the lead, Lin Shaohua and Zhou Lixing nodded in agreement and protest.

"What’s unfair about it?" Xiao Siqi was the first to rebut with a laugh, "It’s still three against three. You guys can find a coach too, as long as you can find one. Special note: Chen Yang is the referee and must remain fair and neutral, he cannot serve as your coach."

"Where would we find a coach?" Zhou Lixing said huffily, "Do you think every kid is as monstrous as your Ba Yi?"