This summer, Zack really focused on refining his technique during his special training. The thing is, after two years of incredible growth, even he was starting to hit a wall when it came to his physical attributes. Plus, since he'd be playing at a much higher level in the NBA, Zack really needed solid skills to make sure he could keep showing off his unique style. That's why Grover also thought Zack's "clumsy" dribbling, passing, and shooting needed a major upgrade before he stepped onto an NBA court.
Upon hearing Grover's comments about Zack that day, Zack wasn't bothered, but Yao Ming, standing nearby, sure was!
"You call that dribbling 'clumsy'?" Yao Ming asked, looking at Zack on the training court, who was skillfully dribbling with both hands and keeping his center of gravity low. He looked like he was having an existential crisis.
"You call that shooting 'pure luck'?" Yao Ming clutched his chest a second later, his gaze fixed on Zack, who had just drained his 11th consecutive three-pointer from beyond the arc.
"You're saying anyone could make that pass?" On the court, during a half-court 3-on-3 drill with the trainers, Zack had just driven past a defender and made a no-look pass right into Yao Ming's hands, with perfect strength and accuracy. Don't blame Yao Ming for being so surprised right now; how many times in his career had he received a pass like that?
"'You refuse to be limited, and you subtly yet firmly take every action that helps you achieve your goals. You're insatiably hungry for success, addicted to it—it defines your life.' To me, that's the winner's formula. Winners never have a fixed mindset," Grover said, looking up at Yao Ming.
Yao Ming nodded in response. "Tim, I agree with your winner's formula. But I think... your evaluation of Zack is a bit too harsh."
Seeing this, Tim just shrugged. "Because after spending last year with him, I realized long ago that Zack and Michael are the same kind of people. They don't need encouragement; they only need criticism and prodding."
It's insane! Absolutely insane! What kind of ultimate masochistic personality is this?
This summer, with Yao Ming by his side, Zack's technical attributes all saw different levels of improvement compared to when March Madness just ended.
What's more, as his physical attributes started to hit a plateau, Zack gained a deeper understanding of the Peak System through the visualized data it provided. He realized that because the Peak System doesn't specifically detail certain attributes, for example, the "jumping ability" rating displayed in the system shouldn't be simply understood as just jumping higher the higher the score is.
Everyone knows that "jumping" is a very broad concept. Attributes like jump speed, hang time, instant jump ability under duress, and maximum vertical height are all part of jumping. And some of these attributes, on a basketball court, might even be more crucial than simply jumping high.
Simply put, under the Peak System's strict scoring system, if Zack's jumping ability reaches its maximum, maybe his current maximum vertical reach won't increase by much, but correspondingly, his other jumping attributes will definitely be explosive.
New Season, New Challenges: System Unveiled
In September, after successfully completing his special training, Zack not only accessed the missions in his mind that required him to enter the NBA to unlock, but he also happily checked out all his ratings in the Peak System. (Detailed attributes will be in the upcoming release notes).
According to the Peak System's calculations, Zack received ratings of 83, 85, and 84 for the three positions he might play in the NBA: center, power forward, and small forward, respectively. However, using another algorithm within the system—one that combines Zack's dynamic and static talents with his mismatch advantage in actual combat—Zack received a rating of 87 to 89.
The Peak System's combat algorithm fluctuates because, when calculating, it incorporates the characteristics and roster compositions of current NBA teams.
"Some teams' roster composition and play styles might really counter me, but then again, I might counter some other teams... Honestly, it's a very rigorous and logical scoring system."
Additionally, in the visualized data provided by the Peak System that day, Zack noticed a line of text specifically bolded:
"Should the host sustain an injury unexpectedly after entering the NBA, the system will immediately issue relevant missions to help the host recover any lost attributes due to the injury after healing."
For sports, getting injured isn't scary. What's truly terrifying is when an injury prevents you from returning to your peak. Earlier, by acquiring the "Air Pig" and "Air Jordan" badges, Zack had effectively gained steel knees and a much longer career lifespan than most. Now, with the Peak System offering injury recovery missions to safeguard him, Zack felt that, right from the starting line, he was already miles ahead of players from his generation.
"[Charles Barkley's Gift] series of missions has now begun.
[Charles Barkley's Gift One]: How can you reach the peak without help?
Barkley, who favors you, is currently hoping you'll tear up the NBA.
Mission Completion Condition: For your sake, Charles Barkley has made a bet with Kenny Smith. Please help Charles Barkley win this bet.
Mission Completion Reward:[Pig Charge] badge.
[Pig Charge]: This badge has a certain probability of activating when the host drives with the ball on the court. When activated, it will increase the host's instant explosiveness by 3 points.
Note One: The higher the badge level, the higher the trigger probability and the stronger the amplification effect.
Note Two: This badge can only be upgraded by completing the [Charles Barkley's Gift] series of missions."
"[In the Name of Inheritance] Pre-condition Two mission has now been activated.
[In the Name of Inheritance]: Through your excellent performance in college, you have become the tallest mountain at Wake Forest. But to surpass your senior, Tim Duncan, you still have a long way to go.
[In the Name of Inheritance] Pre-condition Two: The host needs to raise the current ability values of six attributes—post-up technique, court vision, anticipation, help defense, man-to-man defense, and lateral quickness—to 85, 85, 80, 85, 80, and 80 respectively.
Pre-condition Two Completion Reward: The host's existing [King of the Paint] badge will upgrade from Professional to All-Star.
Note: After the host completes [In the Name of Inheritance] Pre-condition Two, the third pre-condition for this mission will automatically activate."
"[What You Can't Get Always Causes a Stir] mission has now been triggered.
[What You Can't Get Always Causes a Stir]: Michael Jordan's mood can only be described as extremely depressed due to not being able to draft you, whom he coveted, in this year's draft. Now, you need to continue to make this basketball god miserable with your outstanding on-court performance in your rookie season.
Mission Completion Condition: In your rookie season, your average stats must not be lower than '25+10+5' (points + rebounds + assists), and the sum of your overall field goal percentage, three-point percentage, and free throw percentage must not be lower than 175% (no specific individual percentage requirements).
Mission Completion Reward:[The.Zone] badge fragment and a legendary random technical attribute pack.
[The.Zone] badge fragment: The host needs to collect three fragments to activate.
[The.Zone]: As early as the 1990s, the concept of the 'The.Zone' state was confirmed by the basketball god, Michael Jordan. Dr. J, Julius Erving, who had entered this state, said that because he couldn't control it himself, he would always be confused afterward. To this day, only the basketball god Michael Jordan can enter and exit 'The.Zone' at will, according to his own will. (Note ①)
Note: If the host fails to complete this mission in their rookie season, the mission will automatically enter a cooldown period. How to reactivate it will depend on the host's real-life performance and whether Michael Jordan is still interested in the host.
Additionally, upon completion of this mission, the [Favored and Fearless] mission will automatically activate."
"Hidden Mission: [Zack's Dual Life] has now begun.
Since the host has chosen the perfect mission path, the completion difficulty of this mission series has automatically been upgraded to Nightmare.
[Zack's Dual Life]: Everyone's life should have another option.
Mission Completion Condition: Unknown.
Mission Completion Reward: Unknown.
Note: This mission is a real-time trigger mission and will be triggered at various important stages of the host's professional career based on the host's real-life experiences. Only after it is triggered can the host inquire about the mission completion conditions and rewards."
That day, after quickly Browse all the missions he had received, including the [Dime Dropper] mission he had successfully unlocked during college but could only complete after entering the NBA, Zack immediately realized the kind of challenge he was facing in the upcoming rookie season.
Even though there wouldn't be any penalties if he didn't complete these missions, as a perfectionist, honestly, Zack's current feeling, looking at these richly rewarded missions, could only be described as "itching for action."
"The [Pig Charge] badge? The name isn't great, but the bonus effect is tailor-made for me!"
Barkley's Wager and Zack's Journey
Not long after the draft, Barkley, who always loves to make bets, made another one with his good partner, Kenny Smith. It all started because...
"Since you're so high on Zack, how about we make a bet, Charles?"
"How do you want to bet, Kenny?"
"A whole season is too long. Let's bet on whether Zack can quickly adapt to the NBA pace. How about we bet on whether he can score 40 points in a single game before January next year?"
"40 points in a single game before January next year? Kenny, what happens if I win?"
"If you win, I'll kiss Shaq's butt at next year's All-Star Weekend."
"Would Shaq even let you kiss him?"
"Hey, buddy, don't act like you're guaranteed to win. This is a 40-point game in the NBA!"
"It's a deal, Kenny!"
So, in short, to receive Barkley's gift, Zack had to score 40 points in a single game before January next year.
Next up was [In the Name of Inheritance] Pre-condition Two. Since some of the attributes required by this mission couldn't be improved by Zack at his current stage, he would first have to activate his potential through games in the new season before he could complete this mission. Yes, in the Peak System's visualized data, Zack's potential isn't fixed forever. As the level of competition increases and through his own epiphanies, Zack's potential for attributes other than his relatively fixed physical ones can have a chance to improve.
Then came the mission that thrilled Zack the most on the day he received it: [What You Can't Get Always Causes a Stir]. Because this mission's reward was a [The.Zone] badge fragment, even though it would be incredibly difficult to complete, Zack wanted to give it his all. After all, as an avid basketball fan, Zack couldn't ignore this "The.Zone" state, which in his memory was personally acknowledged by Jordan, Dr. J, and Kobe. In this life, Zack absolutely had to figure out what this "The.Zone" state, so highly praised by Jordan, was all about.
"What if Jordan and the others were just bluffing?"
Dominating Asia: National Team's New Look
In September, after finishing his special training and joining the men's basketball team in Doha, Qatar with Yao Ming, Zack finally met all the familiar faces of the national team. He instantly became the center of attention on the day of their assembly.
On the first day of practice, when Yao Ming introduced Zack to head coach, Jonas, he specifically mentioned Zack's unique playing style, which was quite different from a traditional power forward. After a training session that left the other national team members in awe, Jonas had a sudden idea and asked Zack, "I'm thinking of having you handle the ball in the Asian Championship. Do you think you can do it?"
Zack immediately replied, "I believe I am fully capable of handling that job."
And so, after several days of combined practice, in the upcoming Doha Asian Championship, Zack added a different kind of flair to the men's basketball team, who were already destined to sweep Asia with their invincible might.
On September 8th, in their first game against Iran, Jonas surprisingly fielded a starting lineup that utterly shocked the Iranian team. The lineup was: Yao Ming at center, Yi Jianlian at power forward, Zack at small forward, Zhu Fangyu at shooting guard, and Sun Yue at point guard. Facing this starting five with an average height of over 210 centimeters, Iran's head coach did try to use a full-court press to limit offensive initiation during the game.
But... if even Kyle Anderson (Li Kaier) could bring the ball up the court for in the World Cup in the future, how much more so Zack, whose dribbling ability was already 81?
The men's basketball team created some real massacres in this Asian Championship, including a 110-10 rout of Saudi Arabia in the second stage, a 108-37 bloodbath against South Korea in the semifinals, and a 101-71 victory over Lebanon in the final. (Note ②) Although historically, the men's basketball team would have already left an impression of "how lonely it is to be invincible" in this Doha Asian Championship, with Zack's addition, one bloody slaughter after another turned this team into a nightmare for all of Asia.
After all, besides being able to bring the ball up for when they deployed their "death lineup," Zack's "Durant-like" playing style also meant that on the FIBA court, "I am destiny!"
In the final against Lebanon, after scoring his 25th point in the championship game for , Zack clenched his fist and declared.
After the Asian Championship final, the Lebanese head coach even directly stated that the men's basketball team should leave Asia and join Europe. Meanwhile, Warriors head coach Montgomery, who was scouting the Asian Championship, gained a lot of inspiration on how to use Zack in the NBA from this tournament. In short, in Montgomery's eyes, Zack's usage should never be confined by tradition.
In this Asian Championship, Zack won the scoring title and MVP, averaging 27 points per game, and was named to the All-Asian Championship team along with Yao Ming, Yi Jianlian, and Zhu Fangyu. During the games, since starting five often "clocked out" by halftime, fans humorously complained online: "It's all because the opponents were too weak... keeping Zack's average points from exceeding 30."
Are you listening? Is that what people say? In fact, just like Zack remembered, held back in many games during this Asian Championship. For instance, in the game against Saudi Arabia... if hadn't gone easy, would Saudi Arabia have even gotten their 10th point? Regarding the men's basketball team's performance in this Asian Championship, even officials from the Basketball Association were worried that the team's dominant play might cause diplomatic incidents.
Without a doubt, 2005 was an incredibly beautiful year in the history of basketball, especially after Zack burst onto the scene. fans were absolutely brimming with anticipation for the new NBA season.
Note ①: "The.Zone" is not something the author (Ah Qiao) fabricated. It's a concept mentioned in multiple biographies, such as The Real Kobe and Jordan: The Life, as well as in Jordan's own memoir. In fact, a certain superpower basketball comic actually borrowed from it.
Note ②: Historically, the men's basketball team defeated Saudi Arabia with a score of 98-10. In the book, due to Zack's inclusion, Ah Qiao changed it to 110-10. In short, you can intensely dislike the current men's basketball team, but please do not question the fact that the 2005 team brought all of Asia to tears.