"You finally showed up, kid."
Malone grinned as he teased Chen Yilun, who was sitting courtside.
"Our big-shot Director Chen's a busy man now, huh? Nearly Christmas and you're only just remembering to drop by and watch a game."
Chen Yilun let the teasing drift past him without reacting. After all, this was only his second time attending a game this season—the last being the ring ceremony.
"How's the team lined up today?"
He asked as he watched the players warming up on the court.
"Same old."
Malone glanced down at his playbook.
"Richardson and Booker are still our starting backcourt. But Caruso's been great lately—the kid's defense has been on point. I'm starting him at a swing spot today. Then it's Durant and Jokić as usual."
Malone swallowed before continuing.
"As for the bench, since Young's gone, I split his minutes between Caruso and Siakam. The main rotation is Rose running the offense, Oden holding down the paint, with Fred VanVleet and Siakam backing them up. LeVert will be in reserve."
"LeVert in reserve?"
Chen Yilun frowned.
"If I'm remembering right, hasn't he been playing really well lately? Why bench him?"
"He has," Malone admitted, rubbing his chin. "But when I tried different lineups, the chemistry between LeVert, Siakam, and Oden was just so-so. Fred VanVleet, though—he fits perfectly with those two bigs. So this is the best setup."
"I see."
...
Tonight's matchup was Kings vs. Timberwolves—another Western Conference opponent.
This year's Timberwolves had a flashy super-rookie trio: Wiggins, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Fox.
On paper, they looked terrifying, but anyone who really understood the game knew better.
Wiggins, heir to Gay's style, had fully embraced the art of "low-effort basketball." Great as a second or third option, but nowhere near enough to carry a franchise.
Towns, with his naturally soft style, wasn't built to lead a team either.
And Fox—the only one with a real chance—was still just a rookie, not yet developed.
But just because he wasn't ready now didn't mean he wouldn't be later.
Fox thrived alongside a big who could stretch the floor and facilitate. In the original timeline, the Kings had traded their homegrown rising star Haliburton to the Pacers for Sabonis just to unlock Fox's potential. And at this point in time, Towns was undoubtedly better than Sabonis.
So just how far could this little Fox go? No one really knew.
Watching the young Fox warming up on the opposite side, Chen Yilun clicked his tongue.
If the kid weren't so expensive, he'd honestly want to bring Fox under his banner too.
As the final seconds ticked down, the referee's whistle signaled the start of the game.
The Kings had the first possession. Tonight's plan was simple: help Booker—fresh off his return—find his rhythm again.
Richardson brought the ball across half-court. Jokić immediately stepped up to the top of the arc for a pick-and-roll.
After Jokić set a rock-solid screen, Booker—starting from the opposite corner—curled all the way around the baseline toward the weak-side 45.
With the Timberwolves' defense fully focused on Richardson and Jokić, the weak side was practically abandoned.
As Booker reached 45, Durant slid into place and gave him an off-ball screen, springing him completely free on the perimeter.
Swish.
Booker caught the pass and drained the first three with ease.
The Timberwolves' head coach was Tom Thibodeau—the same man who once led the Rose-era Bulls.
Watching the Kings' offense flow like mercury, the stout Thibodeau looked helpless.
"Should we double Booker?"
Assistant coach Ryan Saunders whispered.
He came from quite the pedigree—his father was the Timberwolves' legendary coach and Kevin Garnett's mentor, Coach Saunders Sr.
"If we double Booker, Durant's wide open,"
Thibodeau snapped.
"You wanna let the Slim Reaper go wild?"
That shut young Saunders up immediately.
With Butler injured, the Kings relied mostly on Booker and Durant to finish plays. Jokić, the third option, hardly took shots himself—but somehow always finished games with a massive double-double or triple-double.
Booker and Durant were like two bottles of poison. Opponents had to drink one. Either way, they were dead.
And just as expected, by the end of the first quarter the Kings were up 26–14, leading by 12.
...
But as the second quarter began, an unexpected chant rose through the Golden 1 Center.
"We want Rose!"
Wearing the Kings' No. 25, Rose looked up at the stands in surprise.
Normally, chants like that only happened during garbage time—hearing them at the start of the second was almost unheard of.
"Derrick!"
Malone walked over smiling. "What are you doing spacing out? Didn't you hear them calling you? Get ready—you're going in!"
"Alright!"
Rose closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them, his whole presence had shifted.
"See that? That's my boss."
Butler, dressed in a suit on the sidelines, said proudly.
"Yeah, yeah, that's your boss."
Guy laughed beside him. "Guess all our years together can't compare to your white moonlight. Now that Derrick's here, you're ignoring me already."
As Rose stepped onto the court, the arena burst into deafening cheers for the former king.
Standing courtside, Thibodeau watched him with a complicated expression—his most cherished and most heartbreaking student.
"Go get 'em."
Thibodeau nodded at Rose, his mouth moving silently.
Feeling his mentor's encouragement, Rose nodded back.
Durant passed him the ball, and Rose slowly dribbled across half-court. His defender was Jeff Teague, the Timberwolves' backup point guard.
Rose dribbled at the top of the arc, ready to initiate the offense—
but the rest of the Kings stayed planted on both wings, not moving at all.
"Go one-on-one!"
Butler shouted from the bench. "Show them what you can do, boss!"
Feeling his teammates' eyes on him, something surged inside Rose.
He sped up his dribble, crossed over, and suddenly exploded left.
Teague took a step back, sticking to him.
But as Rose reached mid-range, he hit a sudden stop—a hesitation that threw Teague's footing completely off.
In the split second before Teague could recover, Rose spun clean past him.
Towns rotated over to contest, but Rose didn't hesitate. He rose into the air, twisted his body mid-flight to avoid Towns, and switched hands for a smooth up-and-under layup.
The ball bounced twice on the rim, then dropped in.
And the moment it fell through the net, the entire Golden 1 Center erupted like a storm.