"Shrink the defense and speed up the weak-side help!" Mavericks coach Rudy Tomjanovich barked from the sideline.
Zhao Dong called for it in the low post on the left wing.
Hakeem "The Dream" Olajuwon wasn't even trying to push him out of the paint. He knew better. Zhao Dong had that killer mid-range, so pushing him out wouldn't help. Plus, giving him space just meant expanding the court and making him even harder to guard.
Zhao Dong caught the rock, dropped his hips, and started backing down. Houston's weak-side help was already crashing.
Now, Zhao's butt ain't quite as big as Barkley's, but it still stacked. When he leaned in, Dream, who had the same weight but way higher center of gravity—and aging legs—lost balance real quick.
Next move, Zhao Dong spun, planted a foot inside the paint, flicked his wrist, and banked it clean off the glass.
"Bang!"
"Smooth! That's a 45-degree bank shot—perfect touch on the release," Zhang Heli hyped on the CCTV broadcast.
"Zhao Dong! Do that poster dunk you did on Shaq! Show the home fans what they came to see!" Sun Zhenping shouted.
Zhang Heli chuckled, "Can't be doing that all the time, man. That kind of jam eats stamina. Even guys like MJ only pull it a couple times per game."
Next play, Rockets ball. Dream posted up on the left wing.
Zhao Dong went full Dennis Rodman mode—low base, strong stance, bodying up to keep Dream out the paint.
He was a bit shorter, sure, but with that low center of gravity, Dream couldn't move him an inch.
But Dream ain't about brute force—he's about finesse.
Squeak!
With a quick pivot and slick footwork, Dream spun into the lane.
Zhao Dong was a beat late but recovered fast. One step and he was right there.
Dream tried to pull up for a quick jumper.
Zhao Dong took a step up, turned, and snatched that shot out the air.
"OHHHH!"
The home crowd went wild.
"Unreal! Zhao Dong just blocked The Dream's jumper straight up! Man, you don't see that every day!" Matt Goukas shouted, while Marv Albert chimed in with, "Yes! And a statement stop!"
Knicks went on the break, and Allan Houston finished it with a smooth layup.
"Hey Dream, the Silver Demon 1s got that grip, bounce, and foot protection. Don't sleep on 'em!" Zhao Dong took his chance to plug the kicks.
Dream glared. "Give me a signature shoe deal, then I'll rock 'em."
"Nah, bro. Centers don't sell kicks. Plus, you're old and retiring soon. My shoes are elite. Yours? Straight trash. You're lucky if you get a mid-tier contract."
Trash talk mode: activated.
"You—!" Dream was fuming.
This dude has no chill. What if your shoe company tanks from this?
Next play, Dream tried going at him again.
Zhao Dong played up, then baited the baseline. Dream bit, tried slipping down low—and boom—Zhao Dong was already there, knocked it loose, and picked it clean.
Another steal.
Rockets sprinted back. No fast break this time. It turned into half-court action.
Zhao Dong back in the post. Left wing. Again.
He faked the same 45-degree bank. Dream expected it and shifted up—baited.
Zhao Dong dropped low, spun, and took two big steps right into the lane.
Barkley rotated over from the weak side but didn't even jump.
"BOOM!"
A violent dunk shook the rim.
Chuck just stood there, no contest.
Zhao Dong flexed. "C'mon Barkley, you made my dunk lose all its meaning. That's weak."
Chuck was heated, veins popping. Don't swing… don't swing. Fighting this man is like punching a wall that punches back. No win here.
Next Rockets possession, Barkley hit a jumper over Oakley and grinned.
"Old man, I'm cooking you," he taunted.
"How many made shots?" Zhao Dong asked, walking past.
"One," Oakley chimed in. "Man's feelin' himself off one bucket?"
Barkley mentally folded. Dead.
Next two minutes, Zhao Dong stopped scoring. Switched gears to playmaking.
By minute 6, it was 14–8, Knicks up by six.
Back to the post.
Dream stayed locked in, bracing for the turn-up jumper or spin-baseline. But that caution left a soft spot up top.
Zhao Dong didn't go up, didn't go down—just spun mid-post and popped a clean jumper.
"Swish!"
Level 95 Gold Medal skill don't lie—30% boost in shot stability. That, plus elite shooting mechanics, made it automatic.
"That's the power of a complete game," Zhang Heli grinned. "You can't cover all his options. He's always got one more move."
"Still, he doesn't use that fadeaway jumper," Sun Zhenping said.
"Yeah, too much energy needed. With his build, it's not realistic. Everyone's got limits," Zhang added.
By the 8-minute mark in the fourth, Knicks led 84–79.
Zhao Dong's game goals were almost checked off—just missing one more steal.
He'd blocked Dream three times, stolen it twice, and stacked 31 points. Took a step back from scoring to lock in defensively.
Barkley and Dream were still battling hard, combining for 47 points, even though their stamina was clearly fading.
"Oh, hell no! Yo, Dream, your pits reek, man! You ever heard of deodorant?"
Hakeem was posting up, arms wide, calling for the rock. Zhao Dong was right up in his grill, pressing into his ribs, looking like he was about to gag.
"I did use deodorant!" Hakeem snapped, annoyed.
Bang!
The pass came in hot. Just as Hakeem secured it, Zhao Dong came flying in from the side, smacked it clean out his hands, snatched the rock, and took off downcourt for the steal.
"You fell for it, Hakeem! Don't play with the real one!" Zhao Dong hollered as he sprinted off.
Hakeem was so heated his teeth were grinding.
"Damn… does it really stink?"
He hesitated, then sniffed his own armpit.
"URGH!"
The smell hit him like a brick wall. Dude almost threw up on the spot.
Click! Click! Click!
The baseline reporters snapped pics like they just won the lottery, catching the whole scene perfectly.
Hakeem's face darkened. "Man, what the hell y'all takin' pictures for?" He shot a glare at the grinning photographers. "Ain't nothin' funny!"
Game over. Houston couldn't tie it up in the final seconds and took the L.
Zhao Dong dropped a monster stat line: 35 points, 16 boards, 7 dimes, 3 steals, 4 blocks, just 2 turnovers, and 3 fouls. Certified sniper mission complete.
He took the two attribute points he earned and threw them into Flexibility and Balance, raising both to 88.
Then he added two skill points to his first Gold Badge skill — Low Post Isos — taking it from level 91 to 92.
With Ewing out, Camby wasn't gonna lock down the paint or bring real post offense. Not now, not ever. So in crucial games this season — especially in the playoffs — Zhao Dong was gonna have to dominate down low. Strengthening his post game was a must.
Low-post scoring efficiency would be their X-factor.
But man… the system hadn't been dropping many missions lately. By the end of November, Zhao Dong hadn't gotten a new one at all.
Next up, the Knicks were hittin' the road for two more away games.
That same night, they landed in Atlanta. After dinner, Larry Johnson, Oak, and the crew dipped out to the Gold Club to wild out. Zhao Dong? He chilled back at the hotel.
Ring, ring.
"Yo Liu, what's up?"
Zhao Dong had been waitin' for this call from China.
"Zhao Dong," Liu Yumin's voice came through, upbeat. "The notice just dropped. I'm officially in charge of all domestic basketball affairs."
"Yo, that's huge! Congrats!" Zhao Dong grinned.
"They're announcing the new center tomorrow. Xiaoxin's still my deputy, though. That whole academic crew? Can't stop them rising, it's part of the whole reform wave now."
"With backing from the top, you should be able to hold him down, no?" Zhao Dong chuckled.
"Not without your help."
"Haha, you got it."
"Hu Weidong's ballin' out over here. He'll probably make the jump next year. Yao Ming 's developing well — should be ready to rep in the Olympics. If we snatch a medal and show solid results, those guys won't have a leg to stand on."
"Exactly. That's why I need your support," Liu said. "By the way, how's Yao Ming doin' in the NCAA?"
"Still raw — it's only been a month. But he's puttin' in work, bulking up. Dude's on the come-up. Duke's head coach is locked in on him, whole squad is building around the big man."
"That's music to my ears."
Liu Yumin continued, "Now, about Dazhi's status — it's gonna take some real negotiations to sort out. That'll be slow. But we also talked internally about training fees. Xiaoxin and his crew want 15% of a player's income to go to the Basketball Association. I shot that down quick — it's straight-up greedy."
"Facts. That ain't it," Zhao Dong said. "Best move is a one-time payout. Hu Weidong gave Nangang 1.2 mil — that's fair."
"Right? They wanted 5 mil at first. But Xiao Hu's been grindin' for years and didn't even make that. No way they can ask for that much. Took a lot of work, but we got them to settle for 1.2 mil."
"Zhao Dong, I'm thinkin' Xiao Hu should also throw in an extra 200k to the Basketball Association. You cool with that?"
"200k? That's doable."
"Cool, then I'll push that forward."
"Haha, guess I gotta call you Director Liu now, huh?"
"Still the same me," Liu laughed.
"Nah, for real, this one's on you. We can't kill the golden goose, man. We gotta let more guys play overseas, bring that talent back to boost the domestic game. Youth training, stronger league, better rep on the world stage. That's the goal."
"Couldn't agree more."
After some more talk, they wrapped up the call.
---
The Knicks had gone 11–4 in November — not bad, though still tweaking their new schemes, which held them back a bit.
Coach Don Nelson still wasn't happy with the point guard situation. He didn't care much for scoring but was real frustrated with Charlie Ward and Chris Childs when it came to playmaking and executing the game plan.
Still, even with all that, the Knicks were sitting on top of the East and tied with the Spurs for 2nd-best record in the league.
The Bulls, despite having the highest payroll in the league, were a win behind the Knicks and two behind the Heat.
Over in the West, the Jazz were struggling. With Stockton injured, they were sitting at 9–6, behind both the Lakers and the Spurs.
The Lakers had jumped out the gate hot, holding a 12–3 record — best in the league.
As for the Spurs, last season they were shaky. But after landing Tim Duncan, they took off. Pairing Duncan with David Robinson gave them that deadly frontcourt, and they now sat at 11–4, second in the West.
Tim Duncan was a beast on both ends. Just one month in, folks were already saying he hit his prime from Day 1. People were calling him the best rookie since Zhao Dong.
And truth be told? With how many teams tanked for him last year, it was lookin' like it might've been worth it.
Zhao Dong played 15 games, averaging 35.5 minutes a night. He was hittin' 14-of-22 shots per game, knockin' down nearly 1-of-2 from deep, and 7.1-of-8.6 from the stripe. Dude was puttin' up 37.2 points, 12.2 boards, 8.8 dimes, 1.1 steals, 3.2 blocks, just 2.2 turnovers, and 3.1 fouls. Straight monster stats.
His close-range FG% was sittin' at a wild 73%, and overall he was shootin' a league-best 63%, not just No. 1 this season — but the highest in league history.
With those gold badge skills, Zhao Dong was a walking bucket. His offensive efficiency was off the charts — not even MJ was touchin' that, and definitely not the bigs in the paint.
Even Tim Duncan, who's already flashin' that future Hall-of-Fame potential, had a 70% rate close to the hoop — but his overall FG% was just 51% this month. That's 12 points less than Zhao Dong. Not even close.
Zhao was cookin' from midrange too. Only 40% of his shots came in the paint — the rest were jumpers. And his midrange efficiency? Way better than Duncan's.
That's the Big Fundamental's weakness early on — once you pull him outside, his shot's shaky.
The Knicks? Solid record so far, and with that ridiculous statline, Zhao Dong grabbed the Eastern Conference Player of the Month award for November. He also stayed locked in at No. 1 on the MVP ladder.
This was his first time winning Player of the Month — and that's big time. That award ain't handed out easy. MJ himself only bagged it 16 times across his whole career.
Only Bron and a prime Kobe eventually passed that number, but later the NBA changed the rules — giving out one for the East and one for the West, making it easier to collect.
So technically? MJ still reigns supreme when it comes to real monthly dominance.
Now we're into December.
On the 2nd, the Knicks are takin' on the Spurs at home.
But on the morning of the 1st — boom — the media dropped a bombshell.
At the Warriors' morning practice, Coach P.J. Carlesimo got choked out by Latrell Sprewell. No cap, the dude straight up went hands-on-throat and almost strangled him.
It took players and staff 15 seconds to drag Sprewell off him.
But it gets wilder.
Sprewell dipped… only to storm back in 20 minutes later and went full hands again — punchin' and kickin' Carlesimo in front of everyone.
Whole league went into shock — it was the wildest player-on-coach attack in NBA history.
By lunchtime, while Lindsay was whippin' something up in the kitchen, Zhao Dong was chillin' on the couch watchin' ESPN break down the incident.
He already knew what was comin'. Sprewell? He'd get suspended for the season, then get shipped to the Knicks next year.
"Heh."
Zhao Dong chuckled just thinkin' about it.
The madman had game — no doubt. Just needed some serious discipline. Once he landed in New York next year, Zhao planned to keep him in check and not let him mess with the locker room vibe.
Right then — ding! — the system dropped a new mission.
"Yo, finally! Been over ten days since you popped up!"
He opened it hyped — figured it might be more than one task, especially now that he'd be facin' The Admiral and Timmy D.
And boom — he was right. Two missions showed up.
Superstar Sniper Mission: Face off vs. David Robinson and take him down.
Mission Requirements:
Drop 30+ points on Robinson
Pull down 13+ boards
Record a triple-double
Lead the Knicks to a W
Rewards:
+2 Quality Points
+2 Skill Points
"That's tough!"
Only thing Zhao Dong could say about it — this one's a grind, high difficulty, and low reward compared to the challenge. But you already know he's built for this.
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
Do you want to read Advanced Chapters?
Visit this link:
Påtreon.com/Fanficlord03
Change (å) to (a)
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
Check my Discord!
https://discord.gg/MntqcdpRZ9