Doug agreed, but added a request: "I hope I can come here to train every day. If your gym could let me use it for free, that would be even better."
"No problem at all."
Ben Holland happily replied: "From now on you can use all the gym equipment for free. And our team's top trainers will design the most detailed training plan for you. You're already part of the Bruins—you should enjoy all the privileges of an official player. It'll take about three days for us to file the paperwork with the school and the NCAA."
With that promise, Doug immediately brightened up.
For him, this was a very good deal.
Using UCLA's basketball gym and top training staff without paying a cent—it felt almost too good to be true.
"Hey, Russell. Is this the electrotherapy you were talking about?"
He turned to ask Westbrook, who was lying on the massage bed beside him.
Both were getting treatment from professional therapists after high-intensity training.
As the faint currents flowed into his body, Doug could clearly feel his blood, muscles, even bones becoming more active.
Westbrook, however, was thinking about something else. He turned to Kevin Love: "Kevin, what do you think Darren will say when he gets back from the hospital and finds out Snoop has actually joined the Bruins?"
"No idea. Maybe he'll just fight Snoop again."
Kevin Love turned serious and warned: "Listen, Snoop. Back in the dorm we could protect you. But on the team, he's the boss. And he's got loyal followers—Luc Mbah a Moute and Jrue Holiday do whatever he says. You've got to stay on your guard, one hundred percent of the time."
He was dead serious.
But Doug stayed relaxed.
Back when he was only 175 cm tall, he dared to go head-to-head with Darren Collison. Now at 195 cm, he feared him even less.
People often said Doug's personality was like his mother, gentle and calm. But in crucial moments, he was more like his father—stubborn, tough, never one to seek trouble, but never one to back down either.
After treatment, Westbrook rushed off to a date with Nina, his number one fan. She had admired him since his freshman year, when he barely played six minutes a game. Now that he was thriving, their love only grew stronger.
Doug envied him for that. At 19, he sometimes wondered when his own love story would begin.
As for Kevin Love, despite his last name, he had no concept of romance. He preferred spending hours in World of Warcraft.
As the son of a former NBA player, a well-off white kid from an affluent background, he showed no arrogance, no vanity. He was just a simple, game-obsessed homebody.
That's why Doug liked him.
Together they had built a guild in WoW, and whenever they entered a raid, Azeroth trembled. Whether in the wilds, arenas, or battlegrounds, they always carried the team with ease.
"Listen, Snoop, we should bring that synergy onto the court. Next Tuesday we're facing those USC punks. If you hold the paint, I'll keep outputting from the perimeter. Remember, I'm the best mage in Azeroth!"
After a big victory, Kevin Love shouted this proudly at Doug.
Doug was about to roast him for mixing metaphors when an unfriendly voice came from outside:
"Hey Kevin, aren't you too optimistic? You really think this guy can hold off Taj Gibson?"
It was Luc Mbah a Moute from Cameroon, followed by Jrue Holiday.
Both were Darren Collison's men—and four-star players bound for the NBA.
"This is our dorm. Please leave," Doug turned, refusing to show them respect. "And next time, knock first. UCLA students should at least have basic manners."
"I invited them in. Got a problem with that?"
Collison entered, looking fully recovered, but his expression darkened at the sight of Doug.
"I heard you joined the Bruins."
"Maybe Coach Holland should get his eyes—or his brain—checked."
"But either way, as captain, welcome aboard."
Collison extended his hand.
Doug could tell it was fake courtesy, but he still reached out.
The instant their hands met, Doug felt something sticky.
Before he could pull away, Collison clamped down.
"Hahaha!"
Mbah a Moute and Holiday burst into laughter. "Pathetic rookie, you're finished!"
Collison's smile twisted into a sneer: "Snoop Dogg, welcome to the Bruins. This is your captain's gift."
"This time you won't be jumping around like some East Asian monkey. This is African superglue."
With that, he squeezed harder.
Before, Doug had always slipped away from his grasp in fights. But this time, following Holiday's advice, Collison had Mbah a Moute brew a special plant-based glue—harmless, but impossible to escape.
Collison swore he would crush Doug's hand until it was deformed, to vent all the humiliation of his hospital stay.
He clenched with all his strength. Doug's right hand cracked under the pressure, the sound satisfying his anger.
But strangely, Doug didn't even flinch.
"Tough guy, huh?"
Just as he was about to squeeze harder, Doug stood up.
Collison realized with a jolt that after just twenty days, Doug was nearly as tall as him.
"You call this a welcome gift? Doesn't feel very warm."
Doug chuckled lightly, looking completely at ease.
Then—crack!
Collison suddenly heard the grinding of his own knuckles, followed by searing pain shooting to his brain.
"Ahhh!!"
He screamed, unable to bear it. "Let go! Let go! Please, let go!"
"You're stuck with the glue. I can't let go."
Doug smiled calmly as he twisted his hand.
Collison felt like his hand was being crushed inside a millstone, pain ripping through every finger, sweat pouring down his face.
"Stop! Please, I beg you, stop!"
"What? I can't hear you."
"I'm begging you… begging you, stop…" Collison's voice cracked, nearly in tears.
But Doug only shook his head, still smiling: "Can't hear you."
"…"
"…"