"System, if I max out Shawn Kemp's jumping talent, what level can I hit?" Zhao Dong suddenly asked.
"Level 99," the system responded.
"That low?"
Zhao Dong was shook. Kemp's insane bounce was only a level 99?
"Level 100 is the cap, but 99 is the human limit. Level 100 is straight-up breaking human boundaries. The difference varies—could be just one centimeter more than level 99, or it could be 50."
"Damn, that's a huge ass gap!" Zhao Dong muttered in shock.
At least today's lottery wasn't a complete L. Losing two quality points wasn't the worst. If he wanted to max out his Jumping Talent later, he'd need 12 more quality points to push it to 99.
Now, he had to decide which skill to crown as his Gold Medal move.
He wanted to expand his game to the outside, but his perimeter skills were still third-tier. Even his defense wasn't there yet. No need to rush that.
After thinking it through, he decided to lock in on his inside game first. That was his bread and butter.
The most important weapon in the paint was low-post scoring, and that was already his strongest move. It made sense to make it his Gold Medal skill.
But he still had 10 skill points left. Should he level up his post game first? Or should he boost an outside shot—maybe a pull-up jumper or a turnaround fade?
Then, he remembered a quote from an old head in his past life:
"I got too many weaknesses to fix 'em all. So instead of patching holes, I'll double down on my strengths until I'm the best at 'em."
That hit home.
Right now, his best outside skill was a spot-up jumper at level 75. Everything else barely touched 70. Even if he burned 10 skill points, it would only hit 80—barely second-tier. That wouldn't make it a go-to move.
So instead of spreading himself thin, he'd go all-in on his post game, make it elite, and let that dominance open up the rest of his offense.
He pulled up his player card to check his numbers.
Player: Zhao Dong
Physical Attributes:
Stamina: 86
Coordination: 70
Balance: 72
Flexibility: 75
Durability: 86
Strength: 82
Speed: 86
Vertical: 95
Skills:
Fundamentals:
Passing 85
Ball Handling 85
Shooting 90
Offense:
Low-Post Scoring 84
Driving 70
Spot-Up Jumper 75
Pull-Up Jumper 70
Hook Shot 75
Floater 75
Straight-Arm Jumper 70
Rebound Jumper 60
Turnaround Jumper 60
Fadeaway Jumper 50
Step-Back Jumper 65
Turnaround Step-Back 55
Off-Ball Movement 83
Positioning 75
Defense:
Perimeter D 71
Interior D 84
Rebounding 86
Blocks 86
Steals 70
Playmaking: 70
Gold Medal Skill: Low-Post Scoring
Quality Points: 0
Skill Points: 10
Inventory: 1 Blank Gold Medal Skill Slot
There was still a long way to go—his body, his skills, his offense, his defense. Everything needed work.
"Wait… my Stamina went up?"
Zhao Dong realized his overall physical rating had increased. Must've been from all the training.
Checking again, he saw his strength had jumped by two points, and his speed by one. That had him hyped.
His low-post scoring also got a slight boost, along with his defense, rebounding, and shot-blocking.
"I ain't even been paying attention and still making progress."
That was a dope realization. If he just focused on hooping, the system would keep stacking his numbers.
Time to cash in those skill points.
He dumped 6 points into low-post scoring, pushing it from 84 to 90. Then he told the system:
"Make low-post scoring my Gold Medal skill."
The system responded instantly.
"Gold Medal skill has been set."
He checked his player card again—his low-post scoring was now glowing gold while everything else was still blue.
Then the system dropped another notification:
Gold Medal Skill Bonus (Low-Post Scoring, Level 90):
Weakens defender's effectiveness by 10%-30%
Boosts low-post shot success rate by 5%-15%
"Sheeeesh! That's nasty!"
The boost was simple but powerful, and he was all in on it.
Still, he knew that having elite low-post moves wasn't enough. He needed finishing tools—hook shots, floaters, straight-arm jumpers. Otherwise, all that footwork would go to waste if he couldn't cash in at the rim.
Guys like Tim Duncan, who'd be in the league next year, dominated with footwork and simple bank shots. If he polished his fundamentals, he could eat inside for years.
With 4 skill points left, he considered what to level up next.
The system always threw blocks and steals into mission rewards. Since shot-blocking was already at 86, why not max it out?
"Let's push blocks to 90 and make it elite."
And just like that, his shot-blocking became his first defensive skill to hit 90—joining low-post scoring and his overall shooting.
With his vertical, wingspan, and big hands, his rim protection was about to be a problem for anyone coming inside.
Now that the system upgrades were handled, he leaned back, threw on some music, and thought about the next few days.
The Knicks had some time off before their next game— November 30 against the Kings at home. That left a six-day gap with no games.
After that, they wouldn't play again until December 3 against the Heat.
That game had some history behind it. The Heat's coach was Pat Riley—the same guy who built the Knicks' tough, defensive identity. He ran the squad from '91 to '95 before leaving. Ewing and Oakley were both his guys.
But Zhao Dong wasn't thinking about the Heat.
He was locked in on the rookie rankings dropping at the end of the month.
Right now, his stats were solid:
28 MPG
19.2 PPG
7.6 RPG
0.8 APG
0.7 SPG
1.9 BPG
2.1 TO
3.2 FOULS
That put him second or third among all 1996 rookies.
At the top was Allen Iverson, the No. 1 pick:
40 MPG
23.5 PPG
4.0 RPG
7.5 APG
2.0 SPG
0.3 BPG
4.4 TO
3.3 FOULS
The third overall pick, Shareef Abdur-Rahim, was putting up similar numbers to Zhao Dong:
35 MPG
18.7 PPG
6.9 RPG
2.2 APG
1.0 SPG
1.0 BPG
2.8 TO
3.5 FOULS
He was right there with Shareef, but still had a gap to AI.
With the official rookie rankings dropping soon, he figured he'd be ranked third at worst. That meant more eyes on him.
His numbers were solid, but he wasn't delusional—nobody was double-teaming him yet. That meant his low-post game wasn't scary enough.
But now? With his low-post scoring at Gold Medal Level 90?
It wouldn't be long before teams started doubling him in the post.
And that's when shit gets real.
Only superstars get double-teamed. Zhao Dong was waiting for that moment.
When you still drop numbers through double-teams and playoff-level pressure, that's when you know you're built different.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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