"Hey, chill out, man! Everybody calm the hell down!" Hakeem Olajuwon stepped in between them, trying to break it up.
"Charles, let it go," Ewing chimed in, backing him up.
"Barkley, if you wanna throw hands, come at me."
Zhao Dong walked up, forced his way in, and pressed his forehead right up against Barkley's.
"Kid, what the hell do you want?" Barkley shoved him back.
Zhao Dong smirked and said, "Charles, what was it you wanted me to call you just now?"
"Dad," Barkley sneered.
"Man, that sounds real good." Zhao Dong chuckled.
The room erupted with laughter, Oakley laughing the loudest.
"You little bastard!"
Barkley lost it and charged at Zhao Dong, fists swinging.
"Relax, Charles! Chill the hell out!"
"Charles, don't get worked up over a damn rookie!"
Hakeem Olajuwon and Ewing grabbed Barkley, barely holding him back as he yelled at Zhao Dong to get lost.
Zhao Dong just waved him off, turning to Oakley with a smirk. "Barkley, I promise you, before this night is over, you're gonna call me dad for real."
"You damn rookie! I'm dropping 50 on your head tonight! I'm gonna beat your ass so bad, you'll be on the floor calling me daddy!" Barkley roared from behind.
"You dumbass, you ain't ever putting 50 on me in your life," Zhao Dong shot back coldly.
He had reasons for taking the bet—one, he didn't wanna back down; two, he couldn't let Oakley take an L; and three, he knew there was always a way to get the upper hand. Barkley was getting older, his body wearing down. If Zhao Dong turned up the physicality, he could wear him out and tank his efficiency.
If he couldn't handle an aging Barkley, how the hell was he supposed to go up against Jordan?
Reporters were already losing their minds, fingers flying over their keyboards, getting the news out ASAP.
In the Knicks' locker room, before the coaches stepped in, Zhao Dong turned to Oakley. "Charles, be ready. We took the bet, now we gotta handle business and put Barkley in his place."
Oakley nodded, grinning. "That man wants you to call him daddy? Hell no! That's disrespecting the whole squad. He ain't walking off this court in one piece. We're beating his ass tonight."
"I sat out against the Jazz, so I'm going in first this time. Deal?" Larry Johnson shouted.
"Zhao Dong, ain't you always talkin' about winning people over with virtue?" Oakley asked, laughing.
"Winning with virtue? Yeah, that means knocking their ass down first, pinning 'em to the floor, and then showing them virtue. Otherwise, they ain't gonna respect you." Zhao Dong grinned.
Oakley and Larry Johnson burst into laughter, and the whole locker room followed.
Meanwhile, in the Rockets' locker room, Barkley was hyping himself up. "We're winning this game, no doubt. And that rookie is gonna call me dad before the night's over!"
Hakeem shook his head. "We got a good shot, but don't underestimate them. The Knicks are second in the East for a reason."
Barkley nodded. "That kid's coming up fast. I saw how he handled Webber last game. His passing is improving, and he's figuring out how to beat double teams."
"Exactly," Hakeem warned. "So don't get careless."
"Man, I got this," Barkley said confidently.
---
At 7:00 PM, the starting lineups were announced.
Knicks: Ewing, Zhao Dong, Oakley, Allan Houston, Chris Childs
Rockets: Hakeem, Barkley, Drexler, Mario Elie, Matt Maloney
NBC was broadcasting nationwide, and CCTV was showing it live in China.
On the NBC broadcast, Doug Collins grinned. "Right now, Hakeem's been more consistent than Ewing, and Barkley's got a clear edge over Zhao Dong on both ends..."
He glanced at Marv Albert, who picked up the conversation. "No doubt about it. Barkley can drop 20 and 10 with ease, even going one-on-five. Zhao Dong ain't on that level yet—he's still learning. That's a huge gap in experience."
Doug Collins nodded. "The Rockets also have the edge at small forward, while the Knicks have a slight advantage at shooting guard. But Houston's backcourt is looking shaky this season."
At that moment, Marv Albert laughed. "You know, just an hour ago, Barkley made Zhao Dong bet that whoever loses has to call the other 'dad.' And Zhao Dong agreed!"
"Haha! Yeah, I caught that!" Doug Collins chuckled.
"Honestly, I gotta wonder if either of these two will actually honor the bet. That's a hell of a thing to put on the line," Marv Albert joked.
"Who knows?" Doug Collins laughed.
On the CCTV broadcast, Zhang Heli and Sun Zhenping kept it professional, avoiding the bet entirely.
Zhang Heli smiled. "Zhao Dong has officially locked down a starting role, and his shot attempts are second only to Ewing. That's a huge accomplishment!"
Sun Zhenping added, "Coach Zhang, I heard the national team wanted to recruit Zhao Dong. Any updates on that?"
Zhang Heli sighed. "Well, things are a bit complicated with the Basketball Association right now, so it's on hold."
Sensing the mood shift, Sun Zhenping quickly changed the subject.
---
Over in Chicago, before the Bulls faced the Bullets, Jordan dialed up Barkley.
"Charles, don't fuck around and end up calling that kid dad," Jordan teased.
"Man, get the hell outta here!" Barkley yelled.
"You better dunk on his ass a couple times and block some shots. That's what you do best," Jordan laughed.
"Don't worry, I'm putting in work," Barkley boasted.
---
Half an hour later, the teams took the court.
As they walked out of the tunnel, Zhao Dong, third in line, suddenly heard the Rockets' crowd chanting:
"DADDY! DADDY! DADDY!"
He froze.
"Are these idiots mocking me?"
This wasn't just disrespectful—it was dumb as hell.
Then again, considering how Americans handled shit during the pandemic, he wasn't even surprised.
"DADDY! DADDY! DADDY!"
The more confused he looked, the louder they got. Zhao Dong just shook his head.
On the CCTV broadcast, Zhang Heli and Sun Zhenping were holding back laughter, trying to stay composed on air.
---
Twenty minutes later, the game tipped off. Zhao Dong went up against Hakeem for the jump ball. The Rockets won possession, and Barkley got to work.
He tried shaking Zhao Dong with quick cuts, but the rookie stuck to his strategy—staying inside, forcing Barkley toward the perimeter, giving him space to shoot but cutting off the drive.
The first play went to Barkley. He caught the pass with Zhao Dong two steps back and immediately pulled up.
Zhao Dong reacted in a flash. His speed was elite for a power forward, and his closing burst was no joke.
By the time Barkley released, Zhao Dong was already airborne.
BANG!
Brick.
The ball clanked off the rim, Oakley snatched the rebound, and the Knicks pushed it up the floor.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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