score maniac

Chapter 13: Going Head-to-Head with Cousins

NBA, here I come! By the time Gu Yu reported to the Kings, the controversy he’d stirred up a few days earlier had gradually died down. Although the incident itself was hilarious and quite entertaining, after several days of relentless media coverage, the fans were tired of it, the players were tired of it, and even Kahn—who had initially ranted and raved against Gu Yu in interviews—was tired of it. Most importantly, Gu Yu wasn’t exactly a star player; while what he did was over the top, public interest had reached its limit. People are too busy just trying to get by—who has time to watch some unknown kid beat up his manager for days on end? Don’t believe me? Just imagine if Kobe had punched Morey—how much of a frenzy would the media and the public have caused? “…All right, that takes care of all the paperwork, Gu…” In the team’s personnel office, Gu Yu—who had just come out of the general manager’s office—finally finished filling out the last contract. The staff member in charge of personnel registration was a young woman with an extremely ample bust. As she jiggled slightly while organizing the documents, she looked up at Gu Yu and smiled, “Welcome to the Sacramento Kings!” “Great!” Gu Yu nodded and was just about to pump his fist in the air to express his excitement when, the moment he raised his fist, the young woman let out a startled “Ah!” and stumbled back several steps, nearly falling off her chair, her face a picture of terror. …Does she have to overreact like that? Gu Yu knew this was the aftermath of what he’d done a few days earlier. He didn’t blame the young woman, though; he just shook his head in exasperation, slung his backpack over his shoulder, and headed for the practice court. Being an NBA rookie had one perk: he could get an advance on his salary from the team. Although it wasn’t enough to pay back what he owed Yu Chenyi, Gu Yu immediately transferred some money to her via online banking. “Got it~! No rush on the rest—I’ll pay you back when I have the money~” On the phone, Yu Chenyi was very pleased with Gu Yu’s reliability and replied with a laugh. “Okay, okay. So… do you know anyone in Sacramento? Could you find someone to help me rent an apartment?” Gu Yu was truly shameless, but Yu Chenyi, while sighing, still helped him get in touch with someone, so that matter was settled. “Great, the Kings—with their flashy, sexy style of play. It’s definitely the perfect fit for a handsome guy like me to show off my skills!” After completing all the formalities and passing the team’s physical, Gu Yu went to the locker room at the team center to pick up the key to his locker, which marked his official induction into the team. However, Gu Yu knew that for now, he had merely been successfully registered; whether he’d actually play in the new season or might be sent down to the minors was still far from certain. The most important thing right now was to get to know his teammates, then put on a standout performance in the summer league to firmly establish himself on the Kings’ roster! The road to greatness begins here! “Thump, thump, thump” After putting his things away and changing into his gym clothes, Gu Yu hadn’t even stepped into the practice court when he heard the sound of a basketball bouncing off the floor. “Huh? Are those the other rookies?” Gu Yu knew that the Kings’ record had been absolutely terrible over the past few seasons; they hadn’t even made the playoffs last season, so the players had gone fishing early on. As is customary for NBA players, most were still on vacation at this time of year, so it was unlikely anyone would be training at the gym. If anyone was there, it would be rookies like him who had just reported to the team. Ever since the Kings’ dazzling “Princeton Storm” era faded in the early 21st century, this California team—with its outrageously cool name—had fallen into a slump. After several consecutive years of dismal records, the team’s only star, Kevin Martin, was traded away, leaving the roster devoid of key players and the atmosphere bleak. But over the past few years, the Kings haven’t exactly been sitting idle. Through a series of moves—including the draft and trades—they’ve assembled a starting lineup featuring Rookie of the Year Tyreke Evans, the steady point guard Benno Udrih, the explosive power forward Carl Landry, and the Haitian center Dalleumport. Off the bench, the Kings also boasted a host of strong players, including three-point specialist Omri Casspi, 3-and-D player Francisco Garcia, and promising rookie Jason Thompson. On paper, their roster wasn’t actually that bad; their dismal record was largely due to poor defense and the lack of a true franchise player. Of course, the most significant change the Kings made that year was… “Thud, thud… swish!” “De Marcus Cousins…???” As Gu Yu pushed open the gym doors, he immediately spotted the big man on whom everyone had pinned their hopes. “Hmm…?” After sinking a mid-range jumper, sweat was pouring down Cousins’ face—he’d clearly been training for quite some time. Hearing the sound, he turned around and spotted Gu Yu. “Hey, De Marcus! I’m…” “You’re just in time. I thought the team ball boys were off too. Come on, help me pick up the balls!” Cousins’ gaze swept over Gu Yu, lingering for a second on his slicked-back hair, before he turned away and resumed his practice. Gu Yu froze in place. Realizing he’d been mistaken for a ball boy, a sudden surge of anger flared up inside him. “Hey, big guy… what did you say??” Slamming the door shut behind him, Gu Yu stormed toward the court, pointing at Cousins and demanding, “Say that again??” “Huh? What’s the problem? Isn’t picking up balls your job?” Cousins didn’t even glance at Gu Yu: “Ball boys should stick to doing ball boy work. Do you know who I am? I’m the future number one center in the league! Talk back to me again and I’ll beat you up!” “Whoosh—!” “Thud!” Gu Yu grabbed a basketball and hurled it at him. “Damn it…!!” After getting hit hard in the back of the head by the basketball, Cousins lost his temper. He turned to yell at Gu Yu, but suddenly noticed he was wearing the team’s practice uniform. He furrowed his brow and said, “Wait… are you a player?” “That’s right. You’ll have to take back what you just said.” Gu Yu pointed at himself and looked up, declaring, “I’m the future number one…!” “…Hahahaha, give me a break. With a frame like yours, you think you can be a pro player? Oh, I get it—you’re that moron who beat up Kahn a while back, right? Hahaha! And the team actually let you sign up? Holy shit!” Cousins finally caught on, shaking his head in disdain. To him, Gu Yu was nothing more than a clown. “I don’t think you’re—” Gu Yu had never backed down from a challenge. He warmed up a bit and charged right at him. “Fuck! Let’s go one-on-one!” “Cousin” Cousins had a temper of his own; he grabbed the basketball, flung it forward, and started cursing. “Come on, come on, if you’re so eager to prove yourself, then bring it on!” Gu Yu caught the ball and immediately started dribbling toward the basket, not backing down an inch in the verbal exchange. Unbeknownst to anyone, this first encounter between the Kings’ future star players—one a big man, the other a guard—sparked intense fireworks! And in this one-on-one matchup, Gu Yu was about to unlock the secret weapon that would transform him into the greatest scoring machine of the future!