In the early hours of the morning, Zhao Dong and a few other bench players rolled back to the Knicks' training base on the team bus.
The facility was out in North New York, near Long Island, a good 40 kilometers from Madison Square Garden. A real pain in the ass to get to, which was why some of the subs just crashed there instead of commuting. It was nothing fancy—just some double rooms, a weight room, and a practice court. Since Zhao Dong had just arrived, he had a room to himself for now.
First thing he did? Call his girl, Alice.
It had been a week since his rebirth, and he was already locked into this new reality from 25 years ago. His mind had adjusted fast—like he'd been waiting his whole life for a second chance.
"Hey, Alice, you alone?" he asked, settling into his bed.
"Why? You trying to crash the party?" she teased.
"Heh, nah. But I'll be seeing you in a few days. Need me to bring anything?"
"A safe. A big one."
Zhao Dong frowned. "Wait, what?"
"Lock me in it, in case some wild dogs try to steal your swan."
Zhao Dong chuckled. "Damn, Alice, chill. I'll order the biggest safe I can find."
"Fuck off! Someone's already trying to break into your safe."
"Yeah, yeah. I'll be over soon. You stay wildin' though," Zhao Dong laughed.
After a few more minutes of playful trash talk, he hung up and dialed another number. It was time to check in with his old Stony Brook teammates. Tonight had been a big night for him, and he had to flex a little.
The phone rang a few times before someone picked up, their voice groggy and annoyed.
"Who the hell is this?"
"Yo, Tom, what's good? You got a girl in your bed or what?" Zhao Dong grinned.
"Zhao Dong? Hah, you already know! I'm with Keisha, and that last piece of fat you had is lying next to me right now. But don't call again, man. I ain't wasting time on your ass."
"Fucking bastard, you still obsessed with my leftovers? Hope you get a taste of Via* brother soon," Zhao Dong muttered, hitting redial.
After a few rounds of shit-talking with the squad, Zhao Dong finally flopped onto his bed, still feeling the sting from that hard-ass fall earlier.
He pulled up his system interface and checked his profile.
A notification popped up.
"Host, do you want to update your current jumping talent with Kobe Bryant's?"
Zhao Dong's eyes lit up.
"Any side effects?"
"None."
"Do it."
"Updating…"
"Update complete. Your jumping talent has been enhanced. The effects are as follows: Jumping level increased by 33 levels, internal defense increased by 3, external defense by 1, rebounding by 5, and blocking by 10."
"Holy shit! Hell yeah!" Zhao Dong damn near jumped out of bed.
---
Player Profile: Zhao Dong
Physical Attributes:
Stamina: 80
Coordination: 70
Balance: 72
Flexibility: 75
Injury Resistance: 86
Strength: 80
Speed: 76
Jumping: 95
Jumping Levels:
95+ → Super Elite
90+ → Elite
80+ → Skilled
70+ → Average
---
Technical Ratings:
Basic Skills:
Passing & Receiving: 85
Ball Handling: 85
Shooting: 85
Offense:
Low Post Offense: 80
Ball Dribbling: 70
Spot Jumpers: 75
Pull-Up Jumpers: 70
Small Hook: 75
Small Floater: 75
Straight Arm Jumper: 70
Rebound Jumper: 60
Turnaround Jumper: 60
Step-back Jumpers: 55
Turn-back Step-back Jumpers: 75
Open Cuts: 75
Running Positions: 75
Defense:
Perimeter Defense: 71
Interior Defense: 83
Rebounds: 85
Blocks: 85
Steals: 70
Organization: 70
---
Gold Medal Skills: None
Quality Points: 0
Skill Points: 0
---
Zhao Dong grinned. This was crazy.
His jumping was trash before—sitting at level 62. Now? 95.
His vertical jump shot up from 62 cm to a 95 cm bounce. That's freak athlete territory. Dudes with hops like that? They weren't just dunking—they were living above the rim.
And with his 220 cm wingspan?
Yeah. Scary hours.
Feeling that adrenaline rush, Zhao Dong couldn't just sit there. He hopped out of bed and jumped.
Whoosh!
His head damn near scraped the ceiling.
"Shit! This is wild!" Zhao Dong shouted, laughing.
He jumped again, higher, faster. The way his feet exploded off the ground—instant. No lag, no slow buildup. Just pure bounce.
That was the real game-changer. It wasn't just how high he could jump. It was how fast.
A quick vertical meant:
Faster blocks—no hesitation, just pure chase-down swats.
Stronger rebounds—out-jumping everyone in a blink.
More explosive second jumps—which meant unstoppable put-backs.
This?
This was NBA cheat code shit.
Zhao Dong grinned hard.
With this kind of vertical?
Yeah. He wasn't just another rookie trying to survive.
He was about to run this league.
The next day, New York's media was going crazy about last night's game. Zhao Dong's monster block on rookie Kobe Bryant, sending him flying, was now one of the top five plays in the league. His name was trending, and he was quickly gaining recognition.
His fame wasn't just blowing up in the States—it spread worldwide, even reaching China, where it sparked heated debates.
Before this, the domestic media barely gave a damn about him. Even though he entered the draft this year, most people wrote him off as just another flashy player—another Ma Jian-type dude from last year, who ended up undrafted, just as expected.
But after last night's show, the Chinese media was buzzing about his chances of securing a real NBA contract.
"Mr. Sun, don't you need to report this to CCTV?" Zhang Lili asked excitedly from a hotel in Los Angeles.
"Yeah, we completely ignored him, and then he sent Kobe's shit flying—twice. That was the No. 13 pick in the first round! We gotta keep our eyes on him. This kid might be our first legit NBA star from China!" Sun Zhenping was hyped as hell.
"I'll hit up CCTV right now. We should send someone to follow his progress," Sun Zhenping said, just as pumped.
"Looking at last night's game, he's got a real shot at a guaranteed contract. The Knicks aren't short on cash, and with Larry Johnson out, they need an inside presence. Zhao Dong might actually stick with the team," Zhang Lili said, breaking it down.
That season, CCTV had just started broadcasting one live NBA game per week, with Sun Zhenping as the lead commentator. Zhang Lili, who was fluent in English, got temporarily hired to help out.
They had reported on Zhao Dong before, even interviewing him during Summer League. But after he bounced from the Bulls, they got caught up in game broadcasts and lost track of him. Now? The Knicks had their full attention.
At noon, the Knicks' charter flight took off, headed for Golden State. They had three road games ahead, including a back-to-back with the Clippers.
General Manager Ernie Grunfeld was traveling with the team, and during the flight, he sat down with Coach Jeff Van Gundy for a serious convo.
"Jeff, give the kid some real minutes. We gotta see what he can really do," Ernie said, keeping his voice low.
Van Gundy, a gritty, no-nonsense coach, was notorious for not trusting bench players. This was why Ernie had to push him to play Zhao Dong.
"Ernie, you thinking about signing him for real? Larry Johnson's out for two weeks, and we need help inside. I'll give him a shot," Van Gundy said, mulling it over.
Ernie nodded. "Yeah, he's worth a look. But, you know, Jerry Krause wanted to offer him a 1+1 contract, and Jordan shut that shit down."
Van Gundy raised a brow. "Jordan said that?"
"Nah, it was the media," Ernie chuckled. "They broke the news right before we boarded."
"Look, one or two highlight plays don't mean much, but the kid plays hard. If he keeps that energy up, we'll see," Van Gundy said.
Ernie smirked. "He's got luck on his side. Larry Johnson's a beast in the low post, and so is Zhao Dong. With Johnson out, the kid's got a real-ass chance to shine."
"Here's his physical data, check it out," Ernie said, handing over a document.
---
Player Profile: Zhao Dong
Born: June 1977 (19 years old)
Height: 205 cm
Weight: 115 kg
Wingspan: 220 cm
Palm Length: 27 cm
Palm Width: 28 cm
Standing Reach: 275 cm
Vertical Jump: 62 cm
Run-up Jump: 75 cm
3-Second Sprint: 12.58 meters
Full-Court Sprint: 13.21 seconds
Back-and-Forth in the Paint: 185 seconds
Bench Press: 150 kg (Max)
Reps at 27 lbs: 150 straight
---
Van Gundy skimmed through the numbers.
"The kid's got crazy-ass length, his standing reach is elite. Jumping? Decent, but not freakish. Speed's a bit sluggish, but for an inside guy, it's solid," Van Gundy assessed.
Ernie nodded. "Yeah, but the way he plays? He makes up for it with hustle."
Van Gundy sighed. "Alright, I'll give him his shot. But he better bring that same energy every night."
Ernie leaned back in his seat, smirking.
Zhao Dong's chance was coming.
And if last night was any sign of things to come?
The league wasn't ready.
The next day, the Knicks were set to face the Warriors at the Oakland Arena. In the visiting team's locker room, Zhao Dong was locked in on the system. Two tasks popped up—one called "Champion-Level Sniper" and another for "Continuous Matches."
Champion-Level Sniper Mission:
"Task options for this game:
Hold Joe Smith to single-digit scoring.
Drop 20+ points on Joe Smith while shooting at least 30%.
Block three shots in a single quarter.
Throw down five dunks.
Snag double-digit boards.
Complete any task, and you'll get a random quality or skill point. Complete all of them? You get a blank Gold Medal skill template."
Continuous Match Task:
"Put up 20+5+5 or 20+10 in three straight road games. Reward: Lin Crazy Explosion Card."
Zhao Dong studied the tasks. The system had to be on some next-level futuristic shit—it was basically telling him he'd get minutes tonight and be matched up with Joe Smith.
Joe Smith, the No. 1 pick from last year, stood 6'10" (208 cm) in shoes—same height as Zhao Dong. Dude was 115 kg, and his stats weren't bad: 8.7 points, 1 board, 1 dime, 1.6 steals, 1.7 blocks, 2.7 turnovers, and 46 fouls per game, shooting 43.4%. He was solid on both ends.
Physically, Zhao Dong had always been a step behind Joe, but with Kobe's jumping added to his game now, he felt different. The only thing that might be an issue was Joe's speed—being lighter meant he was quicker.
"Man, these rewards weak as hell," Zhao Dong thought, frowning.
The system must've been feeling generous two days ago for his first real NBA game. Today? It was stingy.
These tasks weren't easy. Completing all of them? That was some All-Star level shit, especially when he didn't even know how much burn he'd get. His best bet was to lock in on one and knock it out.
"System, what's this blank Gold Medal skill template?" he asked mentally.
"A skill rated 95+ is considered a Gold Medal skill. The system will provide a special effect for that skill. You can choose any skill to upgrade to Gold Medal status. The skill level won't increase, but the Gold Medal effect will activate immediately," the system explained.
"Yo, that's tough! Too bad I'm not at that level yet," Zhao Dong sighed.
As for the second task, it made one thing clear—he was gonna get real minutes in these next few games. The system wouldn't have thrown this challenge at him otherwise.
The Lin Crazy Explosion Card? Sounded like it let him go full Jeremy Lin mode when activated.
Right then, Van Gundy walked in, calling out the starting five.
"Ewing, Oakley, Allan Houston, Charlie Ward…"
He paused, looking around. John Wallace and McCarty sat up a little, thinking they had a shot at the final spot. Both were rookies—Wallace was the No. 18 pick, McCarty No. 19.
Neither of the vets even flinched.
"…Zhao, you're in," Van Gundy finally said.
"Got it, coach," Zhao Dong said, lowkey hype as he fist-bumped the air.
John Wallace and McCarty both shot him dirty looks, clearly salty.
"Zhao, you'll be in the low post. Keep Joe Smith in check—he's athletic, so use your size and strength to keep him out of the paint," Van Gundy instructed.
"Bet," Zhao Dong nodded.
Van Gundy gave a small nod. He knew exactly why he picked Zhao Dong over the other two rookies.
John Wallace had a mid-range game but wasn't elite. He wasn't strong enough for post play, didn't rebound well, and his defense was ass—he wasn't the guy.
McCarty? Just a stretch forward who could occasionally knock down a three. His shot was decent, but nothing special. Not what Van Gundy needed.
But Zhao Dong? He had that dog in him. He played hard-nosed defense and was tough in the paint—exactly what the Knicks needed right now.
---
Meanwhile, over in Chicago, the Bulls were in their locker room, and reporters were allowed in for interviews.
"Michael, do you remember Zhao Dong from the Bulls' summer league and preseason?" a reporter asked.
"We met after the preseason. What's up?" Jordan replied, cool as ever.
"Some media outlets are saying you blocked the Bulls from signing Zhao Dong. Is that true?"
"I don't get involved in management's decisions," Jordan answered without hesitation.
Even if it were true, he couldn't say it. No star—no matter how big—was supposed to interfere with front-office moves.
"So, do you think Zhao Dong deserved a contract with the Bulls?" another reporter pressed.
"I don't really know him," Jordan shrugged. "We met once, didn't even talk. But let's be real—I don't think he's got the skills for this level. Jerry made the right call."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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