"This number 6 player on the Red team with long hair is really fierce!"
"Accurate three-pointers!"
"Sharp steals!"
"His dunking ability is also outstanding..."
While all the spectators' attention was on Ginobili, Kobe was still focused on Hexi Meng, who had scored zero points. He wanted to see how long Hexi Meng could hold out!
In the next few possessions, the Blue team scored 2 points each through Nesterović and Radošević, totaling 7 points.
On the Red team's side, Gasol made a layup under the basket, Kirilenko hit a mid-range jumper, and Nowitzki sank an outside three-pointer...
21:7, the Red team easily won the first game!
Hexi Meng scored zero points but had 5 assists! And almost all of the Red team's offense originated from Hexi Meng...
The Blue team was stunned!
Although they knew there was a gap between their strength and the starting lineup, they thought it was a gap that could be bridged through effort and hustle on the same level, not a one-sided massacre like this...
To be honest, purely in terms of individual skills, the gap between the Blue team members and the Red team members was not that significant!
But the Blue team's biggest problem was the lack of chemistry and the language barrier between them!
Without Hexi Meng drawing on the whiteboard, they could only rely on their own understanding to execute their plays.
The two players on the perimeter, Yūta Tabuse and Dong Geun Liang, were severely disconnected from the three big men inside, unable to form effective communication and cooperation...
The inside and outside players fought separately, like scattered sand. How could the Blue team not be completely crushed by the Red team?
The Red team, with Hexi Meng's coordination, played like a quasi-NBA team...
In the second game, Nowitzki felt that dominating weaker opponents wasn't very interesting and voluntarily stepped down, giving his position to Da Zhi.
The Red team's lineup was adjusted to Gasol, Da Zhi, Kirilenko, Nowitzki, and Hexi Meng!
The Blue team still had no chance.
As per Hexi Meng's instructions, Da Zhi moved to the perimeter to shoot threes. Radošević chose to ignore him, and after Da Zhi made two three-pointers, he reluctantly guarded him near the three-point line. The Blue team's inside was empty, so Hexi Meng drove and passed to Gasol, drove and passed to Kirilenko, drove and passed to Ginobili...
After a series of drives and passes, Hexi Meng sealed the game with a three-pointer, helping the Red team defeat the Blue team 21:6 and win the second game!
2:0, the match ended!
The Red team decisively defeated the Blue team.
Inside, Gasol, Nowitzki, and Da Zhi basically gave the reserve big men no opportunities.
On the perimeter, Yūta Tabuse scored zero points, while Dong Geun Liang scored 3 points.
Although Hexi Meng only made the final game-winning three-pointer, he had 11 assists... earning him the title of "Assist King Who Can't Score"!
Can Hexi Meng really not score?
Kobe certainly didn't believe it, and Ginobili called Hexi Meng "little dog" because Hexi Meng wasn't trying his best at all...
Why wasn't Hexi Meng trying his best? Because Hexi Meng felt that against the disorganized and scattered players of the Blue team, his organization and defense would be enough...
The internal conflict within the International team ended with the Red team's one-sided victory over the Blue team.
It turned out that Bobby Jones's judgment was correct, and Tyronn Lue's judgment was also correct!
Bobby Jones had selected the strongest five players for the International team!
And Tyronn Lue won his $10 bet by trusting Kobe's judgment.
Kobe gained the most, receiving an unexpected $70! But Kobe wasn't happy, as he still hadn't seen Hexi Meng's true strength, and the Blue team was too weak...
The summit finally reached its sixth day, the day of the matchup between the International team and the USA team!
This was the highest point of this year's Nike Basketball Summit!
This exhibition game was scheduled for 7 PM, the standard tip-off time for NBA games. Nike collaborated with ESPN to broadcast this match live!
This meant that not only the hundreds of scouts present would be watching this peak showdown, but countless scouts, coaches, and even NBA players watching on television were paying attention to this game!
Of course, the most anticipated players were Kobe from Lower Merion High School and O'Neal Jr. from Oak Hill Academy!
This was because there were previous rumors that both would participate in this year's draft as high school students!
It's worth noting that this year's draft class was filled with talent!
A host of talented players from major NCAA universities seemed to have agreed, all choosing to enter the NBA this year after March Madness ended...
Iverson, a sophomore from Georgetown University.
Ray Allen, a junior from the University of Connecticut.
Marbury, a freshman from Georgia Tech.
Nash, a senior from Santa Clara University.
...
Geniuses from every grade and age group in the NCAA were set to converge at the 1996 NBA Draft...
Therefore, scouts from NBA teams were indeed very busy this year, flying all over the place for scouting... With so many potential rookies, the selection criteria had unconsciously increased.
Under these circumstances, if high school players like Kobe and O'Neal Jr. could still be selected in the first round, it could only be said that their talent was truly extraordinary!
As the game began, O'Neal Jr. used his excellent leaping ability to beat Gasol, giving the USA team the first possession.
Tyronn Lue brought the ball up court and passed it to Kobe. After receiving the ball, Kobe faced Ginobili, faked a shot, and then directly drove to the basket with his body against Ginobili!
In the paint, Gasol slid over, preparing to double-team Kobe with Ginobili.
However, Kobe ignored the double-team and drove straight to the rim, executing a difficult reverse layup to score two points!
Kobe wanted to establish this momentum!
Turning around, it was the International team's turn to offense. Ginobili came over to set a screen for Hexi Meng, but Hexi Meng waved him away, signaling him to go to the far wing. The game had just started, and Hexi Meng didn't want to switch positions and face Kobe directly... After all, Kobe was not only invincible on offense, but his individual defense was also top-tier among high schoolers!
After sending Ginobili away, Hexi Meng called for Gasol to come to the high post.
O'Neal Jr. refused to come out, staying near the free-throw line.
Hexi Meng used Gasol's screen to get away from Tyronn Lue and then drove into the paint, drawing O'Neal Jr. deeper into the lane before dishing the ball back to Gasol near the free-throw line!
Gasol did not follow in!
Before the game, Hexi Meng had instructed Gasol to reduce physical battles with O'Neal Jr. under the basket and instead shoot from the high post whenever possible!
Gasol followed Hexi Meng's advice. On the first possession, he received a pass from Hexi Meng and made a mid-range jump shot!
Gasol's shooting touch was considered one of the best among big men.
O'Neal Jr. had been drawn to the basket by Hexi Meng and couldn't get back in time to defend, only watching helplessly as Gasol made the shot...