As the whistle blew, both teams took to the court, and the camera quickly scanned the player roster—Trick Team: Curry, Poole, Tatum, LeBron, and Wembanyama.
However, the familiar ball-handler—Kyrie Irving—was nowhere to be found.
There was an empty seat on the coach's bench, and even the towels on the substitutes' bench remained undisturbed.
Curry approached the sideline and asked, "Where did he go?"
Tatum replied in a low voice, "No one saw him in the locker room, and his phone is off."
LeBron clenched his teeth, remaining silent, his gaze as cold as the depths of an icy lake.
But time waited for no one. The game had to go on.
Mother Zhang observed the chaos on the court and elegantly sipped her red wine, whispering, "It's alright; I still have another chaos creator."
Poole made his reappearance.
He stepped onto the court, arms wide open as he shouted to the crowd, "I’m back! The second act of the main character is about to begin!"
At that moment, Heavenly Kings Team also made a lineup change—Jokic took a break, and Giannis Antetokounmpo entered the game.
This shift transformed Heavenly Kings Team from a stable playmaking squad into a mobile offensive behemoth in an instant.
In the opening offensive play, Harden dribbled past half court and passed the ball to Luka Doncic on the left side. The latter created space against Bill, making a cross-court pass to the right side of the Restricted Area.
Giannis Antetokounmpo received the ball, facing Wembanyama.
The audience fell silent in an instant.
Two alien-like giants were about to clash.
Giannis Antetokounmpo made no feints, taking a massive Eurostep straight to the basket!
Wembanyama shifted to help defend, but Giannis's physicality was off the charts as he powered through, going for the layup—
Boom! He slammed it down with one hand!
The entire rim vibrated with a buzzing sound.
The crowd gasped: "This is—The Greek Monster."
The Trick Team launched a counterattack, and Curry quickly took a three-pointer, but clang! It hit the iron.
The rebound was snatched by KD, who immediately initiated a fast break. Bill assisted Harden for an easy layup!
64:62, the Heavenly Kings Team took the lead!
Poole, feeling the pressure, attempted a long-range logo shot, but it was an airball.
Luka Doncic grabbed the ball and passed it to Harden. After attracting double coverage, Harden passed to Giannis Antetokounmpo on the right baseline.
Before Wembanyama could land from his jump to help defend, Giannis had already taken off—
A thunderous dunk! Another one!
66:62! The Heavenly Kings Team opens with a 6-0 run, forcing a timeout!
The Trick Team's bench is in chaos as Tatum shouts, "Substitutions! This lineup can't contain Giannis Antetokounmpo!"
Meanwhile, Poole is mumbling to himself, "This isn't how I designed the script... I should have been the one to score first..."
LeBron finally grips his shoulder and says in a low voice, "This isn't your time to shine. Right now, we need someone who can lock down that Greek Monster."
On the sidelines, Zhang Jianing watches the Heavenly Kings Team execute their plays flawlessly and can't help but flip through his Spiritual Notebook, muttering, "The monster comes from a soul's hunger... We must use Poole's dance power to counter him!"
Mother Zhang picks up the phone, saying, "I don't care where Kyrie is; find him and bring him back."
—
The game continues. In the next play, Harden drives to draw defenders before quickly passing to KD at the baseline.
KD doesn't shoot; instead, he passes back to Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Giannis leaps—
And delivers a thunderous two-handed dunk!
68:62, the Greek Monster has fully erupted!
With three attacks and three explosive dunks, the entire crowd went wild, chanting, "GIA-NNIS! GIA-NNIS!"
The commentator shouted, "This is the live version of the Greek Monster myth! He is not just a player—he is a war hammer thrown down by Zeus!"
As the third quarter heated up, the Heavenly Kings Team, led by Giannis Antetokounmpo's consecutive violent Eurostep dunks, had lifted the momentum of the game to new heights.
Poole muttered under his breath while retreating on defense, "How is this even happening? I’m no match for him..."
Zhang Jianing began to draw symbols in his notebook, hoping to use mental power to control the pace of the game.
Meanwhile, LeBron finally lifted his head in silence.
He didn’t roar or show any expression; he simply tightened his jersey and slowly walked toward the sideline, raising his right hand in a gesture that resembled an ancient ritual signal.
Tatum immediately understood—create space.
Curry nodded—it's your turn to take charge.
Poole wanted to say something but fell silent under LeBron's piercing gaze.
For the next two minutes, cameras from around the world focused on that forty-year-old man who still dominated the rhythm of the game.
LeBron James began to unleash his power.
On the first offensive play, he stood at the high post, pretending not to see the defense with a deceptive shake of his body, while he had already read Bill’s help defense angle.
With a low pivot and a turn, he charged into the Restricted Area like a tank, shouldering past KD and Giannis Antetokounmpo to score with a powerful layup!
68:64!
"My God..." the commentator exclaimed, his mouth agape. "He's forty years old and still charging like that! That's not number 23—it's an armored vehicle with an engine!"
Back on defense, he shouted loudly, personally pressuring Defense Doncic into a turnover.
On the next offensive play, he called for the ball.
Receiving it in mid-range, he seemed to switch into automatic mode. He faked past Bill and faced Harden, leaping directly into his shot—
A king's side shot, the ball left his hand and swished through the net without any interference!
68:66!
The crowd began to stir.
"LeBron! LeBron!" chants started to rise!
In the next play, Trick Team made a steal, and Curry pushed the ball upcourt. LeBron didn’t even look at the ball; he made a cut straight to the basket!
Curry caught a glimpse of him out of the corner of his eye, flicking his wrist to send a long pass that sailed over three defenders, landing perfectly in front of LeBron.
As LeBron caught the ball, he took one step and soared—
A thunderous dunk!!
The score was tied, 68:68!
The audience went wild, even Mother Zhang stood up with a frown.
Poole, both surprised and in awe, defended, "Is this old man really forty? Is he not using some kind of energy-draining technique?"
Tatum ran over and bumped into LeBron, saying, "Hey, old man, are you rejuvenated or planning to retire today?"
LeBron, panting with a slight smirk on his lips, replied, "I have the energy; I just don’t want to waste it on you guys."
Back on offense, LeBron received the ball again, this time with Wembanyama and KD both closing in.
He feigned a drive but suddenly made a behind-the-back pass—Curry caught it and launched a three-pointer!
Swish! It went in!
68:71, the Trick Team took the lead!
The entire audience stood up in rhythm as the Heavenly Kings Team quickly called for a timeout!
—
During the timeout, Jay Chou held his nunchaku and quietly spoke to the players:
"We haven't lost; it's just that someone started singing a higher note. Next part—let's hit the chorus and show everyone what teamwork sounds like."
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