Chapter 83: "Century" at the Buzzer

A peaceful smile, yet waves of murderous intent surged within his heart.

The mistakes I made, I must make up for myself. The points I lost, I will snatch them back—Lin Fei.

He held the ball, then suddenly accelerated. Westbrook was still lost in the memory of that spectacular dunk. Facing Lin Fei’s explosive burst, he seemed to only just regain his composure and hurriedly chased after him.

The rapid sprint ignited the whole arena. Everyone revolved around the ball handler, Thunder’s Durant remained within defensive range of Akes, trying to edge closer to Lin Fei, constantly wary of this young man.

Lin Fei’s speed nearly matched Westbrook’s, so Westbrook couldn’t catch up at all. Now, Lin Fei faced the real challenge: who would stand in his way as he charged toward the basket? Across this less than 28-meter court, he faced the blockades of five opponents.

Westbrook trailed behind, gradually gaining speed, nearly matching Lin Fei’s pace. If someone ahead managed to slow him down, perhaps Westbrook could catch up. Durant tried to disrupt Lin Fei’s rhythm, but Lin Fei swept past him easily with two consecutive changes of direction. Despite Durant’s size, Lin Fei was more agile. After those two moves, Westbrook appeared on Lin Fei’s left. Lin Fei switched to dribbling with his right hand. By then, nearly all the Warriors had rushed to the frontcourt, ready to attack. Lin Fei stood just outside the three-point line, hesitating briefly—pass or not? In that instant, he leaped. As a point guard, composure was indispensable; a point guard was the brain of the team. Lingering in the air gave Lin Fei enough time to observe and consider. He passed the ball mid-air to Jobs, who was still in motion. Jobs caught it and drove straight to the basket, scoring with a layup.

“Oh! Only the great Nelson’s genius could orchestrate such a smooth offense! I have to say, Lin Fei is already the finest point guard in the league!” Bill Walton exclaimed.

The statement exploded like a bomb, leaving the other commentator gaping in astonishment.

Why?

“You’re saying he’s the best point guard in the league? Not just one of the best?” the other commentator asked Bill Walton.

“Yes! I’m sure I didn’t misspeak! Not just one of the best,” Bill Walton affirmed confidently.

“You mean he’s better than Paul, Rose, Westbrook, Rondo, Deron, Wall, all those guys?”

“Yes! I’m certain!” Bill Walton’s certainty left no room for debate.

“Oh! I think Lin Fei is the most aggressive among point guards, but to call him the best? I truly can’t believe it!”

“I’m relying on my own observation and intuition! This kid is the most endearing player I’ve seen in over a decade!” Bill Walton’s admiration was nearly overflowing.

“Do you see him winning the scoring title?” his partner asked Bill Walton.

“Yes! I think the momentum is shifting toward the Warriors. Though Durant still leads by 17 points, I still believe in Lin Fei!” Bill Walton remained firm in his conviction.

“Are you out of your mind? He’s trailing Durant by 17 points for the scoring title. Are you sure he can make up those 17 points in the second half? Oh my God! If he manages to win the scoring title, I’d rather kiss a cow’s backside!”

“Ha! You’re mistaken, there’s still one and a half halves left, a few more minutes.”

Meanwhile, Durant missed a shot, and the Warriors launched another fast break. Curry was handling the ball, and Lin Fei sprinted ahead the fastest.

As Lin Fei crossed half court, he widened the gap with Westbrook, then abruptly stopped and cut back. He received the pass from Curry, cleverly using Jobs’ body to slip past Westbrook’s pursuit. Lin Fei caught the ball, with Jobs right in front of him, blocking all defenders and giving Lin Fei a wide open space. Without pause, Lin Fei raised the ball above his head and shot. Westbrook could only helplessly cover his eyes! The ball soared over Jobs’ head, over Westbrook, over Durant, and dropped straight into the basket.

Durant and Westbrook’s eyes revealed their helplessness. They’d spent years in the league, but never had they seen a player consistently attempt such deep shots from the perimeter, never witnessed such a vast offensive range. This was truly a league anomaly.

The Thunder coach was nearly in tears. How could their final game pit them against such a killer? Worse yet, their playoff journey began by facing this same assassin. They’d deployed their entire team, yet had no answer for him. A hurried timeout, racking his brain for ways to defend Lin Fei! He kept rubbing his head in frustration.

“Kevin (meaning Durant), the Thunder need you now. Our defense is utterly ineffective against the Warriors. We must maintain our defense, though they can’t possibly keep shooting like gods (though he was far from certain). We must attack, be more aggressive, relentlessly attack Lin Fei’s defensive position, force him to foul. Keep attacking, you and Westbrook must keep attacking, best if you can get him off the court!” Scott Brooks grew more agitated, nearly losing his mind over the game.

One minute remained. The Warriors led by ten, with Lin Fei tallying fourteen points, now trailing Durant by just fourteen in the scoring race.

The Warriors were on offense, theoretically with two possessions remaining.

Lin Fei brought the ball up, passed to Curry, who returned it. They reached midcourt, four seconds, using up sixteen seconds near half court. Westbrook stayed within a step of Lin Fei, knowing that from this position, Lin Fei could easily burst past him. Lin Fei accelerated, Westbrook braced himself, then Lin Fei stepped back, creating space for his shot. He launched the ball, a high arc, but Lin Fei knew it wouldn’t go in. Two seconds of flight, it missed. Durant grabbed the rebound and called timeout. Though the Thunder were behind, they weren’t entirely dejected—why? Because Lin Fei finally missed a shot. Previously, he’d made all four three-point attempts and recorded four assists.

For the Thunder’s last possession in the half, the ball went to Westbrook, who attacked from the top of the arc, going one-on-one with Lin Fei. Westbrook powered through, Lin Fei tried to maintain body contact, but in the air Westbrook nudged him, drawing a minor foul. The shot went in, and Lin Fei braced himself for a foul call, but the referee merely glanced his way and didn’t whistle.

Lin Fei grinned—was this the legendary privilege reserved for star players? He thought to himself, unconsciously smiling. Fortunately! Otherwise, who knows if he’d be able to finish the game.

The Warriors had twelve seconds left.

For the final offensive possession of the half, everyone focused on that superhuman with a seventy percent clutch shooting percentage. Teammates, opponents, coaches, commentators, fans—all eyes converged on Lin Fei.

The inbound pass—this time Westbrook gave Lin Fei plenty of space to receive. The heartbeat of the players could be heard across the court. Many fans rose from their seats, watching intently.

He dribbled calmly into the frontcourt.

Five seconds left! Calm.

Four seconds! Calm.

Three seconds! Calm.

2.9 seconds—suddenly, Lin Fei accelerated, rivaling a Bugatti in speed.

Westbrook retreated in haste!

Lin Fei switched the ball behind his back, moving it to his left hand! Even Westbrook was helpless, left behind by nearly two meters.

Then, Lin Fei executed a classic buzzer-beater! Nearly comparable to Jordan’s legendary game six playoff shot against the Jazz!

The arena fell silent.

Truly, there was nothing more to be said.