"Didn’t expect you’d end up playing for the Lakers. How’s the beach city treating you?"

"I went to high school here."

"...You’re not a very endearing rookie."

Moning said this but exceptionally smiled at his opponent before the game, patted Zhang Hao on the shoulder, and then returned to the Heat’s bench.

Only two sentences were exchanged, but that was already quite something; Moning rarely talks during games, even less so with opponents.

Today was one of those days he greeted the Magician before the game and had a couple of exchanges with Zhang Hao.

Zhang Hao was even less talkative, only saying one sentence.

Moning returned to his bench, looking at the quiet rookie across the court, feeling a bit regretful, but also relieved.

Following Pat Riley’s advice to get on good terms with stars from other teams was never something Moning wanted to do.

With Zhang Hao now playing in Los Angeles, he couldn’t join the Heat just for a better city environment, so there was no need to try and poach him, which made Moning quite happy.

Chatting more with Zhang Hao was pleasant; Moning himself is not someone who smiles often in public... but that rookie not only refrains from smiling in public, he doesn’t talk much even in private.

Although very polite, he tends to end conversations quickly, showing no intention of deepening exchanges.

Putting aside his admiration for his character, Moning didn’t know how to describe Zhang Hao’s performance as the season progressed.

Progress was rapid!

He watched the Lakers game against the Utah Jazz and compared it to the season’s start, Zhang Hao had made enormous improvements in many areas.

What he admired the most was Zhang Hao going head-to-head against Malone. Speaking of players unafraid of Malone... Moning was one of them, the kind who would dare to elbow back and see who’s tougher.

On the other side, Zhang Hao watched the opposing players’ scouting reports, recalling the Heat’s scout reports. As the season progressed, the Heat truly started to show traits of a Hard Corps.

However, the offense was dismal, allowing an average of about 93 points, and scoring wasn’t any higher.

The Utah Jazz and the Pacers led by Sloan and Larry Brown did not have as slow a pace as the Heat. Those teams had multiple tactical rhythms to switch between, with their strength lying in the rhythm-grinding style.

As for the Heat... seeing the once Showtime-era creator across the way, no one could have imagined before the season that the Heat would play like this.

"Alonzo Mourning, rated 95... averaging 23.5 points, 11 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 2.9 blocks..."

This season, Moning ranked fourth in personal performance among centers, as O’Neal has yet to find his form after returning, making Moning one of the top four centers.

The fans at the venue paid no attention to the Heat, having played 33 games with a 15-18 record, placing them only tenth in the East. For such an opponent, Lakers fans aren’t very enthusiastic, not even as excited as when they played against the 76ers featuring fellow rookie Starkhouse.

At 7:58 PM, Zhang Hao came to the scorer’s table to apply chalk powder.

He was joyful today, having encountered several superstar centers consecutively, each of whom targeted him; not on the court, though targeting him on-court as a rookie was an honor.

It was their attitude, not very friendly.

But today, Moning was quite friendly, making Zhang Hao happy.

Just as Zhang Hao finished applying chalk and was about to hit the court, the venue suddenly became agitated. A large crowd of fans directly behind the scorer’s table, where Zhang Hao just looked up, stood up simultaneously, likely numbering in the hundreds to thousands!

"?"

Zhang Hao looked around; nothing seemed to be happening! The other players from both teams were also bewildered by this group standing up, not just the players, even surrounding fans were surprised.

What happened?

Soon, Zhang Hao saw thousands of fans uniformly... mimicking a shot-putting motion!

The scene stunned everyone for a moment, and then the venue erupted!

Cheers, laughter, jeers... came one after another!

Many fans followed suit with the shot-putting motion, making the scene more lively.

Many Lakers players were already doubled over laughing.

Because when Zhang Hao joined the Lakers, it was in a rather special way—as a top-notch trade asset equivalent to an all-star guard and an all-star center—even seeing Zhang Hao’s beautiful mid-range shot yet with such a funny three-point shooting action took them by surprise and amused them, but no one said it to Zhang Hao’s face.

Over time, as Zhang Hao played better, his three-point attempts increased and the peculiar appearance didn’t seem as funny.

But tonight, with the fan-led "shot put show," those around couldn’t hold back and burst out laughing under the Magician’s lead.

The opponents were laughing hysterically from the start!

Zhang Hao’s contrasting mid-range and three-point styles had been a common target for teasing after his breakout.

As for Zhang Hao, he was dumbfounded and eventually blurted out in Chinese—

"Damn... even more textbook than mine!"

...

Playing the Heat, it’s truly rare for the Lakers’ home crowd to be this lively.

Jerry Buss, who hadn’t come to watch a game in a long time, chuckled, "Logo-man, when was the last time our fans were this enthusiastic for a random regular season game?"