Making the NBA and becoming a millionaire?
What basketball player didn't dream of that?
But for most, it was fantasy—a pipe dream.
American media had a rating system that annually selected five-star recruits from across the nation and around the globe, ranking them by performance.
These players were the finest talents in America—even the world.
Yet even among five-star recruits, only about 70% actually made the NBA. Becoming an All-Star was rarer still.
It wasn't that these players weren't talented—the NBA was simply overflowing with monsters.
Walker was already Covanord's best player, a four-star recruit, yet he didn't hold much hope for reaching the NBA.
Take this example:
Zeng Fanbo had been rated a four-star recruit in 2020 and ranked 34th nationally, only to go undrafted in 2022.
That league wasn't easy to crack. It gathered the world's greatest basketball talents.
The best skills, the best bodies... all the "bests" converged there.
The two chatted about various topics before arriving at the gym.
It was larger than Seihō's facility, complete with spectator seating.
Not much—just a few hundred seats.
Walker suggested, "Yu, how about a quick one-on-one? Good for a warm-up."
"Sure. Let's make it quick."
Yuuto agreed instantly.
Walker passed him the ball. Yuuto spread his right hand, caught it, and palmed the basketball single-handed with ease.
"Damn, nice hands. I bet you could wrap them around Covanord's biggest girl."
Yuuto ignored the comment, lowering his stance, eyes locked on the basket behind Walker.
Then—
He pulled up for an immediate jumper, flicking his wrist. The ball swished through clean.
"2-0!" Yuuto held up two fingers. One-on-one rules meant threes counted as two.
"What the hell, Yu? Even if your shot is that good, you can't just keep jacking threes." Walker had no answer. As the team's power forward, if Yuuto kept bombing from outside, he was helpless.
"Stop whining, Walker. Nobody plays fair on the court."
Yuuto caught the ball again. This time, instead of shooting immediately, he waited for Walker to close out, then hit him with a step-back before exploding past toward the rim.
Walker spun and gave chase—his mobility blew away 99% of Japanese players.
This was only a four-star recruit's athleticism. Yuuto was confident he'd reached at least five-star level.
Swish!
A reverse layup, switching hands mid-air.
"I swear you're getting better every day." Walker was stunned.
"Improvement. That's always been my thing."
Yuuto shrugged.
"Well, I hope that thing of yours keeps going." Walker threw him the ball again. "You know, brother, if you keep this up, maybe this year we can actually beat those punks from Cicero Memorial High School."
Cicero Memorial High School—another Indianapolis school.
Unlike Covanord, Westlake was a basketball powerhouse.
Last year they'd demolished Covanord by 31 points. Walker was still sore about it.
"Dream bigger. We're going after Carmel and La Lumiere."
Carmel and La Lumiere—both were elite Indiana high school programs.
La Lumiere especially was a private prep school with serious backing.
"Sure, if you say so."
Walker had never dared to imagine that—but maybe this year was different?
He'd been around Yuuto for a while now and found this Asian kid's rate of improvement almost unbelievable.
Improving practically every day.
He, Covanord's star, couldn't even beat Yuuto one-on-one anymore. Next year, Covanord might have a new top dog.
What followed was complete domination.
Yuuto attacked inside and out, leaving Walker utterly lost. Close out, and Yuuto's first step blew right by. Sag off, and he'd rise for the immediate three.
Walker's vaunted physicality was useless against Yuuto's rhythm and technique.
They played several games. Yuuto won every single one. Afterward, they trained a while longer before heading back to the dorm.
Post-shower, Walker suggested taking Yuuto somewhere fun.
No rejection this time—Yuuto had wanted to familiarize himself with local life anyway.
Indiana's basketball culture was genuinely intense. Pacers fans were visible everywhere on the streets.
Though the Pacers hadn't enjoyed great years recently.
Ever since Garnett and Allen joined the Boston Celtics, the Eastern Conference balance had shifted.
The East was now in a "one superpower, multiple contenders" format.
Atop sat the triumphant Celtics, their Big Three making the rest of the East despair.
Most believed that until the Big Three split up or aged out, other Eastern teams stood no chance.
Next came last year's finalists—Dwight Howard's Orlando Magic—and LeBron's Cleveland Cavaliers, who'd made the Finals in '07.
Both teams shared a common trait: their franchise stars were young, with bright futures.
Yuuto, knowing the future, understood just how illusory that brightness was.
Because after this year, Decision 1.0 would arrive.
Three prime-age superstars would converge in South Beach, forming a league-shaking superteam.
The aging Celtics would melt under Miami's heat.
And the Pacers would peak over the next few years—only to be repeatedly crushed by Miami's super Big Three.
Yuuto kept this knowledge to himself.
The current NBA still valued one-man-one-city loyalty. Stars felt deep attachment to their original franchises.
Even those who left typically only sought championships in their career's final years.
Barkley, Malone, Payton—they gave their primes to their original teams, ring-chasing only at the end.
Fans didn't burn their jerseys for this. Instead, they wished success to stars who'd devoted their best years to the hometown franchise.
Many current stars had earned "one-man-one-city" accolades.
This made today's NBA genuinely entertaining.
Most teams had star players fans loved.
Then came Decision 1.0, launching the superteam era. Spotlight concentrated on select franchises.
The most extreme example was those Warriors-Cavs Finals years—most teams were window dressing. The league, chasing ratings, practically guaranteed those two would meet.
Egregious cases—like Durant taking multiple steps out of bounds on a "save" that refs let slide—happened more than once.
Anyway.
The current league was already somewhat distorted.
In the West, the Lakers. In the East, the Celtics. Their roster depth vastly exceeded other teams.
...
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