After defeating Ridley High School 84 to 55, Su Feng became a celebrity in Pennsylvania.
It could be said that Su Feng's popularity was rising as if he were sitting on a rocket—pretty impressive…
Cough, well, not exactly.
The 1990s were nothing like the future. At this time, social networks didn't exist, so did he really expect to become famous just from a friendly match?
Instead, why not think about where Kobe was planning to go this weekend?
"Why does this feel like I'm starring in a variety show called Where Is Kobe Going?"
As soon as he thought of Kobe's serious expression in the fourth quarter, Su Feng could barely resist the urge to grab a 40-meter machete and chase after him...
One has to admit—Kobe's habit of being cryptic was just like the writing style of that intellectually challenged author whose novels Su Feng had obsessively followed in his previous life.
Emmmm, let's be honest.
Although Su Feng's fame remained limited, at the very least, his performance during this friendly match left a strong impression on Coach Fernandez from Ridley Middle School.
Additionally, after the game, Su Feng was interviewed by reporters for the first time.
The journalists were primarily gathering information about Su Feng to prepare for future reports on the high school league.
It's worth mentioning that Duke's scout, Wesley, was the first to congratulate Su Feng after the match.
However, the North Carolina scout—whom Su Feng hadn't met yet—did not seem interested in building a relationship with him.
"Ah, North Carolina… even their scouts are cold!"
"This kind of friendly match won't make it into newspapers or TV," Bryant said, patting Su Feng on the shoulder encouragingly. "But once the official season starts, as long as you maintain your level of play, your name will soon be known throughout Pennsylvania."
Su Feng nodded. "Oh, Kobe, can you at least tell me in advance where we're going this weekend?"
Hearing Su Feng's question, Bryant suddenly put on the knowing expression of a wise senior.
"You'll find out when the time comes."
"..."
...
Resisting the urge to go after Kobe, Su Feng made it through the weekend.
Saturday, the 24th—Sunny.
New York, the Big Apple.
One thing was clear—Kobe was really rich.
This time, Su Feng's ticket had been paid for by Kobe.
Unlike Su Feng, who had grown up in the slums and had never known his father, Kobe had been privileged since birth.
He was wealthy, and his parents were alive. Despite Joe Bryant's NBA career being rather obscure, he had played a crucial role in shaping Kobe's basketball journey.
Additionally, Kobe's grandfather had been a basketball enthusiast. As a child living in Italy with his father, Kobe would regularly receive NBA tapes from his grandfather.
Upon returning to the United States, Kobe quickly secured a full scholarship thanks to his outstanding talent.
That's why, in Su Feng's view, Kobe's friends seemed to line up to offer their support.
"I recently realized my dribbling skills aren't good enough.
Crossover, direction, and speed alone—I can't even get past you."
As soon as they stepped off the plane, Kobe looked seriously at Su Feng.
Su Feng: "..."
Kobe, how could you say the exact same thing I was thinking?
Did that mean something?
"Uh, Su, I don't mean anything by it—you know I'm aiming for the NBA.
You're already a defensive expert in my eyes, but in the NBA, there are bound to be defenders even better than you, right?"
Seeing Su Feng remain silent, Kobe worried he had upset him and quickly reassured him.
In reality...
Kobe was overthinking.
Su Feng was simply wondering—New York… was there any way to sharpen his dribbling skills here?
Even though he knew Kobe's basketball history well, Su Feng couldn't recall any particular connection between Kobe and New York.
"Are we heading to Rucker Park? Playing streetball to get inspiration?"
Su Feng asked, intrigued.
"No… But if you want to go, I can take you."
Kobe laughed.
So it wasn't Rucker Park?
Driven by curiosity, Su Feng followed Kobe to Brooklyn.
As one of the most bustling cities in the U.S., people arriving in New York often found themselves thinking, "Wow, this place is incredible!"
However, those who ended up in its slums might say instead, "Damn, this place is rough."
Su Feng knew that if Kobe hadn't been leading the way, he could have easily ended up in danger.
Because in Brooklyn's slums, fierce-looking men with muscular builds and women dressed in revealing outfits with heavy makeup were everywhere.
Two sides of the same coin—paradise and purgatory.
"Don't look around, just follow me closely."
Kobe turned to Su Feng.
Su Feng nodded.
Before long, they arrived at a run-down auto repair shop.
As they approached the building, a black man wearing a white t-shirt and light blue jeans, holding a wrench in his hand, and sporting a Mohawk walked toward them.
Instinctively, Su Feng clenched his fist.
Noticing this, Kobe patted Su Feng on the shoulder.
"We're here."
"I haven't seen you in a while, Kobe."
The man suddenly greeted Kobe with enthusiasm.
"It's been a while, Tyrone."
Kobe replied with a smile.
"Who's this?"
The man named Tyrone glanced at Su Feng.
"My buddy."
Kobe responded.
"Let's go, the boss has been waiting for you."
Without further questions, Tyrone led the way.
Luckily, Su Feng had always been a composed person—so even in a situation like this… he definitely wasn't panicking!
As they walked, Kobe asked, "How have things been lately?"
"It's fine. A few newcomers showed up at the park recently looking to challenge us."
Tyrone grinned.
"Did Tom and the guys have trouble with them?"
Kobe continued.
"Not anymore. After they brought in that 'big guy,' we lost.
The boss has serious clout in New York—even some gang members think twice before messing with him.
Anyway, here we are."
Tyrone rolled up a metal gate, revealing a half-court basketball setup inside.
Thump, thump, thump...
On the court, Su Feng spotted a stocky—ah, short but sturdy—black player working on his dribbling.
"Tyrone. Tyrone Evans.
Of course, you can also call me by my street name—'Alimoe,' the Black Widow.
Nice to meet you. Welcome to Tyrone's place."
As Tyrone reached out to shake hands, Su Feng's memory suddenly clicked.
Tyrone... Evans.
Wasn't this the famous Black Widow of the streetball scene?
Su Feng had heard of Tyrone because he was a legend in the world of street basketball.
Unfortunately, Su Feng also remembered that this streetball master would suffer a sudden stroke and pass away in 2013.
Cough, cough.
If Tyrone was the legendary Black Widow...
Then that short-statured player—Su Feng had a pretty good guess who he was.
"Su—"
Just as Su Feng was about to introduce himself, Kobe cut him off.
"Su. Su Feng—defensive expert and my school teammate."
Hearing Kobe's introduction, even Tyrone gave Su Feng an intrigued glance.
After all...
Anyone who Kobe called a defensive expert had to be something special.
But...
Defensive expert?
Su Feng wasn't too fond of that title.
In Su Feng's view, this title felt like one given to a warrior player who could only be discarded if he collapsed from exhaustion.
"When I heard you were coming to New York to train with me on your breakthrough skills, I thought Vince Carter had flown to Pennsylvania and beaten you up."
On the court, the short player who had been practicing dribbling suddenly approached Su Feng along with two others.
"Come on, there's only one reason Vince Carter would fly to Pennsylvania—that would be if his cousin, who never sleeps, had lost to me again."
Bryant looked at the short player and laughed.
"It's been a long time, man."
The short player grinned widely, showing his teeth, and bumped chests with Kobe.
"Long time no see," Bryant replied.
"Hello, I..."
Well, just as Su Feng was about to introduce himself again, he was interrupted—again.
"Am I cursed with a 100% interruption rate whenever I try to introduce myself?"
Su Feng thought to himself, half amused, half exasperated.
"I know who you are—Kobe mentioned you on the phone. He said you're like Scottie Pippen."
The short player looked up at Su Feng as he spoke.
Su Feng: "..."
"Excuse me? No, he's my Pippen, okay?"
"Pippen, go be someone else's second-in-command, will you?"
Momentarily setting aside his grudge against the comparison, Su Feng listened as Kobe patted the short player's shoulder and said, "This guy is..."
"GTMD Pippen—do you think only you can interrupt introductions?"
"Sam Gold Welsh, the best point guard in New York."
Su Feng looked straight at the short player and smiled.
Kobe: "..."
Tyrone: "..."
Sam Gold: "..."
Su Feng distinctly remembered reading about Kobe's basketball history in various magazines during his past life.
It was well documented that in his junior and senior years of high school, Kobe Bryant trained specifically with Sam Gold to refine his dribbling techniques.
In the 1990s, the four biggest names in New York's streetball scene were Sam Gold, Rafer Alston, Stephon Marbury, and Kareem Reid.
And among these four, New York fans favored one above all—Sam Gold, the short black guard.
Unlike many other street players, Sam Gold had an academic background and was committed to adapting flashy streetball moves to actual gameplay.
While Alston eventually fully transitioned into professional basketball, Sam Gold successfully merged streetball into his professional career.
His time in the NBA wasn't particularly successful, but his name would forever be remembered by basketball fans.
Interestingly, Sam Gold's original name was God-Sam Gold—yes, as in "God" in English.
But since his classmates constantly teased him about it during his school years, his mother changed his name to Sam Gold Welsh.
"You know Welsh?"
Kobe looked at Su Feng, slightly surprised.
"I read about him in a magazine," Su Feng replied, playing it cool.
"Haha, I didn't expect to be that famous. Kobe, you better work hard!"
To be honest, Sam Gold seemed easily flattered.
"Perfect timing! I recently developed a new breakthrough technique.
Come on, guard me, I'll show you."
Sam Gold grabbed a basketball in one hand and pulled Kobe in with the other.
Kobe nodded, showing keen interest in Sam Gold's newly developed move.
A new breakthrough technique?
Watching the two players step onto the court, Su Feng stood to the side—completely stunned.
Because according to what he knew of Kobe and Sam Gold's basketball history...
There was something significant about this moment.
On the court, as Kobe set himself up defensively, Sam Gold began his performance.
It had to be said—
Sam Gold was truly a dribbling genius.
Unlike many self-proclaimed Streetball Kings who focused solely on flashy tricks without integrating them into real gameplay, Sam Gold's moves were built for actual competition.
His dribbling was incredibly close to the ground—if a defender didn't lower his center of gravity, there was no way to counter it.
Thump, thump, thump.
Sam Gold started attacking Kobe's defensive stance.
First, he stepped forward with his right foot while simultaneously pushing the ball forward with his right hand.
This subtle control of space and movement—only a true dribbling master could execute it.
Kobe took the bait.
Just when Kobe assumed Sam Gold was about to drive past him, Sam Gold abruptly switched hands, shifting the ball in the opposite direction.
This was—
"Shammgod——!"
That's right!
At this moment, Sam Gold was demonstrating to Kobe the famous dribbling technique that would later be known as the Shammgod move!
Su Feng recalled from his past readings that Kobe had learned this trick during his private training sessions with Sam Gold.
It might have seemed like a simple move...
But in execution, it had endless variations and possibilities.
On the court, Kobe's eyes lit up.
Watching Sam Gold break through his defense effortlessly, Kobe demanded, "Again!"
Sam Gold grinned and complied.
Thump, thump, thump.
The same rhythm.
But this time—Kobe didn't step forward.
Then—
Thump!
Sam Gold suddenly pulled the ball back and finished with a fadeaway jumper.
Swish——!
"This is my newest technique.
Not only does it help break through defenders, but it also allows for quick step-backs to create space.
You can even use it for agile body shifts in tight situations.
In short, if you're fast enough and your ball control is sharp, this move can have infinite follow-ups."
Sam Gold looked at Kobe and smiled.
Kobe nodded.
"Su, you try it!"
Su Feng nodded—he knew Kobe wanted to test if he could defend against it.
"Alright, pay attention—I'm starting..."
Sam Gold took position against Su Feng and suddenly pulled the ball.
Thump, thump, thump.
He stepped to the right, shifting his body forward.
Technically, Sam Gold could move either left or right—it depended entirely on the dribbler's preference.
Su Feng knew that Sam Gold's trick involved pulling the ball back with his left hand...
So he stepped slightly to the left in preparation.
But—
At the exact moment Su Feng shifted left, Sam Gold countered with a sudden Crossover in the opposite direction.
This—
Was Sam Gold's true trick.
Whether in NBA 2K or real-life basketball, this move could be combined with countless dribbling techniques, making it an absolute nightmare for defenders.
Su Feng's ankles barely survived the move, but luckily, he maintained his balance.
"Kobe, your friend has real defensive skills—I almost made a mistake there."
Sam Gold remarked in admiration as he watched Su Feng recover.
A casual observer might think Sam Gold was teasing him, but in reality—Sam Gold had nearly messed up his own move.
"This move..."
Kobe looked at Sam Gold with admiration, as if seeing a hidden gem.
"Relax, I developed this technique so people would use it.
I've even picked a name for it—Sam Gold!
Haha, just imagine—if future players start using this move in the NBA, commentators will be saying my name over and over again!"
Sam Gold laughed.
"Well, maybe I'm just dreaming—it might not be as useful as I hope."
No...
It was definitely going to be useful.
Su Feng was certain—
The Sam Gold move would become one of the most frequently mentioned dribbling tricks in basketball history.
"Come, let me teach you the essence of this move."
Sam Gold patted both Su Feng and Kobe on the shoulders.
Then—
Su Feng suddenly paused.
He froze in place.
Because—
At that exact moment, something flashed in his mind—
"Congratulations to the host: +5 Ball Control Potential, +5 Dribbling Potential!"
"Congratulations! You've unlocked the signature skill: Sam Gold (Original)!"
"!!!"