Basketball System: Rebound of the Underdog-Chapter 639: China vs. USA (1)

From one tunnel, the USA team emerged in their blue and white uniforms. Despite being China's home court, the cheers they received were still amazing. They were the all-time favorites—the team most believed would walk away with the gold medal.

Then, from the opposite tunnel came Team China.

The response was deafening. Marcus Han led the team out, his determined face masking his nervousness. Lina leaned forward, gripping the edge of her seat, unable to tear her eyes away from them.

"There he is," Grandma Bingbing said softly, her voice filled with pride when she saw Kai.

"Go get 'em, bro," Aiden murmured under his breath.

Kai glanced up at the stands. For a brief moment, Lina thought he might have spotted them. Then, his focus shifted back to the court, and he began his warm-up routine alongside his teammates.

As the players warmed up, Lina turned to Aiden. "You're really Kai's sibling?"

Aiden grinned. "Yep. Long story. Do you want me to tell you?"

Lina respectfully smiled. "Umm, I'll just ask Kai."

Aiden shrugged. "Suit yourself," he said before focusing on the hotdog bun his grandma bought for him.

The lights dimmed further, leaving only the court illuminated.

"Here we go," David said from the commentators' booth. "The finals of the Global Games. We have reached a peak amount of viewers. Currently, there are thirty million of you around the world on our main livestream."

"Yeah," Gina agreed. "And that's for the paid viewers. I'm sure there's a free live that has more viewers out there."

David chuckled, shaking his head. "People will endure a three-inch border around the video if it meant it being free!"

The referee stepped into the center circle, the basketball in his hands. The crowd fell silent now, their hearts racing from anticipation and nervousness.

At that moment, the camera had zoomed in on Kai as he adjusted the band on his wrist. The lighting hit him just right, highlighting the sharpness of his jawline and the brightness of his eyes.

Just then, the crowd became noisy again. Those who were not paying attention were confused by the sudden noise. But then, when they glanced up at the screen at Kai Guo's face, they understood.

"Man, that kid is famous for a reason."

Suzy shook her head. "Lina is so lucky."

"Ay-yo?" Bao muttered.

Meanwhile, Caishen couldn't close his mouth. The small screen of their television didn't do him justice!

"Man," muttered Andy, shaking his head. "Why does he look like that?"

"Like what?" Shang asked, smirking.

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"Like some kind of protagonist," Andy replied, gesturing at the screen. "Look at that! He's got the whole arena shaking just because of him."

And indeed, the crowd roared every time Kai's face appeared.

Jet leaned back, crossing his arms. "You think it's the lighting, or is he just naturally that handsome?"

"Both," Jinping said with a sigh. "Definitely both. I hate it."

Kai, unaware of their commentary, focused on his stretches. The screen lingered on him for a few seconds longer before panning out, but the murmurs in the stands continued.

On the other side of the bench, Romeo caught sight of the commotion and shook his head, letting out a quiet chuckle. "Guess he's got the whole hero thing going for him."

Julian, sitting beside him, shrugged. "I'm more handsome."

His teammates looked at him with raised eyebrows before shaking their heads, deciding not to say anything.

Julian didn't mind at all. He rolled his shoulders and began his own light exercises, hopping side to side to keep his blood flowing.

The warm-up continued, but it was strangely silent. Not a single joke came from Max or Zheng. Everyone appeared serious.

After a while, the announcer's voice boomed through the arena.

"Ladies and gentlemen, it is now time to introduce the starting players!" he exclaimed, and the crowd shouted once more.

The camera panned to Team China's bench first, the spotlight sweeping across their lineup as the announcer called out each player.

"Wearing number three, Jaw-Long Lee!"

The crowd cheered as Jaw-Long stood, waving briefly before he took his position on the court.

"Number fifteen, Dong Chen!"

The cheers grew louder. Dong raised a fist to the crowd, his usual cheeky grin replaced with a focused expression.

"Number ten, Marcus Han!"

Marcus stood, nodding at the camera as the spotlight lingered on him.

"Number eleven, Jian Niu!"

Jian received an enthusiastic response, with his fans waving banners and his name printed in bold letters.

"And finally," the announcer paused, "wearing number sixteen, Kai Guo!"

The arena erupted, the sound of thousands of fans screaming his name almost drowning out the announcer.

Kai stood, giving a small nod to the crowd before glancing at his teammates, who were all shaking their heads with varying degrees of amusement.

"You're like a celebrity," Marcus muttered, grinning.

"I thought we were all celebrities," Kai replied.

"Not like you," Jian teased, nudging him. "That was next level."

As the applause for Team China began to fade, the spotlight shifted to the opposing bench.

"And now, introducing Team USA!"

The crowd's reaction was instant and thunderous, their global star power pulling through.

"Wearing number twelve, Julian Barker!"

Julian stood, his broad frame and confident demeanor impossible to ignore. Some booed, but that only made him smirk.

"Number twenty-three, Romeo King!"

Romeo rose with a grin, his reputation as the best center for the Boston Clovers preceding him.

"Number seven, Liam Garcia!"

The crowd erupted again as Liam stepped forward. He was famous as a two-time FBA three-point champion.

"Number five, William Jones!"

William's grin was infectious as he waved to the crowd. He was the star point guard of the Miami Blaze, and he had his fans chanting his name.

"And last but certainly not least, number eleven, Steven Murr!"

The applause he received was filled with respect.

Steven Murr was a living legend, a player whose talent and work ethic had already drawn comparisons to some of the greatest in history.

As the teams took their places on the court for the official introductions, the tension increased.

"And now, what everyone has been waiting for has arrived. Let the game begin!"