The No.1 Anti-Fans in Basketball-Chapter 77: Catching Someone to Fleece

Time flew by, and it was already 2010.

Before he knew it, it was mid-January.

In the past half a month or so, Hansen had gradually adapted to his new role on the Cavaliers.

Although he no longer received the treatment of the entire team feeding him the ball as they did during the game against the Celtics, he remained the first choice for guarding the opposing team’s offensive threats.

But he had become the player to lead the team during the substitute segments and even the second or first option in the final moments.

His number of shots was increasing, and his stats were rising with the tide.

Before January, he was only averaging 20.3 minutes per game with 8.5 points, 2.3 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 1.8 steals, and 0.8 blocks, with a shooting percentage of 44.2% and a three-point shooting percentage of 38.5%.

Being shuffled in and out of the starting lineup, plus not being played during crucial moments, caused significant fluctuations in his performance as a rookie.

However, in the half month of January, his average playing time reached 28.5 minutes, contributing an average of 14.2 points, 2.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 2.2 steals, and 1.3 blocks, with a shooting percentage of 46.8% and three-point shooting percentage of 41.9%.

He was scoring more than O’Neal and was second only to James and Williams.

Such a performance made him a hopeful for the Rookie of the Month award for January.

But as his role in the games increased, so did the targeting he received from opponents.

Especially in the recent game against the San Antonio Spurs, he was targeted by that old guy Popovich and played his worst game of January.

This made him urgently need to improve his jump shot technique.

That day, the entire Cavaliers team headed to Miami to prepare for the away game against the Heat Team.

Hansen filed a request with the coaching staff and, together with Conningham, went to Miami half a day early to meet up with his teammates at Barry University.

The excitement of his teammates when they saw him at the arena was palpable; they nearly lifted him up and threw him into the air.

"Gifts, I’ve brought you all gifts."

Hansen quickly asked Conningham to unwrap the gifts they had brought.

Inside were more than a dozen boxes, each containing a pair of Beats headphones and an XBOX console.

The former was from a recent endorsement contract he had signed with Beats, who had sent some as a gift, and he had requested a few extra, while the latter he had bought specially.

For students, headphones and game consoles were the ultimate sources of happiness.

Indeed, as soon as they saw the gifts, the arena was filled with cheers that couldn’t be silenced.

Then, Hansen took out something he had promised in advance from his messenger bag, tickets for tomorrow night’s game at the Heat’s home court.

Some of these were his own – every NBA player gets some tickets, the number depends on their status in the team.

These were intended for the players’ families.

However, because this was an away game, Hansen didn’t have many tickets, so the rest he had bought with his own money.

The seats weren’t very close to the front, but they were still first-floor tickets.

After giving away the gifts and catching up, Hansen left Conningham at the arena to hang out with the others and took Rondo for a stroll around the campus.

Although he had only left school for half a year, returning still evoked poignant feelings.

When they sat down on a bench, Hansen pulled out two tickets from his pocket.

"I told you we didn’t need them," said Rondo, thinking Hansen had wasted money.

"Why don’t you take the night off tomorrow? Do you really plan to wear a Heat uniform to the game and then root for the Cavaliers?"

"That’s a good point." Rondo accepted the tickets, his mind having been more concerned about saving Hansen money to consider this.

After receiving the tickets, however, he couldn’t help asking, "But why two?"

"You’ve lectured me a great deal in the past – don’t tell me you still don’t have a girlfriend?"

"Do you?" Rondo looked at Hansen curiously.

Hansen coughed awkwardly, "Forget it!"

"I’ll take them, take them!" Rondo had already put the tickets away.

"How’s your law study coming along?" Hansen steered the conversation to more serious matters.

"I’m actually a legal genius." Rondo said as he took out his phone to show him a photo.

It was a picture of a law qualification certificate, with the name Chris Rondo written on it.

"You’re...?" Hansen was genuinely surprised.

It’s only been half a year, right? He’s already passed the exam?

He looked closely at Rondo’s 1.75-meter frame.

Rondo sat upright and proper, just like when they parted ways before, perhaps even more serious.

Hansen laughed.

What more could he say?

When God closes a door on you, does He also open another window?

But this was convenient for him.

He definitely needed someone to help him check on legal matters, and he didn’t quite trust others.

After all, too many NBA players have been scammed by their so-called financial advisors, and even agents as well.

The most famous case is Duncan, who was deceived out of more than twenty million dollars.

With Rondo, after all the time spent together, he felt more at ease in his heart.

Maybe in the future, the other party could become his own "Rich Rondo"?

After leaving Barry University, Hansen then went to the American Airlines Arena, where he had arranged to meet Wade at the training facility.

"You’re not thinking of picking a game with me before the match, are you?" Wade asked with a smile when he saw Hansen.

If that was the case, he would be very willing.

After all, the guy who could only defend him initially had now grown to have the strength to battle him.

"That can wait for later, before that, I want to ask you about something."

"So humble?" Wade was still used to Hansen’s unruly manner.

"Haven’t I always been very humble?" said Hansen with a smile. That was all for the Anti-Fans value; who would ask for advice with an air of superiority?

Although he had a good relationship with Wade, the man didn’t owe him anything.

Wade laughed; it was the coldest joke he had heard recently.

"I want to talk with you about the floater," Hansen didn’t continue to beat around the bush but went straight to the point.

For the past half month, he had been training the floater his own way, but like when he initially trained in defense, the effort was twice the work for half the gain.

Basketball skills, you can learn the foundation on your own, but details require experience, and finding a good teacher can be much more effective than figuring it out yourself.

As for why it’s Wade again? Well, Wade just happened to be someone he knew, and apart from Mysterious Steps, what Wade is most famous for is his floater.

Having such an available teacher and not using him would be a terrible waste.

Wade looked at Hansen with surprise and then nodded.

From gaining weight in the offseason to increase resistance, to now learning the floater, Hansen’s career planning was quite scientific.

He even suspected Hansen wasn’t a player, but a trainer.

After understanding some of Hansen’s training content, Wade then shared some of his own insights.

Like when he taught the Mysterious Steps before, Wade held nothing back.

Actually, this was not only because he previously said he didn’t think Hansen could surpass him, but also because of his "old-school" style of conduct.

Old-school players have a trait: they hope basketball skills can be passed down.

For instance, Kobe’s turnaround fadeaway received numerous pointers from Jordan, and his "Little Dog Steps" was inherited from Gary Payton.

And after that, Kobe was doing similar things.

Wade shared some insights about floaters, all of which were solid, practical advice.

For example, you absolutely can’t use wrist power when shooting a floater, because what matters most is the soft touch of the hand, and wrist power makes it difficult to control the ball, making the shot slower, instead, you should push the ball to its highest point with a straight arm, and then flick the ball out with your fingers.

There’s also the critical aspect of body balance in the floater; some people lean or even jump forward when looking for a shooting opportunity, giving the impression of drifting. It seems like they’re creating space, but stability significantly decreases, and it’s also easy to draw offensive fouls from opponents.

Apart from in-motion floaters, Wade also shared other types, like jump-stop floaters, spin floaters, and so on.

All these floaters have one thing in common: they help shake off defenders, or prevent defenders from interfering when you’re taking the shot.

Of course, in addition to technique, floaters are also related to talent, such as explosiveness, jumping ability, body control, and flexibility, among others.

Like other basketball skills, talent determines the limit.

Of course, those aren’t things Wade could help with; that’s where the Anti-Fans System’s assistance was needed.