80 Basketball Practice (1/2)
”Okay.” Hayden's coach coughed out. In the present, Hayden and his teammates, sporting their school's red jersey, was lined up with the five aforementioned people wearing the black jerseys in front of them.
Surrounding them was an enormous crowd of onlookers, with some of them having their phones out. They all thought that a basketball match with Hayden in it will certainly be worth watching and recording.
The five people wearing the black jerseys were the starting five of the former Annual Youth Pride basketball team last year. Hayden recognized them as most of them have been beaten black and blue by Hayden during the National Youth Tournament.
Aside from that, he did research on all the high school basketball players in preparation for his team back in the National Youth Tournament.
The five people was the 'Black Fortress,' the black-skinned and bald Jack Esteban, the center of the team and was at a staggering height of 201 centimeters, with his muscle definition being no joke. He donned the number 23.
Next up was the legendary 'High School Court Magician' that led his team with pure strategical intellect, the brown-skinned and handsome, though not as handsome as Hayden, Gabriel Ibanez. He was the point guard of the team and had the number 8 in his back. Hayden has beaten his team in the finals of the National Youth Tournament by destroying their strategic plays with pure skill, physical power, and agility.
The next three was the Swift Dribbler, a red-haired looking man standing at 167 centimeters, John Labastida, bearing the number 81 in the shooting guard position; Caleb Juarez, a black-skinned and quite attractive man who donned the number 70 and is the power forward of the team; and finally the jack of all trades small forward, Christian Hermosa, the man who donned the number 11, a somewhat unassuming person with bluish-black hair.
In spite of them barely placing eleventh during the previous Annual Youth Pride, they were the best of the best of their age. The crème de la crème. Well, that was if Hayden was removed in the picture.
Meanwhile, the five people on Hayden's team was the third best small forward in high school basketball, William Alcazar (174 cm) wearing the number 14. The tallest amongst Hayden's team, and is a pretty good center, Jacob Dimatulac (187 cm) wearing the number 69. Considered one of the strongest point guards in high school basketball, and is also the captain the team, David Fajardo (178 cm) wearing the number 47. An efficient shooting guard and the shortest in the team, Luke Evangelista (170 cm) wearing the number 20. And lastly Hayden Emperador, whose position was power forward in name, wearing the number 10.
This became worse when the ball goes in Hayden's team's hands. The team's synchronized and high-pace play that revolved around Hayden's tireless playstyle was overwhelming for any opponent. Earlier in the game, their enemies' will to play would be crushed to smithereens as the team continuously pass to Hayden, who would score mercilessly. What more, Hayden's steals… Let's not go there as it was too mysterious.
All this coupled with Hayden's constant pressure of his insane reaction time and his inordinate amount of stamina made the people give Hayden the moniker of the 'Emperor of the Court.' In addition, Hayden had other epithets as well, such as the 'Demon in the Shape of a Human,' 'Basketball Machine,' 'Professional Basketball Kid,' and many more that Hayden was tired of hearing.
Now, one might think that this line up was pretty good, and that with Hayden added into the mix, they could've easily win the tournament. Wrong, it was solely because of Hayden's presence and efforts that these people were able to become who they are today.
Before Hayden joined the basketball club, these people were the worst. The only people who took the basketball club seriously was David and William. The others mainly goofed around. They even made the coach give up on them, resulting in them not at all playing in any matches. It was even considered being disbanded.
That was when Hayden joined the club, showing them these ridiculously high-level plays that can exclusively be seen in the professional basketball scene, specifically in the matches held by the Global Basketball Association (GBA) (1).
At first, nobody really cared. Hayden was a good player, so what? Not like he can change anything, right? Wrong again.
In his debut, Hayden scored 84 points alone, 15 of which were three-pointers, rebounded a total of 16 balls, blocked a total of 39 shots, stolen a total of 28 balls, and assisted a total of 11 times. It was a legendary debut with an illustrious and unheard-of quintuple-double statistics, as well as the first quintuple-double achieved in high school basketball level.
That match was a viral video in Streamlink and this news made headlines. The adversary was left depressed afterwards as they were beaten down by a single player. Hayden heard that that school lost all of its members following his match with them. This showcase gave him his first nickname of the 'Lone Wolf.'
This was the turning point of Makati Scholar Academy's basketball club. The coach had a renewed faith in it with the addition of Hayden's one-man and relentless display of skill. This paired with his capability of carrying an entire match on his shoulders with a mere two functional teammates was miraculous.
And now we're in the present. What was happening, you ask? Well, Coach Ardiente wanted to test Hayden's skill in basketball, bringing with him last year's Annual Youth Pride basketball team.
This irked Hayden. Where was the basic trust between human beings? You were the one who invited me into the team, yet, you're testing me?
'Or maybe he just signed the paper and not at all personally invite me.' Hayden's face twitched ever so slightly, his sharp gaze emitting pressure for the opposite team.
After all, most of them beaten by Hayden already. Single-handedly to boot. Plus, as Hayden was the current 'ultimate' prodigy' in their generation, it was impossible that they never heard of Hayden's name. Hayden's name struck dread in their hearts.
Regardless, Gabriel, who was dominated by Hayden with his extreme skill, had his fighting spirit ignited. Previously, Hayden simply beat him as his teammates can only be described as weak. However, currently?
'The power of my teammates coupled with my strategies…' Gabriel's eyes were full of determination. 'At last, I can have my revenge!'
At that moment, the gym's doors opened, and in came Daniel and Courtney. Courtney walked with her back arched in exhaustion. She asked, ”What's happening?”
”Word around the school was that Hayden's having a match.” As a Level 2 wielder, Daniel wasn't drained at all. ”This ought to be good. Follow me.”
With that, the two pushed their way in front of the spectators and blended in the crowd. ”Say, is Hayden also…”
”Yes, yes he is.” Daniel admitted. The only thing that Hayden didn't permit him to inform Courtney was his Ability, thus he had no qualms revealing this. ”And he's a lot stronger than me. I advise you to not ever mess with him.”
”Huh…” Courtney was confused. ”I thought he implied that you're stronger than him when it comes to combat?”
”Perhaps overall.” Daniel nodded his head. ”Howbeit, we're talking about one on one here. You won't even know how you die if you face him one on one. He's a master of ten martial arts, and his physical capabilities are high, as you probably have guessed with his feats in basketball.”
”Does he use it during basketball?” Courtney queried with fascination.
”Him?” Daniel rotated his head towards Courtney. ”He's a person who regarded sportsmanship highly. At most, he uses his it during practice and non-recorded matches. Outside of that, he doesn't. All those inhuman feats online? Those were him not using it at all.”
Daniel stopped himself from providing more as he convulsed. He grasped that Hayden was listening in on their conversation.
”Fine, I'll stop.” Daniel sighed. ”Don't ask questions anymore. He can hear us.”
”Oh…” Courtney focused her eyes on Hayden, involuntarily trembling. 'What the hell is that tremendous pressure coming off of him?'
Thereupon, the coach of Makati Scholar Academy blew the whistle and the players on the team positioned themselves. Hayden was the one who was going to jump for the ball, with him facing Jack.
Blowing the whistle for another time, the coach propelled the ball upwards. Hayden watched the ball closely and jumped at the perfect time. Surprisingly, Hayden's jump was higher than Jack, who appeared similarly surprised.
'What astonishing jumping power!' This was first time Jack was facing off with Hayden, and was therefore confused why his teammates feared Hayden so much. 'I'm beginning to understand why.'
The one who acquired the ball from Hayden's tip-off was Luke. In the middle of his fall, he turned his head backward at Luke, who grasped Hayden's message instantly.
The moment Hayden's feet made contact with the ground, Luke passed him the ball. Bending his knees, Hayden disappeared, bursting for the hoop at high velocity. Two people, John and Christian, immediately blocked him.
Ceasing for a moment, Hayden swayed around as he did a crossover. He then attempted to pass them by pushing forward, blocked by the duo by closing the gaps between themselves. Unfortunately, Hayden's 'attempt' was a feint as he stepped back and jumped, shooting without hesitation and scoring a three-pointer within the first three seconds of the game.
Landing squarely, Hayden cracked his neck, overpowering pressure exuding from him. He was seriously ticked off this time. Being tested by someone he didn't even know?
This was one of his dislikes, people disregarding the facts placed in front of them and executing unnecessary things. It was a waste of time.
Hayden was initially planning to excuse himself from practice. If he was excused, by this point in time, Hayden could be at home, using his time for more meaningful activities. Such as sketching up the remaining members of CHORUS. He wasn't planning on practicing today to do all those, yet he was held up by doing something so meaningless.
Turning his gaze to Coach Ardiente, his nonchalantly fierce gaze conveyed the message, 'I'm going to destroy this team if you don't stop me.'
”What the hell ticked him off?” Jacob approached David and queried. ”Whoa, is he… challenging Coach Ardiente?”
”I don't know.” David replied, a tremor traveling from his lower spine and upwards. ”But let's not do anything stupid and just pass to him.”
”Agreed.” David gulped in horror. He has never seen Hayden that ticked off, and despite being their seniors, Hayden's skill was superior than them.
In the present, the world, with the establishment of the World Government, can be considered meritocratic. A place where a person's worth is determined by how much potential and skill they possess, not by social classes.