Chapter 162: You are everywhere!

This year's All-Star Rookie Challenge is different from previous years. In the past, it was always freshmen versus sophomores. This matchup has been a longstanding NBA tradition, but to be honest, it's often been lackluster and dull.

The biggest issue is that sometimes the talent between freshmen and sophomores varies greatly, which leads to games that aren't very intense or enjoyable to watch. Since Adam Silver became NBA commissioner, he's made numerous reforms to the league, and the Rookie Challenge was one of the first things he changed. Traditionally, it featured freshmen against sophomores, but this year, Silver has revamped it to feature an American team versus an international team.

Players from both the freshman and sophomore classes are selected to compete, with American players facing off against international ones. This format offers more intense competition and provides insight into the future strength comparison between the American Basketball Association and international basketball. As a result, ticket sales for this year's Rookie Challenge have been significantly better than previous years.

This year's international team coach is Kenny Atkinson, the assistant coach for the Hawks, who have the best record in the Eastern Conference. The U.S. team's coach is King Terry, the assistant coach of the Warriors. It's clear that the Warriors have some big ambitions, as evidenced by their coaching staff. King Terry was previously the head coach of the Suns and had some impressive results, even making it to the Western Conference Finals. Now, he's chosen to be an assistant coach with the Warriors, which highlights just how attractive the team is.

While the players warmed up, the big screen at the arena introduced the members of both teams. The U.S. team features impressive rookies such as the 76ers' McCaw and Michael Carter-Williams. Other U.S. players include the Magic's Audi Bola, the Jazz's Trey Burke, the Pistons' Pope, and Minnesota Timberwolves' Zach LaVine. The roster also includes Timberwolves' Muhammad, Nerlens Noel of the 76ers, Mason Plumlee of the Brooklyn Nets, Cody Zeller of the Charlotte Hornets, and Payton, the Magic's No. 1 pick, whose hair often steals the spotlight.

On the international side, there's this year's No. 1 pick, Andrew Wiggins, selected by the Cavaliers before being traded for Love. Wiggins, a Canadian, is joined by Oklahoma City's Steven Adams, the Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo, also known as the "Greek Freak," and other notable players like Bojan Bogdanovic of the Nets, Gorgui Dieng from the Timberwolves, the Jazz's Dante Exum, Nikola Mirotic of the Bulls, Rudy Gobert from the Jazz, Dennis Schroeder of the Hawks, and Kelly Olynyk of the Boston Celtics, who once faced off against Jiang Hai.

Jiang Hai sat on the sidelines, snapping photos of the players warming up with his phone. For him, the game hadn't even started yet, and taking photos for his social media seemed like a better way to spend his time. Just as he was engrossed in his pictures, a familiar face suddenly appeared in his camera.

"Is it you?" Jiang Hai exclaimed, startled. He resisted the urge to punch the person and focused more closely on the face, realizing it was Justin Bieber.

The last time he'd seen this guy was just the day before yesterday when they had a brief altercation.

"I was going to ask where you were!" Bieber said, clearly irritated upon seeing Jiang Hai.

Once a die-hard basketball fan, Bieber had participated in the All-Star Celebrity Game a few years ago. But due to his tarnished reputation, the NBA no longer wanted to associate with him, though he still loved basketball and attended games on his own dime. He remained patriotic, especially when supporting fellow Canadian Andrew Wiggins.

Jiang Hai, unimpressed, shot Bieber a middle finger and turned his attention back to his phone. He didn't want anything to do with the troublemaker.

"You came to watch the game too? Do you understand basketball?" Bieber persisted, moving closer to Jiang Hai with a smug grin.

"More than you," Jiang Hai muttered with a displeased expression.

"More than me? Ha! You're really good at bragging. Asians can play basketball? Aren't you guys just good at producing centers? Don't tell me that with your height, you're also a center," Bieber mocked.

It's true that China has produced few NBA players, with only Yao Ming making a lasting impact. Yi Jianlian had some highlights, but he wasn't a star in the league. And while players like Sun Yue and Daba won championship rings, they didn't contribute much to their teams.

For many Europeans and Americans, it's a common belief that Asians aren't skilled in basketball, which led to Bieber's condescending remarks.

"If you're so confident, let's fight!" Jiang Hai retorted, putting his phone down.

Although he acknowledged that the Chinese team probably couldn't defeat the U.S. team, he wasn't going to let a Canadian boast about basketball. Besides, just because the Chinese team wasn't a contender didn't mean Jiang Hai was any less skilled.

"Okay!" Bieber responded, eager to settle things. He'd been furious after the nightclub incident where he had to apologize to Jiang Hai. Now he saw a chance to get revenge.

"Set it up!" Jiang Hai said quickly.

Bieber grinned. "Let's do it now."

"Now? What, we're not watching the game?" Jiang Hai asked, confused.

"Why go outside? We're fighting here!" Bieber said, grinning. He stood up and walked toward the left side of the venue. "Hey, Andrew, you guys take a break, I need to borrow the court for a fight."

Andrew Wiggins, a fellow Canadian, was familiar with Bieber, and despite the singer's controversial reputation, he still had a decent relationship with him back home.

"I'll ask the coach about this," Andrew said with an awkward smile. While the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft, he was still just a rookie and didn't want to make such a decision on his own. Luckily, their coach, the assistant of the Hawks, didn't care much about the All-Star game and was fine with the idea. After all, the coach treated the regular season and playoffs as the main priority, and the All-Star Game wasn't a big deal to him.

With the coach's indifference, the players took a break, and the court cleared. Wiggins casually handed the basketball to Bieber with a wink. "It's all yours."

Bieber grinned and shouted at Jiang Hai, "Come on up!"

Jiang Hai, still stunned, couldn't believe it was happening. He never expected to fight someone, let alone Justin Bieber, in the NBA All-Star Game.

As Bieber waved his arms on the court, Moses Adams leaned over and whispered, "Hey, boss, are you sure about this?"

"I don't know. What do you think?" Jiang Hai muttered in response.

"What now?" Moses asked.

"Just chill," Jiang Hai replied.

(To be continued…)