Chapter 6: The Best Sharpshooter.
Has anyone ever made all 25 shots in the history of the NBA Three-Point Contest?
The answer is no.
The most memorable for Han Sen was 2015, when Stephen Curry won the championship. Curry was on fire, hitting 13 consecutive shots and scoring 27 points to claim the title.
But even in that game, Curry missed four or five shots.
Still, the Three-Point Contest is an official event, and the mental pressure on players is immense.
Take Curry, for example. Later, at his high school training camp, he attempted the Three-Point Contest in front of the students and made 23 out of 25 shots.
So, it's possible to achieve it during private practice.
However, Han Sen had tried until the camera's battery died, and his best attempt was 23 shots.
Even without the pressure from an audience, under zero-error conditions, just one moment of distraction can ruin everything.
Also, rapid shooting within a minute consumes far more energy than expected. The further you go, the harder it gets.
As he sat resting courtside, his whole body was drenched in sweat.
"Han, 23 shots is already incredible," Rondo said, sitting down beside him.
"No, it has to be 25."
"So, why are you recording this video?" Rondo, intrigued by Han Sen's determination, asked.
"It's part of my plan to become an NBA player," Han Sen gave the most fitting response.
"You mean, if one day you actually become an NBA player, you'll write about this in your autobiography?"
Han Sen was surprised by Rondo's interpretation. He hadn't thought of it that way.
But after thinking for a moment, he nodded.
"Alright then! Tomorrow, I'll bring two large power banks. I don't believe we can't do it!" Rondo suddenly became excited.
If his name were to appear in an NBA player's autobiography, that would be something worth bragging about.
Han Sen reached out and fist-bumped Rondo, sealing the agreement between the two.
Of course, Han Sen knew that this would take some time.
A week later, during his sixth attempt at recording, Han Sen was in the zone and finally achieved his goal.
The moment the last three-pointer swished through the net, he couldn't help but punch the air in excitement.
Rondo dropped the camera and started shouting, "Han! Post the video on social media and let those guys see just how strong you are!"
Han Sen laughed and nodded, heading to a computer where they could edit the video.
With the title "The Skill of the NCAA's Top Shooter", they posted the video, and soon after, he began receiving plenty of hate points.
"It's hilarious. Making 25 shots with no defense? What's that supposed to prove?"
"Steph just didn't record it, but if he wanted to, he could do it easily."
"As expected, only a clown would do something like this. Definitely confirms it's him."
...
Seeing these comments, he nodded in satisfaction.
He had been building up his "anti-fanbase" for a while now, and it was paying off.
"These guys!" Rondo gritted his teeth as he read the comments. If they tried it themselves, they'd know how incredible it was.
"It's fine. They don't matter."
Han Sen said as he moved on to his real plan.
His personal account's hate fanbase wasn't enough to warrant much effort.
He forwarded the post privately to various well-known media personalities like Charles Barkley and Reggie Miller.
Since it was likely that they wouldn't even notice, he made sure to use eye-catching phrases like "You'll regret it for a whole year if you don't watch this."
He didn't need all of them to watch it- just one would be enough for his plan to succeed.
"What if none of them see it?" Rondo asked, worried.
"Don't worry, they'll see it," Han Sen replied. His plan was to send the message to them daily.
And if that didn't work, he had a backup plan: to bombard one person with messages from multiple accounts.
That method had its downsides, so he would only use it as a last resort.
"If they actually see it, you'll definitely blow up for a while!" Seeing hiss confidence, Rondo was already getting excited.
Han Sen smiled and nodded. Though, in truth, his goal wasn't to become famous.
This time, Han Sen didn't have to wait long.
The very next day, he received a reply. And the person who responded was an old acquaintance- the man who once kissed an ass on live TV.
"Thanks for your submission."
But Barkley's response made Han Sen wonder if it was an automated reply.
Then again, Facebook probably doesn't have that function, right?
"Will I see it on the show soon?" Han Sen asked again to confirm.
"I haven't watched it yet, but I'm sure it'll be on soon," came another quick reply.
Han Sen was a bit taken aback but soon realized that Barkley was likely sending generic replies to everyone.
Barkley's polite tone was a far cry from the sharp-tongued persona seen on TV.
Despite Barkley's response, Han Sen didn't treat this as his only opportunity. He continued sending private messages to others.
A week later, Barry University was steadily improving, securing three consecutive wins, bringing their record to 7-4.
Though Han Sen hadn't received any new responses, just as he thought his plan had failed, Barkley sent him another message.
His video had aired on the show.
Barkley, as a mainstay on TNT, had several programs. This one was called NBA Entertainment, a show that, as the name suggests, focused on quirky and interesting NBA stories.
At the start of the episode, Barkley talked about the Isaiah Thomas suicide incident.¹
News had reported that Thomas attempted suicide, and after leaving the emergency room, he told reporters, "The police got it wrong; it was my daughter who took the pills."
Barkley immediately unleashed his sharp tongue: "I know New York's new coach is definitely better than the last one. At least he won't try to kill himself."
This had Kenny Smith laughing out loud.
Well, Han Sen thought their sense of humor was different from his.
Then there were similar stories, and Han Sen felt like Barkley was trying to sugarcoat a piece of chocolate, but it still looked like a lump of crap.
Still, it was understandable. The show aired weekly, and there weren't always interesting things happening in the NBA.
Finally, near the end of the show, Barkley mentioned Han Sen.
"Kenny, something interesting- I recently received a submission from someone in the NCAA. I'm not sure if it's from him or a friend, but it's pretty fun."
"NCAA? About Blake Griffin, James Harden, or Steph Curry?"
The new NCAA season had started, and media figures were beginning to take notice of these popular rookies.
"No, none of them. You'll understand when you see it."
After a brief exchange, the show played the video of Han Sen making all 25 shots.
Within a minute, all 25 shots went in, including Rondo's excited shouts at the end.
"What do you think?" Barkley asked Kenny Smith.
"He's a pretty good shooter. You know, even though we can tell this video took several tries, it's not something just anyone can do, especially considering he's an NCAA player," Smith, being a former professional athlete, gave a professional assessment.
"What if I add this?" Barkley said as Han Sen's profile page appeared on screen. His username and ID were blurred, but the title of the post was still visible: 'The Skill of the NCAA's Top Shooter.'
"Who is he?" Smith was now intrigued.
"I won't tell you who he is, but I will tell you he's a player from the NCAA's Division II. So how do you feel about that?"
"That's a bit arrogant. One thing he needs to understand is that training and games are two different things. The winner of the Three-Point Contest isn't necessarily the best shooter, and besides, this wasn't even a real Three-Point Contest."
As soon as the profile screenshot appeared, Han Sen relaxed.
He had been worried that the profile wouldn't show up, and without it, how could anyone mock him?
It's like the BOAT fans not posting pictures of Jordan, Jabbar, or Kobe bowing down to LeBron- how could they gain so many haters without that?
The only downside was that Barkley, either due to show requirements or on purpose, didn't reveal Han Sen's name.
He quickly checked his system, and seeing that his hate points were still increasing, he breathed a sigh of relief.
It seemed that even without a name, as long as people knew it was him, the hate points would roll in.
Barkley had done him a huge favor!
"I actually think this guy has some talent and a lot of guts."
Just as Han Sen was reflecting on this, he heard Barkley defending him.
Wait, what? This sharp-tongued guy? Where's that mocking tone you used for Yao Ming? This feels weird!
"Why do you think that?" Smith was also surprised.
Barkley rubbed his chin and said seriously, "If you don't think you're the best, how can you ever become the best?"
---
¹: Isaiah Thomas became the Knicks' GM in 2003. After Larry Brown's poor coaching record, he coached the Knicks from 2006-2008, then resigned due to alleged harassment issues in 2009.
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