After practice concluded, Shin Saionji stood at the entrance of the Shohoku Basketball Gym, watching Hanamichi Sakuragi, who had stayed behind alone, a faint smile playing on the corners of his lips.
"Hmm, the team needs to grow quickly right now. The interior is especially crucial, while the perimeter is covered by me. Once Mitsui returns, the perimeter will essentially have no weaknesses. Sakuragi needs to grow up fast."
"Sakuragi."
Hanamichi, who was busy packing his things, turned his head and said impatiently, "What is it? This genius has to head back."
Shin walked slowly over to him, his gaze deep and meaningful. "Want to stay behind for some extra practice?"
"Huh?" Hanamichi's eyes widened. "Are you kidding me? This genius doesn't need practice!"
Shin smiled faintly. "Oh? But if you train with me, I can teach you how to chase girls."
"..."
The air fell silent for a full second.
The next moment, Hanamichi abruptly turned his head, his burning gaze locked onto Shin. "Are you... are you serious?"
"Of course," Shin said calmly. "Out of the 50 girls who rejected your confessions, at least 30 turned you down because they liked guys on the basketball team, right? Once you learn how to play basketball, you'll find that your female fan base will grow, you know."
"..." Hanamichi's expression froze.
"If you want to make that happen, then start training right now," Shin continued. "You should know that performance on the basketball court is far more persuasive to girls than slick words."
Hanamichi clenched his fists, a look of internal struggle washing over his face.
After a few seconds, he abruptly raised his head and said through gritted teeth, "Fine! This genius will reluctantly accompany you for a session!"
The corners of Shin's mouth curled up slightly as he thought to himself, *Plan success.*
Most people had already cleared out of the gym, leaving only Shin and Hanamichi standing at midcourt. A basketball rolled slowly across the hardwood, contrasting their completely different auras.
"Alright, since you agreed to extra practice with me, let's officially begin." Holding the ball, Shin spoke in a calm tone.
Hanamichi put his hands on his hips, his face full of impatience. "Hey, hey, I'm warning you, I am a very busy genius! If the stuff you teach is useless, I'm out of here anytime!"
Shin's lips curved slightly. "Don't worry, what I teach is definitely useful."
"First step, let's start with rebounding."
Hanamichi blinked in surprise. "Rebounds? Isn't that super simple?"
"Is it?" Shin raised an eyebrow. "Then do you know how to properly judge where a rebound will land?"
"Uh... isn't it just watching the ball drop and running after it?" Hanamichi said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
Shin sighed. "It seems your understanding of 'rebounding' is still stuck at the most primitive stage."
"Listen, rebounds are the starting point for all offense and defense, and grabbing them doesn't rely on brute force; it relies on anticipation and positioning."
Casually, he shot the ball. It struck the rim and bounced off, flying toward the left side of the backboard.
"If you're standing right here—" Shin stood on the right side, "—then you have no chance of getting this rebound at all."
"However, if you can anticipate where the ball will land beforehand and get to an advantageous spot, you can easily pull down the board."
Hanamichi frowned, his eyes locked on the bouncing basketball.
"Hey, how are you supposed to judge that?"
"Keep your eyes on the shooting angle, the point where the ball contacts the rim, and its direction of spin." Shin pointed at the backboard. "Most rebounds fall into the diagonal area opposite the rim, so when the opponent shoots, you should already be moving to that position."
With that, he shot again. The ball bounced once on the rim.
Hanamichi stared intensely at the ball. The next moment, he exploded off the floor, leaping up, and actually managed to grab the rebound cleanly!
A flash of surprise crossed Shin's eyes—this guy's vertical and reflexes were even faster than he had imagined!
Yet the next second, Hanamichi landed and patted the ball smugly. "Ha, a genius is truly a genius! There's nothing difficult about this!"
Shin's mouth twitched slightly. "..." *You just guessed right once.*
"Next, we begin formal training."
—Rebound training, officially underway!
Half an hour later...
"Bang—!"
For the thirtieth time, Hanamichi batted the ball out of bounds, his face slightly twisted in frustration.
"Damn it!! I could totally reach it just a moment ago!!"
Shin looked at him calmly. "You rely too much on your vertical leap. Rebounding isn't just about jumping high; you also have to know how to box out and handle contact."
"Box out?"
Shin walked down under the basket and set his defensive stance. "You stand between the offensive player and the rim, blocking him with your body to ensure you have the best rebounding position."
"In other words, even if your leaping ability is superior to your opponent's, if you don't box out, you'll get shoved out of the advantageous spot, and you still won't get the rebound."
He demonstrated the movement, using his shoulder and arm to gently block and deny Hanamichi the space to jump. As a result, the ball dropped straight into Shin's hands.
Hanamichi's face instantly darkened. "Damn it, you used dirty tricks!!"
"That's not a dirty trick, that's fundamentals," Shin shrugged. "If you want to grab more rebounds, you have to learn how to box out."
"Hmph!" Hanamichi glared fiercely at Shin. "Then this genius will learn this boxing out stuff too!"
"Great, then let's keep practicing."
An hour later, Hanamichi's rebounding ability had improved noticeably; he had finally mastered some basic boxing-out techniques.
Instead of letting him rest, however, Shin led him directly beneath the basket.
"Next up, we practice alley-oops."
"Alley-oops?" Hanamichi blinked. "You mean catching the ball and dunking it right away?"
"Right." Shin looked at him, a flicker of light in his eyes. "Your leaping ability is astonishing, even stronger than most professional players."
"However, your basketball skills are terrible, so I'm going to make you use your physical gifts to learn from the simplest offensive methods!"
"And alley-oops are the most suitable scoring method for you!"
Hanamichi's eyes lit up fiercely. "That sounds really cool!!"
Shin smiled faintly. "Of course, but on the condition that you can actually catch the ball."
With that, he picked up a basketball, stood at the free-throw line, and motioned like he was going to pass. "Pay attention, I'm going to pass the ball near the rim. All you have to do is jump up, catch it, and slam it down."
Hanamichi patted his chest with absolute confidence. "Piece of cake, watch me!"
Timing his moment, Shin delivered a high lob. The ball traced a graceful arc through the air, heading straight for the basket.
Hanamichi exploded off the ground—
And then—
"Bang!!"
The basketball smashed directly into his face.
"Aahahaha—!!!"
Inside the Shohoku Basketball Gym, Hanamichi's miserable howl echoed out.
Shin couldn't help but palm his face. "..." *Did I overestimate your ability to catch?*
Furious, Hanamichi picked up the ball. "Hey! There's something wrong with this pass, right?!"
"The problem is with you," Shin said evenly. "When catching in mid-air, your eyes must always follow the ball. Stop flailing your hands around blindly."
"Again!"
In the training that followed, Hanamichi continuously attempted alley-oops. Though he failed countless times at first, as the practice progressed, his reaction time and aerial coordination gradually improved!
Two hours later—
Shin delivered the final pass, the basketball tracing an arc through the air.
Hanamichi leapt forcefully. This time, he caught the ball cleanly and smashed it down hard through the hoop with both hands!
"Bang—!!"
The entire rim shook!
Landing on the feet, Hanamichi pumped his fists in excitement. "Hahaha!! This genius finally succeeded!!"
Shin smiled slightly, watching Hanamichi as a look of satisfaction flashed in his eyes.
*This guy really is a genius when it comes to leaping and stamina.*