“Ouch!” Sakuragi Hanamichi cried out, clutching his forehead.
But this time, no one teased him like before—everyone’s eyes were fixed on him, filled with unconcealed shock.
“Sakuragi, come here.” Taoka Moichi’s lips trembled slightly, his voice carrying a hint of imperceptible excitement.
“Koshino, go get the vertical jump testing equipment, and find a ruler first,” he instructed next.
“Yes, Coach.” Koshino Hiroaki quickly went to get the measuring equipment and ruler.
“Sakuragi, raise your right hand,” Taoka Moichi said.
“Okay, Coach!” Sakuragi Hanamichi naturally extended his arm.
Uozumi conscientiously picked up the ruler and measured, reporting in a deep voice: “Coach, Sakuragi’s standing reach is 2.45 meters.”
Taoka Moichi nodded, pointing to the vertical jump tester beside him: “Sakuragi, in a moment, run with all your might, and jump as high as you can reach.”
“No problem!” Sakuragi Hanamichi nodded.
Sakuragi Hanamichi took a deep breath, then suddenly accelerated like an arrow shot from a bow, sprinting wildly. The moment his left foot slammed against the ground, his whole body seemed to truly fly. He straightened his right arm, stretching with all his might towards the top of the scale—
Koshino Hiroaki’s eyes widened suddenly, his voice changing pitch: “Co… Coach! 3 meters… 3.58 meters!”
“What? 3.58 meters?!” Taoka Moichi’s eyes instantly rounded, almost unable to believe his ears.
He composed himself and turned to the other side: “Sendoh, you try too.”
“Okay, Coach.” Sendoh responded, also taking long strides to run quickly and jump.
“3.37 meters.” Koshino Hiroaki’s voice was steadier, but still carried the lingering shock from the previous data.
“Gu Jin, you try too.” Taoka Moichi’s gaze fell on Gu Jin.
Gu Jin had never actually systematically measured his own jumping ability.
In his previous life, he remembered his vertical jump was 85 centimeters, and his running jump was 104 centimeters. Now, he wanted to see who was better between his own and Sakuragi’s exaggerated jumping ability.
“Alright, I’ll try too.”
After Gu Jin finished speaking, he took a deep breath, suddenly accelerated, his body stretching like a soaring bird as he leaped towards the scale—
“Co-Coach… 3.55 meters!” Koshino stammered again, his shock no less than before.
Taoka Moichi’s eyes shone as if they were glowing, staring intently at Gu Jin and Sakuragi.
They’re only 16 years old! The potential of these two kids is simply unfathomable!
Afterward, Gu Jin also measured his standing reach. The result was that even though he was 2 centimeters taller than Sakuragi, his standing reach was also 2.45 meters.
It seems Sakuragi’s physique is truly naturally built for basketball.
Taoka Moichi stared at the three players’ vertical jump data, quickly calculating in his mind—Sendoh’s jumping power was 85 centimeters, Sakuragi’s astonishing performance came out to a full 113 centimeters, and Gu Jin also reached 110 centimeters. The talent of these two newcomers was simply a gift from the heavens to Ryonan.
He suppressed his excitement, took a deep breath, and looked at Sakuragi: “Sakuragi, are you willing to join the Ryonan Basketball Team?”
Sakuragi Hanamichi nodded vigorously, his eyes particularly serious: “Coach Taoka, I am willing! Whatever you say, I will give it my all!”
“Good, good!” Taoka Moichi was struck by the decisive answer, the wrinkles on his face spreading into a smile, his inner joy almost impossible to hide.
Before training even ended, he couldn’t contain himself and quickly walked to the school board’s office—such promising talent had to be secured immediately.
After training, Gu Jin and Sakuragi Hanamichi waited in Taoka Moichi’s office. Sakuragi sat upright, hands on his knees, occasionally stealing glances at the basketball posters on the wall.
After about half an hour, the office door opened, and Taoka Moichi walked in, his face glowing, the smile in the corners of his eyes impossible to hide: “Sakuragi, you don’t need to go to Shohoku tomorrow. The school will arrange for a teacher to specifically help you with the transfer procedures.” He paused, emphasizing, “Oh, and tomorrow at 3:20 PM, report to the training gym on time.”
“Yes, Coach!” Sakuragi immediately stood up, his voice loud.
Taoka Moichi looked at his tense posture and couldn’t help but smile, raising a hand to pat his shoulder: “Sakuragi, relax, you’re one of us now.”
He looked at Sakuragi and Gu Jin in front of him, and then thought of Sendoh, who was at ease on the court, a surge of ambition rising in his heart—it seemed the era belonging to Ryonan was truly about to begin.
The next day, good news suddenly arrived—the school board specially arranged a “Public Welfare Cup” basketball exhibition game, with the opponent being Daiei Academy, a strong team from Osaka.
Gu Jin was a bit surprised. In the original plot of “Slam Dunk,” there was no mention of this game. But he calculated the time, and this game was conveniently scheduled before the practice match against Shohoku.
It seemed his arrival had indeed caused a butterfly effect, creating new branches in the original timeline.
This Public Welfare Cup consisted of three matchups, and media from Kanagawa Prefecture would be present to report. The games were centered on “promoting the spirit of sportsmanship” and primarily for exhibition purposes, aiming to get more people to love sports.
For Ryonan, this was undoubtedly a rare opportunity. What’s more, each starting player would also receive a 60,000 yen subsidy.
Three days later, as the training whistle just blew and the players were packing up, Taoka Moichi walked to the sideline with his tactics board. Team manager Shimamura Yoko was already recording various data and proportional analyses on a notebook beside him, while Aida Hikoichi helped her organize materials, becoming a temporary assistant.
“Everyone, come over here,” Taoka Moichi tapped the tactics board, “Tomorrow is the first Public Welfare Cup game. I’ll first tell you about Daiei Academy’s roster.”
He cleared his throat and began to introduce:
Number 4, Tsuchiya Jun, 190 centimeters tall, plays small forward. His court vision is very wide, making him a very tricky opponent, and he also possesses strong one-on-one scoring ability.
Number 5, Tamaki Otoko, 176 centimeters tall, plays shooting guard. His three-point shot is his trump card.
Number 6, Onodera Ritsu, 182 centimeters tall, plays power forward.
Their center is the most troublesome—Ben Wallace, 196 centimeters tall, with all-around skills, ranked only second to Masashi Kawata of Sannoh Industrial in the Japanese high school basketball scene.
After speaking, he looked up at the players: “Tsuchiya Jun and Ben Wallace are very tricky. Sendoh, Uozumi, you two are responsible for defending them.”