"Beep!"
With the main referee's whistle, the pre-game warm-up concluded, and the starting players from both teams took to the court!
Utah Jazz starting lineup: Ricky Rubio + Donovan Mitchell + Joe Ingles + Derrick Favors + Rudy Gobert.
The Los Angeles Clippers' starting lineup remained unchanged: Beverley + Carmelo + Jeff Green + Lopez + Kai Chen!
Both centers walked to midcourt, and the main referee tossed the ball high into the air.
The Jazz's towering Gobert lost the tip, and Lopez knocked the ball to Beverley.
The Clippers took the first possession of the game!
Beverley dribbled into the frontcourt, while the eyes of the entire arena were already locked on Kai Chen running along the wing.
"Today, Kai Chen's defender will be Donovan Mitchell!"
"Last season, as a rookie, he led the Utah Jazz to the playoffs and eliminated the Oklahoma City Thunder's Big Three in the first round!"
"Both are incredibly talented young players—this matchup will be packed with highlights!"
Beyond the left wing three-point line, Kai Chen caught Beverley's pass, squared up, and glanced at Mitchell guarding him.
"Kid, you're very unlucky today!"
Mitchell sneered and habitually talked trash: "Your miracle ends here. You won't score 10 points under my defense!"
"If I were you, I'd quite down!"
When it came to trash talk, Kai was never one to back down. "You're not even the best player on your own team."
Before Mitchell could react, Kai Chen took a step beyond the arc and pulled up for a three.
"Swish!"
The ball arced beautifully through the air and dropped cleanly through the net.
3:0!
The Clippers struck first with ease.
"Mitchell looked stunned for a moment—Kai seized the opening and fired immediately from deep!"
"You absolutely cannot give Kai Chen any space. He'll hit threes from anywhere on the floor!"
"To easy!"
After draining the shot, Kai muttered the words and turned to run back on defense.
"Heh?"
Watching Kai's retreating figure, Mitchell smiled coldly.
This was exactly the kind of rookie that needed to be put in his place.
Possession switched, Jazz on offense.
Rubio brought the ball past half court. After the big men set their positions, he swung the ball toward Mitchell coming off a screen.
"Slap!"
Before Mitchell could even catch it, a pair of long arms shot into the passing lane.
"It's Kai Chen! He stole the ball right out of Rubio's pass!"
"What kind of speed is that? He was clearly caught on the screen just now!"
The commentators at courtside exclaimed in disbelief.
Gobert's screen had been solid, yet Kai not only fought through it early but completed the steal before Mitchell could react.
Terrifying reaction speed!
With the steal secured, Kai Chen accelerated into the open court. Facing a one-on-zero opportunity, there was no way he'd waste the chance to show off.
Near the left side of the free-throw line, Kai palmed the ball in one hand, leapt off his right foot, spun 360 degrees in midair, and slammed it home!
5:0!
"Ahhh!!"
The Staples Center instantly erupted.
"A 360 dunk in a real game? Are you fucking kidding me?!"
"How many moves does this guy have that we haven't seen?"
"Kai Chen is pulling Dunk Contest shit in an actual game!"
"There are no words—he's just insane!"
After the fast break, Kai brushed past Mitchell while jogging back on defense.
"Why aren't you talking now? You had so much to say earlier."
The smile on Mitchell's face slowly vanished.
He'd wanted to put pressure on Kai with trash talk, but less than a minute into the game, Kai had already scored five straight points, making him look ridiculous.
On the next possession, Gobert received Rubio's entry pass in the paint and muscled past Lopez for a bucket, finally getting the Jazz on the board.
5:2!
But on defense, Mitchell couldn't keep up with Kai's movement at all, and could only watch as Kai drilled another three from outside.
8:2!
In just one minute, Kai Chen had scored 8 straight points, giving the Clippers a dream start.
On the sideline, Jazz head coach Snyder stood up and stormed toward the scorer's table, shouting at Mitchell.
Mitchell looked helpless on the court.
It wasn't that he wasn't trying—he simply couldn't keep up with Kai Chen.
The Jazz answered with team basketball, as Favors scored on a layup to cut the deficit.
8:4!
Back on defense, Mitchell clenched his teeth, determined to bring out the intensity he'd shown in last season's playoffs.
Kai advanced with the ball. Mitchell locked onto him, while Ingles hovered on the wing, ready to double at any moment.
But Kai ignored the looming help defenders, dribbling like a storm—his rhythm lightning fast—as he exploded toward the basket.
His burst and speed were on a completely different level from Mitchell's.
The moment Kai took his first step, he was already past Mitchell and into the paint.
Seeing Kai charging in, the Jazz's 6'10" forward Favors rushed over desperately.
It was useless.
Kai slipped past him with a behind-the-back dribble and went straight for the rim.
Gobert reacted instantly and stepped up to protect the basket.
Facing the French tower, Kai Chen launched himself into the air, elevating high and fully displaying his vertical before cocking the ball back.
The moment Gobert realized what Kai intended to do, rage flashed across his face.
If a 7'2" center like him got dunked on by a 6'6" guard, he'd be plastered all over the highlight reels—as the victim.
There was no way he'd allow that.
Gobert jumped, arms stretched skyward, trying to block the dunk.
"Thud!"
"Boom!"
Bodies collided midair as Kai hammered the ball through the rim. After the slam, both players stumbled backward, and Kai hit the floor.
"Beep!"
The whistle came late, but it came. The referee signaled a blocking foul on Gobert—the basket counted, plus a free throw.
"Fuck!!"
Carmelo's familiar roar echoed as he rushed over, shouting, "You're fucking tough! That's how you do it!"
Kai Chen headed to the free-throw line amid thunderous cheers.
As he took the ball from the referee, he glanced back at Mitchell.
"You better figure out how to stop my drive," Kai said calmly. "Otherwise, your teammates are going to keep suffering."
Mitchell's face darkened, and he said nothing.
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