Character Building
[A/N: Merry Christmas Y'all. Love all of you no homo and have a great read and rest of the day!]
Word Count: 1932
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[Omniscient POV (Location: ???)]
In a random house in an unknown location could be seen two kids on their phones. These two kids while having different personalities had one thing in common.
Basketball…
Coincidentally enough today was the 2024 NBA draft in New York.
"Who do you think will be drafted?" A kid says to his friend. The friend looking back at him with a smug look took a "shot in the dark".
"$10 Isaiah Collier will go first pick, no doubt."
Hearing this the first kid got a "Are you serious" expression before shaking his head. It was obvious to this kid that his friend didn't watch basketball overseas.
There was no way Isaiah Collier would have gone first.
"You never look at people outside of the USA, dumbass. Nikola Topic has a way higher chance, even then Alex Sarr has better chances than him." He responds adjusting his glasses.
The friend turned to his side with a deadpan look wanting to give his mate a one-two smack.
If looks could kill then neither of them would be dead as before that, their focuses were changed to the television because a familiar voice could be heard. "Shut up four eyes the draft is about to start."
His friend with the glasses realising the same thing scowled at him but silently looked back at the TV.
On the screen could be seen Adam Silver in all his glory standing at the little podium.
[Omniscient POV (New York)]
Today was the day of the NBA 2024 draft and with millions of people tuning in to see the results, but on this particular day another thing seemed to have occurred…
Adam Silver who was on stage was looking at a notebook for an awkwardly long time. With a short minute passing and everyone silent, it was finally time. Adam Silver bathing in the silence started to talk after a deep breath.
"Before we continue, I'd like to recognize... Alexander Barboza."
As he said these words hundreds of imaginary raised eyebrows went up confused about what was happening. But not too long after the situation was slowly revealed.
"He attended Duke University. And following his sophomore year he declared for the draft, to pursue his dreams of playing in the NBA. Alexander was expected to be drafted tonight, but he tragically passed away in March, following a hit-and-run incident.
He was 20.
His extraordinary talent, dedication, blood sweat and tears he poured into the sport deserves to be recognised on this stage." Adam Silver announced helping everyone get the picture that was being told through words.
The room was dead silent showing the seriousness that was being conveyed by Adam Silver.
…
No one would dare say a word after that. Adam Silver with a warm smile takes one last glance at the crowd before speaking.
"It's my honour to now announce that with the next pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. The NBA selects Alexander Barboza from Duke University!"
Everyone at the draft laying their respects clapped and cheered the loudest that would be heard that draft night.
As we all know… No rookie can always satisfy their fan's high expectations.
[Omniscient POV (Location: ???) ]
"Hey dude, check who Alexander Barbosa is real quick." The friend asks his four-eyed mate as the guy grabs his phone.
"Already on it…" He responds squinting his eyes. Taking a few seconds to search for the name, a few results were found. "Alexander Barboza from Duke University. He's a four-star forward, with pretty average stats. There isn't anything special from what I can see." The nerd says.
"Don't say something like that, there has to be something."
"Well, his comments say he's a great 3 and D player who has a lot of potential with his frame and arm span. He hustles a lot and I suppose a 3 and D player is a valuable asset in any NBA team." He reads out, pulling up a few videos about the guy. Not too long after, they had their eyes widened by the content.
The images of a 6'8 player completely locking down his opponents were being shown. Block after steal kept on going as a highlight video also included a couple of dunks.
"This guy looks lazy on defence but still sticks like glue to his man off and on the ball. Plus his game IQ and passing are pretty clean."
Both kids nodding in respect realised why the guy was going to be drafted that year. But confusion hit them realising why Alexander's stats were so bad in his freshman year.
'Was he benched his first year there?' They both thought to themselves.
Those thoughts wouldn't matter anyway, his story isn't over yet…
Unknown to everyone at the draft and viewers alike, his challenges would restart over again. Just not in America, but in Japan. And his competition wouldn't just be in America, but internationally.
[Omniscient POV (Location: ???)]
'Ugh, where am I.'
These were the first thoughts of Alexander's consciousness as he felt extremely sick. It was like a dream with his mind clouded enough to make conscious decisions without realising his situation.
A sort of extreme mental fatigue.
Alexander "looking forward" only saw the pitch black. Soon after this, a screen popped up.
[Select One… You are limited to one slot]
[Empty (Hardcore)]
[Empty (Hardcore)]
[Empty (Hardcore)]
'But they're all the same though? Well, I guess should still choose one.' Alex barely thought not thinking about it too much, going with the flow.
[Great choice! You've chosen Hardcore with there being no second chances!]
[It's time for the character customisation, just "think" to adjust something to your liking. You can replace any option with a prior person as a base choice.]
[Body]
'This seems fun, I wonder if this is a new game.'
——
[Profile Rank ?]
Height: ?
Wingspan: ?
Hand Width: ?
Hand Length: ?
Foot Size: ?
Body Type:
Ectomorph ?%
Endomorph ?%
Mesomorph ?%
(Note: This is your body when you finish your growth, the speed of growth is based on genetics)
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Alexander looking over all of the options started to inwardly smirk to himself already knowing what he wanted. As an SF and SG who has always wanted to shoot over anyone, his ideal player was Kevin Durant/Slim Reaper.
The sheer unfair advantage of being tall, slim, large wingspan and overall athleticism shows with KD. Kevin Durant is the "perfect scorer" Alexander's opinion, with further proof of this being Kobe not being able to solve him before retirement. As Kevin Durant progressed his skills the amount of ways to stop him was lessened as it became a "pick your poison" situation on the court.
You just have to hope he misses with his insane shooting efficiency.
While players like Steph Curry, Klay Thompson or Devin Booker need to create their shooting opportunities, KD can debatably just catch and shoot or do a few moves to get past anyone. This of course this isn't include many aspects but the idea is there.
'I want to be 6'11 at least with a 7'5 wingspan to pair with the height. To be honest It's KD 2.0 but we will change up the base and hand size.' Alexander thought like a kid giddily looking through the toy aisle in the shops.
[Final Height Confirmed!]
[Final Wingspan Confirmed!]
With the options now down to hand size and body type, Alexander started to scourge through NBA players that he could use as his base for the build. The current problem that he was facing was the fact that a big hand would hinder shooting which is the opposite of what Alexander wants.
But at the same time, the advantages are also plain to see right in front of him.
'If I wanted the biggest hands possible then Giannis, Boban or Shaq would be my picks. For this current forward build though I'll have to choose someone like Kawhi.' Alexander chose after a little bit of thinking. Kawhi Leonard's play style is literally the word "efficiency" with his limited dribbles and surgical precision when splitting the defence.
Especially at the mid-range Kawhi is pretty scary and nearly unguardable as the NBA had no answer for him in his championship run.
Ignoring Golden State's multiple injuries…
[Hand Size 9.75/11.25 inches confirmed!]
'Body type is pretty subjective but if I could be a scorer while having a frame like Lebron or Giannis that would be perfect... Let's choose Giannis. With some large feet for balance, that's all.' Alexander thought finishing up his body options.
——
[Profile Rank ?]
Height: 6'11
Wingspan: 7'5
Hand Width: 11.25 Inches
Hand Length: 9.75 Inches
Foot Size: 13 Inches (Size 17 US. Because apparently, the world doesn't have a universally used metric for shoe size.)
Body Type:
Ectomorph 62%
Endomorph 7%
Mesomorph 41%
——
[Are you satisfied with the current Body?]
'Yes!'
[Before you get transmigrated you will get a small gift!]
[As a Pacers and Warriors fan you have the choice to get a technique from one of its current/former players ranging from 2010-2020.]
Alexander seeing the first part got confused but after the second screen popped up, it went over his head.
'That's a no-brainer, sorry my Pacers.'
As much of a Pacers and Paul George fan Alexander was as a kid. It was pretty difficult to support the Pacers and as a kid, wanted a "winning team". Before Steph, he supported Golden State for being an up-and-coming team.
Also, Monta Ellis was his second favourite player which quickly changed…
But of course that's not the current state of the Warriors with Alexander getting clowned. People thought he was a bandwagoner but the reality his favourite team at the time didn't help Paul George at all, making him lose interest in the Pacers.
He only had one choice which was his second favourite team.
'I'll choose Golden State.' He answers as a booster pack appears in front of him.
Entranced by the mythical look of the cosmic-looking card pack, Alexander couldn't help but watch in awe.
*Rip*
A clean straight rip through the top of the pack as a card started to exit with an ethereal purple glow following it. The card blinded Alexander but after a few seconds his "vision" returned.
'Klay Thompson?' He thought seeing the card. An interesting thing about the Klay Thompson card besides Klay wearing a headband is that it had three stars on the top of it.
[Congratulations on getting the technique, Klay Thompson's Shooting Form ★ ★ ★]
'Klay has a consistent shooting form and is most likely way better than mine. It's just like what Steph Curry said in a Hot Ones interview. Klay's form is pretty and is perfect for repetition.' He off-handedly thought satisfied with the cool-looking card.
[Ego, good luck on your journey!]
'Wait that's not the name I picked… Wait did I even pick a username?' Alexander questioned himself.
Before he could react, his perspective started to warp a little like a hyperspace jump in Star Wars. His surroundings changed with his consciousness started to wane.
[][][][][]
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[A/N: There's a debate about body types not existing or that they do. I personally don't care. It was an addition to explain the MC's frame in the future.
A reminder to please recommend any casual anime that could fit into a setting like mine. Examples include Love is War, Nisekoi and the obvious Kuroko's Basketball. I'm still open to adding different anime characters that fit with the friend group I surrounded my MC with.]