Chapter Three: Rules Do Not Protect the Greedy

At the last instant, he changed direction and bounced the ball between two defenders to minimum-salary rookie Wei Xiaoshan in the corner. Wei had not attempted a shot all night; his hands visibly shook. “Shoot!” Lu Chen shouted. The three fell. The red line split. It ran from Lu Chen to all five players, then branched toward the bench and staff. In the suite, the young woman frowned. On the next possession, Lu Chen stole the ball but threw it off the backboard instead of taking an open layup. The trailing center finished with a dunk. Then Lu Chen drew three defenders and passed to Gao Yuan, who had somehow changed into uniform despite being ruled out. Gao did not shoot. He passed it back. Their eyes met. Lu Chen found Wei again. Another three.