Chapter Eight: Post-Game Review
"Man, that Kaijo first-year acted all cocky when he left," Koshino Hiroaki complained. "Even after crying his eyes out from losing."
"I heard from Hikoichi that Yagami chased him down to trash talk him," Ikegami Ryoji said.
"Huh? Our rookie has that mean of a personality?" Koshino said sheepishly. "Guess I judged that Kaijo kid wrong."
When the team gathered, Yagami Sorato noticed his upperclassmen looking at him strangely, though he couldn't figure out why.
"These definitely aren't looks you give a talented player—more like I'm some kind of villain..."
While the starters rested, the basketball team's support staff wheeled a large blackboard in front of them.
Coach Taoka had been waiting. Once the board was positioned, he immediately began writing and drawing rapidly.
Soon, the left side of the board filled with player statistics—turnovers circled prominently in red. The right side displayed a simplified court diagram with red and blue magnetic pins representing each team, positions labeled with key spacing notes.
"Sendoh Akira, Small Forward (SF) / Point Guard (PG), 6'3" / 174 lbs."
"Uozumi Jun, Center (C), 6'8" / 198 lbs."
"Ikegami Ryoji, Shooting Guard (SG) / Power Forward (PF), 6'0" / 168 lbs."
"Koshino Hiroaki, Shooting Guard (SG), 5'9" / 137 lbs."
"Uekusa Tomoyuki, Point Guard (PG), 5'7" / 137 lbs."
"Yagami Sorato, Point Guard (PG) / Shooting Guard (SG), 6'2" / 172 lbs."
Once the players had rested and settled down, Coach Taoka tapped the board and cleared his throat. "Everyone performed well today. We won convincingly."
"However, the post-game review is still necessary. Those of you who made careless mistakes—you know what you need to work on. No slacking off after this meeting!"
"YES SIR!"
The players straightened up attentively.
Uozumi glanced at the board. As Ryonan's captain, he had the most turnovers on the team. Remembering his defensive lapses and foolish fouls during the game, he clenched the towel in his hands tighter.
"Don't stress. First, I want to highlight several things we did well today." Coach Taoka's gaze swept across all the players, his tone steady and commanding.
"In the first half, Yagami and Sendoh went off offensively, successfully containing Kise and building a valuable lead. That was crucial, but what satisfied me more was that you didn't fall into the trap of hero ball—you used passing to activate the entire team's offense. That kind of collective, team-oriented basketball is more valuable than individual scoring."
"However," his tone shifted, expression growing serious, "in the third quarter you witnessed firsthand how terrifying Kise can be. His explosiveness, scoring efficiency, his ability to flip a game in minutes—you all felt it. Remember that feeling. Moving forward, he'll undoubtedly be one of our strongest opponents."
"As for the fourth quarter, you handled the pressure excellently. Through traps and help defense, you not only locked down Kise but disrupted Kaijo's entire offensive rhythm, stopping their comeback attempt. That's valuable experience—we'll definitely face even stronger opponents in the future..."
"Remember, basketball is not a one-man sport."
"UNDERSTOOD!"
"Uozumi, turnovers and fouls remain your biggest issues. You're Ryonan's interior anchor—if you pick up early foul trouble, the entire team falls into crisis because of you."
"...!"
"Koshino, when you're off-ball you can't just stand around waiting. Move! You did great running the fast break with Sendoh—why does that disappear in halfcourt sets?"
"Y-yes!"
"Ikegami, you're our defensive specialist in one-on-one situations, but you need to be more aggressive rotating on help defense. And you can't only focus on defense—your assignment remains pick-and-roll execution."
"UNDERSTOOD!"
"Uekusa, you..."
Yagami sat quietly in the group, listening to Coach Taoka's breakdown. Compared to the familiar game itself, this felt like a novel experience.
Coach Taoka was incredibly thorough. Every key possession, offensive and defensive, seemed etched in his memory. Whether attacking or defending, he pinpointed each player's issues precisely and offered clear paths for improvement.
"Coaches like this must be rare."
Yagami had certainly never encountered one before.
No empty criticisms—every critique built on rigorous analysis with a clear purpose: doing better next time.
When he'd watched Slam Dunk in his previous life, Yagami had always felt Ryonan possessed an unbreakable cohesion. That feeling didn't come from captain Uozumi Jun, nor from ace Sendoh Akira.
No wonder others evaluated Coach Taoka as treating Ryonan's players less like a coach and more like a father.
This sense of being closely monitored and held to high standards was itself a powerful unifying force.
"Yagami? YAGAMI!"
Lost in thought, Yagami hadn't noticed Coach Taoka had moved on to him. Now, with everyone staring, he felt slightly embarrassed.
"Y-yes sir!"
"Pfft, ha ha..." Sendoh laughed beside him. "What are you agreeing to? Coach told you to stay after practice."
Yagami's ears turned red.
"Alright, Uozumi, lead the team through conditioning. After supplemental work, remember to stretch properly to prevent injuries."
"YES SIR!"
Ryonan's practice regimen was always demanding, but post-game, Uozumi only led the team through simple fundamental drills.
After training ended, Coach Taoka decisively announced dismissal.
"Get proper rest at home and let those muscles recover!"
"YES SIR!"
Yagami stayed behind, unsure what Coach Taoka wanted.
"During tryouts the other day, I had no idea you were this good." Coach Taoka examined Yagami carefully, squeezing his arm.
"From today's game, your physical advantages are speed and court vision, while technically you excel at dribble penetration and shooting touch..."
"As for other areas, I need to understand them as coach."
"Uh, so...?" Yagami asked cautiously.
"Heh heh." Coach Taoka's smile was unreadable. "Sendoh, you've been waiting a while, haven't you?"
"Of course!"
"Yagami, let's play." Sendoh reappeared from the gymnasium entrance, walking back onto the court. "Show me what else you've been hiding!"
"Whew—"
Yagami exhaled in relief. He'd thought something was wrong—these two were just messing with him.
"Sounds good. I've been wanting to test myself against Sendoh-senpai anyway!"
patreon.com/Twilightsky588 - 30 advanced chapters