When the system began updating, Wang Zhelin took the opportunity to throw down a few clean dunks on his empty backyard court.
He even attempted Tim Duncan’s trademark bank-shot-to-rim-hang routine, testing out his vertical.
After landing, he had to admit his bounce wasn’t completely bottom-tier, but at best, it was barely hovering off the floor.
“System upgrade complete.
Initializing main interface…” The monotone voice finally echoed in his mind, bringing a wave of relief.
“Initialize!” He had honestly worried the system would crash and vanish mid-update.
Having a transmigrated soul in a 2.10-meter frame was one thing, but navigating a high-level basketball career without an edge was an entirely different challenge.
“Compensation package awarded.
Please claim within 30 days.
Unclaimed rewards will be automatically purged.” “30 days?
As if I’d wait 30 seconds.
Open it!” A massive, glowing purple gift box expanded across his vision, casting a deep violet light over the menu screen.
“In recognition of the host identifying a logic anomaly in system protocols, a Purple Diamond Tier Legacy Draw has been granted.
Please continue to report system irregularities.” Wang Zhelin felt his breath catch.
A single Purple Diamond Draw required 100,000,000 Fan Points under normal conditions.
“Today is a good day,” he muttered, grinning from ear to ear.
“Alright, let’s pull!” Switching to the draw panel, the entire interface shifted to a dark violet aesthetic.
A single numeric token—1—glowed brightly in the center.
In the top right corner, his current balance was displayed: 14,588 Fan Points.
Fourteen thousand?
he thought, examining the number.
Considering he was only seventeen and hadn’t yet played a minute of official professional basketball, his visibility was primarily limited to domestic youth scouting reports, local Fuzhou media, and fans who followed the national U17 squad and recent NBL exhibition games.
Fourteen thousand actual fans was a solid baseline.
Ignoring the balance for now, Wang Zhelin focused on the central wheel.
The wheel was divided into eight equal segments, each containing a iconic player silhouette.
Scanning the names around the board, he paused: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Shaquille O’Neal Hakeem Olajuwon Wilt Chamberlain Bill Russell David Robinson Patrick Ewing Tim Duncan Every single option on this board is an all-time elite big man, Wang Zhelin noted.
“The system optimizes Legacy Pools based on the host’s primary position and physical framework,” the voice clarified.
“Position-matched profiles yield maximum compatibility.” “Makes sense.
Let’s start the wheel.” With his command, the purple turntable began spinning clockwise, accelerating until the text blended into a continuous violet blur.
He waited twenty seconds, expecting it to slow down automatically, but the wheel kept spinning at high speed.
Wait…
does this thing not stop on its own?
“The host must explicitly command a stop to finalize the draw selection,” the system noted.
“You could’ve mentioned that earlier!” Wang Zhelin shook his head.
He took a deep breath, focused on the swirling purple wheel, and called out: “Stop!” The wheel locked instantly.
A dense, violet energy burst from the center of the display, condensing into a metallic, dark-bordered card that floated down directly in front of him.
Wang Zhelin caught it with both hands.
The card flipped over, revealing a player image clad in Boston Celtics green.
LEGACY CARD: SHAQUILLE O’NEAL (2010–11 SEASON) Card Tier: Purple Diamond (Full Inheritance) Age: 38 Position: Center Height: 216 cm (~7’1″) Weight: 155 kg (~341 lbs) Wingspan: 231 cm (~7’7″) Standing Reach: 287 cm (~9’5″) Hand Length: 27.9 cm (~11.0 in) PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES Lower Body Strength: 95 Upper Body Strength: 91 Agility: 57 Vertical Leap: 50 Stamina: 55 Durability / Injury Resistance: 81 Explosiveness: 65 Speed: 32 OFFENSIVE SKILLS Close Shot: 76 Layups: 78 Mid-Range Shooting: 35 Three-Point Shooting: 25 Dunking: 70 Passing Vision & Accuracy: 40 Ball Handling: 51 Free Throw: 55 Post Drive / Isolation: 46 DEFENSIVE SKILLS Perimeter Defense: 30 Interior Defense: 62 Rebounding: 51 Block: 60 Steal: 45 OVERALL RATING: 65 (Rotational Veteran / Interior Anchor) CARD PROFILE In his 19th and final NBA season, Shaquille O’Neal averaged 9.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks in 20.3 minutes per game for the Boston Celtics.
Though injuries limited his mobility, his pure physical mass, elite upper-body strength, and unmatched post positioning remained a wall inside the paint.
INHERITED TRAITS & TALENTS Innate Power (Purple Diamond Trait): Effect: Unlocks the host’s physical ceiling for raw strength.
Removes natural strength caps, allowing the host’s maximum potential strength rating to reach 99 through dedicated conditioning.
Paint Dominator (Silver Skill): Effect: Increases shot conversion and contact finish rates within the lower defensive box by +4.
Successfully converting a contact dunk or physical layup inside grants a temporary +5% team stamina recovery boost for 2 minutes of game time.
Wang Zhelin stared at the card stats in silence for several seconds.
“Wait a minute,” he finally spoke up.
“This is a Purple Diamond Card, right?
Why is the overall rating a 65?
Isn’t Purple Diamond supposed to be peak-tier?” He looked closely at the image of late-career Boston Shaq, taking in the numbers.
While the overall score was modest compared to prime Prime Shaq, the baseline physical inheritance—95 Lower Body Strength, 91 Upper Body Strength, a 231 cm wingspan potential, and a uncapped 99 strength ceiling—was a massive foundation for a 17-year-old center.