On the massive screen inside the Honda Center Arena,
the same clip was replayed again and again
Karl-Anthony Towns rising up for a three…
only for the ball to be swatted straight into the stands by Ogawa Tetsuya.
"Less than two minutes into the game, and the Timberwolves are already forced to call a timeout!"
"No—let's be precise. They were stopped by Ogawa Tetsuya!"
"This giant from the East has completely taken over both ends of the floor!"
"He's shutting down the Timberwolves' Big Three and utterly crushing them in the paint!"
"..."
The commentators were practically shouting themselves hoarse.
The crowd erupted in waves of gasps and cheers.
Karl-Anthony Towns, who had just been handed a brutal rejection, stood frozen in place.
He slowly lifted his head and stared at the big screen.
His chest felt tight.
Impossible.
This can't be happening.
I'm a generational talent—the No.1 overall pick. Last year's All-Star.
How could I be dominated by a rookie?
Blocked on a three… and sent flying into the crowd?
Humiliation.
Pure humiliation.
Towns couldn't figure out where everything had gone wrong.
So now—he was frustrated. Furious.
Ever since entering the NBA, his path had been smooth sailing.
He had never suffered a blow like this.
"Karl! What the hell are you doing? Get over here—this was on you!"
Coach Tom Thibodeau barked angrily, veins bulging, as he noticed Towns spacing out.
The game resumed.
Intimidated by Ogawa Tetsuya's absolute dominance in the paint,
the Timberwolves adjusted their strategy—
abandoning inside attacks and shifting to perimeter shooting.
Unfortunately.
Luck wasn't on their side.
Their touch was ice-cold tonight.
"Clang!"
Andrew Wiggins—missed a wide-open three, the ball bouncing hard off the rim.
Ogawa Tetsuya exploded upward like a geyser from dry land,
snatching the ball down one-handed with sheer authority.
Yes.
Right there.
in the middle of the chaotic crowd
he soared up and hooked the ball into his arm mid-air.
Taj Gibson, who jumped alongside him for the rebound, was knocked off balance by Ogawa Tetsuya's overwhelming strength, stumbling backward.
The very next second.
Ogawa Tetsuya lifted his head and spotted Kentavious Caldwell-Pope sprinting down the lane.
He whipped the ball forward with force.
The man who would later inspire the phrase "The KCP Law" caught it cleanly and finished with an effortless one-handed tomahawk dunk.
The score difference ballooned into double digits.
But when it came to tough moments, Jimmy Butler never disappointed.
Three straight three-pointers.
The gap closed again!
On the Lakers' side, however, the young players reverted to their bad habits
everyone trying to prove themselves.
Ogawa Tetsuya became the unsung laborer
defending, rebounding, fighting for position again and again.
And the problem?
Every single one of these so-called "young talents" was unreliable.
Lonzo Ball, despite being fully aware that Ogawa Tetsuya was dominating the boards,
still insisted on pulling up for reckless deep threes.
Brick after brick.
Meanwhile, Brandon Ingram—praised by the media as "the next Kevin Durant"
seemed to truly believe the hype.
Once the ball touched his hands, it never came back out.
Isolation after isolation—
against Jimmy Butler, no less.
Terrible efficiency.
Turnovers piling up.
As for Julius Randle, once groomed as the Lakers' core but now slowly marginalized.
This left-handed black bear was obsessed with padding his stats,
showing zero defensive awareness.
Ogawa Tetsuya's rebound and block numbers skyrocketed.
Inside, he was boiling.
Anger compressed tight in his chest.
Lonzo Ball brought the ball up again
and without hesitation
Another pull-up three.
"Clang!"
Ogawa Tetsuya ripped the rebound away from over Gibson's head, fury blazing in his eyes.
Then
Ignoring Ball's outstretched hand calling for the pass.
Ogawa Tetsuya suddenly accelerated.
A behind-the-back dribble blew past Jeff Teague,
and he charged downcourt like a man possessed.
Like an enraged beast unleashed.
"Boom!"
Two steps inside the free-throw line.
Ogawa Tetsuya planted hard and launched into the air.
Wiggins, rushing back to contest, saw Ogawa Tetsuya's terrifying momentum.
And instinctively stepped aside from under the rim.
"BANG!"
Ogawa Tetsuya cocked the ball in one hand, glided for a heartbeat.
And smashed it through the hoop.
"AAAAHHHH!"
Landing on the hardwood, Ogawa Tetsuya clenched his fist and swung it down violently, letting out a furious roar.
Releasing everything he'd been holding back.
Wiggins, standing along the baseline, raised his eyebrows and quietly took two steps back.
His expression practically said:
Bro, it's just basketball. Why you gotta be this intense?
Getting angry hurts your liver, you know.
Ogawa Tetsuya's coast-to-coast monster dunk and primal roar sent the arena into absolute frenzy.
Luke Walton, who had been playing dead on the bench, finally called a timeout and adjusted the offensive scheme.
From that point on.
The Lakers ran everything through Ogawa Tetsuya.
Towns was pushed to the brink of collapse by Ogawa Tetsuya's defense
even getting posterized multiple times.
The score quickly climbed to 66–52.
The Lakers' lead expanded to 14 points.
Under Ogawa Tetsuya's suffocating defense, Towns managed only 6 points, 4 rebounds, and 6 turnovers in the first half.
Completely shattered, he didn't even return after halftime.
Those six points?
Two lucky three-pointers.
The Lakers attacked again.
Lonzo Ball brought the ball up and, spotting the timing—
Floated a high lob toward the rim.
With Gibson on his back, Ogawa Tetsuya suddenly accelerated left and spun hard.
Wiggins instinctively rushed in to contest the alley-oop
But the moment he saw Ogawa Tetsuya already airborne,
both hands gripping the ball, about to obliterate the rim.
He dodged toward the baseline again.
"CLANG!"
Ogawa Tetsuya descended from the sky and hammered the ball into the hoop.
Then
He hung from the rim with both hands.
Bending it visibly.
Seeing Wiggins repeatedly backing away, Ogawa Tetsuya couldn't help but laugh.
Wiggins..
Once again, without hesitation—
chose to retreat at the first possible moment.