When pride still matters

Chapter 293 I give Xiao Zhan 10 points

Yu Fei's hand against the Cavaliers was not heavy, at least not as heavy as the one he played against the Heat before.

Because Wade had a clear intention to challenge himself at the time, while James just wanted to express himself implicitly. After a few rounds, Yu Fei seized the opportunity and performed better.

After that, the first timeout of the night came and the Bucks changed their lineup. George Karl replaced Kevin Martin and Kwame Brown and replaced them with Latrell Sprewell and Dikembe Muttom. Bo.

As a result, the Bucks' worst defensive player becomes Danny Granger, who plays the small-ball fourth position.

For the Cavaliers, Mutombo replacing Brown is an adjustment that significantly affects the situation.

Because James is still young at this time, he is not yet the same person who can still average 20 points per game 25 years later with experience, incomplete skills and a robot-like body.

Now, if he wants to break the rim-protecting blockade of Mutombo, there are only two ways. The long-range shooter can develop, or Big Z and others are suddenly possessed by something and transform into a big shooter who can stably hit mid-range and long-range shots. .

If you don't have the feeling of shooting from distance and you don't have the support of your teammates, things will become difficult.

"Fry has too many helpers...!"

Mims, James' full-time assistant, complained: "The people in Cleveland have given Bron too little help!"

It's a good excuse, but not enough.

After the first quarter, the Bucks entered the second quarter with a score of 27-21.

Looking at the data alone, Yu Fei and James are comparable.

The difference is that Yu Fei played eight minutes and came off the court in a normal rotation, while James played the entire first quarter.

This is not a peak shift. After all, with greater ability comes greater responsibility. If the Cavaliers don't let James play more and use Yu Fei's few minutes off the court to chase points, the point difference will be even greater.

This is a reflection of James' sense of responsibility as a leader.

The more this happens, the more his buddies complain about the Cavaliers.

At this time, Yu Fei's experience with the Bucks became a point they could resonate with: "Bron, we really need to be cautious about renewing the contract with Cleveland! Look at Frye, the Bucks a year ago He was in danger, and then he signed that damn short-term contract, and look! His damn politician boss was willing to spend money. They spent all the money they could spend to help Frye build another team that could compete. Championship team!"

Due to the poor environment in Milwaukee and the notoriously poor heating facilities at the Bradley Center, Dan Gilbert, who has been very enthusiastic about participating in team affairs since becoming the owner of the Cavaliers, did not accompany him tonight. The team went out for the expedition, otherwise, after hearing Mims' words, it would be inevitable to discuss right and wrong with this stinky Nico with short hair and short knowledge.

It’s true that the Bucks spent money in the summer, and the Cavaliers also spent money. If it weren’t for his generous donation, Big Z would have left long ago. Now the Cavaliers’ lineup is not as deep as the Bucks. That’s because they drafted well and Yu Fei led the rookies. He is very capable, who can blame him?

Blame LeBron? No wonder, of course the blame lies with the blind former Cavaliers executives and the overpaid and incompetent former Cavaliers coach.

Gilbert has told these useless snacks to go away, and the Cavaliers' new era begins this summer.

However, Gilbert was not present, so Mims was free to express his opinions.

When he mentioned a sensitive point - LeBron's contract extension - all the Cavaliers players off the court looked sideways.

This season is James' third season. As early as this summer, the Cavaliers had already offered him a five-year, $5 million contract extension.

As long as James signs, the Cavaliers can have this new generation of rulers until the summer of 2012.

Just like Reebok wanted him to leave Milwaukee after his flying career, why doesn't Nike want James to leave Milwaukee?

In terms of commercial value, these two places are not the land of Wangxing.

James prudently postponed contract extension negotiations.

On the surface, they wanted to take another look, but in fact, they were concerned about the consequences of Yu Fei's short-term contract.

Yu Fei used a short-term contract to brand himself as a villain. For a while, his reputation was extremely bad. The backlash from conservatives and unanimous criticism from the media made all young players have to consider whether they can resist such negative public opinion.

James is still Mr. Perfect in the eyes of the media. Although his mother is holding him back from the sidelines, the overall impact of this incident on him is minimal.

Therefore, asking for a 2+1 short-term contract like Yu Fei did may lead to a collapse of public opinion. Unless he is completely sure, he hopes to adopt a leisurely mid-term strategy.

Therefore, in response to the complaints of Mims, who was also an assistant when he was a child, he said seasonally: "Be patient, Randy, the team has done a good job this year."

"It's good, but not enough." Mims said, "Look at Frye..."

"Okay!" James interrupted with a smile, "Have you ever counted how many times you say Fry in a day? I think you are almost falling in love with him."

Hearing this, Mims glanced at Sharapova, who was chatting with Yu Fei, with a sinister look, "Humph, what's the point? Who doesn't love Frye?"

James laughed it off. Mims often gave people a feeling of shallow knowledge, but he knew that everything was for his own benefit.

He just had to discern which of Mims's words were right and which were angry.

In the second quarter, the Cavaliers slowed down.

Although Mutombo restrained them, the African mountain was old. Even in the regular season, which was not very intense, he could only maintain his physical strength for 15-20 minutes.

To block James, he will have to upgrade himself to playoff mode, which will consume even more. In the end, the Bucks played only 15 minutes, but scored 4+ plus-minus with 3 points, 4 rebounds and 17 blocks.

In other words, in Mutombo's limited playing time, the Bucks defeated the Cavaliers by 17 points.

Considering the Cavaliers' relatively poor offensive talent, falling behind by so many points basically declared the outcome of the game.

However, James has not given up yet, so the Cavaliers will not give up for a while.

The irony is that as long as James doesn't give up, Yu Fei will not give up this game either.

Halfway through the fourth quarter, the Cavaliers trailed by 15 points, and the trend of the game could no longer change. However, Yu Fei still attacked fiercely, calling for pick-and-rolls, making an emergency stop from the outside and shooting a three-pointer, scoring his 40th point tonight.

On the opposite side, James currently has 31 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists. He also responded to Yu Fei with a pull-up three-pointer.

"Shh!"

The point difference remained unchanged, James scored 34 points, and the Cavaliers requested a timeout four minutes before the end of the game.

Mike Brown looked at the ambitious James and knew in his heart how much the young superstar valued tonight's game.

Because he attaches great importance to it, the reality that this game is garbage time from the fourth quarter onwards is hard to accept.

"LeBron, rest."

Mike Brown, who is under 36 years old, can be said to be young and promising, and he comes from the Whampoa Military Academy Spurs system in the NBA coaching world. As a young coach, he became a nanny who was obedient to the stars.

If James insists on playing the last four minutes, Brown is powerless to stop it.

"Mike, what else do you think I can do?" James asked, "I have tried my best, but the gap can never be narrowed."

Brown comforted: "Your performance is already on par with Frye. This is not the difference between the two of you. You have to understand that this is a game between our Cavaliers and Bucks. What is reflected on the scoreboard is also between our two teams." The real difference in the team.”

As a coach, Brown believes that he can no longer teach James more, but he can also cook different flavors of chicken soup for the soul, which makes Bao Shaodi satisfied.

James was moved.

"We should be realistic, LeBron," Brown said. "The Bucks have won two championships in the past three years and made it to the Eastern Conference finals three times in a row, and we, the Cavaliers, are a team looking to get back to the playoffs. This is The gap between us is simply worlds apart, but because of your presence, people begin to believe that we have a chance to catch up with the Bucks. LeBron, you are a promising future."

The little emperor gulped down this mouthful of chicken soup and finally chose to take a rest, officially letting the game enter garbage time.

Seeing that Xiao Zhan was resting, Yu Fei also twisted his neck, leaving the game with 40 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists.

The last four minutes are still the charming moment of the Bucks' garbage lineup. They especially like to slash and pick wildly at this time to continue to expand the already widening point difference.

In the end, 119 to 100, the Bucks at home defeated the Cavaliers with a 19-point advantage, not only winning their second consecutive victory over their opponents, but also ensuring that every fan in Milwaukee could celebrate Christmas with a happy mood.

Post-match interview

"From 1 to 10, how would you rate your performance tonight?"

"7 points."

"Where's LeBron?"

"10 points."

Reporters were surprised by this answer, because Yu Fei basically surrounded James' data, and he scored 7 points for himself and 10 points for James.

"What's your scoring criteria?"

"You know, LeBron is my little brother," Yu Fei said with a smile, "As long as he performs better every time he meets me than the last time, I will give him full marks. As for myself, I have another A set of standards.”

"The Cavaliers players believe that LeBron's performance against the best in the league is enough to prove that he is worthy of the outside world's expectations. In your opinion, does LeBron's performance meet this standard?"

Yu Fei said calmly: "I don't care about other people's opinions. If this kind of voice really exists within the Cavaliers, then I might say something critical. LeBron should have higher standards for himself."

This night, Yu Fei was filled with the attitude of a winner, talking about James and the Cavaliers like an elder.

However, his words are irrefutable.

Because he proved in two consecutive games that no matter from any angle, he still surrounds LeBron James in all aspects.

Furthermore, he just wants LeBron to get better. Is this a criticism?

As for whether James will fall into "Fry hell" again because of this, it is not something that his elder brother should consider.

After all, his team has never tied up Xiao Zhan to promote it together. Everything has a cause and a result. If you dare to mess with the cause and effect of the Chosen Son, you will have to bear the corresponding price.

This long climb to the gods is not that easy to walk.

(End of this chapter)