When pride still matters

Chapter 306 The Taste of Victory

The first round of the 2006 NBA playoffs was as intense as last year. Among them, the battle between the Lakers and the Suns was enough to enter the classic series.

That's because the two sides delivered five entertaining games and two that are destined to be on ESPN's "NBA Classics" channel. This was created by two extraordinary players (Kobe/Nash) and three impressive heroic goals (Kobe’s double buzzer beater in G4, Tim Thomas’ desperate three-pointer in G6). An entertaining first-round series.

However, Yu Fei and the Bucks don't care about how the Suns and Lakers collided with the Earth in the first round. The only thing they care about is the result of the game between the Cavaliers, who are fourth in the Eastern Conference, and the Wizards, who are fifth in the Eastern Conference.

Although the Cavaliers were ranked higher, before the game, the outside world believed that the Wizards were more likely to advance to the semifinals because James was too young.

Even Yu Fei in his rookie season stopped in the first round. Can James go further?

This is a publicity stunt by the James camp. They naturally know that Yu Fei is chasing his second championship at the same time, but smart marketing teams always find opportunities to find opportunities.

If we can't compare in the same period, let's change the background conditions and compare "the results achieved by entering the playoffs for the first time." In this way, wouldn't the two of them be back on the same starting line?

The first-round showdown between the Cavaliers and Wizards lacked one thing - defense.

You know, this is the Eastern Conference. As a mid-range team in the Eastern Conference playoffs, if they don't fight hard on defense, they will have no advantage against the Western Conference teams of the same level.

But both sides just don't fight hard on defense, especially the Wizards, who think they can win with experience. This just gives James, who lacks defensive experience and skills, a chance to explode.

The drama of the series began in Game 3.

The Cavaliers and Wizards played to the final moment. James descended from heaven, dribbled the ball to the basket, took four steps after collecting the ball, and completed a layup.

The Wizards players were stunned and loudly signaled to the referee that James was walking in violation, but the call was not made and the Cavaliers won the third game.

It can be said that this is the first big black spot James has created for himself since entering the league. The popularity of this black spot is still popular more than ten years later.

In this regard, Yu Fei smiled and said nothing. Isn't it just a walk to kill? What's the point? As long as little James becomes a god, walking shots can also be marketed as the feet of God. Just like Jordan's shot of the century pushed people, isn't Maradona's Hand of God also a handball after all?

As long as the voice is loud enough, bad things can be said to be good things.

This is Yu Fei's heartfelt wish for his little brother, but there are always some bad people who like to make things bigger.

Especially those who sincerely don't want James to get even close to flying. They are a community of interests. When they see the alliance blatantly creating shady stories to flatter the young emperor, they can't help it.

Damn it, DC is Da Fei’s old employer after all. They don’t look at the monk’s face and the Buddha’s face. Even if Da Fei can tolerate such a black man, they can’t tolerate it.

Some well-known Reebok-based media began to increase the intensity of the league, put pressure on James, and trumpeted the walking kill.

Among them, the most influential articles came from the victim's local DC.

The Washington Post didn’t say anything on the surface, but when writing the battle report, it ended with this sentence: “If a player like LeBron James can legally perform a four-step layup, what do you do to stop him? Is this proof of the full WWEization of the NBA?"

James, who was not focused on anything else, was suddenly put under a severe wave of pressure.

The people around him saw it and were anxious in their hearts.

"These damn media!" Randy Mims scolded, "They usually try to please Bron like a bitch, but now they are like dogs clinging to that little thing! They really care about whether or not the rules are violated. Really? They just want to use this to attract attention!"

Rich Paul said to James: "I checked the details of those media outlets, and nine times out of ten they are involved with Reebok."

"You mean" Mims developed an instinct.

If anything bad happens to James, it must be related to Da Fei.

"It's not necessarily a big jump," Paul said. "It's not just a day or two that Reebok has been throwing dirt on LeBron."

After confirming that the person behind the trouble was Reebok, Mims naturally beat up Yu Fei Biaolang: "Whether it's Da Fei or not, he can't get away with it!"

James, like Paul, is not a diode thinker.

He would not equate them with Yu Fei just because it was Reebok who was behind him.

"Randy, your reaction is too intense." James said rationally. "If something happens to Frye, Nike will add fuel to the fire. This has happened more than once. You feel that Frye is the reason for this." Do you blame me? In the end, this is all business."

Mims doesn't think in James's shoes like James does. He thinks in James's own way. He has to respond to anything that is not good for James. When he hears this, he doesn't feel "reasonable", but follows the "everything". "It's a business" topic continued: "Since it's a business, why does Fry always win? Bron, have you ever thought that you are also part of the business in Fry's eyes?"

Why does Frye always win?

Doesn’t everyone know this answer?

James looked at Mims silently. He knew that was the truth, but he didn't want to think about it because he was still catching up. He was just lagging behind, not inferior, that's what he thought.

But Mims' words forced him to face the issue head-on.

"Because Frye entered the league two years earlier than LeBron, he has a better team, so he always wins." Paul said wittily, "Randy, what do you still don't understand about this matter until now?" Is that true?" Mims didn't think deeply about it at all. After being knocked off guard by Paul, he returned to the original track: "Yeah, he has an unfair competitive advantage, so he always wins."

James stopped answering.

One day later, Yu Fei's Bucks swept the Pacers who eliminated them last year, while James tasted the bitter pill of four-step victory over the Wizards on the road.

If things get serious, the league will naturally want to give the Wizards some compensation.

That night, the Wizards made 40 free throws at home and finally defeated the Cavaliers 106-96.

Then, the outraged Washington media found an opportunity to fight back and kept asking James questions about the controversial buzzer beater in Game 3.

"LeBron, you completed the game-winner with a four-step layup at the end of Game 3. What do you have to say about that?"

"It's not a walk," James explained. "I've been doing layups like this all my life, growing up."

"But this is a violation."

"No, it's not." Perhaps because he was forced to do so, or perhaps because he had prepared his words in advance, James's next answer was timeless and classic. "I did a crab dribble, which is a stop dribble and a two-step move."

what?

Ah? ?

Ah? ? ?

Even if you weren't there, you could still feel the impact of having your view of basketball shattered.

James further said: "It's a move that's not common in this league, but I use it a lot myself. Everybody has their signature move, and that's one of mine. It looks like a walk because It's slow and a little counterintuitive, but it's legal and as fluid as any other layup in this league. I don't know why it's so controversial, but I think they need to take a closer look and understand that's not a walk step."

Finally, he emphasized: "This is a completely legal action and it is what I have always done."

"The 'crab walk' is when you, um, take a few extra steps," Arenas commented. "This is the hottest thing right now...I couldn't do it in AAU, college, and obviously I can't do it now."

When Yu Fei heard that Xiao Zhan said this, he was a little suspicious that some bad people with ulterior motives were trying to ruin his little brother's reputation.

But when he finished the interview, he fell silent.

That's amazing, you know?

Just like Ji Xianlin's diary circulating on the Internet was confirmed to be really written by Ji Xianlin.

In any case, James passed this level in the most effective way.

Then, the Cavaliers won Game 5 and came to the do-or-die moment of Game 6.

In the last ten seconds, the Wizards led by 1 point and Arenas had two free throw opportunities.

Everyone knows Arenas is an excellent free throw shooter, and if he gets to the free throw line without any distractions, the Cavaliers will go home and prepare for Game 7. Then, James showed his extraordinary side and knew how to distract Arenas.

James walked up to Arenas and said, "If you miss the free throw, you know who's going to make the last shot."

Few people know that Arenas and James have a good personal relationship. James often brought Damon Jones to play cards with Arenas, and Jones owed Arenas a lot of money. At this moment, James used the threat of "Damon Jones may hit the last shot" to remind Arenas of the card game and the gambling debt Jones owed him.

Then he unusually missed the first free throw, then the second, and finally Arenas suddenly remembered that Damon Jones wasn't even playing tonight, so how could he possibly hit the winning shot?

Unease began to set in on the pitch.

After the timeout, the Wizards discovered that the Cavaliers had replaced Damon Jones. Then, James was double-teamed when he got the ball. He passed it to his teammates, who then passed it to Jones, who made a jump shot.

"Damon Jones!" Breen said as the ball flew through the air. "Hit!"

Arenas pushed the ball anxiously and passed it to a teammate, who made a desperate last-second shot for a buzzer-beating 3-pointer, but it missed and the game was over as the buzzer sounded.

The Wizards' season ends here. As a stepping stone for the Kings to a higher level, they allowed James to gain his dark spots and highlights in the first round of his career.

Until the end, Arenas was still thinking about his gambling debt.

Mike Breen exclaimed in amazement: "Damon Jones, who didn't play the entire game, hit the winning shot in the last ten seconds. It's incredible!"

The Cavaliers broke through the first round and came to the much-anticipated second round.

Here, the stag has been waiting for a long time.

Yu Fei vs. James, the first playoff showdown between the two heroes of the new generation.

It is highly anticipated and attracts worldwide attention.

James had just tasted the taste of victory, and before he had time to chew it carefully, he was robbed of all the limelight by a piece of news that had been foreshadowed for several months.

"Frye Yu won the third MVP trophy of his career with an overwhelming advantage." - ESPN NBA headline

(End of this chapter)