When pride still matters

Chapter 443 Good things will happen naturally

Durant was stunned for a moment, not expecting James to say this to him.

"Really? I don't think so."

Durant responded simply.

But James didn't go on. He knows Durant, Nike's new favorite. With his failure, Kobe has entered the 30-year-old mark, and Reebok, represented by Yu Fei, is becoming the ruler of the basketball sports equipment market.

For Nike, Yu Fei’s Chosen Series is the “Flying Man” brand in the new era.

Sadly, this brand does not belong to Nike.

James has heard some rumors that Nike plans to use all its resources to pursue Yu Fei next summer.

Because the six-year $2003 million endorsement contract Yu Fei signed with Reebok in 6 will expire at that time.

If Nike succeeds, they will get a modern-day Jordan.

Roy dribbled in front of him twice and used a European step for a layup. O'Neal didn't even react, he just raised his hands and pretended.

This heightened their sense of urgency.

He began to eat up the market share that originally belonged to James, and gradually, Nike began to invest resources in him.

Nike promoted him as Yu Fei's apprentice, and he was a good person to the outside world, but in front of the fans, he was a big boy carrying a schoolbag.

For Nike's other basketball players, this is a huge amount of pressure.

People have seen social butterflies like Dr. J and Magic Johnson, rulers like Jordan and Tiger Woods, and villains and rebellious boys like Tyson and Iverson, but none of them have ever been regarded as good people.

James is only two years younger than Yu Fei, but behind him are five championships, four MVPs and 26 straight head-to-head losses.

James' camp realizes this.

"Where's our help defense? Where's our double team?" Coach Baker shouted excitedly, "Can you damn guys provide some help to LeBron?"

they can.

But they helped LeBron, who will help them?
After breaking through James' low defense, Yu Fei felt that his field of vision was extremely broad.

Therefore, James' biggest competitor within Nike is actually Durant who stands next to Yu Fei.

They expect the waves behind the Yangtze River to push the waves ahead.

Yu Fei was indifferent to the exchange between the two. The Cavaliers' outside-focused play allowed the SuperSonics to concentrate their firepower on their insides.

Nike not only provided Durant with an endorsement contract second only to James, but also gave him a public image that is rare in the sports world-apprentice, good guy, and boy next door.

This kind of fake trick can't fool anyone.

Neither he nor anyone else in the league can stop him with one-on-one defense.

In this matter, they have given up hope on James.

O'Neal's defense is just empty now.

So what James said to Durant, maybe he was inspired by it, but his ultimate goal was not simple.

He'll put on a serious defensive stance and then sit still when he really needs to.

Especially James, he couldn't accept this.

This is Durant's advantage.

Based on James' understanding of Fei, he knew that the other party would probably not leave Reebok.

As Durant followed Yu Fei to win his first championship, Nike's marketing for him also entered the next stage.

Moreover, his shooting is more refined than last season.

On the other hand, Yu Fei, while playing James with his back, was approaching the ultimate door that the ball-carrying core will inevitably touch after mastering the back-up play - attracting the defense in the low post, forming an offensive that blooms in the middle and blasts from all sides.

Because Nike is essentially Jordan's "home base."

The accuracy of his outside three-pointers made Yu Fei feel strange.

But James' old problem is that more than 90% of the time when he breaks into the paint, he tends to pass the ball to the outside. No one knows whether he can't pass inside or doesn't like to pass to the inside. He likes to attack with sudden points, so the Sonics have to defend him. time to make your choice clear.

James' single-pass tendency led to another result, O'Neal and he could not have a chemical reaction.

James relied on his legal four-step layup to see who could hit whom. Although the Sonics' zone defense worked well, the little emperor didn't always hit the target.

When Yu Fei succeeded in his fourth low post attack under James' defense, Mike Brown said that he could no longer let Yu Fei attack LeBron by himself.

But he had no choice. If he had to choose between him and Yu Fei, Nike would give up on him without hesitation.

Jordan's deeds of being swept twice by Bird in the playoffs when he was still young have become evidence for later generations to question him. James' defeat in front of Yu Fei was even worse. Such a gap is impossible to make up. of.

Tonight, James made 7 of 4 shots from the outside. He has completely transformed from a talented monster with a deformed offensive arsenal to a three-way offensive killer who is accurate from the outside, can shoot from mid-range, and has no solution in the penalty area.

For a person like O'Neal who takes charge of the inside when he comes to the offensive end, if the ball holder does not give him any sweetness, he will not have the desire to actively move. This will form a vicious cycle in which everyone squeezes the inside.

This is a rare superstar image in the history of American sports.

Yu Fei doesn't know whether he spurred James' evolution, or whether James in Cavaliers 1.0 really has such strength. These are not important. What he noticed is that with James' current technical ability, if paired with a four-step layup, he would indeed be an unsolvable ball-handler.

Because they all know that Durant's draft template is Yu Fei.

Is it good for a sportsperson to be called a good guy?
Maybe not, but a great advantage of being a good person in today's commercialized world is that it makes fans feel no distance.

Because the Cavaliers' defense was forced to shrink by him, as long as someone comes to help defend, it means that at least one of his teammates is open.

After enjoying several sweet spots like this, the Sonics opened the point difference to 12 points, and the first quarter was almost over.

Karl replaced Yu Fei and came down to rest.

When Yu Fei sat down, he asked the inside coach Hikma: "Jack, when you played in the low post before, you should have been double-teamed a lot, right?" Hikma said proudly: "If they didn't double-team, I would be able to average per game Scored 30 points.”

"How many assists do you average per game?" Yu Fei asked again.

"About three," Sikma said.

Then, he noticed that Yu Fei was a little surprised.

"what happened?"

"A little less."

"Less?" Hikma said angrily, "It's already a lot!"

Yu Fei said: "After I beat LeBron in the low post, my view of the court completely changed. I could almost predict when they would come to double-team. The vacancies of my teammates appeared in my eyes like gophers burrowing out of the ground. "

Listening to Yu Fei's account of his recent experience, Hikma didn't know whether to cry or laugh.

As a player, what's your first reaction when you're double-teamed on the court? pride? Are you finally respected by your opponents?

No, your reaction is to be anxious.

Double-teaming is definitely rough. Your opponent will not hesitate to use the strength of two people to lock you down. How can you let you pass the ball easily?
Therefore, 99% of players who are double-teamed can complete the task by passing the ball out.

As for finding open teammates and even passing the ball with beautiful moves, that is not something ordinary people can do.

In Sikma's impression, Yu Fei is a ball-first player, but he chose to transform when he came to the SuperSonics. However, a player's personal style is as profound as his bloodline. No matter how Yu Fei transforms, he will eventually return to his original path.

But a player who can become a core player when holding the ball at the top of the arc and catching the ball in the low post has completely different meanings for the team.

"With you here," Sikma said with emotion, "God bless Seattle."

"No, there is a guy across from me who has been told by the Cavaliers boss that God bless Cleveland all day long. Now all he can think about is how to leave." Yu Fei joked, "If you wish me well, don't use this word on me. "

"No, you are different."

"What's the difference?"

Sikma said the funny line in a serious tone: "You can't do a four-step layup."

"You're right!" Yu Fei's assistant Lin Kaiwen agreed, "Da Fei's biggest shortcoming is that his basic skills are too good and he can't do a four-step layup!"

The words came true. They happily poked fun at James' 012 layup off the court, but the game changed in the second quarter.

In the first quarter, James was like a god descending from heaven, making breakthroughs without any solution and shooting accurately from outside.

But starting from the second quarter, the referee seemed to have changed, and he was particularly strict in punishing footwork.

James was called for a walking violation first, and he couldn't help but spread his hands.

Then Jordan was called for a walking violation after catching a flying pass.

The referee suddenly became resistant to walks. When he blew his whistle, he was willing to blow ten mistakes without letting one go. In just one quarter, the SuperSonics and Cavaliers were whistled for 6 walks.

This is a good thing for those with good technology habits.

Yu Fei fought as he should.

But James has a hard time. It's not that he can't play without walking. Those who can't play without walking are laymen, so he doesn't. The main reason was that his game rhythm was disrupted by the referee, which prevented him from regaining the feeling of controlling the thunder and lightning in the first quarter.

Originally they were evenly matched with Yu Fei, but suddenly, the Cavaliers plummeted.

Yu Fei did not give James a chance and extended the point difference to 20 points in half a quarter. Before the first half was over, many fans in the Key Arena held up a picture of James kneeling down and crying in front of Yu Fei, with the words : "LeBron, twenty-seven consecutive losses is not your limit!"

In the second half, James returned to normal, but the Cavaliers fell too far behind and had no hope of overtaking.

In the end, the second half became a stage for data collection.

James can lose, but the data cannot.

他刷了个36分13篮板8助攻的数据，对标了于飞全场34分12篮板12助攻的三双。

"Is there a possibility." Randy Mims is James' mouth substitute. "I mean maybe. This is my personal opinion and has nothing to do with LeBron. Twenty-seven consecutive losses is not the difference between LeBron and Frye, but the difference between Cleveland and Milwaukee and Seattle?"

The intention of these words is to continue the cliche of "I won't lose even if the Cavaliers lose", but because Cleveland refers to the Cavaliers, many Clevelands don't understand.

Therefore, James was criticized by his hometown later.

Grammar is not as good as Seattle, but what kind of backwater is Milwaukee?
Yu Fei first accepted an on-site interview, and then walked up to the president.

Although Yu Fei wanted to believe that the referee had made a temporary change, his reason told him that the only reasonable explanation for the referee's sudden transformation from a four-step layup enthusiast to a fundamentalist of basketball rules could only be pressure from the outside.

Who on the scene is most likely and capable of bringing this pressure?
Of course the ones in charge of the alliance.

"Mr. President, I hope this game does not disappoint you."

Yu Fei said calmly.

"It's good that you never disappoint," Stern said. "I hope Seattle doesn't disappoint."

“We just work hard and good things will happen.”

"hope so."

Stern would not be so naive, and he believed Yu Fei would not be either.

Things in this world are not rewarded by hard work. If you don't believe it, you might as well look at LeBron. He worked so hard to come to Seattle, stood in front of Frye, and was knocked down by a punch in the end.

Although Stern had a hand in it, he didn't feel like he affected the balance of the game.

If you lose the belief in winning because the referee's scale is against you, then maybe you don't deserve to win at all.

(End of this chapter)