When pride still matters

Chapter 500 The Man in the Mirror

58 points, 14 rebounds, 10 assists
All major TV stations broadcast Yu Fei’s final statistics.

The data itself is far less shocking than what happened in the final moments.

In the last three minutes, no other Sonics player touched the ball, and Yu Fei defeated the Celtics entirely by himself.

Everyone who watched the game knows that the Celtics were in better shape tonight, and if they continue to develop normally, the Supersonics will lose.

Durant's altercation with Lu was caught on camera.

Then, the Supersonics replaced Durant, and it looked like a common on-the-spot conflict between a young coach and a rising star.

If the Supersonics win, Lu's coaching authority will be defended, but if the Supersonics lose, it is hard to say what will happen next.

But the premise of these two ifs is that Durant is the absolute core of the Supersonics and he has the final say, but is he?
Yu Fei's performance gave a completely opposite answer.

When Yu Fei dominated the game, some people at the scene began to realize that Durant's opposition to Lu was indirectly opposing Yu Fei. Everyone knew that Lu was promoted by Yu Fei, and openly defying Lu's coaching was resisting Yu Fei's rule.

Durant was substituted, and Yu Fei took all the shots of the team in a competitive manner. Even when he made the final LOGO SHOT that was destined to be the best goal of the season, he did not say anything to his opponent. Instead, he turned to the sidelines and yelled at the disgruntled young man, the man with the reputation of being the son of America: "This is my fucking territory!"

Is this a coincidence?
ABC's Doug Collins is all too familiar with the scene.

He immediately thought of Yu Fei and Jordan in 2001. These two old and young rivals started from preseason training and continued to fight each other until the end of the season. Their war ended with Jordan being out for the season and Yu Fei leading the team into the playoffs.

Jordan traded Yu Fei because he knew that he was getting older and was no longer able to stop this rising young man, but he still wanted to defend his decision in the name of basketball.

Eventually, he got his comeuppance.

Yu Fei personally organized Jordan's retirement ceremony in the spring of 2003.

Eight years later, this has become the killer of the GOAT debate. When Yu Fei's supporters talked about how Wizards Jordan was humiliated by Yu Fei, Jordan's believers were speechless and could only blame the indefensible defeat on time.

They believe that the 40-year-old Yu Fei's fate in front of Jordan will only be more miserable.

This is an unprovable if.

However, Durant is in a completely different position today.

He is not Yu Fei, and Yu Fei is not Qicai Dan.

Yu Fei was young and strong, and it was the time when he had the strongest dominance. Durant's resistance was responded to on the spot.

Will this curb Durant's ambitions? Collins doesn't think so.

Once ambition appears, it will only grow infinitely, because desire is infinite.

After the game, Yu Fei came to the sidelines to accept an on-site interview.

"Fry, it was a great game, how are you feeling now?"

"I am very excited, I like this result and we deserve this victory!"

"KD seemed to have an argument with Coach Lu during the game. What happened?"

"It would be more appropriate for you to ask him this question."

"Was it a tactical arrangement to replace KD in the last three minutes or... KD's own wish?"

This is a very insightful question. Lu replacing Durant was a tactical arrangement, not a personal vendetta. Durant not wanting to play is a matter of willingness.

But Yu Fei did not intend to cover up this issue.

"He is too young and often forgets the most basic etiquette." Yu Fei said, "Tyron is our coach. Although he is still very young and has little experience, as long as he is in this position, we must respect him."

Lu gave Durant a way out.

"The situation was complicated at the time." Lu said, "We didn't want to lose to the Celtics, but the situation was precarious and we were almost losing. I was not satisfied with KD's choice on the court. He knows my character and I know his character. We are both people with strong personalities. Such things happen on the court from time to time, and I won't take it to heart."

The question is, does Durant want this step?

After the game, Durant left the court without speaking to anyone else.

Therefore, major TV stations were unable to interview him at the first opportunity.

This is a big deal.

Since Durant entered the league, he has developed a good habit.

Before and after every game, he would accept an exclusive interview with a TV station and talk about a specific topic for 5-10 minutes.

Not tonight.

As soon as the game was over, Durant quickly returned to the locker room. He wondered why he suddenly lost control. That was not his usual self.

Looking back on that moment, Durant felt an uncontrollable anger deep in his heart, as if he was facing the greatest injustice in the world.

But after calming down, he clearly realized that the Seattle SuperSonics was indeed Yu Fei's team.

It was in the past, it is now, and it will be in the future.

Seattle people's expectation for him is that he will take over when Fei gets older.

If Yu Fei, like those superstars in history, has a discontinuity at the age of 35, that would be Durant's chance. But Yu Fei is only 28 years old this year, and he still has seven years to go before he turns 35.

Durant didn't think he could wait that long.

He did not expect to replace Yu Fei's position, but becoming Seattle's Scottie Pippen was definitely not what he wanted.

For Durant, the ideal state is to become the K in OK.

O is still a dominant force, but he wants people to realize that without K's help, O can accomplish nothing.

This was a paradox from the beginning.

Because Yu Fei had won four championships before Durant arrived.

The legendary tombstone had already been erected, with the inscription saying "No one can match it". Durant's arrival enabled the Supersonics to win two consecutive championships, but this did not awaken people's consciousness.

To outsiders, this is not a story about a rising star helping an established superstar achieve success.

This is a fairy tale about a super giant who turned decay into magic, led potential newcomers to overcome all difficulties, achieved success, and successfully saved a team that was on the verge of relocation.

Now, these fairy tales have developed further and become Yu Fei's own myth.

If things had developed as before, Durant could still accept his dedication and become part of the myth, but Tyronn Lue made no changes and let Yu Fei be the core of the system with the ball, which really hurt his tactical position and ball possession.

Durant exploded because of this.

Looking back, he doesn't think he was wrong.

But the backpack boy shouldn't have gone against his coach like a rebellious teenager.

So when Lu returned to the locker room, Durant stood up and apologized to him.

"Tyron, I apologize for what happened tonight," Durant said. "I shouldn't have said those words. You know, I was just too anxious. I..."

Lu looked indifferent, waved his hand and said: "No need to explain, I understand you, it's no big deal, everyone gets anxious and angry on the court, just say it out!"

At this time, other teammates joined in.

"That's right." Bosh tried to be a peacemaker. "This is just a small episode. We have to move on."

But people like Kwame Brown, who are loyal to Fry, have a different view: "You still have to apologize to Fry."

Brown's active protective look brought back Durant's memories.

Yu Fei's words "I don't need him tonight" still echoed in his heart, and the chill almost negated his contributions over the past few years.

What made him even more frightened was that no one at the scene expressed any objection, and Lu replaced him without saying a word.

All these phenomena show how appropriate Yu Fei’s new nickname “Master” is.

"Shouldn't you apologize, Kevin?" Brown said. "The coach was unhappy with your performance, and you dragged Frye into it? I want to know what the situation had to do with Frye. Why did you say that?"

Anthony Morrow chimed in: "Indeed, the situation had nothing to do with Frye."

Larry Hughes, who was watching the show, couldn't help but say to O'Neal, "It's really fun here."

"The most fun part has not yet begun." Xiao Ao kept staring at the door of the locker room. He hoped that the next person to come in would be Yu Fei.

Yu Fei didn't let him wait any longer.

A minute later, Yu Fei came in, accompanied by Lin Kevin and Lawson.

Durant took the initiative to walk over and said, "I apologize for what happened tonight."

Yu Fei asked with a smile: "Apologize? What are you apologizing for?"

Yu Fei at this moment was no longer as scary as before, but even though he had a smile on his face, in Durant's deepest imagination, he still believed that behind this smiling face was an alien ready to kill at any time.

"I said some emotional words to the coach," Durant said sternly. "I have apologized to him, and I think I should also apologize to you because my words implicated you for no reason."

Many of Yu Fei’s haters who were waiting to see him have fun said that Durant today is just like Yu himself in 2001.

But Yu Fei can pat his chest and guarantee that he will never put on such a low posture in front of Jordan.

"You should apologize to Tai Lun. I'm glad you did. It shows that you just lost control for a moment, not crazy." Yu Fei said jokingly, "But apologize to me?"

"No need."

Yu Fei said this calmly. This made Durant at a loss for words. He thought Yu Fei would gladly accept his apology and then let the matter go.

But he said "No thanks". What does that mean? Does he not accept it, or does he think the apology is insincere?

"You don't have to apologize to me, because you are right." Yu Fei said openly, "You can't do what I can do. You can't make mistakes that I can make. You don't have the privileges that I have. This is the SuperSonics. Mark my words, you play for a team ruled by me."

Yu Fei laid the bleak reality on the table and asked Durant to accept it: "The sooner you see this clearly, the better it will be for you."

"Of course, you can continue to challenge me like you did tonight," Yu Fei said, "You know I will accept the challenge."

Not only Durant was present, but also other players and coaches.

They all heard what Yu Fei said.

But when Yu Fei mentioned "dictatorship", everyone pretended not to hear it.

O'Neal pretended to go into the shower room, and Brown also wanted to go because he was the one who suggested Durant apologize just now, and now he realized that it was a bad idea.

Yu Fei doesn't need Durant to apologize.

He is extremely confident in his dominance, and only those who lack a sense of security would PUA the people around them from time to time.

For a long time, Durant lived in a mirror.

The man in the mirror lived a perfect life. He was signed by Nike for a large sum of money and regarded as a future hope. He won the championship in his rookie season and made steady progress. Now he is the second in command beside Yu Fei. He is approachable, amiable, friendly to the media and kind to his teammates. He has almost no arrogance and conceit that is uncomfortable in modern stars.

In order to maintain the beauty in the mirror, Durant needs to convince himself to believe something unrealistic.

Yu Fei just wanted him to know tonight that he should stop thinking about those unrealistic things. Student Du, you have to accept the reality.

However, it is impossible for Durant to accept the current position.

If he doesn't lie to himself, he should follow his heart and continue to challenge the other party as Yu Fei said.

What happens?
While Durant was thinking, Yu Fei said, "Change your clothes and come with me to the press conference."

Durant subconsciously asked: "What?"

"Do what you do best," Yu Fei said, "act like a good person who lost his mind because of his eagerness to win. You have apologized to the coaching staff and have no objection to the coaching staff substituting you in the last three minutes. We SuperSonics will still help each other as a team and move forward. This should not be a problem for you. You do what you do best, right?"

Durant couldn't even refute Yu Fei, and just replied woodenly: "No problem."

After saying that, Durant quickly changed his clothes and went out with Yu Fei.

A few minutes later, the locker room was still digesting what had just happened.

Durant was very humble, but Yu Fei didn't let him go at all. He didn't even make basic cover-ups and directly made Durant face the reality.

"Has this ever happened in the past?"

Bosh asked his teammates around him.

The past he was referring to was before this season.

Everyone shook their heads.

Some people only feel their worth when they are not around.

Brandon Roy would ease the atmosphere and would not let Yu Fei press Durant, and George Karl would handle the aftermath himself, so there was no need for Yu Fei and Durant to make things clear.

The locker room showed signs of being out of control, and Tyronn Lue once again felt his own incompetence.

That night, Lu gave Karl feedback on the locker room situation.

He felt that his biggest mistake was not taking control of the situation at the first time.

But after hearing what happened, Carl said: "Even if I was there, the situation wouldn't be much better."

Lu knew that this was just to comfort him.

Karl continued: "There is nothing wrong with your coaching style. You gave Frye more control than me. KD's ball possession has decreased slightly. But will this decrease really make him explode? I think this dissatisfaction with the status quo has been brewing in his heart for a long time, but it just happened to explode that night. Neither I nor you can stop this."

Even before the season began, Karl was troubled by Durant's demand for the ball.

This bomb had been planted long ago, it just exploded in Lu's hands.

"What about Frye?" Lue asked. "Is he too good for KD?"

"You mean too harsh?" Carl laughed, "or too cold?"

"All."

Karl had the same feeling, but the longer he coached Durant, the more he shared the same opinion as Yu Fei.

This young man is not living truly.

He presents himself as the image designed by Nike, and then believes from the bottom of his heart that he is that kind of existence. But when the current situation does not match his wishes, the real Durant will jump out from time to time.

Yu Fei wanted Durant to break away from this false personality and be honest with him. Otherwise, no matter what tacit understanding he reached in front of a self-righteous good person, he would eventually be torn apart by the demons in his heart.

"Frye is the only one who knows KD's true face." Karl said, "We think KD is the prince of the earth, but Frye knew from the first day he met him that he was a snake. Treat snakes in a way that snakes can understand."

Lu's heart was shaken.

If he hadn't heard it with his own ears, he really wouldn't have believed that Karl and Yu Fei viewed Durant in this way.

However, when he thought back to what Durant said to him tonight, his expression at that time, the hatred and unwillingness on his face, he found it hard to believe that such a person was really the only good person in the NBA as the rumors said.

"But what about the locker room?" Lu said worriedly, "If this continues, the locker room will be in turmoil."

Carl smiled and said, "This is your business, Tyron. You are the coach. You have to do one thing well, including on-the-spot arrangements, pre-match preparations, and locker room stability. Otherwise, even if Frye made a mistake, he will be the wrong person."

Carl successfully helped Lu charge.

That night, Lu watched Yu Fei and Durant's press conference at home.

The two of them appeared harmonious and friendly in front of the media, and outsiders could not imagine how distant they were in the locker room.

This is a typical casual act, but it works well.

The next day, someone told reporters what Durant said to Tyronn Lue during the game, as well as Yu Fei's rebuttal.

The revelations were basically accurate, but because Yu Fei and Durant showed off their friendship in front of the media yesterday, this fabricated tabloid revelation was ignored.

After that day, Durant fell into a dead fish state.

He was like Sun Liancheng who had seen through everything. He was no longer interested in fighting for power and was satisfied with making 17-18 moves every night.

Durant didn't play badly on the court, he just stopped actively fighting for the ball.

If someone gives him the ball, he will do what he is supposed to do. If someone doesn't give him the ball, he will just stand still on the outside.

In other words, he went from Durant 1.0 to a more stable Michael Porter Jr.

Tyronn Lue breathed a sigh of relief. In any case, the team's situation has stabilized temporarily.

The SuperSonics entered April with a victory.

In the past March, although Yu Fei dominated the league with an average of 34 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists per game, the team encountered changes and the record was unstable. The Western Conference Player of the Month was Kobe Bryant, the Lakers' star player who had a perfect record in March.

After the reinforcements, the Lakers looked like the ultimate small-ball team, invincible.

Originally, the Supersonics still had a chance to compete with them for the top spot in the league, but after the games in March, there was not much suspense left for the top spot in the league.

Unless the Lakers lose all the remaining regular season games in April, the Supersonics have no chance to compete for the top spot in the league.

But in the current situation, it is difficult for the Lakers to lose even a game, let alone lose all the games.

It can be said that they have already secured the top spot in the league. The only suspense is whether they can tie the Supersonics' record of 73 wins last season.

According to the current record, if the Lakers win consecutively until the end of the season, they can tie the record of the 09 Supersonics and share the best record in history.

But everything has a surprise.

The Celtics, the biggest troublemaker in the Eastern Conference, handed the Lakers a long-awaited defeat at home.

It was a tight defensive battle. The Celtics limited the Lakers, who averaged nearly 120 points per game, to 92 points, while they scored 94 points themselves. Kobe's attempt to replicate Yu Fei's LOGO buzzer-beater failed, causing the Lakers to miss the opportunity to tie the best record in history.

When the Lakers lose, the Seattle area celebrates their defeats as much as their victories.

Although 72 wins can tie the 96 Bulls, the one-game difference with the 09 SuperSonics may become a permanent regret for the Lakers players.

This means that the Lakers cannot possibly have a perfect and dominant season like the 09 SuperSonics.

The SuperSonics were overlooked due to the Lakers' strong late-season performance.

Their presence was barely noticeable to the outside world except in the Washington state media.

The Durant-Lue altercation was their last big news of the regular season.

They then went 6-2 in April and eventually made the playoffs with a 66-16 record, second in the Western Conference.

The 72-win Lakers were on top, and they faced the Nuggets in the first round.

Unfortunately, Yu Fei's message to the Timberwolves not long ago came true.

The Timberwolves eventually ranked seventh in the Western Conference and will face the second-placed SuperSonics in the first round.

(End of this chapter)