When pride still matters

Chapter 507 Welcome to the era of "Telling the truth is black"

"They're coming."

James understood that the final challenge had arrived.

During the regular season, the Sonics had a 2-1 record against them with an incomplete roster.

However, the SuperSonics never played against the Lakers after the trade deadline.

Since then, the Lakers have maintained the highest winning rate in NBA history, having lost only two games so far, both of which were unexpected defeats during the regular season.

After entering the playoffs, the Lakers have not lost a single game, averaging 18 points per game, surpassing last season's Supersonics to become the team with the most points per game in the playoffs so far.

The arrival of Antawn Jamison and Mike Miller made the Lakers the strongest offensive team of the modern era.

When James and Kobe work together, the Lakers have both space and incredible hard-hitting ability. At the center position, there is traditional inside support like Gasol, who has lost weight and developed three-point shooting skills. There are Kobe and Hamilton on the outside, and Miller sits on the bench.

The Lakers' offensive firepower can no longer be summed up by just one word: strong.

Their firepower was already so strong that it was overflowing.

The Supersonics may lose to the Spurs, but the Lakers' hard power is so strong that as long as they take it seriously, they will not lose to an opponent that is obviously inferior to them.

That's why they are the favorites to win the championship.

However, when the war came, James did not have the revengeful belief to grind Yu Fei to ashes.

The longer he was in Los Angeles, the more he felt like he was becoming Kobe's "subordinate."

Unlike in Cleveland, James can't say his favorite phrase here: "I will take X under my wing."

This is what Kobe should say.

Although he, as a strong foreign aid, is not servile to Kobe, he cannot give orders either.

Because everything around them indicates that the Lakers are still Kobe's team.

James once used the pass to take care of Bynum in exchange for his return, but this work only lasted for half a season before this person was traded due to force majeure.

James was alone again.

Big Z, who joined the team with him, was suppressed by Marc Gasol on the bench, and shooter Eddie House was completely reduced to a marginal figure after the arrival of Mike Miller.

His confidants were unable to enter the team's main rotation, and his voice was indirectly reduced.

Not long ago, he was selected to the first and second teams together with Kobe, which was easy for him.

However, the most important regular season Most Valuable Player award had nothing to do with him.

The final MVP simulation prediction list ranked Kobe first, Yu Fei second, Dwight Howard third, Tim Duncan fourth, and Dirk Nowitzki fifth.

James is sixth.

As long as you are not ranked first, it doesn’t matter what place you rank.

After all, no one will remember who got which place in the vote.

But James believes that this is not the ranking he deserves.

He admitted that the Lakers were Kobe's team and accepted Kobe's MVP award, but as another core player of the Lakers, he averaged 24 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists per game. In addition to scoring, he surrounded Kobe in all aspects. He was an important reason for the Lakers' 72 wins, but how did the media treat him like this?
Not in the top five in MVP voting?
It is said that the West Coast media has a firm grip on the discourse and voting rights in professional basketball, but this is not reflected in this incident.

Kobe, like him, is a "shortcut-taker" who put aside his prejudices and took the initiative to join forces. Why is he the only one targeted?
This kind of resentment is rootless. James knows that he cannot blame anyone. Since the "Decision", the media has looked at him with tinted glasses.

Even if we win the championship, the criticism of taking shortcuts will not stop.

On the afternoon of the Western Conference Finals, James seemed in a good mood.

Before practice began, he and Kobe played a joke.

However, when the training games started, James' subconscious desire to prove himself made him very excited about everything.

He chased down Mike Bibby on the defensive end and was called for a foul.

He flew into a rage and was extremely rude to assistant coach Brian Shaw.

This kind of offense to the assistant coach is actually an offense to the head coach.

Phil Jackson stood up and said, "LeBron, there is no replay here. You have to accept this penalty."

In Cleveland, James' words are the golden rule. Whether it is fouls in training games, tactical arrangements for timeouts during games, or the final shot decision of the game, the Cavaliers coaching staff are just tools for James.

Coaches are supposed to be the most powerful people on the field, but on certain teams, their power is often fleeting.

But that's not the case with the Lakers.

Phil Jackson has experienced several ups and downs, and with his solid resume, he has become one of the few powerful coaches in the NBA. James's own ball-holding core system and the triangle offense have a natural conflict. Their ideological dispute continues to this day, and Jackson has not convinced James.

James still believes that the triangle offense is not suitable for them.

The Lakers' way out should be to concentrate the ball in the hands of the one who can control everything, just like the Supersonics.

Why the Lakers coaching staff was unwilling to do this? At first he thought it was Jackson's idea, but now he thinks someone doesn't want him to hold the ball a lot.

Once he has the ball a lot, his statistics will skyrocket, and then the owner of the Lakers will change.

This idea of ​​taking a hundred turns and finally ending up in the battle for the boss position is not well known.

Now James is playing like a competitive player who counts every penny.

He continued to protest against the call and expressed his dissatisfaction strongly, slowing down the entire training pace. At this time, ordinary coaches would not be able to cope with it at all.

Normally, Jackson would ask the assistant referee to blow a balance whistle in favor of James, but today, Kobe, who was on high alert, did not want the training game to be ruined.

James is responsible for playing Yu Fei in the training match, which is a huge responsibility, but what is he doing now?
"Shut up, LeBron!" Kobe said. "That's a foul. Move on to the next one!"

The storm has subsided and everyone is training normally.

That night
staples center
The Los Angeles tabloids once joked about the Lakers, saying that the importance of the Lakers' games can be determined by looking at the quality of the stars on the sidelines.

Tonight is only the first game of the Western Conference Finals, but many superstars from other sports industries have gathered on the scene.

Such as Tiger Woods and Michael Phelps who are currently undergoing treatment for sex addiction.

There are even more people coming from Hollywood, especially actors related to Marvel.

War of Empires is one of the rare major sporting events in recent years, and many people want to take advantage of the popularity. Those who have worked with Marvel nominally came for Yu Fei.

In addition, there are those familiar faces at the Lakers home court.

When Yu Fei and his teammates entered the stadium, there was loud booing.

Snoopy, who had argued with Yu Fei on the spot many times, jumped up and cursed: "You are done this time. My Ni brothers are no longer the same as before. This time I will definitely beat you up. Do you understand, Ni brother~~!"

Yu Fei ignored him.

Yu Fei originally wanted to say hello to Kobe and the others first, but when he saw Robert Downey Jr. and the others, he walked straight over.

Next to Downey, there is Scarlett Johansson. Today, Scarlett's image is the same as the Black Widow in "Iron Man 2" which will be released this summer. Her appearance and figure are at their peak. She deserves the title of angel face and devil figure. Of course, the height is not important.
Scarlett has been separating from her husband Ryan Reynolds recently due to a disagreement, and some tabloids speculated that it was due to Yu Fei.

Yu Fei has always ignored such disgusting tabloids. He has been very restrained recently. Not to mention Scarlett, there are not many people of the opposite sex who can get close to him.

However, it would be a challenge for any man to have such close contact with Scarlett in her prime and dressed up.

The good thing is that I'm used to flying.

"Are you and Ryan okay?" Yu Fei asked casually.

Scarlett was called a goddess. The interesting thing was that she knew she was a goddess, so she had a goddess's pride. When she heard Yu Fei talking about something irrelevant, she pushed back: "Thanks to you, it's very good."

At this time, Durant behind Yu Fei was almost suffocating.

There are two kinds of aesthetics in the black world. One is to follow the mainstream aesthetics of appearance. However, there are also quite a few black people who, like Jews, reject women of other skin colors. For example, James has lacked a sense of security since childhood and is very wary of white people. It is unimaginable for him to connect with white women. Durant grew up in the suburbs of DC, but outside the suburbs, it is a gathering place for middle-class white people.

His aesthetic has been alienated since childhood, just like OJ Simpson back then, he does not exclude white people at all.

And the Scarlett in front of him was the most beautiful woman he thought he had ever seen.

He originally wanted to follow Yu Fei to say hello to James and the others, but he didn't expect Yu Fei to come here and bring him to the most beautiful woman on earth.

In this situation, he even breathed carefully, and Yu Fei actually started "flirting" with the other party.

As he was talking, Yu Fei introduced Durant to them, "This is KD, you should all know him."

"I've seen Kevin play," Downey said. "I've heard people say Kevin has a better chance of becoming Frye than Frye himself."

This seemingly natural sense of humor struck Yu Fei.

He laughed.

"It's nice to meet you." Downey's joke gave Durant an opportunity to get into character. "I hope you have a good time here."

Donnie smiled and said, "Then you have to win the game."

Scarlett smiled, her rose-red lips made Durant drool: "Don't be like Frye, he's not a good person."

Durant responded reflexively: "I'll listen to you."

Seeing Durant's face fascinated by her, Scarlett smiled. She was no longer surprised by this.

Yu Fei took Durant away before he could make any more fools of himself.

"Have you never seen a woman?" Yu Fei gently patted Durant's face, "Wake up!"

Durant thought of the conversation he had just had with Scarlett and felt a sense of inexplicable joy in his heart.

She talked to me, she smiled at me, she told me not to be Fry, she didn't like Fry
Although she is married, she has already separated from her husband.

Might I have a chance?

"I've never seen a woman like this." Durant said, blurting out the words that almost made Yu Fei lose his balance, "She is so beautiful, I would like to drink her foot washing water."

Yu Fei sneered: "If you have the guts, post this sentence on your Twitter."

Durant said happily, "I will."

He's crazy.

Later, they met Kojan in the center circle.

Kobe made some harsh remarks in a businesslike manner, but James didn't even look at Yu Fei.

Durant is still reminiscing about Scarlett.

Yu Fei found that he and Kobe might be the only two normal people here. No, Kobe was not a normal person either.

Can a person who works as a waiter while recuperating in a hotel be considered a normal person?
In other words, the three Nike star athletes are not normal people.

Yu Fei returned to the backcourt and thought again, if the world is not normal, then a normal person like him might be the abnormal one.

This thought lasted for a while, and then the lights on the scene dimmed.

The Lakers' home DJ loudly announced the starting lineups of both teams.

But when the DJ announced the Lakers, they gave a familiar soundtrack to fans: "Sirius," the overture from the album of Alan Parsons' Project.

This was the opening song for the Bulls at home during the Jordan era to introduce the starting players.

As the music started, the audience at the Staples Center seemed to see the KJ combination winning many championships for the Lakers in the years to come.

Moreover, compared with the DJ at the United Center, the DJ at the Staples Center is even more childish. He even added nicknames when announcing the players' names.

Matador Gasol, "Silky" Hamilton, "Downtown" Jamison, King James and Black Mamba Kobe.

That doesn't sound like an NBA game.

The DJ successfully fooled the audience into thinking they were watching a WWE live broadcast.

In terms of momentum, the scene has given enough momentum and the Lakers are determined to win.

Tyronn Lue took a deep breath. He was too familiar with the Staples Center.

This was the starting point of his NBA career, but things have changed now.

Some Lakers fans teased him that his most famous moment with the Lakers was being knocked over by Allen Iverson in the Finals and then stepped over him.

They forget that he actually played great defense on Iverson that night.

Iverson was inefficient most of the time, but it only took a moment for the superstar to kill all his efforts.

The scene was noisy and Lu told himself to stay calm as the starting players gathered around him.

Lue thought back to when Carr was coaching.

If Karl, would he give any instructions here?

"Play a good game and shut the audience up!" Lu decided to do whatever he wanted. He is not Karl. He has his own style, which is to provoke players' emotions like Rivers.

At the start of the game, Gasol won easily.

The Lakers attacked quickly. James dribbled quickly to the frontcourt and did not confront Yu Fei. He passed the ball directly to Jamison.

Jamison catches the ball and shoots.

It missed, but the rebound landed exactly where Kobe was.

Kobe versus Anthony Morrow, this is an absolutely advantageous matchup.

Because of the Supersonics, Morrow has become a well-known shooter in the league after shooting 40% from three-point range for two consecutive seasons, but his defense is not his strong point.

When Kobe plays against him, there is no need for any complicated operations. He just dribbles the ball, collects it and shoots.

2 is better than 0
The Lakers wanted to play fast, but the SuperSonics didn't mind.

Yu Fei also wanted to see which side was better at playing fast-paced games.

Just after halftime, the Lakers' defense was still unstable.

Like the SuperSonics, the Lakers also have two defensive loopholes in their starting five.

One is Hamilton and the other is Jamison.

Durant had just got into position when Yu Fei passed the ball to him.

The ball was passed quickly and at a high speed.

Durant and Yu Fei have been teammates for almost three years, and he immediately realized that Yu Fei wanted him to shoot immediately after receiving the ball.

However, Hamilton did not lose his position.

Scarlett's red lips appeared in Durant's mind - who cares, just shoot!
Durant shot decisively.

Hamilton never thought he would dare to do this.

This is the Western Conference Finals, and he plays like this? And Frye allows him to do this?

Hamilton didn't have time to think, because the shot flew over his head and hit the basket.

This feels right.

Durant believes that he is in good shape, and Yu Fei found the current game template of the former through Hamilton.

Although Durant entered the league with the amazing draft template of Yu and McGrady, his ball-handling ability in the first three years of his career made it impossible for him to become the team's ball-handling core like Yu and McGrady at this age.

Durant’s first two seasons were like a future Michael Porter Jr., specializing in catch-and-shoot.

This season, his dribbling and ball-protecting skills have improved, and he has begun to use his long legs to step over opponents at the three position.

However, it is impossible to master the ball-handling attack quickly. Although Durant has mastered the trick, it will take several years for him to evolve to the state that Yu Fei had seen in his previous life.

Therefore, Durant at this stage is actually no different from the previous two seasons.

His style is like Richard Hamilton at 208cm tall.

Can attack with the ball, but shooting is still the key.

Due to his height and wingspan, he has the ability to shoot over anyone's head. It is the ceiling difference brought by this talent that determines the gap between him and Hamilton and others.

"Good shot." Yu Fei teased, "If you keep shooting like this, I'll have Scarlett give you a basin of foot washing water."

Durant gave Yu Fei an unhappy look.

Yu Fei's frivolous tone completely destroyed the beautiful fantasy in his heart.

Afterwards, the Lakers moved the ball over a large area, and Durant used his long arms to disrupt the pass.

It looked like a counterattack opportunity for the Supersonics, but the disrupted pass somehow fell into Hamilton's hands.

Hamilton took the ball and looked at the basket, but Durant's defense had not yet returned to its position.

“!#@￥@#!￥”

Inside the Staples Center, enthusiastic fans used their voices to gather together a force of will, allowing Hamilton to take a three-pointer.

Same hit!

That's the confidence of a 40% three-point shooter.

Durant actually only gave Hamilton half an open space. If he had concentrated, he could have strongly interfered, but the opponent's shot was too decisive.

Yu Fei looked at Hamilton who was retreating, and remembered that Mike Miller and Eddie House were still sitting on the sidelines of the Lakers. By the standards of small ball (three-pointers + space), the Lakers' shooting resources were too good.

If Hamilton is not accurate, let Miller come up. If Miller is not accurate either, you can try House.

It is rare for three sharpshooters to fail to fire at the same time.

However, it can also be seen that the Lakers, in pursuit of space, have excessively allocated team resources to shooters.

This leaves them with insufficient space to acquire a full-sized wing with strength and rigidity.

As the epitome of the contemporary one-star and four-shooter style, Yu Fei is very clear about one thing: no matter how great a shooter is, if the opponent shortens the number of rotations, increases the intensity and hardness of defense, and only gives you half-open shots, then how many shooters can seize the opportunity like Hamilton just now?

Yu Fei didn't think that his team's Morrow was trustworthy in that state. Even if it was Hamilton, your guaranteed 36% hit rate in that situation would be considered incredibly accurate.

Therefore, the Lakers' excessively rich shooter resources may seem desperate, but they may also lead them into a pit.

The premise is that they cannot play with the wind.

There is no one on the basketball court who is more bullying than a shooter.

Once the situation goes smoothly and they are allowed to shoot without any psychological burden, their accuracy is unimaginable. This is why the small-ball Warriors often take down their opponents with a wave of critical hits when they first came out.

"Kevin, don't be too lax."

Yu Fei said: "Give it some pressure."

Durant hummed softly.

Then, Yu Fei passed the ball to Morrow and asked him to dribble across half court.

Morrow dribbled the ball carefully and just after crossing half court he saw Yu Fei making gestures.

Yu Fei was seen setting a screen for Morrow in the frontcourt. This unconventional cooperation made the Lakers dizzy for a moment.

James didn't understand what was going on for a moment. Yu Fei suddenly turned around and cut inside. Morrow threw the ball into the air, and all that was left was the exclamations of the audience.

They didn't expect Yu Fei to get rid of James in an instant, run into the basket, pick up the ball in the air with one hand in a cool posture with no blind spots, and smash it into the basket.

"BOOM!!!"

"A softy who can't even focus on defense. No wonder he's not in the top five in the MVP voting."

Yu Fei's casual trash talk unexpectedly touched James' heart.

The emperor began to heat up. Why did he fall to this point? Why? He didn't blame anyone else, just Yu Fei. If it wasn't for Yu Fei, if it wasn't for this person who pushed him to a dead end, he wouldn't have made that choice, and he wouldn't have left Cleveland.

The whole world said that he had no reason to leave there, and he thought so too. But he still left, because if he couldn't defeat Yu Fei, there was no point in anything he did.

This is the only way to defeat Yu Fei. It's worth it.

Now, he has no way out, and this culprit is still here making sarcastic remarks?

Yu Fei returned to the backcourt, completely unaware of the amount of sin he had committed.

He saw James dribbling over with a grim expression, thinking
Could it be that someone was really mad at someone because of something he said?

Isn't what he said true?

Oh yeah, this is the age of social media.

Commonly known as the "telling the truth is black" era.

(End of this chapter)