Boozer turned around and saw Su Xi say to Stephen Silas, "Stephen, we have to win this ga."
Silas had a similar question.
LeBron Jas was working reasonably well with Tony Battie on the court. Battie was setting solid screens for Jas, and he was good at disrupting the continuity of Artest’s defense.
Jas drove to the inside frequently, posing a huge challenge for the Pacers.
Just three minutes into the second quarter, he finished with a spectacular tomahawk dunk.
The entire Gand Arena erupted. ’That’s our King! Now that’s our King!’
Since LeBron Jas was playing well, Paul Silas decided to let Su Xi rest on the bench a little longer.
Paul Silas was doing everything he could to get Jas and Su Xi to reconcile, which would be a good thing for the entire team.
Besides, he felt it was just a squabble between two young n; they had gotten along so well before. ’Maybe Jack’s recent brilliance has made LeBron jealous,’ he thought. ’They’ll make up and be back to normal in no ti.’
However, the Pacers quickly found a way to contain Jas.
With five minutes left in the second quarter, LeBron Jas drove to the basket. Artest tracked him and funneled him, forcing him to take a path he wasn’t comfortable with. When he jumped for a layup, Little O’Neal ca out of nowhere and slamd the ball against the backboard with one hand.
Artest was like a sheepdog, herding Jas into a trap for Little O’Neal to deliver the final blow.
When the first block happened, the fans in Gand Arena thought it was a fluke.
But when the second block sent Jas’s ball flying out of bounds, people realized LeBron had run into a dead end.
And then, after the inbounds pass, Artest took advantage of LeBron Jas’s hesitation to steal the ball. He passed it to Tinsley, who initiated a fast break and finished with a layup on the other end.
"Jack, I’m up one steal on you now."
Artest turned his back and triumphantly held up one finger to Su Xi.
Paul Silas quickly called Su Xi’s na. "Get in there and help LeBron," he told Su Xi.
He hoped this would help repair the relationship between Su Xi and Jas.
But it had the opposite effect. LeBron Jas frowned. ’Is he looking down on ? I get stolen from and blocked, so you imdiately put in Little Sheep Su Xi? You think the Chosen One isn’t as good as him?’
Su Xi received a pass from Kevin Ollie in the backcourt and quickly crossed half-court.
Tinsley ca forward, intending to trap Su Xi.
He was a player with a fair bit of flair on offense.
But Su Xi simply accelerated, bumped him aside, and then unleashed a burst of explosive power, cutting sharply to the basket.
Artest didn’t dare co over to double-team, Reggie Miller didn’t move, and Little O’Neal was drawn away by Tony Battie. Su Xi leaped up and completed a powerful, one-handed slam dunk.
Su Xi’s dunk stopped the Cavaliers’ slump.
So cheers erupted in Gand Arena.
Though they weren’t as loud as for Jas’s tomahawk dunk earlier.
The ga continued.
Tinsley brought the ball past half-court and suddenly started showing off his skills at the top of the arc. Like Kenny Anderson and Ron Artest, he ca from the streets of New York. His ball-handling skills were flashy, but his talent was a far cry from a young Kenny Anderson’s.
Just as he finished a series of crossovers and a spin move, Su Xi pressed up... SMACK!
Seizing the opportunity, he stole the ball right from him. Against absolute power and absolute quickness, such skills were useless.
"Flashy nonsense."
Su Xi tossed out the comnt and sprinted toward the frontcourt with Tinsley’s ball.
Jas made a quick cut from the left, and Tony Battie accelerated behind him.
At the sa ti, the Pacers’ defense recovered quickly.
Larry Bird sat up straight, his attention focused. He wanted to see how Su Xi would handle this fast break.
In an instant, Su Xi was inside the three-point line. He used a quick change of direction to completely shake off Tinsley’s gambling attempt at a steal. He drove straight into the paint, making it difficult for Artest and Little O’Neal to judge his intentions.
He continued deeper, and just as he was about to enter the restricted area, he suddenly faked a pass to the left. Artest and Little O’Neal both shifted their feet.
But the ball never left his hand. Su Xi’s big hand palming the ball was just a fake. With both defenders and the other offensive player fooled, Su Xi smoothly tossed the ball behind his back and quickly got out of the way.
Tony Battie caught the ball, leaped up, and found a clear path ahead of him... BOOM!
He finished with an extrely violent two-handed dunk!
The rim shuddered and swayed from Tony Battie’s ferocious slam.
Gand Arena erupted once again.
"Great pass, my commander."
Tony Battie jumped down from the rim, showering Su Xi with praise.
He was a newcor and didn’t yet know about the current internal power struggle on the Cavaliers. He was actively trying to get closer to Su Xi. "You’re the super rookie who got a quadruple-double in his debut, after all."
Su Xi just smiled.
Off to the side, the look on Jas’s face was quite ugly. ’Su Xi used as a decoy again,’ he thought. ’Is this any way to treat the King?’
Moreover, Tony Battie’s words gave him a ’sudden realization’—so that was the aning behind his quadruple-double.
The ga continued.
The second quarter soon ca to an end.
With Su Xi on the court, the Pacers’ defensive focus was divided. The Cavaliers regained the initiative, leading 46-45 by one point at halfti.
Back in the locker room, the atmosphere was a bit subdued. Only Tony Battie was excitedly telling Su Xi how perfect that last pass of his was.
He even started describing his offensive sweet spots to Su Xi.
This was perfectly normal in itself. As a newcor, it was never a bad idea to get on good terms with the point guard.
The problem was that the atmosphere within the Cavaliers was a bit complicated at the mont.
The second half of the ga began.
Paul Silas had originally wanted to let Tony Battie get more ti to adapt, but his conversation in the locker room had clearly upset Jas, and Paul Silas didn’t want Jas to be upset.
He also didn’t want the conflict between Su Xi and Jas to escalate.
So, he went with the normal starting lineup.
The ga was uneventful.
Neither team’s efficiency was very high, and the Cavaliers maintained a slim one or two-point lead.
In the third quarter, Su Xi played for six minutes before being subbed out to rest again.
Jas led the team and also had a decent offensive output.
Until the fourth quarter began.
Reggie Miller ca in and hit two consecutive three-pointers, and the Pacers instantly retook the lead.
During this stretch, Jas was stripped once by Artest and was also called for a travel.
This "old soul in a young body," the Chosen One, had, after all, just turned 19. He started to get hot-headed, attacking the rim relentlessly. His drives drew a lot of fouls, but his performance at the free-throw line was a struggle.
With his head and muscles rushing with blood, his already diocre touch at the free-throw line continued to decline.
Paul Silas had wanted to give Jas a chance to shine, so he had kept Su Xi on the bench.
But Jas missed one opportunity after another.
It looked like the ga was about to enter garbage ti.
As the head coach, he had to make one last push, no matter what.
Besides, Su Xi was one of the team’s core players now. Not putting him in at a critical mont would be unjustifiable.
So, five minutes into the fourth quarter...
Su Xi checked into the ga.
He walked onto the court and imdiately pulled his teammates together. "We’re going to run so plays..."
Carlos Boozer, Jason Kapono, and Ilgauskas gathered around Su Xi, listening to his instructions.
Jas stood at the free-throw line. He didn’t go over.
CLANG!
Jas’s second free throw clanked off the iron.
Ilgauskas boxed out Foster. Su Xi crashed in from the side and leaped high. Battling Artest in the air, he managed to get a hand on the ball first, tipping it outwards. Then, with a burst of explosiveness that surpassed Artest’s, he jumped again and tapped the ball directly to the corner of the three-point line.
Kapono was waiting.
He caught the ball and shot imdiately... SWISH!
It was good.
The Cavaliers got back 3 points.
They were only down by 6 now.
Just like that, the ga was pulled back from the brink of garbage ti into a normal rhythm.
At that mont, as he got back on defense, Su Xi deliberately walked toward Jas.
He had a few words for the King.
In the na of the law.
...
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