Jordan was radiating pure swagger.
Bird took a shallow breath, telling himself to stay calm.
Fortunately, Jordan quickly added, "When it cos to shooting, no one on this planet is better than us. You excel at scoring under high-pressure defense, whereas I excel at soaring above it. We both stand at the very pinnacle of the basketball world."
The ga continued.
Su Xi and Wade began a scoring duel.
Wade had a tougher ti on his drives because the Pacers’ defense was more resilient, even with Little O’Neal resting on the bench.
The Heat’s paint was like a bunny girl’s fluffy skirt. If you reached in, there was hardly any resistance, and sotis... you’d even find nothing underneath at all.
You could go for a direct dunk without any problem.
During their duel, Wade had a wider variety of scoring moves.
Su Xi wasn’t singularly focused on destroying his opponent; his assist count was climbing steadily.
The two sides went back and forth for six minutes.
The Pacers consistently maintained a lead of over 20 points.
BEEP!
Stan Van Gundy called a tiout, declaring the start of garbage ti. It was pointless to continue.
Wade was subbed out, but Su Xi stayed on the court for two more possessions.
It was as if he knew soone was staring intently at a plasma TV.
CLANK!
CLANK!
He missed two shots in a row.
The first was a pull-up jumper over Rasual Butler’s defense that went wide of the basket.
The second was a drive to the basket where, facing help defense from Wang Zhizhi, he executed a spin move before taking a jump shot... CLANK, it missed the hoop.
After missing twice, Su Xi was subbed out.
He played 29 minutes in the ga, finishing with 12 points, 16 assists, 8 rebounds, and 2 steals.
Another night of incredible efficiency, another near triple-double.
Most importantly, Su Xi had fundantally surpassed his performance from the last series. He was once again the team’s primary playmaker, with the team benefiting from his presence rather than him just finding shelter within the team’s system.
Larry Brown watched the ga on TV and marveled, "This kid’s rate of evolution is just freaky. Did he really digest all of Magic’s and Bird’s passing philosophies in just three short days?"
For the Pistons, this was bad news.
It was also bad news for the pundits who had sworn up and down that Su Xi was just riding the coattails of his team’s system.
But to Jordan, watching on TV, it was all irrelevant.
"This kid actually has a chance to beco a true superstar. His coordination is decent, and his flexibility is excellent. His explosiveness and speed are top-tier, too. But, if he were on a weak team, leading them, facing double-teams every night, he’d just be passing the ball to terrible teammates."
"He might not even do as well as Jas."
Jordan said, "Larry, you ca here this ti hoping I’d teach him a few shooting techniques, didn’t you?"
Bird looked at Jordan instantly.
Jordan wasn’t an idiot. How could a fool beco the God of Basketball?
"I don’t like him, but if you insist I give him a pointer or two on how to train his jump shot, I can say a few words for your sake. It might not be suitable for him, though. You know my athleticism is far superior to his. I can hang in the air and wait for the defender to land before I shoot. He has to find his spots away from the defense to even get a shot off."
"Besides, Larry, you need to realize you’re unleashing a tiger. If you want the Pacers to remain a championship contender, you shouldn’t let him get *too* powerful."
"He’s a very fast learner. I heard you and Magic only taught him for a few days, and his passing improved by leaps and bounds. If he keeps evolving like this, it might not necessarily be a good thing for the Pacers’ current system."
Jordan was being completely serious.
Bird listened just as seriously. He wasn’t a fool either; he understood perfectly.
After a mont, Jordan shared a couple of tips with Bird, telling him how he practiced maintaining shooting stability with his large hands.
"If you pass this training thod on to him, wouldn’t that make him the only player in history to have been trained by the three titans: Magic, Big Bird, and the Flying Man?"
"Oh, and also... that bastard Isaiah Thomas. The skills Su Xi is showing off, he didn’t learn those just from watching ga tapes. Isaiah Thomas must have taught him for at least a month."
As soon as Jordan said this, Bird’s heart sank.
’Isaiah Thomas taught Jack for at least a month?’
’That ans Jack and Thomas are extrely close!’
He connected that to how the Knicks had frantically pursued Su Xi during the trade with the Cavaliers.
Bird’s guard went up.
He didn’t have a particularly high opinion of Isaiah Thomas either, but he didn’t hate him with the sa passion Jordan did.
When Bird had left the Pacers, it was Isaiah Thomas who had taken over. This season, Bird returned to Indiana and took power back from Thomas’s hands.
It was hard to say that Isaiah Thomas didn’t harbor a desire to surpass Bird.
The Smiling Assassin, Thomas, was a thorn in the side of the three titans—Magic, Bird, and Jordan. They had dominated the ’80s and ’90s, yet the Smiling Assassin was the only one to defeat each of them at their peak, winning two championships in the process.
So, if Su Xi and Thomas grew too close and Su Xi eventually ended up playing for the Knicks...
...it would be as if the three titans had done all the work just for the assassin to reap the rewards.
Jordan didn’t want to see that happen.
Big Bird didn’t either.
And if Magic knew, he’d want it to happen even less.
On the television, Su Xi began his post-ga interview.
He was in his usual cocky style.
"I’m not going to predict what happens next, but if it ends up being 4-0, I won’t be too surprised."
"Wade is a good friend of mine. He’s going to be the best offensive player in the NBA... bar none. But when he’s up against , he needs to try a little harder. I hope he can get to a level where he can really push ."
"Did 16 assists break the rookie record? That record was way too easy to break. Still, I bet Larry and Magic are thrilled. It’s a testant to their successful teaching."
"Oh, and to all those pundits who said I have to hide behind the Pacers’ system to be effective, make sure you watch tonight’s ga. If you need a tape, I’ll have my agent send you one. I hope you can find even more of my weaknesses. Keep up the good work!"
The handso Su Xi flashed a huge smile and gave a peace sign to the cara.
Bird was already used to Su Xi’s antics.
In fact, he quite liked it.
A player brimming with personality, with an attitude that says ’if you doubt , I’ll prove you wrong on the court.’
"This kid is interesting," Michael Jordan said. "I don’t think he’s just aiming to be the Pacers’ primary playmaker. He’s a little too arrogant."
"We weren’t this high-profile in our rookie year."
"What does that tell you?"
"It tells he wants to be above everything. That’s why I felt uncomfortable the first ti I saw him. Even when he was weak, I could tell his ambition was too great. He has a blinding aura."
Jordan was speaking his mind.
It was a matter of physics: like poles repel.
No one likes soone who is similar to them, or even more ambitious.
Bird fell silent.
He started connecting the dots.
Su Xi’s renegotiated two-year contract.
Su Xi’s arrogant remarks.
Su Xi’s relationship with Isaiah Thomas.
Su Xi’s comrcial influence.
All the bizarre things Su Xi had done.
These things might have seed unrelated at first, but when pieced together, they pointed to a single truth.
He took a deep breath.
He was happy to have acquired Little Sheep Su Xi, but also felt a sense of lancholy.
The reason he had been so taken with Su Xi from the very beginning was that he felt Su Xi was a perfect fit for the Pacers’ tactical system.
Su Xi seed born to be the final piece of the Pacers’ puzzle.
But now, he increasingly felt that Su Xi wasn’t just a puzzle piece. He wanted to be the entire masterpiece. He wanted to forge his own path.
This was, of course, a good thing.
There was nothing better than a young man with ambition.
But too much ambition could also be a problem.
In the end, however, Bird breathed a sigh of relief. He said to Jordan, "Your worries are for nothing. As long as Jack can bring one championship, I’ll be more than satisfied."
Jordan just smiled and said, "Don’t be too confident. This year’s championship belongs to the Lakers."
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