The Best Point Guard

Isaiah Thomas was growing more ambitious, with ever-greater aspirations.

"You actually want to be a legendary coach?"

Su Xi looked at Thomas in surprise. He smiled and said, "I thought you just wanted to stick it to Jordan."

"Those two things aren’t mutually exclusive. Haven’t you read my recent feature interview?" Isaiah Thomas said confidently. "The headline was, ’The Man Who Took the Decaying Knicks from the Bottom of the League to a Championship, the Man Who Led the Chinese Team to the Top of the Podium. The Legendary Life of Coach Isaiah Thomas!’"

Huh?

If not for that last part, Su Xi would have thought the interview was about him.

But on second thought, it made sense. The Knicks won the championship, so Isaiah Thomas was a championship-winning coach. The Chinese Team had won two gold medals in international competitions, and he was a consultant for the national team.

’This... How do I get the feeling I’m in way too deep with him?’

"Jack, there’s no need to draw lines between us," Isaiah Thomas said with a smile.

Su Xi just smiled. He didn’t want to compete with Isaiah Thomas either. ’Oh well,’ he thought. ’Guess I’ll just have to keep spoiling him.’

TWEET!

The whistle blew, and the game resumed.

In the second quarter, the Knicks continued their run-and-gun offense.

Furthermore, Su Xi moved back to the Point Guard position. The lineup they sent out was: Su Xi, Ariza, Stephen Jackson, David Lee, and Channing Frye.

The moment they stepped on the court, the Knicks went full throttle.

Su Xi drove to the basket and immediately kicked the ball out. Channing Frye, the team’s center, took a jump shot from beyond the three-point line... SWISH!

It was good.

Seeing the Knicks play this way, Phil Jackson had only one thought: ’Are these guys crazy?’

’Does this shit even follow the basic principles of basketball?’

The league was getting crazier this season.

Many teams had started to push the pace.

Oakland had its "mad scientist," Phoenix had D’Antoni, and even Dallas had noticeably picked up its pace. But none of them seemed as insane as the Knicks.

Isaiah Thomas looked like a complete lunatic, gesticulating wildly as he coached from the sideline.

He actually had his center and power forward waiting on the perimeter for kick-out passes.

’Does he really have that much faith in the three-point shot?’

Phil Jackson still couldn’t comprehend this style of play.

It was a little too ahead of its time for him.

Meanwhile, the Lakers got back into their half-court offense.

Kobe passed the ball to Yao Ming.

Yao Ming posted up Channing Frye. Although Frye had made huge strides over the summer and was much more built than in his rookie season, he was still basically a beanpole.

There was no way he could handle Yao Ming, who was already a behemoth of a center in the league. Under the tutelage of Jeff Van Gundy, his lower-body strength had become rock-solid.

He backed Frye down with a couple of moves, but just as he turned for the dunk, Su Xi shot in from the side, launched himself like a cannonball, and emphatically slapped the ball out of Yao Ming’s hands for a powerful block.

Channing Frye grabbed the loose ball and flung it downcourt. Ariza was already on the fast break. He caught the ball in the frontcourt, drove to the rim, and laid it in for the score.

It was a fluid, seamless play.

The Lakers were a little bewildered, and a sense of frustration settled over the Staples Center.

’That works too?’

Kobe, unconvinced, passed the ball to Yao Ming again. Yao learned his lesson this time. After backing his man down, he tossed up a hook shot... SWISH!

He easily overpowered Channing Frye.

Su Xi’s block was a one-off play, not a reliable, set tactic.

After all, Yao Ming was no pushover.

The Lakers’ play was steady, showing all the hallmarks of a top team.

But on the other side, the Knicks were rapidly ramping up the chaos.

Their play was completely unpredictable.

Su Xi brought the ball past half-court and passed to David Lee. David Lee pump-faked, then passed to Stephen Jackson. Jackson let it fly... SWISH!

A three-pointer.

When he took the shot, there was only one Knicks player in the paint: Su Xi!

This would be unthinkable for any other team, but for the Knicks, it seemed perfectly normal.

Phil Jackson glanced at the court, then over at Isaiah Thomas.

Thomas was stroking his chin, a look of deep satisfaction on his face.

But Phil Jackson was utterly bewildered.

"The Knicks just love this kind of risky, exciting play. It looks entertaining, but from a tactical standpoint, they’re just firing at will. It’s completely random, with no core strategy. Just like Isaiah Thomas himself—superficial, shallow, only chasing flashy appearances. He’s a grandstander."

Larry Brown’s on-air assessment was scathing, as usual.

He really disliked Isaiah Thomas.

But Reggie Miller, sitting beside him, reminded him, "But he has more Olympic gold medals than you, and more NBA championships, too."

That comment hit Larry Brown right where it hurt.

He was furious, his anger written all over his face.

But he had no logical rebuttal.

He could only retort, "Do you think anyone truly respects him?"

Huh?

Reggie Miller was stunned. He hadn’t expected that response from Larry Brown. Why would no one respect him? New York fans already saw him as a messiah. In polls of the most popular basketball figures in New York State, Isaiah Thomas’s popularity had even surpassed Michael Jordan’s.

’No one truly respects him?’

’Isn’t it you that no one truly respects?’

Reggie Miller had no interest in this pointless war of words.

The game on the court continued.

The Lakers’ play was very "by the book." They ran a conservative triangle offense, and with both Yao Ming and Kobe playing exceptionally well, their offensive efficiency was very high.

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