The Best Point Guard

However, they didn’t have the lead at halftime.

The surging Knicks were up by 3 points at the half.

This three-point lead came from David Lee hitting a three before the end of the first half, followed by Su Xi stealing the ball from Lakers Point Guard Parker and sinking a long-range three at the buzzer.

Those two three-pointers were what allowed the Knicks to head into the locker room with smiles on their faces.

As for the Lakers fans, it was clearly a case of bad luck.

In their eyes, if their luck had been good enough, the Lakers would be the ones leading by three.

Before returning to the locker room, Su Xi made a point to go over to the sidelines and chat with Jessica and Fox.

The two Hollywood bombshells attracted the flashbulbs of the media; wherever they went, they were never short on attention.

At that moment, they were making a bet with Vanessa.

Vanessa said the Lakers would definitely win because she believed in her husband’s ability. She also added, "As long as Kobe finds a powerful giant, they can create unprecedented chemistry. The Knicks don’t stand a chance. Little Sheep Su Xi can’t challenge a team like this."

But the two Hollywood goddesses swore that Su Xi would defeat the Lakers and their two superstars all by himself. "In fact, he’s even capable of challenging a Big Three. He’s good at taking down two stars, beating them until they’re half-dead and can’t fight back."

As Megan Fox said this, Su Xi happened to be walking by.

He couldn’t help but stop. He had to make sure Fox wasn’t talking about something else.

Just then, Vanessa asked Su Xi, "Hey, Jack. Your friends say you’re definitely going to win tonight. What do you think?"

"Of course."

"I think my husband is better. He’s the scoring champion, and he has Yao Ming’s help. Yao Ming is even taller than O’Neal."

"You’re right to think so. But they’re going to lose to me."

"Let’s bet something. How about a dinner?"

"Alright. But I’d rather be a guest at your house and taste your family chef’s cooking, along with Kobe’s collection of aged red wine. I could really feast on all that," Su Xi said with a smile.

"That’s only if you win. If you lose, you have to treat our whole family to the best restaurant in Los Angeles, and you have to let us order Romanée-Conti."

"No problem."

"It’s a deal."

Su Xi and Vanessa reached an agreement.

At that moment, Jessica and Fox said in unison, "You have to bring us along."

Su Xi turned back, looking at them lovingly, "Of course."

Then, Su Xi headed for the players’ tunnel. It was time to go back to the locker room.

Vanessa frowned, a little perplexed. She couldn’t help but ask, "Hey, why do I feel like the way Jack looks at you two is a little strange? Did you break up? How can you still be friends after breaking up?"

HAHAHAHA.

The two of them burst out laughing.

Under Vanessa’s persistent questioning, Fox gave an answer: "We have a special, intimate relationship."

’A special, intimate relationship? How special could it be? How intimate?’

’So, Jack is actually your guy best friend?’

’He’s not a playboy?’

Vanessa reasoned to herself. She felt more and more at ease with Kobe being friends with good Chinese men like Su Xi and Yao Ming. That way, she wouldn’t have to worry about Kobe having any affairs.

...

Su Xi returned to the locker room, where the team was reviewing the first half. The veterans were leading the younger players in summarizing the gains and losses, engaging in criticism and self-criticism.

Last season’s winning formula was making a comeback.

David Lee had practically become the meeting’s moderator, setting a good example.

Zach Randolph also participated earnestly, even though he hadn’t played for long in the first half.

After the meeting concluded, Isaiah Thomas continued to lay out the strategy. He still demanded the team be more decisive with its run-and-gun offense and take even crazier shots.

He said he liked this frantic pace.

Like when he was younger, on top of a 25-year-old black woman, going at it like crazy.

Then, David Lee, the model youth, criticized Isaiah Thomas, believing that as the head coach, he should be promoting positive values.

Su Xi and Channing Frye both supported David Lee.

This made Isaiah Thomas feel terrible. He still preferred last season’s atmosphere, when the team was full of bastards and saying something like that wouldn’t draw any criticism at all.

He apologized. But inside, he was still grumbling, ’I feel like the team is starting to go soft. When did we become a goody-two-shoes club?’

Even Zach Randolph was giving David Lee a thumbs-up.

’This world has gone mad.’

’Randolph is a bully, a total bastard who’s done all sorts of bad things!’

’Has he really been baptized by Eastern culture and turned into a perfect gentleman?’

’If this keeps up, will our team still have any grit or ferocity?’

Isaiah Thomas was a little worried about this.

But the second half proved his worries were unnecessary.

David Lee led by example. The very same power forward who had self-criticized in the locker room, saying, ’My defensive fundamentals are terrible, I’m leaving too many openings that shouldn’t be there,’ stood perfectly straight when Kobe charged the paint, let Kobe collide with him, and fell straight back.

He drew an offensive foul on Kobe.

He didn’t roar, nor did he beat his chest.

But he possessed a silent resolve.

Yes, the atmosphere of the Knicks really seemed to have undergone a heaven-and-earth-shattering reversal.

They were more reserved.

But their strength was also more resolute.

The Knicks were still surging, still advancing rapidly up the court.

However, the Knicks’ offensive efficiency was not as high as it was in the first half.

Their shooting percentage in the first half was clearly an anomaly; now it had returned to normal.

Still, the Lakers couldn’t pull away with the lead.

Because Yao Ming’s efficiency also began to decline.

As everyone knows, Yao Ming’s stamina was the key factor holding him back from becoming an all-time great in the NBA.

In the first half, he might have gotten a bit carried away. Phil Jackson also hadn’t fully grasped Yao Ming’s stamina limits; he had Yao play the entire time, even making him run with the Knicks’ pace in the third quarter.

After running back and forth like that, Yao Ming’s offensive efficiency plummeted, because his stamina couldn’t support him playing the whole game.

Yao Ming was like an electric car: a dragon on a full charge, but when the battery is low... while not quite a worm, he was basically just at the level of a regular starter.

At this time, Su Xi also increased his attacks on the paint.

With five minutes left in the third quarter, Phil Jackson decisively called a timeout and substituted Yao Ming out of the game.

When Yao Ming left the court, the Knicks quickly changed their tactics. Zach Randolph came on, and they also brought in Millsap to get a feel for the atmosphere.

The Knicks switched to a half-court offense.

It was a clear-cut strategy to bully Kobe, while also giving Kwame Brown a beating on the side.

At this point, Kobe also showed the spirit of a scoring champion. With Yao Ming off the court, he entered scoring mode.

He scored in quick succession.

However, the Knicks’ overall offense was still a bit more efficient.

At the end of the third quarter, the Knicks were leading by 8 points.

At this moment, Kobe Bryant suddenly said to Su Xi, "Jack, don’t you want to surpass Jordan? Aren’t you playing shooting guard this season? Let’s have a scoring duel in the fourth quarter. Do you dare?"

Su Xi looked at Kobe with a smile and said, "Do you think I’m an idiot? My team has the superior lineup right now. Why would I get into a one-on-one with you? What for?"

"You’re scared, Jack. You’re scared. And you want to surpass Jordan? Jordan would never be afraid of an opponent. Jordan definitely wouldn’t be afraid of a one-on-one with me when he’s up by 8 points."

Kobe’s words were extremely enticing as he said to Su Xi, "You have to be brave, Jack. If you want to be the greatest of all time, you have to beat every opponent, including me! I’ve never feared any player, which is why I’m the best player in the league right now. You... you’re just the best ’championship collector’ in the league. Just good at racking up championships."

Hm?

Kobe was resorting to shameless provocation.

However, his words did have a real impact on Su Xi.

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