The No.1 Anti-Fans in Basketball
Chapter 545 - 269: A Jerk

Chapter 545: Chapter 269: A Jerk

to 103, the Cavaliers held off the Lakers’ comeback and ultimately won this Christmas battle.

Irving’s god-like performance in the first half, his head-to-head with James, and then Hansen’s third-quarter "mechanical possession," single-handedly combating 23 and 24, truly fulfilled all the fans’ expectations for this Christmas battle.

After the game, the statistics showed Irving scored a game-high of 37 points, making 12 of 18 shots and 10 of 11 free throws, along with 3 rebounds and 2 assists.

Hansen broke a slight sweat, contributing 25 points, 6 rebounds, 11 assists, 3 steals, and 3 blocks.

On the Lakers’ side, Kobe scored 27 points, James had 21 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists, and 2 blocks, and Varejao added 15 points and 11 rebounds.

At the post-game press conference, Hansen and Irving attended together.

Irving, who played excellently tonight, was the first to become the target of reporters’ questions.

"37 points, a season-high, and you only took 18 shots, how did you manage that?"

"I just did what I needed to do, thanks to the trust my coach and teammates placed in me."

"You and LeBron seemed to have some conflicts during the game, can you tell us what happened?"

"We exchanged some trash talk, just part of the game."

After an outstanding performance, Irving’s emotional intelligence suddenly seemed off-kilter.

"We spent some time finding the instruction manual for Kyrie, his performance in the first half reminded me of Hansen, unstoppable."

Malone was praising both players.

"He stole the show from everyone."

When the same question was tossed to Hansen, he managed to make the reporters laugh.

"He’s our hero tonight, he earned everyone’s respect."

When the jokes subsided, Hansen praised Irving while also touching on the topic of respect.

When the reporter asked Hansen what he thought about the conflict between Irving and James during the game, Hansen responded with a smile,

"Merry Christmas."

Hansen had been geared up to make a big splash in this Christmas battle, but Irving’s heroic performance meant he didn’t have to exert much effort.

The saved energy was all spent on Ajalee.

Speaking of Ajalee, back when Swift couldn’t handle Hansen’s energy, Ajalee seemed not to be too affected.

This probably had to do with her love for sports, or perhaps her interest in practicing yoga.

There are rumors that yoga was invented for sexual purposes.

The morning after the back-to-back Christmas games ended, Hansen woke up a bit later than usual.

When he got to the living room, Ajalee had already finished her yoga and was studying something.

It turned out to be a book on Chinese cuisine.

"Why have you suddenly taken an interest in Chinese food?" Hansen was curious.

Since Ajalee moved in, Hansen had been learning more about her.

Aside from yoga, Ajalee was also involved in creating music and dance, and now she was delving into Chinese cuisine.

"My father always said, the best way to keep a man is through his stomach," Ajalee said, looking back at Hansen with deep emotion.

Hansen kissed her forehead, then held her hand, "I have to thank your father."

Hansen was indeed worried about potential issues in their relationship, especially because Ajalee was a rich heiress.

Due to his past life experiences, the term "rich heiress" wasn’t usually something positive in his mind.

But now, it seemed that Weike had done a good job educating his children.

This might also be why Hansen couldn’t recognize her when he first saw Ajalee in the pet store; she didn’t look any different from an ordinary person.

After the Christmas battle, Irving became quite celebrated.

Previously a Nike newcomer despite his prominent style and popularity, Barkley had commented during a broadcast that Irving often felt more like a "weak team paddler" or a "showcase player." However, now he could score the highest in a focal game and even break through James’ defense.

This was more significant than any of his prior game-winning against the Bulls.

"This is the last time you respect me" became a signature phrase directly linked to him.

But as January arrived, the Cavaliers faced quite a few troubles.

First off was the targeting of Irving.

This seemed unbelievable, considering Irving was in his fourth year in the League.

However, the fact was, for the first three years, opponents didn’t need to specifically target him to defeat his Cavaliers.

But now, with Hansen’s arrival turning the Cavaliers into an Eastern powerhouse again, targeting Irving was much easier than targeting Hansen.

Irving began to face more and earlier double-teams on the flanks, really testing his ball-handling skills.

Although Hansen’s previous advice to Irving was actually better, Irving couldn’t manage it with just an instruction manual.

And being unable to do so meant he was targeted.

Malone’s response was to have him play off the ball more, but an off-ball Irving was obviously less effective.

Next up, JR started causing trouble.

In the early January game against the Pistons, he got fined $50,000 by the League for untying Greg Monroe’s shoelaces at the free-throw line;

Then, in the following game against the Grizzlies, he went and pulled Carter’s headband, for which he was called for a technical foul.

JR’s actions kept proving how wise the New York Knicks had been to offload him.