The Way of Basketball: Never Talk Shit to Him!
Chapter 252 - 158: Michael Paid 2 Ribs to Watch The Zone, What About You, Kobe?

Chapter 252: Chapter 158: Michael Paid 2 Ribs to Watch The Zone, What About You, Kobe?

January 22 was the NBA’s "Super Game Day" with 12 games scheduled.

That day seemed destined for greatness, as many superstars exploded onto the scene.

McGrady had his strongest game since his comeback for the Rockets, making 17 of 33 shots, 2 of 5 three-pointers, and 7 of 8 free throws. Although the team lost, he scored 43 points; Allen Iverson also had his strongest game since transferring to the Nuggets, making 13 of 27 shots, 5 of 6 three-pointers, and 8 of 10 free throws to score 39 points, plus a mid-range jumper from Carmelo Anthony to kill the game.

The game between the Phoenix Suns and the SuperSonic was a scoring battle that would go down in NBA regular season history, with Ray Allen making 14 of 28 shots, 8 of 16 three-pointers, and 6 of 7 free throws, scoring 42 points; Marion made 15 of 30 shots, 3 of 8 three-pointers, and all 4 free throws to score 37 points; Steve Nash made 12 of 20 shots, 2 of 5 three-pointers, and both free throws he took, scoring 28 points, and adding 16 assists.

The final score was 152 for the Suns against 149 for the SuperSonic, a whopping total of 301 points!

It took two overtimes to finally decide the winner.

But the next morning, the media headlines were all about "Kobe’s Dragon Slaying Night!"

Since Shaquille left, Kobe, who had been leading the team alone for over a year, saw all the vilification, criticism, and contempt he had encountered dissolve at this moment, as every media reporter rushed to cover the biggest individual "miracle" of the 2000s up to that point!

years later, some fans defined this game as "Kobes carefree game," thinking that these 81 points were scored during "garbage time."

But in reality, the reason the whole league was so shocked was that it was truly a performance of one man breaking through an entire team.

By halfway through the third quarter, the Lakers were still trailing 73:78; by the fourth quarter, they had just managed a lead of 91 to 85, a mere six points ahead. It wasn’t until halfway through the fourth quarter that the Lakers finally established a lead of more than 10 points, ultimately defeating the Raptors 122 to 104.

From falling behind to overtaking and finally securing a leading advantage, Kobe was nearly single-handedly responsible for all the scoring during that period.

Let’s just say:

He went crazy!

The coverage was overwhelming, as if Kobe was the only player left in the league.

Various superstars reacted differently to Kobe scoring 81.

Jason Kidd said, "He played only 42 minutes. If there had been overtime, he easily could have reached 100 points!"

Allen Iverson said, "Playing against Kobe is just like playing a video game, it’s that easy. Next time I’ll also try to score 100 points against the Raptors!"

He said this because the competition for "Scoring King" with Kobe had reached a fever pitch. In mid-December, Kobe’s scoring average had dropped to around 31 points, but Allen Iverson, with a steady performance of 33 points per game, had overtaken him. But after Kobe scored 81 points, the "Scoring King" title returned to Kobe.

Shockingly, Allen Iverson was the first to question if Kobe was padding his stats!

No wonder Allen Iverson would say something like that; except for "Scoring King," he had nothing else, and his proud self-esteem needed this title to keep him going.

McGrady also made some acidic remarks, not just verbally but his behavior carried a hint of jealousy.

After the previous day’s game against the Pistons ended, he called Mike James of the Raptors, questioning why they didn’t double-team Kobe.

Facing the media today, he directly said: "46 shots for 81 points—that amount of shooting is his trademark!"

It seemed he felt that having once scored 62 points on 37 shots himself, if he had also taken 46 shots, he might not have done worse than Kobe.

Chris Bosh, as one of the involved players, finally recovered, "Last night was like a nightmare!"

Lakers’ teammate Brian Cook said, "I scored a combined 83 points with Kobe!"

"Zen Master" Phil Jackson said, "Michael Jordan might be losing sleep tonight!"—Kobe is only 28 years old and has already achieved such a "miracle." Who knows what greater actions he might deliver in the future, Jordan, don’t think your GOAT spot is secure!

Even David Stern was alarmed, he said, "I wouldn’t have any objections if Kobe wanted to move the team to the Eastern Conference!"

Moving to the Eastern Conference wasn’t what Stern meant; relocating from Los Angeles was David Stern’s actual implication.

What he meant was, Kobe could shine even if he went to a smaller city!

With so many superstars expressing their thoughts on Kobe’s single-game 81 points, the media naturally didn’t forget to mention Su Wan, who Kobe had been particularly mindful of recently.

Su Wan was interviewed in the locker room.

A reporter asked him, "Did you ever think Kobe could score 81 points against the Raptors?"

Su Wan shook his head, "I really didn’t expect it."

This left the surrounding reporters exchanging glances.

Huh?

Wait!

That’s not what they expected Su Wan to say.

"So, you are also shocked that Kobe scored 81 points?"

Su Wan shook his head, "It’s not that. Scoring 81 points in a single game is indeed impressive, but I didn’t expect that the Lakers, ranked seventh in the Western Conference, would struggle so much against the thirteenth-ranked Raptors in the Eastern Conference. Kobe had to score 81 points for them to win!"

Artest, overhearing, chimed in, "I didn’t expect that either!"

What followed was an impromptu "comedic dialogue" between the two:

"How many games have we played against the Raptors this season?"

"Two!"

"And I remember we were already off the court before the fourth quarter, weren’t we?"

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