The Way of Basketball: Never Talk Shit to Him!
Chapter 37 - 36 This Media Attack Really Works!

Chapter 37: Chapter 36 This Media Attack Really Works!

If he tried to wrestle the top dog position from LeBron James only to end up being traded by the Cavaliers,

Even if he later led another team to defeat the Cavaliers in the playoffs or the finals and won the championship before they did,

he wouldn’t be able to hide the fact that he lost to LeBron in the power struggle within the Cavaliers.

Su Wan didn’t like such stories.

He preferred to be the kind of player whom the Cavaliers management would rather offend LeBron James to keep him. He didn’t want to be kicked out like a "disowned dog."

Of course, achieving this goal would be very difficult.

He was well aware of what LeBron meant to Cleveland.

But still, it was 2004, not 2009!

LeBron James was also on the path to proving his abilities.

From that angle, the gap between him and LeBron James wasn’t that wide.

It was like a running race taking place in Cleveland, where LeBron currently had the advantage only because of his status as a local player and the sponsors’ logos on his jersey. If he started running and showed a better state than LeBron, could Cleveland just drag him off the track?

Maybe in the past, but in the past few years, Cleveland had dragged too many runners off this track, many of whom they had invited to race. If they recklessly dragged Su Wan out this time, they might scare away new competitors from the next race.

"No way, we absolutely can’t let their conflict continue to escalate. In this case, find a few media outlets and shift the blame for this loss onto Paul, saying that he didn’t make proper use of uncle, which led to the loss," one of them said.

In the General Manager’s office at the Quicken Loans Arena, upon learning that Su Wan had lost the match and vented anger on the bus, almost pointing a finger at LeBron James, Danny Ferry quickly asked his assistant Chris Grant to contact the media, preparing to sacrifice the "car" to protect the "general." They would shift the media’s focus away from Su Wan and LeBron to avoid further exposure of their conflict.

Sometimes, the excessive attention from the media only made things worse.

And then...

"Let’s leave it at that for now and observe the situation over the next couple of days!"

Unconsciously, Danny Ferry walked to the window again. The moonlight was bright, and the stars twinkled; tonight’s Cleveland skyline was very beautiful. If LeBron and Su Wan could shine their own light like this night sky, the future of the Cavaliers would be infinitely bright.

The next morning, news of the Heat Team’s victory over the Cavaliers swept through all major sports media.

Mainly because there were only three games yesterday.

And since it was Shaquille O’Neal’s debut with the Heat Team, it naturally drew a lot of attention.

Although the Heat Team won, the person who stole the spotlight was Su Wan.

His blocking of Dwyane Wade in the second half, his personal offensive performance, and the momentum the Cavaliers had shown in chasing points had received recognition from many media outlets.

Zach Lowe, a senior expert from ESPN, commented on the match: "The Cavaliers couldn’t win this game, and the coaching staff has to take the main responsibility. If I were the head coach of the Cavaliers, I would arrange at least four to five isolation plays for uncle, which he deserved based on his performance."

Coincidentally, the Cleveland Plain Dealer held the same opinion: "Paul Silas should realize the role that uncle needs to play in the team. He is the person that can relieve LeBron when he is being heavily guarded by the opponents, and his iso-play is sufficient to attract the opponent’s best perimeter defender."

When Paul Silas read these reports, he felt a buzzing in his head.

What, why is it all directed at me?

Do I not know the role that uncle can play?

But...

The key point is, someone he...

Doesn’t want to!

At this moment, Paul Silas clearly didn’t realize that his situation was becoming precarious.

But when Su Wan saw these news reports, he just laughed.

This was also considered an "old traditional skill."

Whenever there was a problem with LeBron’s team, regardless of the nature of the problem, the first person to take the blame was the head coach. He was not only the player with the most All-Star teammates and the most trades in his career, but he also had the most head coaches. From the year he entered the league in 2003 until 2024 when his son entered the league, he went through ten head coaches. On average, he changed head coaches every two years. Being in the same team with him didn’t just mean players were in a "high-risk profession," but head coaches were as well.

But Su Wan didn’t have the slightest intention of helping Silas stabilize his position as the head coach of the Cavaliers.

Who asked the guy to favor LeBron James from the start?

Su Wan was by no means vindictive, just petty. freeωebnovēl.c૦m

At half-past ten in the morning, he drove to the Quicken Loans Arena. After today’s regular training, the Cavaliers team would board the plane to Milwaukee. The Cavaliers were about to face "back-to-back away games," with the first battle against the Bucks and the second game against the Hawks Team. So he brought his luggage as well.

Brandon Malone stepped out of the meeting room and happened to meet Su Wan at the elevator. He had good news to share: "Paul and some of the assistant coaches have just been studying your game tapes, and he’s planning to arrange some isolation plays for you. Seize this opportunity, perform well, and if it goes well, these tactics will become a regular part of the Cavaliers’ playbook for the new season. You should know what this means."

Su Wan was somewhat surprised, but when he thought about the overwhelming questioning of Paul Silas in the media, he wasn’t that surprised anymore.

Malone showed Su Wan the tactical board in advance.

Paul Silas had put a lot of thought into the positioning alone, having designed several sets. Depending on Su Wan’s different offensive choices, he also arranged different formations.

"Additionally, to make up for your limited field of view, we’ve set up several tactical points for you. In case of obstacles during your breakthrough, you should look for players at these points..." Malone’s final introduction gave Su Wan a complete understanding of the tactical system that Paul Silas had tailored for him.

An absolute core-level tactical system!

Like the "One Star and Four Shooters" LeBron, the "UCLA System" Deron Williams, and Allen Iverson under the "Four Defenses and One Attack" Philly system, he would amplify his strengths in this system while his weaknesses, such as his less-than-ideal passing vision, would be minimized as much as possible.

In other words, he was about to deliver an even more impressive performance.

No wonder LeBron liked to create momentum!

This media attack really worked!

Just look at Paul Silas, a little media criticism and he’s immediately arranged tactics for him.

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