The Way of Basketball: Never Talk Shit to Him!
Chapter 41 - 40 Thank You, LeBron

Chapter 41: Chapter 40 Thank You, LeBron

Fan Huo’en was a kind man, even as he staggered from being dunked on, he still reached out to embrace the falling Su Wan. Feeling this kindness, Su Wan patted his arm after landing.

In the silent Bradley Arena, the big screen showed a close-up of Su Wan.

Having completed such an explosive dunk, he didn’t perform the "King’s Step," didn’t "shake his shoulders," and had no celebratory gestures. With a stoic face, he quickly ran back to defense.

The Cavaliers understood him well by now.

So they knew that Su Wan wasn’t being low-key, but was extremely angry.

As for what he was angry about...

The score that the team had hardly managed to equalize was pulled apart again due to someone’s stubborn actions.

They still remembered what Su Wan had said on the bus.

Not just because it had been only two days ago, but also because those words were impressively striking:

I’m not someone who can’t accept defeat, but I refuse to accept such a pathetic way of losing!

After running back, he took the initiative to stand in front of Mo Williams.

A smile appeared on LeBron’s lips, taking this as Su Wan backing down to him.

It should have been this way earlier; the team’s general manager and head coach have to follow me, this city’s fans and sponsors recognize only me, what can "an outsider" like you do to compete with me?

Mo Williams only faced Su Wan in a matchup for three or four rounds, but the pressure Su was applying in defense was utterly palpable.

He would rather face LeBron than confront Su Wan.

"Clang!"

A completely blind shot missing the basket.

LeBron dashed along the space cleared by "Big Z," aiming to easily pick off the defensive rebound.

"Get out of the way!"

A loud bark!

And then LeBron saw Su Wan get to the ball a step faster than him.

What did he just yell at me?

More than being upset about Su Wan grabbing the rebound first, LeBron was struck by Su’s yell at him.

Get out of the way?

Did he actually tell me to get out of the way?

LeBron incredulously watched Su Wan’s retreating figure.

He suddenly felt like a clown.

How could he have thought this guy would back down to him?

"Pop!"

Racing full speed, Su Wan faced Reid and, without slowing down, performed a change of direction that completely shook Reid off to the side.

Reid, watching Su Wan’s move, had an expression as if he had seen a ghost.

Is this Huaxia man’s physical fitness that explosive?

Paul Silas, watching Su Wan’s maneuver, was also momentarily stunned, and his first reaction was:

This guy truly didn’t give his all during the physical test!

Previously, Su Wan had conserved his energy and rarely attempted such extreme moves. But now, wanting to win and release his emotions, he completely unleashed his control over his body in "The zone" mode.

Still, he knew to protect himself, hanging on the rim to stabilize his center of gravity after the two-handed dunk, before releasing his hands.

He definitely didn’t want to end up like Derek Rose, withering away before reaching his peak.

A murmur rose from the crowd.

They were true Milwaukee people, but the spectacle of Su Wan’s two offensive plays made them unconsciously want to switch allegiances.

Mo Williams was too scared to face Su Wan with the ball again, attempting a breakthrough.

Passing the ball to the wing, Michael Red then deceived Newel with a fake move and started his breakthrough, only to meet the help defense of Su Wan stepping up.

Unable to hold back, Reid collided and ended up stumbling himself.

Such weak power!

Su Wan’s strength was top-notch in his position but not the pinnacle. Even in "The zone" mode with better control over his strength, he still didn’t reach the top tier. However, Reid lost his balance upon contact, highlighting his poor core strength.

At that moment, Newel also got back in front of Reid, their coordinated defense forcing Reid to make a passing error.

He grabbed the ball, and just as Newell was picking up Speed, he saw a figure dash by, sprinting ahead of everyone else.

It was LeBron James!

"Pass me the ball!"

Su Wan decided to take advantage preemptively and completed the fast layup with the ball in his hands.

Standing at the baseline, LeBron, out of breath, looked at Su Wan with a face full of incomprehension.

This wasn’t the first time!

Why did this guy always ignore his superior fast-break awareness?

Couldn’t he play more like a team?

"Tweet!"

At that moment, the referee blew the whistle. Su Wan had scored 6 points, bringing the point difference back within a single possession, and the Bucks’ coach, feeling helpless, called for a timeout.

"Well done, man!" Paul Silas was boiling with excitement.

This Huaxia rookie’s explosive power was really something...

"Since I did so beautifully, can you give me full control of the ball later?" Su Wan asked knowingly, looking at Paul Silas’s troubled face, filled with a sense of absurdity.—He couldn’t believe Silas couldn’t see that if the Cavaliers wanted to win tonight’s game, they needed to give him the ball. But he just didn’t dare to give that order.

Just as expected, after the timeout, LeBron James took back control of the ball.

As the point guard of the team, as long as he didn’t want to pass the ball to Su Wan, there really weren’t many ways for Su Wan to get the ball. But Su Wan didn’t care anymore, he just vented his feelings to his heart’s content.

Eventually, led by LeBron James, the Bucks still ended up winning by 108 to 101, a 7-point margin.

If it weren’t for their allowing LeBron to rush to the basket for an "Iron-blooded layup" in the last five seconds, their final lead should have been 9 points.

In the second half transformed into the "Lone Wolf," Su Wan fully vented, scoring 20 points with 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block in the second half alone, totaling 26 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, and 1 block for the game.

His performance was exceptionally well-rounded.

And after venting, he didn’t sulk like he did after the loss to the Heat Team in the last match; he even took the time to sign autographs for domestic fans who specially came to support him.

At this moment, a Bucks fan shouted, "Hey Huaxia kid, how does it feel to rack up empty stats?"

While signing autographs, Su Wan looked up at him and said, "Honestly, you really should be thanking LeBron!"

Hearing this, the fans at the scene chuckled knowingly; they understood what Su Wan meant.

In fact, they felt that way too, had not LeBron repeatedly stood out whenever the Cavaliers tied the score, the Bucks would’ve certainly faced a loss tonight.

"Thank you, LeBron!"

Not sure who among the fans started it, Su Wan thought it must be a Huaxia fan who came especially for him, as the English sounded accented. But with that call, a group soon started chanting together:

"Thank you, LeBron!"

"Thank you, LeBron!"

Initially happy with his all-around performance of 32 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block, LeBron, upon hearing this through the courtside, quickened his step significantly.

Post-game interview:

"He brought us a lot of pressure; I felt at one point he was going to end the game tonight, it’s just unfortunate, Paul Silas seems not to know yet how to use him,"—Terry Porter, coach of the Bucks, commented on Su Wan;

"He is certainly the most talented newcomer, he showed enough strong impact, but we handled his breakthroughs well,"—Terry Porter commented on LeBron, who shot 40%;

"Uncle is a very expressive player, so it’s not a big deal!"— Paul Silas discussing Su Wan not passing to LeBron during fast breaks.

"Jose did very well tonight, but we all know what LeBron can bring to this team, we believe in that, and we always have,"—Silas discussing substituting Calderon with LeBron after tying the score.

"You know, we are a young team, (losing) is a phase we must go through, we are gelling, and from the data, you can see, my performance is getting better and better, I can do more, (tonight) was far from my best performance,"—LeBron discussing the loss tonight.

"We are gelling, uncle is a great player, I am the leader of this team, and we will have great chemistry between us, though not right now,"—LeBron discussing Su Wan;

"Uncle, everyone is saying now that the conflict between you and LeBron is getting deeper. Various signs during the game also indicate this. What do you think about this?"

"As a player of the Cavaliers, what should I say?"

"So, you indeed have a conflict with LeBron?"

"Everyone has conflicts when they lose; the focus of the conflict is merely that I want to do this, he wants to do that, I think it’s normal. If you don’t see it that way, I wouldn’t be surprised. I just want to win, everyone tells me losing is a phase rookies must go through, but I want to skip that phase. Magic won the championship in his first year, Tim Duncan in his second year, it proves that some rookies skipped the losing phase and tasted the joy of winning directly."

"So, you and LeBron argued because of the loss?"

"It’s like how you and your colleagues decide what report to publish as tomorrow’s headline."

"What do you think about how Paul Silas is using you? Outside people think he isn’t using you correctly!"

"He must have his reasons for getting this job!"

—Su Wan’s post-game interview.

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