The Way of Basketball: Never Talk Shit to Him!
Chapter 42 - 41 Su Wan’s Satisfying Brush

Chapter 42: Chapter 41 Su Wan’s Satisfying Brush

On November 6th, there were a total of 12 games in the league.

Among them were high-profile teams like the Rockets and the Heat Team.

But the next morning, the game between the Cavaliers and the Bucks still made it to the sports sections of major media outlets.

New York Times: "Plus/Minus value -21, should the ’Chosen One’s’ style of play be adjusted?"

Milwaukee Sentinel: "With an undramatic victory in the opener, the unified cheers from the audience at the scene were: Thank you, LeBron!"

Los Angeles Times: "The whole world knows that there is an irreconcilable conflict between LeBron James and Su Wan!"

Cleveland Plain Dealer: "It’s only a matter of time before Paul Silas is dismissed; it’s the only way for Cleveland to get out of its current predicament!"

...

The New York media followed Charles Barkley’s perspective, questioning LeBron’s style of play; the Milwaukee media reported a post-match anecdote that somewhat affected LeBron’s media image; the Los Angeles media as usual, was exacerbating the conflict.

Only Cleveland’s media was honestly shifting the external focus to head coach Paul Silas, following Danny Ferri’s thoughts.

Danny Ferri, therefore, felt helpless.

"Chris, if I arrange for LeBron and Uncle to sit down and have a good talk now, do you think it’s a good idea?" he asked his assistant Chris Grant.

Chris asked, "Danny, are you sure LeBron and Uncle have a mutually beneficial relationship?"

This question was important; if LeBron and Su were vying for the same position, this talk would lay bare all their conflicts.

At the same time, Chris’s question forced Danny Ferri to face a dilemma he had been avoiding:

If the positions that LeBron and Su Wan were seeking were not the same, then why was there such a big conflict between them now!

Did he have to make a choice between the two again?

Danny Ferri was very resistant to making such a choice again.

The Cavaliers had already lost Andre Miller, Ricky Davis, and Carlos Bozer—one after another...

All of it was to get and better own LeBron James.

But...

Wasn’t it enough yet?

He didn’t want to lose Su Wan for another reason:

Whether it was Miller or Carlos Bozer, including the trade involving Ricky Davis, they were all completed before he became the general manager of the Cavaliers. With each new ruler, he felt no sentiment towards these three men, so he could trade them decisively.

Su Wan was his choice, a proof of his discerning eye!

In fact, besides LeBron James—the open secret—Su Wan was truly the first first-round rookie he had chosen.

As is well known, most in the NBA have a "maiden complex."

The Lakers are the most typical example.

They cherished "Magic" Johnson and Kobe, keeping them close to their hearts.

Compared to these two, both "Sky Hook" and "Shark" were less favored in Los Angeles.

Especially the "Shark."

At least the Lakers prepared a "retirement tour" for "Sky Hook."

Shaquille O’Neal, however, was traded to the Heat Team during his prime, becoming the most aggrieved "three consecutive championships MVP" in NBA history.

Would Jerry Buss have treated Shaquille O’Neal the same if O’Neal had started his rookie year with the Lakers?

Danny Ferri was so worried he was nearly balding.

Su Wan, however, no longer cared about these things; he didn’t even care about winning anymore.

After the games against the Heat Team and the Bucks, he confirmed one thing:

LeBron cared more about his status being threatened than winning.

Since the "City’s Son" of Cleveland didn’t want to win, there was no reason for Su Wan to worry about the Cavaliers’ record either.

With two days of rest, the Cavaliers challenged the Hawks on their home court. Su Wan and Antoine Walker passionately "trash-talked" each other, successfully triggering "The zone" mode. He then chose the most effortless way during "The zone," scoring an all-round stat line of 22 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block, accumulating 35,000 zone points.

Adding the earnings from the previous three games, his zone points had already reached an impressive 130,000.

It’s difficult for a team to win with one player not wanting to, and with two, it’s even harder.

to 85.

The Cavaliers suffered a defeat in Atlanta, marking the first "three-game losing streak" of the new season.

The loss sparked the ire of the Cleveland media, which began to lash out at the Cavaliers management: "When would be a more appropriate time for Paul Silas to be fired than now? What exactly is Danny Ferry waiting for?"

Their anger was not without reason:

Losing to a 1-win Heat Team and a 0-win Bucks wasn’t too embarrassing.

But losing to a 0-win Hawks was truly humiliating!

The Hawks were clearly gunning for the No.1 pick this season, and the fact that the Cavaliers couldn’t even beat a team like that was unacceptable to Clevelanders.

They believed the Cavaliers should make some changes, even if they couldn’t immediately reconcile the conflict between Su Wan and LeBron James, firing Paul Silas would be the first step towards improvement.

Unfortunately, their articles did not prompt any immediate change.

The Cavaliers management still had not released any news about firing Silas. frёewebnoѵēl.com

The team kept losing.

On November 18, the Cavaliers lost 89-96 to the New Orleans Hornets, another team in the midst of rebuilding, extending their losing streak to six games.

LeBron continued his usual rhetoric, "You know, my uncle and I have just started working together; this is only our seventh game together. It’s a process, and I feel we’re getting better and better. I believe the day will come soon."

He was actually starting to get a bit anxious himself.

He had even taken the initiative to approach Su Wan with a suggestion to stop the losing streak, but Su Wan had rejected him.

Additionally, there was something else...

Lately, Su Wan had completely stopped lashing out at the media and instead focused on his personal statistics.

During the past six losses, his averages were 24.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 5 assists, 1.5 steals, and 1 block per game; Su Wan averaged 25 points, 6 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and 1 steal, still scoring more than him on average.

Although Su Wan’s efficiency was not great, with an average field goal percentage of just 43%, LeBron’s was only 44%; it was truly a case of "the pot calling the kettle black."

What really bothered him was that Su Wan was not courteous to him at all, taking every opportunity to convert ball possession into statistics.

He watched helplessly as Su Wan stole many of the statistics that should have belonged to him.

If not for this, how could Su have matched his numbers?

"This guy’s completely lost it. I could have produced much more impressive stats, and now this kid’s ruined everything. When the hell are you going to get rid of him?" The next day, back in Cleveland from New Orleans, LeBron vented to his agent team as usual.

This time, the Goodwin brothers had good news for him:

"Some teams have been inquiring with Danny about the possibility of a trade involving the Huaxia rookie. We’re going to probe Danny’s reaction."

Upon hearing this, LeBron’s eyes lit up.

The hard times were about to be over!

That very night, Bill Duffy also heard the news and informed Su Wan.

Su Wan was in the process of improving his potential.

After recently shifting his focus to "harvesting zone value," his mood had stabilized considerably, and the rewards had been substantial:

Including the accumulation of the past three games, his "zone value" had broken through 240,000.

Reaching 245,000.

Su Wan first continued to improve his "ball control potential" from 77 to 85 points.

The rest was poured into "Breakthrough."

His biggest advantage now was his physical fitness, and control over his body after activating "The zone," as well as enhancing his "Dribbling" potential to 85 points. Naturally, improving "Breakthrough" was the optimal choice in the current situation.

This was also the optimal solution for the team’s "Boss" role.

In this era, only by developing ball-handling and breakthrough abilities could one be considered a "team core."

As this wave of "zone value" was invested, Su Wan’s "Breakthrough Ability" potential value rose from 68 to 80 points.

And the "zone value" was precisely zeroed out.

Time to slowly accumulate zone value again!

Of course, this "slowly" definitely needed to be in quotes. If this speed was still considered slow, then there was no such thing as fast. You have to understand, racking up 240,000 zone values in seven games was a pace not even Su Wan from the summer league and the Olympics could match.

Okay, lately the Cavaliers have been encountering quite a few weak teams.

From the Bucks to the Hawks to the Hornets, these teams were all clearly gunning for the League’s "class leader" position. Facing them, it was not certain whether accumulating statistics was actually more difficult than in the summer league. After all, Su Wan’s current strength was not something summer league him could compare to.

Honestly, Su Wan, who had been enjoying the past couple of days, really hoped that these days would continue.

Give me a season, and I’ll return you a "Ten Miles Slope Sword God."

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