The Way of Basketball: Never Talk Shit to Him!
Chapter 520 - 224: Redemption City

Chapter 520: Chapter 224: Redemption City

After the two trades, the Pacers’ lineup for the new season had taken shape...

Interior:

Shaquille O’Neal, Zach Randolph, Jermaine O’Neal, Paul Millsap.

Exterior:

Su Wan, Chauncey Billups, Anthony Parker, Arron Afflalo, Nate Robinson.

At first glance, quite fierce!

Upon closer inspection, it’s genuinely fucking fierce!

Otherwise, it wouldn’t have caused such a big stir.

Su Wan was also very satisfied with the current roster.

Although defensively, in the "Small Ball Era," they might get played to death.

But in the era of "traditional centers," this is the ultimate lineup.

Alright then, it’s just that Shaquille O’Neal would be 37 next year. If he were ten years younger, he’d blow the "Cosmic Warriors" out of the water!

After all, the Pacers have quite a few who can shoot threes: Su Wan, Billups, Anthony Parker.

Even from the interior, Jermaine O’Neal, Zach Randolph, and Millsap all possess solid three-point shooting ability.

And when it comes to strong inside attacks, this roster could literally make the "Cosmic Warriors" crap their pants.

Of course, if Shaquille O’Neal were ten years younger, this roster wouldn’t even be possible.

Even now, it’s still quite exaggerated.

It was almost the most explosive trade on July 1st.

Don’t let the small trading amount fool you; it was only 3 million.

But the significance of the deal itself was extraordinary.

Afterward, Larry Bird appeared before the media with Shaquille O’Neal, Billups, and Marc Gasol, who had just signed a 3-year, 10 million contract.

O’Neal was the absolute protagonist.

Many were surprised that he would sign with the Pacers.

Everyone knew that after Shaquille O’Neal was amnestied, he would definitely choose a strong team to compete for the championship.

But no one thought that Shaquille O’Neal would proactively stick himself onto the Pacers.

Especially after all the fuss he and Su Wan caused in the past years...

And...

Joining Su Wan’s team, wouldn’t it seem a bit too eager?

Shaquille gave his well-prepared excuse, "If Kobe can team up with Yao Ming to win a championship, why can’t I work with Su Wan to chase after the championship? If there’s an issue, Kobe was the one who did it first!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the reporters got excited.

They all knew Shaquille O’Neal’s pettiness was flaring up again.

But...

They loved this kind of explosive dynamic!

Originally, they thought the rivalry between Kobe and O’Neal was settled with Kobe’s championship win.—It was obvious to everyone, Shaquille was getting old, while the Lakers were at their prime. In the future, they might even win another championship and defend their title! At that point, Shaquille would be utterly out of reach, merely at the receiving end of a beating.

But who would have thought, the competitive Shaquille O’Neal would pull such a cunning move!

He joined Su Wan’s team directly, and this...

In front of Su Wan, Shaquille O’Neal might have lost face, but the suspense of his clash with Kobe returned.

It seemed, what he cared about more was the outcome of his rivalry with Kobe.

However, it didn’t take long for the reporters to realize that there was another person Shaquille O’Neal cared about.

When the media asked him why he only signed a 3 million "mid-level" deal, Shaquille said, "If I were still on the Cavaliers, I would be getting a 20 million contract, because my contribution is worth that 20 million!"

"LeBron was the worst teammate I ever had!"

"But working with Su Wan, there’s a chance that I might become the one dragging the team down, but I believe, he will still lead us to win the championship!"

"I’ve always thought that the contract you get should reflect the effort you put in!"

"This upcoming season with the Pacers, I can only earn a little over 3 million."

Listening to him, Billups’ eyes nearly popped out of his head.

Dude, can you lick boots like that?

You taking it this far, what am I supposed to do?

He thought for a moment and said, "Our joining the Pacers caused a huge stir, but we all know it’s only because of Su Wan. If we joined any other team, I don’t think it would cause such a stir!"

Marc Gasol was completely dumbfounded.

Damn, you guys are ruthless!

Pushing people right into a corner.

He steeled himself and said, "I was going to play another season in the European League, but I just couldn’t wait to team up with Su Wan, he’s the most incredible player in the world!"

What was supposed to be a regular press conference turned into a massive adulation session for Su Wan.

Soon, their statements at the press conference were all over the media.

Shaquille O’Neal’s words directly caused an uproar in Cleveland.

What do you mean you’d get 20 million on the Cavaliers, but only 3 million on the Pacers?

That’s just fucking disgusting!

LeBron James was also disgusted.

A few days ago, when he heard that Shaquille O’Neal had been amnestied, he almost burst out laughing.

But he really didn’t expect that this guy, after being amnestied, would go directly to Su Wan!

He humiliated you so badly, why would you still go to him?

You’re going to him is one thing, but why did you always make things difficult for me when we worked together?

When he heard Shaquille O’Neal say he’s only worth 3 million on the Pacers, but 20 million on the Cavaliers, LeBron was so angry he rolled his eyes.

Of course, what made him even angrier was...

Adding Billups, the Pacers just casually formed a "Multi-Giants" team!