The Way of Basketball: Never Talk Shit to Him!
Chapter 598 - 239: This "Chosen One" is Really Odd!_4

Chapter 598: Chapter 239: This "Chosen One" is Really Odd!_4

Strength had never been something to underestimate.

Thankfully, in the final decisive phase, Su Wan scored 4 points with a 2-for-2 shooting performance, defeating Kevin Durant’s 2-for-1, sending a critical message to the "junior in the world":

No matter how many points you score, when it comes to crunch time, a younger brother is still a younger brother!

November ended with the Pacers achieving a record of 12 wins and 3 losses, still ranking first in the Eastern Conference.

This season of the NBA resembled the 1997–98 seasons from the last century, with the league undergoing a generational shift. The new generation hadn’t fully risen, and there were just a few sturdy veterans remaining.

Between 1996 and 1998, the league belonged to the Bulls and the Jazz Team.

And now, in the 2008–09 years, the league belonged to the Lakers, Celtics, and Pacers.

Some younger teams tried to emerge, but they were still being firmly suppressed.

This season was the same, with the Pacers first in the Eastern Conference and the Lakers first in the Western, both with records of 12 wins and 3 losses. The East and West kept them separated, like "kings who never meet."

Su Wan’s stats for the first month of the new season were 25.4 points, 6.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.8 steals, and 1.2 blocks.

Aside from him, the Pacers’ other players posted the following stats:

Zach Randolph averaged 21.2 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game; Little O’Neal 19.6 points, 11 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 2 blocks; Chauncey Billups averaged 14.8 points and 10.6 assists.

Randolph was in the peak form of his career.

Little O’Neal, with the help of Su Wan and others, had seen a significant improvement compared to last season, enough for a standard max contract, if not the very top.

As for Billups, even Su Wan hadn’t anticipated his changes.

An average of 10.6 assists per game was a new career-high for him, ranking second in the league in assists, just behind Steve Nash, by a margin of only 0.4.

In Su Wan’s opinion, Chauncey Billups was very likely to become the "Assist King" this season!

His change wasn’t surprising either.

Since Su had developed his catch-and-shoot ability, especially beyond the three-point line, his need for ball control had significantly decreased.

And Little O’Neal was an enhanced version of "Little Si."

Afflalo also possessed a reliable catch-and-shoot ability.

Plus, with Randolph’s one-on-one play in the post, they helped stretch the floor for him.

Honestly, this was a Point Guard version of "One Star and Four Shooters." Not to mention, on a good shooting night, racking up a dozen or more assists was no problem at all.

In fact, it proved, having many assists sometimes has little to do with your field of view.

When Billups was asked about setting a new career-high for assists per game this season, he humbly said, "Mainly because my teammates played well!"

Shaquille O’Neal would often remember the mature face of that youngster in Cleveland...

You wonder, they’re all people, but why is the gap between them so big?

"Su Wan has given up 2–3 Scoring Kings, thousands of points, out of sacrifice. He always thinks about how to make his teammates comfortable and changes his own style to suit them. Many may not realize, but Su has changed this season too. He’s reduced his own ball-handling time and passed more responsibilities to Billups," Shaquille O’Neal shifted his tone, "This is the kind of awareness LeBron James doesn’t have. He always plays in one system where everyone revolves around him. Since entering the league in 2003, almost 2010 now, this is why Su has earned 4 championships, while he hasn’t even reached the Finals!"

In the first game of December, the Pacers faced the Cavaliers. Shaquille O’Neal once again took a shot at LeBron.

LeBron could only laugh in frustration...

No way!

Can’t you exaggerate a bit, or will you die?

2–3 "Scoring Kings" less, how many years has he been in the league?

Including this season, that’s 6 seasons, where he’s already been "Scoring King" for two. That leaves four seasons, and this one isn’t over, making it 3 seasons in total.

Do you mean he could win "Scoring King" every year?

Who does he think he is?

Jordan?

That’s funny!

And also...

Can I only play one type of tactic?

"I can do anything on the court, whether it’s scoring, passing, or rebounding. I influence the game in every way - that’s my style of basketball. I try to impact the game in every aspect. I am capable of these things, so (Shaquille O’Neal’s comments) are wrong!"

LeBron James corrected the smearing from Shaquille O’Neal in front of the media.

Then, in that evening’s game...

He didn’t manage to accomplish scoring, rebounding, nor passing.

With Shaquille O’Neal back on the bench and Little O’Neal back on the court, it meant the Pacers could reinstate their defensive lineup from two years prior.

Although Afflalo couldn’t quite match Artest.

But Su’s defensive capabilities were widely recognized, and he was only a step away from the "Best Defensive Player Award."

He could play Artest’s role.

Together with Randolph compressing space in the post...

They could effectively restrict LeBron’s performance.

The Cavaliers this season lost to the Boston Celtics because of perimeter double teams and inside help defense that contained LeBron.

Keep in mind that at this point, Kevin Garnett was seriously injured and his mobility was limited, yet he could still restrain LeBron so completely.