The Way of Basketball: Never Talk Shit to Him!
Chapter 81 - 79: He is Kobe, not Michael Jordan. (First update)

Chapter 81: Chapter 79: He is Kobe, not Michael Jordan. (First update)

Kobe was unruly at this stage.

His unruliness wasn’t just directed toward outsiders; he treated his Lakers teammates with the same attitude.

It was a coldness akin to that of a snake.

In the "Eagle County incident," his teammates ignored his dire situation, making him feel isolated. And like the paranoid player he was, his response to isolation was to isolate the whole world, treating everyone as an enemy.

The only exception was Vanessa.

From the "Chosen One" to the subject of public scorn, only Vanessa steadfastly stood by his side, sharing both his advances and retreats.

Su Wan’s response touched on his sensitive nerves, prompting him to strike back even more ruthlessly.

But Su Wan was no pushover.

Upon hearing Kobe’s response from a reporter, he immediately said, "No wonder Del Harris had him play as a substitute for so long."

During Kobe’s rookie season, he only averaged 15.4 minutes of playtime per game, which increased to just about 25 minutes in his second season.

What Su Wan meant was:

The coaching team was afraid Kobe would break down crying, which is why they reduced his playtime.

The tension between the two sides intensified, fueling the media’s anticipation for the upcoming Pacers versus Lakers game.

However, before that, the Pacers needed to get through two rounds of tough "back-to-back" games.

Having rested for four days at the start of the month, the Pacers were facing a demanding schedule of five "back-to-back" rounds, including two "4 games in 3 days" stints. This schedule tested the Pacers’ physical fitness reserves and the veterans’ health; unfortunately, Reggie Miller’s old knee injury flared up during the "back-to-back" schedule, forcing him off the court in the second round against the Phoenix Suns, with preliminary medical checks indicating that Reggie might only return by the end of the month.

This meant he would miss the game against the Lakers.

On January 17th, after finishing the second round of "back-to-back" games, the exhausted Pacers team returned to Indiana, preparing to host the Miami Heat the next day. Then, on January 20th, the highly anticipated "Pacers-Lakers Battle" would take place.

Kobe vs. Su Wan!

Su Wan returned home, waking up at 11 am on the 17th after having slept deeply; he had never felt as clear-headed as he did right now in the past week.

The continual "back-to-back" journey was truly a mental torment.

He’d rather engage in bullfighting with Artest in the training ground for three consecutive days than go through such a schedule again.

Unfortunately, he still had to face a similar schedule this month.

He must become a superstar!

Su Wan reaffirmed this thought; only then would the league be cautious in scheduling his games.

The first thing he did after waking up was to turn on various sports channels and browse today’s sports news, a habit for Su Wan.

Yesterday was an NBA "Super Game Day" with a total of 11 games, so there was plenty of news. However, the back-and-forth between Su Wan and Kobe still dominated the sports channels.

Over the past week, their exchanges had escalated to the point where the atmosphere no longer resembled a basketball game but rather a fight about to unfold in an octagonal cage.

Around 1 pm, Su Wan suddenly received a call from Dwyane Wade; however, as soon as he picked up, a deep, husky voice greeted him before he could speak: "Hey, guys, we’re at the XX hotel, and as the host, shouldn’t you treat us to a drink?"

This was...

Shaquille O’Neal!?

Su Wan raised an eyebrow slightly; his relationship with this "Shark" wasn’t that warm, was it? But with Wade shouting loudly next to him, urging Su Wan to hurry to the hotel and show them around, he got ready and went.

As soon as he arrived at the hotel, stepping out of his Mercedes, Shaquille O’Neal and Wade were already waiting at the hotel entrance. The sunglass-wearing Shaquille, imposing as a small mountain, overwhelmed him with enthusiasm, far more than Wade beside him.

Once the conversation started, Shaquille opened up a map of Yan Country, which explained why the "Shark" was suddenly so friendly.

"Uncle, I’ve been following your verbal battle with Kobe, and you’re really awesome. Don’t let that guy intimidate you; just stand up to him and make him lose face, I’m your biggest fan!"

It turns out that Su Wan’s relentless jabs at Kobe over the past few days had been satisfying for him.

Honestly, considering Shaquille O’Neal’s personality, it’s a miracle that the "OK" duo managed to work together for seven years. People say Kobe is petty, but Shaq’s pettiness isn’t far behind. Of course, if one were to discuss it, this is also a trait of a "superstar."

Like Michael Jordan, who is also very petty.

"All right, buddy, have you decided which home court to take us to?" Once they got in the car, Wade became excited.

He was referring to nightclubs.

Since entering the league in ’03 until now, he already had three home courts in Miami. In those clubs, he was like a fish in water. He believed that, with Su Wan’s popularity, even though he had only been there for a couple of months, he must have at least one "home court."

The shitty thing was, Su Wan hadn’t yet been to a nightclub.

It wasn’t that he wasn’t interested in women.

He’d simply been too caught up in his struggle to have time to explore the nightclubs in the United States of 2004. Not wanting to show his inexperience, he decisively scrapped the idea of taking them to a nightclub and muttered, "Nightclubs? What’s so great about those? There are two of the top ten nightclubs in the United States in Miami, isn’t that enough for you? In Indiana, you should experience the Speed!"

Indiana just happened to have a small-scale racing event today.

And it was a private race with no tickets sold to the public.

But when Su Wan mentioned bringing friends to experience it, the organizers quickly received a phone call and opened up a green channel for the three of them.

Shaquille O’Neal knew a bit about racing and was acquainted with some big shots. When he entered the venue and saw some "big shots" he normally wouldn’t meet, he was so excited that he shook Wade beside him, almost squealing like a groundhog.

He enjoyed the trip immensely.

He said that the next time Su Wan visited Miami, he and Wade would definitely treat him right.

Seeing his chance, Su Wan immediately asked, "Besides the beaches and nightclubs, what else does Miami have?"

They couldn’t really give an answer to that.

In the end, it was Shaquille who said, "The hottest babes!"

Hmm...

In that regard, Indiana was indeed outmatched!

After having fun all afternoon, the next day, Su Wan and the two brothers, Wade and Shaquille, faced off on the basketball court. He was certain that after watching the car race yesterday, these two goofballs had found a new place to play, because today in the game, they could hardly muster any energy and were practically sleepwalking.

A car race shouldn’t be exhausting like this.

Stan Van Gundy, who was on the sidelines, got angry a few times but it didn’t change their attitudes.

Eventually, the Pacers beat the Heat 90 to 81, winning by 9 points.

The Heat didn’t take the loss too seriously, as they were currently leading the Eastern Conference, having won 5 of their past 7 games, so the team’s momentum was very strong.

But for the Pacers, this win came just in the nick of time.

Due to a "back-to-back" "devil’s schedule," the Pacers had lost 3 of their past 5 games, falling from fourth to fifth in the Eastern standings, dangerously close to sixth, and their lead was not substantial.

Defeating the Heat helped them solidify their position.

Wade could clearly perceive Su Wan’s progress.

Shaquille O’Neal, however, furrowed his brows and said to Su Wan, "Buddy, if that’s all you’ve got, it’s going to be tough to beat Kobe. Much as I have issues with the guy, I have to admit, his skills are top-notch for a shooting guard. If you don’t perform better in the next game, you’re going to lose badly. Kobe will destroy you."

Wade, listening to this, felt somewhat bitter.

No...

Calling your ex all these nice things in front of me? That’s not really appropriate, right?

He spoke up, "I believe Uncle will definitely put on a great performance!"

Su Wan, quietly looking at Wade, Shaquille, and the absent Kobe performing "drama," firmly stated, "Even if I’m no match for Kobe, I’ll tear a layer off his skin!"

That attitude was exactly what Shaquille O’Neal wanted to see in Su Wan; he patted Su Wan’s shoulder, "Brother, it’s all on you now!"

Before Su Wan left the court, a unified chant rose from the crowd, the people of Indiana sang a hero’s praise, hoping for his victory over Kobe. —Ever since he had delivered "justice" in San Antonio, the Pacers fans’ fervor for him had only intensified.

"The Voice of the Pacers," Bobby Leonard, remarked emotionally, "Indiana hasn’t seen such a charismatic newcomer in a long while!"

The last was undoubtedly Reggie Miller.

A slender frame, brimming with endless fighting spirit!

The whole city regarded him as a "spiritual leader."

But his NBA journey was somewhat bumpy, a 17-year career with only one trip to the Finals, ultimately falling just short of the championship in a 2-4 defeat.

Reggie Miller was a symbol of struggle, and also one of regret.

Su Wan was very different in this respect.

He was always on the winning side, whether against LeBron, Detroit, or San Antonio, he always had the last laugh.

Victors always carried a distinct allure.

In December, Su Wan’s jersey sales in Indiana nearly matched those of Reggie Miller.

Now, with over 10 days left in January, Su Wan’s jersey sales had already surpassed those of Reggie Miller, making significant waves in the overall league sales.

The "Class of ’04" as a whole wasn’t very prominent; Dwight Howard had proven his future potential in just two and a half months, but he still had a long way to go before making a notable performance; Okafor, as the "immediate best solution" from the "Class of ’04," averaging 15 points and 10 rebounds, was good for a traditional center, but lacked some exciting qualities;

The rest were simply potentials with abilities that needed time to develop.

Su Wan seemed less like he belonged to the "Class of ’04" and more like the "Class of ’03"!

Every time he thought about this, Bobby Leonard would chuckle and repeat the phrase he’d been saying lately, "How on earth did we get him!"

In the post-game interviews.

"Uncle is a very spirited guy, Kobe too, I look forward to their battle... you ask who I think will win? I’d, of course, love to support my old pal, but just like they saw, Uncle and the Pacers just beat the Heat; I can’t ignore him!" — Shaquille O’Neal discussing the upcoming Su Wan vs Kobe.

"Kobe is the player I respect most, Uncle is my good brother, I can only watch this match as a spectator and hope both perform well." — Dwyane Wade chose not to take sides; he wanted to see a quality game that would score a 9.

"Nervous? Why be nervous? The Lakers are just twelfth in the West, we just defeated the top team in the East, so there’s nothing to be nervous about. It’s Kobe, not Michael Jordan." — Su Wan responding to the upcoming game against the Lakers.