The Way of Basketball: Never Talk Shit to Him!
Chapter 85 - 83 Su Wan’s Spirit (Fifth Update)

Chapter 85: Chapter 83 Su Wan’s Spirit (Fifth Update)

Kobe walked away, fuming.

But just as he reached the player’s tunnel, when reporters mentioned Su Wan, he lavished him with praise once again, "He’s a real fighter, deserving of everyone’s respect."

At the post-game press conference, Su Wan responded to "Kobe’s respect" once more, "I don’t care if he respects me or not, we beat them by 21 points tonight, so his respect is justified."

Then a reporter told him, "Kobe isn’t in good shape, he seems to be injured."

Su Wan’s heart skipped a beat, but he didn’t relent in his response, flipping his middle finger in a gesture that was somewhat indelicate, "See? I’m injured too!"

However, once the press conference was over, he still sent Erin a text message to inquire about Kobe’s condition:

——I heard he’s injured?

Erin replied to the text quickly:

——From what I know now, as soon as the game ended, Kobe went to get checked out with the team doctor. They say it’s a rib that’s bothering him, but it shouldn’t be anything serious.

Hearing "rib," Su Wan immediately grew alert:

Didn’t I break his damn rib?

But...

That shouldn’t be the case!

Artest could break Jordan’s ribs because Jordan was older, and his bones had become brittle. Kobe is 26 this year, at the peak of his career, and even though there was plenty of intense play today, and I indeed threw several elbows towards Kobe’s ribs, with my strength and power, it shouldn’t be enough to break them.

He had Bill Duffy bring in an expert to solve his dilemma.

The expert told him, "Under normal circumstances, it’s not possible, but if his bones have been under continuous stress, it could happen. Stress fractures form just like that."

Hearing this, Su Wan remembered that Kobe, in order to enhance his low-post play, had deliberately gained weight. But after playing a season, feeling he couldn’t adapt to the increased weight, he had slimmed down again.

He didn’t know if it was this season.

If it was this season...

Then it was possible that he broke Kobe’s ribs.

Su Wan started to reflect on whether he had gone too far, but thinking of his own dislocated finger, he felt that what he did was not unreasonable - intense play and a few bruises are inevitable.

Such injuries and the grave consequences caused by undercutting are essentially different.

Whether it’s a broken rib or a dislocated finger, neither is a serious injury that affects one’s career.

Not until the next day did Erin bring him the latest news:

——Kobe’s ribs aren’t broken, just a minor fracture. He’s expected to rest for a while and then be able to return to the court.

Before Su Wan could say anything, another piece of information came in:

——You don’t need to blame yourself for this. The doctor’s opinion is that the fracture was caused by multiple factors, although last night’s game was the gunshot of Sarajevo.

What Su Wan didn’t know was that the original Kobe had only played 66 games that season.

The 16 games he missed were due to the excessive load from his increased weight affecting his bones, leading to recurrent injuries to his shoulder and ankle.

Otherwise, given Kobe’s stubborn nature, how could he have agreed so readily to lose weight?

Of course, even if Su Wan didn’t know these details, he wouldn’t feel the guilt that Erin was worried about.

That morning, the Lakers vs. Pacers game "swept" all over the United States.

Especially the photo of Su Wan readjusting his dislocated finger himself became the headline news of all major media.

Numerous media outlets marveled at Su Wan’s toughness.

Multiple Indiana media called Su Wan a "natural-born Hoosier."

They gave Su Wan a high level of recognition.

Dwyane Wade commented on Su Wan’s actions, "Honestly, I was shocked. His move gave me goosebumps, and I felt electrified. He really... was amazing!"

LeBron was also asked about this, and he was somewhat reluctant but had to admit, "Su Wan is a tough guy, and his actions will becomeclassic moments in the NBA."

The journalist then asked, "If you were in the same situation, what would you choose?"

LeBron did not hesitate this time, "I think I would do the same. I’ve always been that kind of player, in fact, I never make my injuries public. I keep them to myself, and I always believe that injuries are no excuse for failure, and I never want to use injuries as an excuse."

When Su Wan saw LeBron’s responses, he began to doubt whether he had watched a fake NBA before his time travel.

LeBron...

Are you sure?

Do you really not use injuries as your excuse?

Su Wan really wanted to record all of LeBron’s statements now and release them all 20 years later. He believed that over 80% of the comments would be contradicted by his own actions.

Our "Chosen One" is just so inconsistent in what he says and does.

Su Wan’s Facebook followers also reached 200,000.

American fans really eat this stuff up.

Why could Allen Iverson gain countless loyal fans from a single Finals game?

Besides the fact that the victory was the Lakers’ only loss that year and his performance was outstanding, it was his belief in persevering on the court with injuries all over his body that truly attracted all fans.

Of course, later when he chased his wife with a gun, many fans saw their illusion shattered.

The scandal cost Allen Iverson a significant portion of his fanbase.

But even so, he still made the All-Star Eastern Conference starting lineup every year, which shows how huge his fanbase was— and that’s without the backing of Nike or Adidas.

If Allen Iverson had really signed with Nike back then...

Would the "Mamba Mentality" have become "The Answer Mentality"?

The answer is unknown, but from this day on, the League began to embrace the "Su Wan Spirit"!

Especially in Indiana, the "Su Wan Spirit" was spreading among every Pacers fan.

The name Su Wan thus became somewhat sacred!

However, what puzzled Su Wan was that no news about Kobe’s rib problem had been released by the afternoon.

The Lakers did update the injury list, placing Kobe on the "daily observation list" and changing his status to "doubtful", but the reasons given were a worsening shoulder and ankle injury, without a single word about the ribs.

Could it be that Erin had given false information?

That shouldn’t be the case!

Erin had never done anything so unprofessional.

Su Wan was baffled, and so was Vanessa. She questioned Kobe at home, "Why don’t you make your injury public?"

Kobe pursed his lips and remained silent.

He couldn’t tell Vanessa that not disclosing his rib injury was because he felt embarrassed that a rookie had cracked his rib in a confrontation, could he?

When it came to pride, he absolutely couldn’t make it public!

But there was something Kobe could tell Vanessa, "Su is a great opponent. Aside from Allen and Tracy, I finally have another matchup to look forward to. I can’t wait to play against him again!"

"You better heal your injuries first, Honey!"

Seeing Kobe change the subject, Vanessa rolled her eyes, left speechless. She eventually played a prank and gently pressed on Kobe’s cracked rib. Kobe played along with a cry and took her into his arms. They both started laughing.

It was unclear where his hand touched, but as their eyes met, the atmosphere immediately became intimate—just as Kobe was about to make a move.

Kobe’s eldest daughter, Natalia, hearing the noise from the living room, ran out of her room and looked at her parents curiously. The nearly 3-year-old couldn’t fully articulate what she wanted to say, "Daddy, Mommy... what are you doing?"

Vanessa quickly sat up and pulled the mischievous Kobe closer. She then picked up Natalia and prepared to take her back to her room. Before leaving, she gave Kobe a knowing look, "Daddy needs to rest now, let’s not disturb Daddy, okay, honey?"

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