Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters

Yu Fei showed Kobe a well-rounded arsenal as a ball-dominant core player.

First was the step-back jumper, then the rhythmic changes in ball handling that tore through Kobe's defense for an under-the-basket floater to score, followed by a fake that shook Kobe, and then a dunk.

Yu Fei's height and wingspan combined with his dribbling and shooting made him an unstoppable monster one-on-one.

What Kobe showcased, on the other hand, was the stability of a post player's inside attack.

This is the most significant difference between the No. 24 Kobe and the No. 8 Kobe.

No. 8 Kobe was more like a versatile outside scorer, playing like Jordan, but his offensive choices were more like Irving, who played alongside James, while No. 24 Kobe, whether in terms of style or offensive tendencies, was moving closer to Jordan after 1996.

The Bulls lacked an inside presence for output, so Jordan, as a guard, took over the team's post offense. The Lakers' current situation is not much different from that of the Bulls back then. After Shaquille O'Neal left, their inside line had no one to pose an effective threat. Zen Master's return had them playing the Triangle Offense, and the fundamental principle of the Triangle Offense is to form an offensive formation with triangular connections, with the player in the post as the strong side.

The Bulls' strong side was Jordan, and OK's strong side was Shaquille O'Neal; now, Kobe had to be that strong side.

Compared to Yu Fei, Kobe was a restricted core player; although the Lakers could give him unlimited shooting rights, he couldn't do whatever he wanted based on his preferences.

But in the first quarter's few rounds against Yu Fei, Kobe did not let down the Mamba name; his shooting accuracy was 100%, with low-post turnarounds and step-through layups, post-fadeaways, and shoulder-fake step-back jumpers. The post-offense he demonstrated was exactly what Yu Fei often saw himself doing in his dreams.

Halfway through the first quarter, Yu Fei actively called for the ball in the low post.

Since Sasha Vujacic, the Lakers' biggest defensive liability on the court, was guarding Yu Fei, the ball quickly got to Yu Fei.

According to the Bucks' scouting report, this year was Kobe's first year focusing on post-up plays, and Phil Jackson's second stint with the Lakers began in late June, which means that from that moment on, Kobe knew that the Lakers would play the Triangle Offense next season, and he would need to work heavily in the low post.

At best, he had less than five months to prepare.

Can someone master post moves to this degree in five months?

I don't know.

Yu Fei discarded distracting thoughts. Although he could overpower Vujacic with his body, he deliberately used a step-back to force close defense and then, just like Kobe's first play of the game, stepped past his opponent's side to score off the backboard.

The same move, Kobe faced Raja Bell, and Yu Fei played against Vujacic, the difficulty level cannot be compared, but Yu Fei still found rhythm in beating the underdog.

"Are you imitating me?"

After advancing to the frontcourt, Kobe proactively asked.

"What do you mean imitating?" Yu Fei firmly denied, "Do you have a patent on that move?"

Kobe said playfully, "You really should watch more of Michael's tapes."

"I'm starting to miss the No. 8 more and more," Yu Fei said, "No. 24 is just too annoying."

Soon the Lakers exposed their own problems.

Kobe was strong, but he could only overcome five opponents when he was in exceptional form.

Most of the time, he also needed his teammates to share some of the pressure.

But today, the Lakers, who advocated controlling the pace, were forced to restrain Smush Parker, who liked to shoot at will, and Lamar Odom toggled between normal and abnormal modes, ultimately choosing the latter. Read exclusive content at My Virtual Library Empire

These two were the biggest variables in the Lakers Team besides Kobe.

When Odom was in good form, the Lakers usually were able to execute beautiful inside and outside connections, but once Odom was out of form, the Lakers could only hope for a rough break from the outside.

That required not just Kobe's effort, but also Parker's performance.

But once Parker got going, he would play right into the hands of the fast-paced Bucks. Hence, the Lakers forcibly controlled the pace, forcing Kobe to coordinate with the others.

This was the Lakers' biggest issue.

Kobe had no consistently performing sidekick.

Yu Fei quickly shrugged off the pressure of the game because although Kobe was on form tonight, it wasn't the kind that could score 40-50 points.

The Bucks were trapping Kobe with the Iron Bucket Formation while letting Bell and Ariza take turns caring for him.

At any time, the Bucks could ensure that a defensive stronghold was in front of Kobe.

In such circumstances, even Kobe couldn't defy fate.

The halftime score was the Bucks leading the Lakers by 11 points, 59 to 48.

Kobe tried his best, getting 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists by halftime, but the situation was extremely unfavorable for the Lakers.

As another high school superstar, Kobe was somewhat envious of Yu Fei's situation.

He dared to defy Jordan at the outset of his career and was subsequently relegated to Milwaukee. What seemed like a bleak future turned out to match his personal style, as the Bucks molded a team around him. Yu Fei won two back-to-back championships, went through the brawl at The Palace of Auburn Hills, saw Ray Allen traded, and then single-handedly carried his team to the Eastern Conference Finals and bagged his second MVP award with his amazing scoring displays.

Yu Fei completed in four years what took Kobe eleven years to achieve in his career.

Now entering his fifth year as a professional, Yu Fei was putting up triple-doubles on average, and the Bucks had built another strong team around him.

How lucky could one person be?

Whenever Kobe felt he should be content with his current state, Yu Fei brought even more desire.