Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters

When Starkhouse saw that the Wizards had put Yu Fei on him for defense, his first thought was that there must have been a communication problem with the opponent's defense.

Yu Fei was too tall, not quite looking like a Small Forward, but looking at the other players on the Wizards' positions, center White, Power Forward Brown, Shooting Guard Hamilton, Point Guard Whitney... No mistake, in this lineup, Yu Fei was the Small Forward.

"Has anyone ever told you, clowns are those who don't know their own strength?"

With the ball in hand, Starkhouse prepared to use his speed to get past Yu Fei.

Sitting off the court, Yu Fei had been measuring Starkhouse against the standard of a young Jordan, but there was always something indescribably odd about him.

In terms of style, Starkhouse's finishing ability, C&S (catch & shoot) and driving were of an extremely high standard, and his series of one-on-one plays against Hamilton showcased his solid takeover ability, but, Yu Fei still felt something odd.

However, through observing the one-on-one between Starkhouse and Hamilton, Yu Fei couldn't pinpoint the source of the oddity, because the latter's ability to compete was so poor it almost shattered upon touch.

Only when he personally faced off against Starkhouse did Yu Fei find the crux of the problem—the dribbling! Although Starkhouse was proficient in all offensive skills, if dribbling was required, the effectiveness of his skills would significantly decrease.

This was the biggest difference between Starkhouse and Jordan, and also the reason why even though he averaged nearly 30 points last season, he was still seen as a detriment to the team.

How could someone who lacked the ability to beat defenses with his dribbling, and who nearly averaged 30 points a game with a 40% shooting rate, lead the whole team?

Starkhouse's strong drive was stopped by Yu Fei's lateral movement.

This not only disrupted his plan, but also threw off Starkhouse's offensive rhythm. Yu Fei, despite being 206 centimeters tall, had agility that was sufficient to match up against Small Forwards. His weight gain plan over the summer ensured he wasn't at a disadvantage even against star players like Starkhouse.

With his path to the basket blocked and only a dozen seconds left on the offensive clock, Yu Fei believed the ball should be passed to reorganize the attack.

But it was 2001, an era where star players felt obligated to put on a bad shot selection show for the audience.

Starkhouse, facing Yu Fei's defense, forcefully took the shot.

"Bang!"

However, Starkhouse missed, but Big Ben caught the offensive rebound in front of Brown and tossed it out to Dana Barros on the perimeter.

Barros's hands were swift like a knife, hitting the three-pointer.
Enjoy new stories from m-v l'e|m,p| y r

23 to 11

"Kwame, can you be a little tougher?" Collins exploded in anger. They had finally managed to stop Starkhouse on one play, yet they couldn't secure the defensive rebound.

Brown, being a young man who cared about saving face, was eager to make amends after being bested.

On the offensive end, Brown set a strong screen on Big Ben like a mad bull.

This doesn't look good... Yu Fei frowned, because it looked like Big Ben had been outpositioned by Brown, but in fact, he was simply giving Brown a chance to receive the ball. His defensive stance hadn't budged an inch, his legs stuck to Brown's body like nails.

This was Big Ben, a historical-level defender who managed to single-handedly guard Shaquille O'Neal in the Finals without being turned into a toy—how could Brown possibly succeed in a one-on-one?

Whitney passed the ball, and after Brown received it, he sharply backed down, then turned, aiming to finish over the top of Big Ben with his height.

The result was that Brown's backdown didn't achieve the effect he wanted.

Instead, as he shot, Big Ben leaped up and delivered his fourth block of the quarter.

The Detroit Pistons' counterattack!

Starkhouse sprinted like a racehorse.

"Jerry, watch your back!"

If he could hear his teammate's warning, what happened next would not have occurred.

Starkhouse, eager to show off a big play, suddenly realized someone was closing in from behind just as he jumped. By the time he reacted, it was too late.

Unbeknownst to him, Yu Fei had already caught up. As Starkhouse swung for the dunk, Yu Fei leapt from the side, hand pressing on the ball, blocking the fast break in the most brutal manner.

Starkhouse fell from the sky as Yu Fei picked up the ball on the ground, the referee with no reaction.

That was a legal defense!

Yu Fei rapidly advanced forward, recalling the method of pacing his shots taught to him by Chris Whitney before the game.

The pacing must align with the frequency of breathing.

Align with it...

Yu Fei slowed down the pace. In the frontcourt, only Big Ben realized what he was about to do.

This was Big Ben in his prime; his defense could cover from the paint to beyond the three-point line because his size was both a disadvantage and an advantage. The disadvantage was that some larger inside players could shoot at heights out of his reach, while the advantage was that he had one of the most frightening coverage areas in defensive history and the quality and rate of his help and recovery defense.

Big Ben's looming block shot out like a ghost.

Yet, this shot was merely a feint by Yu Fei to lure him in. The onrushing Big Ben was now out of control. Yu Fei leaned slightly and then straightened up to shoot, letting his body collide with Big Ben in the most intimate way possible, too blatant for even a referee biased against rookies to let slide.

"Whistle!"

That was a shot from beyond the three-point line, a three-point foul.

No, it's not over yet!

Even after being knocked off balance by Big Ben, Yu Fei still found a sliver of opportunity in that limited space. Though only his muscle memory guided his hands, on the basketball court, that was everything.

He merely nudged the ball towards the basket, a sheer act of bodily inertia.

Then—

"Bang!!!"

"Frye scores four points!!!"

"This young man has become D.C.'s biggest surprise this year, whenever he's on the court, the Wizards Team comes alive!"

Brown excitedly ran over to pull Yu Fei up, "Great shot, great shot, Big Fei, you're amazing!"

"Hmph, that shot is nothing special," Yu Fei said arrogantly as he stood up, turned to Big Ben, and said, "I told you, you can't block me."

Big Ben, who regarded defense as his lifeline, looked at Yu Fei coldly, "No one can talk to me like that."

"I'll talk like that until you block me. What can you do about it?"

Brown watched, his heart pounding. He now realized it was only natural for Yu Fei to have a falling out with Jordan.

Although there was something off about Jordan, Yu Fei himself was the kind of person who seemed to have a need to ruffle everyone's feathers.

You either became his friend or his enemy; he didn't discriminate with his trash-talking.

As Yu Fei prepared for the bonus free throw, the Detroit Pistons suddenly called for a timeout.

Rick Carlisle had seen enough of Yu Fei's show and hoped to use a timeout to disrupt the rhythm of the game.

"Big Ben, what do you think of that kid?" Carlisle asked with a smile.

With a stony face, Big Ben said, "An arrogant brat, nothing special."

"Exactly, you shouldn't let this kid distract you too much." Carlisle made a substitution, taking out Michael Curry and bringing in Starkhouse at shooting guard. Then he sent in the backup forward Corliss Williamson, "Big Nasty, that rookie is yours."

On the Wizards side, Collins, who was pleasantly surprised by Fei's performance, decided to take out Whitney and Hamilton and bring in Tyronn Lue and Hubert Davis.

With the top two players not on the court, Yu Fei was the de facto core player of this lineup.

Yu Fei had mixed feelings about Collins.

He could feel that Collins was trying to give him opportunities to perform, and if it weren't for Jordan, he might have already been starting. But at the same time, he was frustrated with Collins for being utterly subservient to Jordan.

This was not how a coach should behave.

After the timeout, as Yu Fei walked onto the court, he noticed that the Detroit Pistons had put on a forward who looked particularly sturdy—or more accurately, particularly fat.

Clearly, he was targeted at him.

Both coaches had their strategies: one side made Yu Fei the core player, while the other targeted him with a burly man to push him around.

Considering that one coach resembled Biden and the other Jim Carrey, Yu Fei couldn't say who was more reliable.

Yu Fei made the bonus free throw.

15 to 23

The moment Yu Fei and Williams engaged in physical confrontation off the ball, Yu Fei knew the purpose of sending him on the court.

It was simply to mess with him.

Although Williams was only 201 cm tall, he weighed 245 pounds (111 kg) and played in a very savage manner that relied on pushing and bumping. Not an ounce of his flesh seemed to be wasted, making the nickname "Big Nasty" all the more fitting.

Using his physical advantage, Williams pushed Yu Fei out of the paint, received the ball, and completed a hook shot.

25 to 15

However, Williams's impact was limited to the offensive end.

On the defensive side, his weight became his burden.

He couldn't keep up with Yu Fei's drives, and every time he was forced to rely on Big Ben to cover for him.

Whenever Big Ben abandoned his defensive position to help out on Yu Fei, Yu Fei's passes would leave him caught between two places.

Carlisle's strategy certainly had an effect, but it was double-edged. The positive was that Yu Fei was indeed hindered by Williams, but the downside was that Yu Fei could breeze past Williams as easily as crossing an empty road at dawn.

The two sides went back and forth, offsetting each other's advantage, and by the end of the first quarter, the gap neither narrowed nor widened.

30 to 22

The first quarter ended.

(1) To trot out the same old tune: Those who say that the finals in '04 was all about Roaring Celestial's roar and Big Ben's backing up clearly haven't watched that year's finals.