Have you no shame?

Chapter 17 How Could You?

In June 1999, the Dallas Cleveland Cavaliers looked roughly like this: a Most Valuable Player point guard capable of putting up double-doubles every game, a power forward who had lost his prime but could still pass, two perimeter players who combined might look like an old grandfather, and a frustrated backup who was merely a flash in the pan after arriving in Dallas... This group of guys, whom experts labeled as unlikely to win anything in the playoffs, had now marched into the Western Conference Finals without being eliminated. Although everyone felt they were far from winning it all, time was running out.

Back in Marrakech, even the local Dallas club had to admit that the Cleveland Cavaliers were truly relentless.

However, in Game 5 of the Marrakech series, Su Feng dragged the Houston Rockets into the mud, desperate to punch their ticket to the finals.

Throughout the basketball battle, you could spot Su Feng in every corner of the court. He could battle giants like Henry Will in the paint for points, or rise up right in front of Parker to block his seemingly inevitable layup.

Did you think he was a reckless guard running wild with sheer athleticism? Yet moments later, you would see him utilizing elite passing to guide the team's offense, helping teammates score with ease.

So, perhaps he was a traditional scorer, adept at driving and putting up points, only to find he was just as proficient at playmaking.

No, do not jump to conclusions. Even when Robert Henry Carl assigned defenders to shadow his every move, there was simply no stopping Su Feng's drives and shots.

Su Feng's eyes were bloodshot; he was once again pushed to the edge of a cliff. A moment of relief, and your team would collapse. Therefore, even if they had to grit their teeth and endure, even if the process was agonizingly difficult, Su Feng refused to let go.

Henry Will used a hook shot in the post against the Cleveland Cavaliers, giving Houston another opening. Yet on the very next possession, Su Feng executed a suicidal drive, launching himself into the air to lay the ball in before crashing heavily to the floor.

Collision after collision, fall after fall. Su Feng left Marrakech sweating and gasping for breath.

This was a desperate determination born of trust—trust from his teammates. This was the Texas cockroach spirit praised by Kobe Bryant. This was why Kobe Bryant admired Su Feng and the Dallas Cleveland Cavaliers so much.

The Houston Rockets unleashed all their heavy artillery, bombarding the Cavaliers through their core players. Yet when the smoke cleared, the bloodied Dallas squad was still standing.

"Why won't you people just die?" That was the lingering doubt in the minds of the Houston Rockets.

"We are playing a basketball game. We refuse to die." If such a dialogue existed, Su Feng certainly would have replied this way.

"You may not want to die, but you have to, because we are the superior team! Look around you, you're the only formidable presence. How long can you carry this alone?"

"Actually, I'm practically dead already. Give me just a little more time, and I will be..."

The passionate fans of Marrakech eagerly anticipated the impending finals, while the Houston Rockets still held the lead with seconds remaining before the final buzzer.

A one-point deficit, and the clock was winding down. Anyone else might have given up the fight. But not Su Feng. He would rather die fighting than surrender!

Thus, the audience witnessed the final frantic seconds, where Su Feng decisively broke through three defenders for a stellar finish, keeping the Cleveland Cavaliers alive by a single possession!

At that moment, Robert Henry Carl merely wanted to grab his tactical board, storm onto the court, and whack Su Feng over the head. Are you an idiot? What is the use of extending the game here? Can you still turn the tables? If you just conceded, we could have entered the next round early, and you could have taken an early vacation!

After scoring, amid the jeers of the Houston Rockets players, Su Feng proudly raised both arms.

You can kill me, but you cannot make me yield!

In this manner, at the most critical juncture, the Cleveland Cavaliers relied on Su Feng's unyielding plays to stubbornly push the series forward. What statistics did Su Feng post that night? He put up an incredible scoring explosion and nearly willed his team to victory!

A true Most Valuable Player leads his team forward in precisely this manner.

Su Feng once again became a global headline. Even if they ultimately fell to the Cleveland Cavaliers—or rather, the Rockets—Su Feng's passionate fans would never feel disappointed. Because Su Feng had given his absolute all. He never let down his fans, his teammates, the club management, or anyone who supported him.

Forty-three points, eight assists, a clutch performance—no one could have asked for more from Su Feng in the face of despair.

When Robert Henry Carl saw such miraculous plays somehow turning into points, he couldn't help but stare intently from the sideline. When an opponent possesses both superior depth and fortune, it is exceptionally difficult for the underdog to turn the tide.

In the end, the Houston Rockets secured a 104-95 victory on the road, closing out the series. Robert Henry Carl's veterans once again displayed their mastery. They were not old; they could still rule the basketball floor!

An exhausted Su Feng collapsed onto the court at the final buzzer, as if he had poured every ounce of his soul into every single playoff game over the past year. But if he didn't, who else could carry this team forward?

Barefoot on the podium, draped in a flag, Su Feng looked at Henry Will, but he couldn't muster a smile. What more could be said about this game? Everyone played at their highest level, but the gap in raw talent was simply there.

"It seems my flag didn't bring the Cleveland Cavaliers any good luck." After a year of hard work, Henry Will finally breathed a sigh of relief. He showed no rush to take off the flag, though his sympathetic gaze soon shifted toward Kobe Bryant.

Kobe Bryant did not mock Henry Will. He couldn't smile either. Su Feng had delivered a legendary performance, playing like a true MVP-tier superstar. Yet without the victory, all of it felt meaningless.

Looking at Su Feng sitting on the hardwood, he must have been heartbroken. Kobe Bryant liked Su Feng from the bottom of his heart. He worked hard, spoke very little, and dared to challenge authority just like he did.

Seeing Su Feng give everything only to fall short made Kobe Bryant feel heavy-hearted.

The Houston Rockets led the series 3-1. For the Cleveland Cavaliers to mount a comeback from here would be an arduous, nearly impossible task.

From being projected as the eighth seed prior to the postseason to reaching the conference finals, Su Feng's performance had been nothing short of stellar. Yet, aside from the championship trophy, there was nothing left to fight for.

That victory in the previous game seemed to open up a brand-new world for the Houston Rockets. After several games, Robert Henry Carl had finally cracked the code against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Attacking the paint against the Cleveland defense was practically lethal.

Su Feng was simply too ferocious, but he couldn't magically grow taller overnight. Robert Henry Carl was tough, but he couldn't strip off his suit and sub himself onto the court.

The Houston Rockets' advantage in sheer roster strength allowed them to secure consecutive wins and take a commanding lead. By this point, the Marrakech squad had firmly seized control of the series, putting them on the verge of returning to the finals for the first time in years!

Su Feng's individual brilliance was a rare sight in the top tier of the league. Meanwhile, the popularity of both the Cleveland Cavaliers and Su Feng soared to new heights. Through this grueling series, their image as iron-willed fighters became deeply etched in the hearts of the public.

During a post-game interview, Robert Henry Carl spoke candidly, admitting that Su Feng was perhaps the player he hated facing the most.

"My only thought right now is to beat him. He is a phenomenal opponent, but to be honest, I hate competing against an enemy like that!"

Robert Henry Carl didn't mince words. As veterans grow older, they dare not take unnecessary risks; their roster was aged, and extending series any further took a heavy toll on them. As it had been noted before when winning past titles, managing veteran minutes was paramount. One could easily understand why Robert Henry Carl felt so intense after battling Su Feng.

The cost of letting Su Feng score at will was forcing his older squad to endure extra minutes of grueling basketball. Still, for the Houston Rockets, they had survived the storm.

Su Feng refused to quit, dragging the series back to Dallas. Although this might very well be the final curtain call for the Cleveland Cavaliers, tickets were sold out instantly. Even facing elimination, the passionate fans of the Cleveland Cavaliers wanted to stand with the team until the very end.

After such a brutal battle, the Houston Rockets maintained their firepower, while misfortune struck the Cleveland Cavaliers. A fatigued Carter sprained his ankle in practice. Though the injury wasn't severe and he would recover in a few days, for a team facing elimination right then and there, a few days' recovery time made no difference.

Without Carter, what other options did Robert Henry Carl have on the bench? Players whose conditioning wasn't entirely at peak professional levels? They had created brief miracles during the early stages of the season, but that was just a short honeymoon phase. Did anyone seriously expect bench players to score twenty points a game now? That would be akin to hoping all the star players on the Houston Rockets suddenly suffered injuries.

"With a guy like that, I don't think there's any need to talk to you," someone joked, drawing laughter throughout the arena.

"I didn't want to talk to you either, Charles. I honestly don't know why I agreed to that stupid bet. But you can rest assured, a bet is a bet, and I am willing to honor it. Although the Cleveland Cavaliers won a brilliant game previously, I still maintain that the Houston Rockets held the upper hand throughout the series." Henry Will quickly shifted the topic back to the analysis of the matchup.

"Are you saying the injury doesn't matter? I admit they have respectable depth, but to be frank, losing certain role players doesn't drastically alter a team's ceiling. Their absence won't collapse the entire system."

"Are you certain, Charles? Who will the Cleveland Cavaliers deploy to handle the ball next? Will it be off-the-bench pieces or veterans past their prime? Even a minor missing screw in a precision instrument can lead to a major accident."

After losing the wager, Henry Will appeared surprisingly serious during the broadcast, weighing every word carefully.

Play after play, the action dazzled the crowd. In one of the most memorable sequences, an opposing player attempted an audacious play against Henry Will, only for the veteran to expertly intercept and turn defense into offense in a flash.

Thus, heading into Game 6, everyone knew the Cleveland Cavaliers were facing the ultimate uphill battle.

As it turned out, some role players weren't entirely useless. At times, they managed to spark a run or score through sheer hustle. But it was painfully obvious that individual efforts weren't always aligned with a cohesive team system; players were fighting for their own future contracts under limited minutes.

As a result, fans witnessed isolated, erratic isolation plays devoid of tactical flow. Su Feng, usually a quiet leader, could be seen shouting directives on the court, yet even he could not single-handedly rewrite the outcome.

These disjointed performances failed to help the team and instead accelerated the Cleveland Cavaliers' demise.

With no other choice, the coaching staff had to tighten the rotation, relying heavily on their core group while the rest of the bench watched.

The final stretch was a pure testament to the cockroach spirit. Out of tactical options, the Cleveland Cavaliers fought with their backs against the wall. The Houston Rockets relied on their absolute interior dominance to build a double-digit lead, controlling the glass completely. Yet, inspired by Su Feng, the Cleveland Cavaliers refused to roll over. They mounted steady defensive stands, organized counter-attacks, and pushed the pace. In the closing moments, the Dallas squad chased every loose ball as the crowd roared in support. It was a magnificent, defiant scene: the Dallas Cleveland Cavaliers fighting until the final second, while the resilient Su Feng and his teammates relentlessly pursued every single objective.

"That guy is an absolute stubborn fool!" Robert Henry Carl shouted from the bench, half-frustrated and half-awed. Su Feng's relentless grit forced the Houston Rockets to stay fully focused, deploying their main rotation down the stretch to secure the victory... Yet the Cleveland Cavaliers never stopped chasing, right until the final buzzer signaled the end.

This was the conclusion of the Dallas Cleveland Cavaliers' campaign.

Anyone else might have faded into an easily forgotten defeat. But as the buzzer sounded and the Houston Rockets players celebrated their return to the finals after six years, the fans of the Cleveland Cavaliers rose to their feet, applauding their fallen heroes.

"Stand up, your heroes don't deserve to look so dejected."

As Su Feng sat on the hardwood floor, he heard someone addressing him and lifted his head. Under the bright stadium lights, he clearly recognized the visitor. It was Robert Henry Carl.

"If I got depressed every time I faced a playoff exit, I'd have burned out long ago. Do you want to be the best player in the world? A setback like this is nothing. Look at Tim. Look at Manu. Look at me. It took us six years, six whole years, to get back to the finals. And you? It's only been a couple of years since you entered the league..."

Facing Su Feng's fierce determination, the locker room remained dead silent, no one uttering a word of complaint.

"I suppose... I'll still miss my spot," Henry Will suddenly chimed in with a lighthearted remark, drawing nervous, stifled chuckles from the players.

Robert Henry Carl looked at Henry Will and the rest of his unyielding players. Slowly, the tension in his brow relaxed into a warm smile.

"Henry Will, you old rascal. When I put you on the court next game, can you please play like a normal human being?"

He couldn't believe he was bantering with his rival coach right there on the floor. Shaking his head with a slight smile, Robert Henry Carl turned his attention back to his own players before glancing back down.

"In short, if I were you, I wouldn't dwell on the defeat. I'd soak in the applause and the honor!" Robert Henry Carl pointed toward the roaring stands, then patted Su Feng on the shoulder before rejoining his celebrating team. This stubbornly fierce competitor didn't seem so annoying after all.

Su Feng stood up, gazing up at over ten thousand fans cheering in unison for him. His teammates walked over, clapping him on the back without needing many words. Finally, Su Feng spoke up.

"Let's head back. I'm tired." Su Feng was physically and mentally drained. This season, they had come just one step short of the ultimate glory.

The Marrakech squad had finally returned to the finals after six years, and their passionate fans finally had a shot at capturing a championship. Yet at that moment, few neutral observers felt purely joyful about it, because Su Feng's heroic exit had captured the collective sympathy of the basketball world.

"In truth, there is nothing tragic here. The Cleveland Cavaliers' playoff run was not a failure; it was a resounding success. He became one of the youngest regular-season Most Valuable Players in history, and the first international-born superstar to claim the prestigious honor. He signed a massive endorsement deal, and the franchise will undoubtedly offer him a max extension this summer. Su Feng has become a symbol of basketball in Dallas and across the entire league. He is rightly mentioned in the same breath as legends like LeBron and Kobe. We must remember this is only his third year in the league. As for whether this season was a failure? I argue it was a triumph, and likely just the beginning of his peak years."

The day after the Cleveland Cavaliers were eliminated, prominent analysts published glowing assessments online. The prevailing sentiment was clear: despite falling 4-2 to the Houston Rockets in the Western Conference Finals, the epic battle put up by Su Feng and the Cleveland Cavaliers transcended a simple win-loss record.

These articles earned widespread acclaim throughout the sports world, catching the attention of even Robert Henry Carl during his downtime. Most notably, the veteran coach's post-series interview comments encapsulated the mutual respect earned on the floor.

"Yesterday, after the game, we saw you speaking directly to him for quite a while. Coach Carl, would you care to share what you told him?" a reporter asked, knowing the veteran was in high spirits after reaching the finals.

"Is it convenient to disclose? Not particularly," Robert Henry Carl replied, watching the amused reporters with a knowing smirk.

"It's nothing profound. Did you expect me to feed him the cliché that 'the future belongs to you'?" The reporters chuckled. Robert Henry Carl loved teasing players, but he never lacked genuine appreciation for greatness.

"I simply told him there is nothing terrifying about defeat. He is an exceptional competitor—a truly formidable player. He pushed my team to the absolute brink. Without a doubt, he forced us to dig deeper than anyone else could have. If there's any critique of this series, it's that he shouldn't have gone off quite so brilliantly in Game 5, which almost cost us entirely."

Though Robert Henry Carl's response was delivered with trademark wit, using such glowing praise for a young opponent proved just how deeply Su Feng had earned his respect.

The widespread acclaim confirmed that greatness transcends the final scoreboard, marking the true dawn of a new era.