Chapter 69: The Good-for-Nothing

Chapter 81: The Reject

General Manager William Henry has deployed a new starting lineup, including four substitutes. I must admit, his approach is terrifyingly bold! Although I’ve faced such tournament teams more than once, gambling remains gambling. William Henry’s recklessness might well ruin the entire match. Kobe Bryant’s warning was not mere alarmism. The Cavaliers’ second unit, aside from Darren Collison, seems ill-suited for the playoffs.

But do you think William Henry shares this view? The Cavaliers are tightly packed for this crucial showdown. That’s what makes Su Feng truly remarkable.

At the start of the fourth quarter, Kobe Bryant attempted to break straight into the Cavaliers, but today the Frenchman was in an utterly ordinary state. As the most flamboyant player on the Houston Rockets, when Kobe is strong, you can’t stop him—but when he’s off his game, it’s not nearly as dangerous.

His sharp drive made Collison tremble, and ultimately the French player tried to finish with an angry behind-the-back pass to Gary Neal.

However, not everyone is as handsome and useful as Su Feng. Kobe’s pass was slightly off. More importantly, Gary Neal hadn’t expected the Frenchman to act this way.

Thus, Kobe’s pass landed directly in Vitch’s arms. The camera caught a close-up of Vitch’s furious face; the old manager was extremely upset and wanted to sub Kobe out immediately!

“Manu’s passes always hover between the top ten and the top ten mistakes, but unfortunately, luck deserted him this time. The Rockets, immediately on court, surrendered possession to the Cavaliers. I can’t see what kind of performance the tournament’s second unit could deliver now.”

The Cavaliers’ reserves aren’t strong, but they have one advantage: they can run with Su Feng!

Speed—that’s what the Cavaliers need. At three-quarters court, Yi Jianlian and Murphy stopped in their tracks. The white and yellow, two big men, threatened from beyond the arc, and substitutes Diaw and Bonner had lost out. Should they retreat to the basket, or stay together?

Su Feng gave the Rockets no time to consider their substitute duo. He accelerated straight away, overtaking the moderately athletic Gary Neal, sidestepping Bonner’s sluggish frame, and slipped inside like an eel.

What next? Kobe Bryant returned to contest the layup. There was no choice—he was the only Spurs player with time to get back to the paint. But honestly, Kobe’s defense under the basket posed no real trouble for Su Feng.

Kobe reached out, blocking Su Feng for a moment, but it was futile. If the referee didn’t call a foul on the Frenchman, he was being merciful.

Su Feng scored with ease, bringing his tally to 25 points. He had already achieved a double-double through three quarters, but he had no intention of stopping.

After scoring, Su Feng quietly raised his fist in a gentle salute. Leonard sat impatiently on the bench, though his face betrayed no emotion.

If the Rockets fail to score, the gap will widen to double digits. A double-digit deficit brings a very different psychological pressure to athletes. Naturally, Vitch did not want this game to enter the fourth quarter with the threat of elimination looming.

Of course, he wanted to swap in Leonard, Parker, and the 21-year-old rookie. But Su Feng is a unique player—not everyone can play twelve minutes on sheer exhaustion. Vitch could only sigh inwardly about his young heart; it was indeed a blessing.

Neal had just arrived at Kobe’s side in the first half and didn’t want to get tangled with Su Feng. Suddenly, Kobe took control of the match, and Collison couldn’t muster enough strength to oppose him.

Yi Jianlian saw Kobe charging in and immediately reinforced the rim defense. When the Frenchman spotted an opening, he instantly passed to Boris Diaw, who was already unmarked.

French forward Diaw is undoubtedly the underrated “old beast”—despite some disfigurement, he’s a versatile wizard who can play all five positions.

Mid-range shooting is no problem for Diaw. Yi Jianlian wanted to switch his focus to defend Diaw, but it was too late. Diaw soared effortlessly. Yet the next moment, the French forward was engulfed in darkness.

Yes—it was Su Feng.

“And the defense is in place! My god, the Cavaliers don’t look much worse than the Rockets. Though Diaw wasn’t blocked, the play was badly disrupted. No, the shot is off, and the Frenchman missed his chance. Now, the Dallas Cavaliers have the opportunity to extend their lead again!”

Su Feng, with his tireless running, again and again rescued his team.

There, Yi Jianlian, as a mid-range spot-up player, had long been neglected. Duncan’s reinforced defense couldn’t disturb him. Yi scored two points, and Su Feng’s tally continued to climb. Afterwards, Yi Jianlian patted his chest, telling others, “I’m the one who scored over Duncan.”

Yi’s mid-range shot was just the warm-up. Twenty seconds later, Su Feng appeared at the second guest spot. The Chinese guard soared across half court, tormenting Kobe Bryant. At last, Su Feng retreated from the three-point line, receiving Collison’s pass.

If it had been two games ago, Kobe wouldn’t have worried about Su Feng’s three-point threat. Now, that shaggy-haired kid was already the most valuable player.

Su Feng nailed the three-pointer. The double-digit gap remained, and the Rockets were overwhelmed.

Though the Rockets’ morale surged after Leonard’s spectacular dunk, only twenty seconds later Su Feng drew a foul from Duncan with a swift layup, earning three points!

Seeing Su Feng in such form tonight, William Henry couldn’t help but gasp. Once an MVP commits fully, he can override any system or tactic!

Was it just bad luck to run into Su Feng tonight?

Physical fitness is now the only lifeline for Vitch and William Henry. The Cavaliers had thrown themselves into the fray from the start, even trying a half-court press to stifle the Rockets’ offense, which cost them dearly in stamina.

Now, William Henry and Vitch—two old men very close to each other—could only pray that the Cavaliers would unravel in the second half due to fatigue.

Can the Cavaliers hold out until the end? William Henry wasn’t sure. His arrangement meant throwing all his eggs in one basket. If you return to Dallas with a 2-0 lead, you’ll have no energy left.

He worried about his team’s performance, but as long as Su Feng was there, William Henry believed anything was possible, and hope remained.

This guy—he’s our star!

After three quarters, thanks to Henry Will’s miraculous three-for-four shooting in a single quarter, the Rockets managed to cut the deficit to seven. Though the gap wasn’t large, only they knew the thrill of maintaining a single-digit difference.

As Charles Barkley said, if not for the Rockets’ miraculous performance beyond the arc, they’d never have scored again.

Yet, Henry Will’s accuracy from three-point range frightened William Henry. His shots were so quick, nearly impossible to disrupt. His shot selection was audacious: if he saw even a sliver of opportunity, Green would decisively pull the trigger!

Three-point shooting is indeed a cost-effective offensive method—often, just a few shots can reduce a big difference or extend a lead. If a team in the league could maintain Henry Will’s three-point success rate and use it as their main offensive weapon, god knows how terrifying their fighting power would be.

But William Henry immediately shook his head. Henry Will’s three-point shooting wasn’t “normal.” Not everyone can play and maintain it. Few teams have such a forward.

What William Henry didn’t know was that in Oakland, a team had already been eliminated earlier this year but might attempt just that…

During halftime, Vitch never stopped talking. He did everything possible to contain Su Feng’s development. But Su Feng, seeing through the tactics, always found various ways to solve problems.

“Eleven steals, twenty-three points, three assists—after just three quarters, he already posted a beautiful stat line! Now, the only factor deciding who wins between Barkley and Shaq is the outcome of the match. Kenny Smith, the ‘neutral’ who didn’t bet, was naturally happy. Look at Barkley and William Henry. Both were sweating nervously. Honestly, the air conditioning at the ATT Center was excellent; Kobe Bryant was comfortable at the commentator’s desk.

The sweat of those two fat men didn’t come from their skin but from their hearts.

‘Eleven steals in three quarters—Su Feng has utterly revitalized the Cavaliers’ offense. The Rockets’ defense has been good enough; they left only the smallest gaps each time. But for a player like this, a single crack is enough.’ On ESPN, Mike Breen was also astonished by Su Feng’s performance. One thing must be admitted: the gap between the Cavaliers and the Rockets is indeed considerable.

Although fans of the Russian city team finally looked forward to their first score of the game, things were still dire for them. For now, the score stood at 15 to 3. The visiting team led, the home team trailed!

If they played straight through, the Cavaliers would surely win today. Unfortunately, basketball is much more complicated!

After entering regular rotation, the Cavaliers’ performance with the top five tigers was, without doubt, exceptional. Under Su Feng’s guidance, everyone could score. When the offense ended, everyone worked harder on defense. Meanwhile, the crowd began to worry about the Cavaliers, because soon, the performance of William Adams Miller and Henry Willner—the ‘super bench duo’—would be less than satisfactory. Would these two help their team consolidate their advantage, or would they push the team deeper into trouble?

When William Adams Miller shed his training suit and stepped onto the court, the photographers’ lenses focused almost entirely on him. Due to poor performance and locker room scandal, he had been thrust to the forefront by reporters.

Yet William Adams Miller appeared calm, as if nothing mattered. He cared nothing about public opinion off the court, nor seemed concerned about victory or defeat.

“Henry Will’s performance in the first two games can only be described as a disaster. William Adams Miller took only a few shots, scoring just four points. On offense, he had lost all his deterrent power since his days with the Lakers. On defense, Miller was sleepwalking. When he was on the floor, the Cavaliers’ loss rate soared. When Miller first joined the Cavaliers, everyone had high expectations, believing he was the key to their championship defense. Today, I hope this once all-powerful fighter can deliver an outstanding performance.”

“Play hard, man!” Henry Will reminded Miller fiercely after the timeout.

“Mind your own business,” Miller replied coldly, not bothering to look at Will.

When Miller and Will came onto the floor, Rockets fans seemed to see hope. On the first possession after the restart, Houston’s sixth man James Harden cut through the screen into the paint.

Cavaliers’ backup center Massimi was blocked by the experienced Collison. Now, the only one left to stop the attack was Miller! Yet Miller made no active effort to protect the rim. Seeing Harden approach, Miller solemnly extended a hand. Such distracted defense could hardly stop a young and energetic opponent from attacking hard.

Harden scored easily, and the Cavaliers’ defense was torn apart. Oklahoma City fans applauded, though it was unclear whether for Harden or Miller.

On offense, Will tried to rally Miller. Whatever happened in the locker room, the Jet hoped a professional player would at least earn his salary on the court.

ps: Hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm. By the way, please subscribe...

(End of chapter)