Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters-Chapter 437 - 292: Victory or Defeat is Just a Matter of a Moment

Chapter 437: Chapter 292: Victory or Defeat is Just a Matter of a Moment

Fei retreated to the backcourt, thinking it was just an ordinary defensive possession, only to see James actively clear out to isolate Raja Bell as a response to Fei’s basket in the previous round.

Bell naturally didn’t want to let James succeed, but with plenty of space, James’s penetration could be said to be unsolvable.

Bell first faced a physical defeat, and then was completely overwhelmed by talent.

In the blink of an eye, James charged into the basket like a sports car and dunked fiercely.

However, Fei still wasn’t sure if this was a deliberate response to himself.

If it was a response, calling for a pick and roll to force a switch and then scoring one-on-one would seem more formal.

This time, the Bucks’ offense wasn’t initiated by Fei.

Fei simply stood at the top of the arc, while Kevin Martin, like a ghost, burst under the basket on the weak side.

The entire arena erupted in cheers; although it was only the second season for Martin, having passed just a quarter, he had turned from Fei’s blemish into his highlight.

If not for Big Fei strongly advising against consensus and urging the team to draft this overlooked gem, with the Bucks’ draft position in the past few years, the chances of picking such a prize were slim.

Now, Martin was playing to his strengths, reaching the free-throw line and opting for a floater instead of driving to the basket to draw fouls, breaking his personal habit.

“Swish!”

To a player with an excellent touch, the difference between a floater and a one-handed shot was almost nonexistent, and Martin quickly mastered this skill to challenge the big men.

“You rushed a little,” Fei said. “If you let the Lithuanian close in, you could still float it, and you’d have more space to pass.”

Martin respectfully responded, “Understood.”

The Bucks quickly got back on defense, just to see the Knight reaching the frontcourt, with James once again appearing ready to take on a one-on-one matchup.

This time, Fei was certain that LeBron wanted to prove something in the Christmas Day showcase.

Moreover, he had ample reason to.

Since entering the League, both the League and Nike had strived to mold him as the next master of professional basketball. However, two years before he entered the League, Fei burst onto the scene, stealing the protagonist’s script.

Thus, the born-to-be-king persona could not be lost, and the co-star status along with Fei had to be maintained.

Only, in the first two years of his career, James, while proving his talent was real, couldn’t compare to the historical start that Fei had.

James was desperate to do something to prove himself.

Tonight was an opportunity.

If he could put on a spectacular performance in front of Fei, even dominate the game at the Bradley Center, the many behind-the-scenes efforts would become much easier.

The sports world’s public opinion is ultimately a game of rounds; whoever performs well in the moment becomes the king of public sentiment.

James fiercely attacked Bell, but ended up provoking Bell’s real fire.

Originally willing to casually get through this game, if he were truly blown out there would be nothing to say, as the Little Emperor’s talent was indeed visible to the naked eye.

But now, it seemed like LeBron was treating him like a Steve Nash-like defensive liability, downright disrespectful.

Bell lost his defensive position under the tank-like drive of James, but with a backhand he grabbed hold of the opponent’s arm, and yanked hard.

James was forcefully halted, and the referee also called a defensive foul on Bell.

The fouled James just gave Bell an indifferent look, seemingly unconcerned.

He had grown accustomed to opponents violently intercepting his drives.

His penetration to a defender was much like Shaquille O’Neal’s post moves; in an era where hand-checking was banned, stopping him one-on-one required extraordinary measures.

Subsequently, the Bucks’ defense started to change.

James’s one-on-one penetrations might be unstoppable, but against a zone defense, he and his teammates’ shooting touch would be tested.

If they didn’t make shots, the threat of the zone defense would fully emerge, thereby suppressing James’s penetrations.

James chose to pass the ball to Larry Hughes outside, to see if he could make the shot.

Hughes threw a brick.

Fei grabbed the long rebound.

Since Bron had shown his hand, it was his turn to counter.

The difference between Fei’s approach and James’s was that James would hesitantly attack a stronger defender like Bell, whereas Fei had a straightforward attitude. If the little brother wanted to claim the sports headlines for the next few days with his in-game performance, then he deserved an opportunity.

Fei called Bell for a pick and roll, bringing James over.

James defended with all his might but was never able to keep up with Fei’s rhythm, either veering left or right.

Suddenly, Fei made a fierce Tim Hardaway-style crossover under his legs to shake off James and naturally followed with a jump shot.

“Swish!”

“Bron, if you want to play, then come play,” Fei said. “Let me see how much you’ve improved.”

Fei seemed without malice, and his tone was calm, but James had an instinctual dislike for that patronizing tone.

When dealing with Fei privately, he could suppress that feeling with rationality, but now, James didn’t want anyone telling him what to do.

He remained silent.

Without a response, through his expression, Fei already knew the answer.

“Raja, starting now, we switch defense.”

This wasn’t a request, it was an order.

Bell knew when to maintain his dignity as an elite defender and when to obediently roll aside and stay out of the way.

There were three kinds of players that Yu Fei, as a small forward, was not good at defending against.

One was the fully developed Danny Granger with his unrivaled shooting skills. Yu Fei, burdened with offense, didn’t have the energy to chase after them all over the court.

Another was the king of one-on-one with balanced left and right hands and explosive first steps like McGrady.

The last kind was the so-called smaller players, who naturally had a speed advantage.

James was a variant of the second kind; his first step was fast, but not so fast as to catch one off guard. What made him formidable was that he was a size bigger than McGrady, with no difference between his left and right hands. Just by forcefully tearing open a slight gap, for the defenders, the defense was over.

No one could stop James when he charged forward like a train.

Therefore, Yu Fei’s defense against James depended on one hand on the scale the referees allowed and on the other hand on the intensity of the rim protection from the inside line.

But after seeing Kwame Brown be forcefully overpowered by James several times previously, Yu Fei felt he could not count on him tonight.

Suddenly, James chose to attack on Yu Fei’s left side.

Yu Fei reached out to foul; it was his way of testing the referees’ tolerance.

The referee’s attitude was: do as you please.

James’s penetrative speed was hindered by Yu Fei, and his train-like layup was also heavily disrupted by Brown; his unstoppable breakthrough finally failed.

“Was there no foul?”

James shouted out, subconsciously spreading his hands in doubt.

Ever since his fame rose from ABCD Camp as a sophomore, James had always been the darling of heaven, which was why he was sensitive to the officiating.

Yu Fei ignored the Little Emperor, who was complaining to the referees, and sprinted forward with the poise of a dragon and the ferocity of a tiger. Crossing half-court, he casually glanced at the stands and noticed the attention of the young tennis superstar, who had been invited by LeBron James to Milwaukee, was on him.

Yu Fei caught the ball at the free-throw line, took a big step forward and leaped, his left hand in the air performing the classic gesture of “Karl Malone may be a ringless CJB, but he’s willing to listen.”

“BOMM!!!”

The slightly cool home court of the Bucks was ignited by Yu Fei’s dunk.

Just as ABC’s Mike Breen said, “LeBron James must understand that this is Frye’s dojo. Everyone who comes here is compelled to stand up and shout his name!”

“Frye!”

“Frye!”

“Frye…!”

James would not forget how on opening night, Yu Fei extinguished those cries of “LeBron” at Quicken Loans Arena.

That was exactly what he intended to do at Bradley Center.

With that belief, James tore through Yu Fei’s defense fiercely, then charged forward.

Yu Fei tried to use his body to block, but was immediately pushed aside by James.

James forced his way into the crowded area under the basket and found space to score.

Afterward, he let out a roar and glared fiercely at Brown as if to say: You disgrace of a draft first pick dare to block the king?

Brown gloomily picked up the ball and said to Yu Fei, “Are you going to let your little bro run wild on our home court like this?”

“Just inbound the ball,” replied Yu Fei.

Meanwile, on the sidelines, Karl had already realized that Brown’s talent for rim protection was not enough against James’s power when driving to the basket.

It was unreasonable to expect Brown to secure the rim against James; fortunately, the Bucks had other options.

Karl looked at Mutombo, “Dikembe, get ready to go in and show Kwame how to protect the rim.”

Yu Fei advanced with the ball; the Knight’s setup was the same as before, with Hughes matching up against him.

Yu Fei admired this about Little Emperor, aside from coach’s arrangements, he didn’t demand his teammates switch defenses like some narrow-minded individuals.

Since LeBron himself didn’t come forward, Yu Fei had to call for the pick-and-roll to invite him over.

This time, James planned to trap Yu Fei with Hughes before he could react.

The plan was perfect, but the execution stumbled at the first step.

Hughes was too aggressive, stepped forward for the steal, attempting to make Yu Fei lose the ball in a flash. James, on the other hand, was too prudent, making sure not to be out of position first, with pressure coming second.

The conflicting defensive tactics of the two gave Yu Fei a significant opening.

Yu Fei, facing the middle lane, powered up, instantly dribbling the ball elegantly from behind his back between his legs with his right hand, continued with his left, and with one more step, speared through the shield like a spear, breaking through the double-team formed by the Knight’s best defender and the most talented player.

Big Z could never have anticipated that the double-team of James and Hughes would break so quickly, leaving him almost no time to react.

In less than a second of hesitance, Yu Fei leaped powerfully in front of him, riding over the Lithuanian’s annoying bald head, violently slamming down a dunk that exploded the atmosphere in the arena.

“And One!”

“Frye, facing three, asserts his dominance at the Bradley Center!”

Some who had been waiting to see Yu Fei and James’s showdown now understood that the gap they had wasn’t slowly widening.

It was just that in a single instant, the difference between them had become clear.

Yu Fei even had the leisure to invite Sha Wa for dinner after making the additional free throw, while James needed to seriously consider what he had to do to recover the impression points from the audience.

Everyone who watched the game agreed: James was very talented.

It was just that Yu Fei belonged to another level.

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