The Best Point Guard-Chapter 43 - 41: The Power of Sports Illustrated

"Little Sheep Su Xi: The Ultimate Dark Horse, The Genius-Killer of the National Tournament"

This grand headline from Sports Illustrated was placed in the most prominent spot in the latest issue, even stealing the spotlight from the cover star, LeBron James. That was because the font size for this title was just as large as the one used for ’The Chosen One’.

Flipping open the magazine revealed an incredibly detailed article.

It began with the accidental death of the super-genius Reggie Williams, noting that Su Xi was the only survivor of the car crash, the one person who had been wearing a seatbelt.

This opening immediately grabbed the reader’s attention.

The article then delved into Su Xi’s background. He was a player brought to Syracuse University through the back door by Reggie Williams. Everyone thought he would be the first person cut in the new season. But in a fair one-on-one challenge during training camp, he defeated last season’s starting point guard to become the team’s new starter.

Next came the famous ’Lil-Goat’ battle.

The article’s author wrote in a very vivid style, describing the entire away game against Georgetown. He depicted Su Xi as a nobody who broke through Georgetown’s iron curtain. When he emerged victorious after defeating Horror Rod, the entire Georgetown crowd was chanting his name. The magazine even included a photo of a Georgetown fan kissing Jack’s shoes.

Reading this, Su Xi couldn’t help but think, ’Why does this make me sound like some kind of legend?’

Meanwhile, ordinary readers grew more and more excited as they reached this part.

Then came the national tournament, and Su Xi’s words on the American Cable Network were also recounted.

The reporter emphasized that he had interviewed the star point guard of Syracuse University’s first opponent, Manhattan College. During that interview, the point guard had said he couldn’t wait to destroy Little Sheep Su Xi.

But Little Sheep Su Xi had rejected his interview request, saying he needed to practice.

The result of the game was that Little Sheep Su Xi tore Manhattan College apart, punishing their star player.

And this was just his first step on the path to the pinnacle of college basketball.

The reporter described the games in detail, portraying Su Xi’s strength as if he were a god descended to earth. Then came the matchups against Oklahoma State University and Auburn University... especially the Auburn game. He painted Su Xi as a superhero who stepped up in a moment of crisis and single-handedly took down Auburn University’s three core players. It even included a quote from Auburn’s head coach: "Without a doubt, we were taken out by Little Sheep Su Xi."

The article concluded with a vivid flourish.

Little Sheep Su Xi is ready to claim the national title. To all you geniuses itching to get into the NBA, watch out. Little Sheep Su Xi is coming, and he might just get drafted higher than any of you.

And at the very end, an editor’s note: In the recent Elite Eight matchup, Jack Su led Syracuse University to victory over the University of Oklahoma, finishing with 21 points and 10 assists to advance to the Final Four.

(Article by Eric Qin)

The influence of Sports Illustrated is immense.

Many players consider it an honor just to be featured in it. Making the cover is reserved for superstars or potential superstars of American basketball. And to have a feature article written in this tone, the subject must be among the elite of the elite.

This gave an unprecedented boost to Su Xi’s reputation. The name Little Sheep Su Xi was now spreading all across the country. Many basketball fans, even those who had never seen him play, were captivated by the article and drawn to him. NBA scouts were spurred into action, and NBA teams turned their attention to Syracuse University.

Larry Bird flew into a rage in his office, slamming the article down on his desk. He cursed, "What the hell is Sports Illustrated doing? Why aren’t they covering James, or Wade, or Bosh, or Syracuse, or TJ Ford? Why are they messing with my Little Sheep Su Xi?"

This left his assistant trembling with fear.

He didn’t know why the ’boss’ would suddenly fly off the handle like this. Was a rookie really worth getting so worked up about?

But as an assistant, he had to remind his boss, "Actually, this article is also the top headline on Yahoo Sports today. It’s getting a huge number of views online."

Yahoo was the quintessential American web portal. In 2003, its traffic was nearly unrivaled. Any home computer user would browse Yahoo upon opening their computer.

At this moment, almost every computer user interested in sports had seen something about Little Sheep Su Xi.

It was an unprecedented promotional campaign.

In a way, it had single-handedly elevated Su Xi to the same level as the top-tier rookies.

And because the article was so well-written, it attracted Su Xi’s first wave of dedicated fans.

Most importantly, Su Xi’s commercial value skyrocketed as a result.

When LeBron James’s agent, Goodwin, saw this, his eyes widened in shock. ’There’s this kind of marketing strategy? Oh my god, this kid must have a genius marketing team working for him. Just you wait, sponsors will be knocking on his door any minute now. Little Sheep Su Xi, a bizarre car crash, a legendary training camp story, leveling up all the way... Nobody can resist a hero with a story like that.’

In comparison, he even felt that his own packaging of LeBron James lacked a certain narrative flair... he had just directly defined him as ’The Chosen One’. Divinely anointed.

Kobe Bryant also received a call from his boss, Bass. The owner told him, "That point guard you recommended to me is famous now. A lot of teams are sniffing around. With our current draft pick, we have no chance of getting him anymore. I estimate he’ll be selected between picks 15 and 25 in the first round if he declares for the draft on the back of this hype."

Kobe was stunned. He originally thought a late first-round pick would be enough.

"No, I have to have him. You figure it out." Kobe was demanding with his boss, Bass. Even at a young age, he had the ambition of a workplace tyrant.

Within a single day, a seismic reaction rippled through the basketball world. This earthquake, however, was felt in the hearts of industry professionals and spread through word-of-mouth among the fans.

Everyone now knew that a super dark horse had emerged in the NCAA, a specialist in killing geniuses. He had a legendary story, a handsome face, and a cute nickname.

...

After finishing the magazine, Carmelo Anthony clapped his hands excitedly and said, "Jack, how much did you pay this reporter to write this for you? This is awesome! You’re definitely going to be a huge favorite in the NBA. Trust me, at the next game, countless media outlets will be there to interview you, and tons of scouts will be watching you. You’re famous!"

Pay him?

Su Xi held out his hands. "He wrote my story without my permission. Shouldn’t he be paying me a writing fee?"

Anthony nearly fainted.

"Do you have any idea how many players dream of being in Sports Illustrated? Even a tiny interview would get them excited and boost their stock. And they just did a special feature on you! That’s the kind of treatment reserved for players at my level, or LeBron James’s."

Anthony was extremely excited.

He was thrilled that Su Xi was getting major coverage from such an authoritative media outlet. He was now certain Su Xi would get widespread attention from the NBA. He even thought, ’In the Final Four, I have to set Jack up more. It would be amazing if we get to the NBA and keep playing on the same team.’

Su Xi got ready to go to the hospital to visit McNamara.

Carmelo was going to go with him, but he had a last-minute important interview that his prospective agent, Bill Daffy, had arranged for him.

Before the Final Four, the Syracuse University players returned to campus for a two-day break. After that, they would head out for the most, most, most important game—or two—of the year.

Their opponent in the Final Four was the South District champion, the Texas Longhorns.

In this game, Su Xi would face the first NCAA superstar of his basketball career: TJ Ford!

TJ Ford had become famous early on. In high school, he was already known throughout the country, having led his team to a terrifying 75-game winning streak. After enrolling at the University of Texas, he became their undisputed core player in his very first season. He was the first freshman in NCAA history to lead the nation in assists and single-handedly carried his team to the Sweet Sixteen. The media praised him as a faster Allen Iverson, an Allen Iverson who was better at passing.

This season, his achievements were even more astonishing. He was not only named MVP of the Big 12 Conference but was also the MVP of the recent South District tournament. In four national tournament games, he averaged 17.8 points, 8.8 assists, 3.3 steals, and 3.2 rebounds. In the Player of the Year polls by Sports Illustrated and The Sporting News, his name was ranked near the top.

Everyone knew he was going to the NBA. Everyone knew he would become an NBA star. Even in a draft class as loaded as this year’s, multiple mock drafts projected him to be selected at least in the top eight.

This would be a true test for Su Xi.

After learning their opponent would be the Longhorns, Jim Boham had Su Xi watch a lot of TJ Ford’s game tapes. He also reassured Su Xi, "Even if you’re beaten by TJ Ford, it’s nothing to be ashamed of. You’ll always be the best point guard for our Syracuse University, and you will definitely become the best point guard in Syracuse University’s history."

On his way to the hospital, Su Xi was completely preoccupied with how to deal with TJ Ford. Then, at the bottom of his dorm building, he ran into Huang Xiaoman, whom he hadn’t seen in a long time.

Seeing Huang Xiaoman, Su Xi subconsciously stopped... and walked over to her side.

This small act filled Huang Xiaoman with joy.

"Did you see the article in Sports Illustrated?" Huang Xiaoman asked, looking up at him with a hint of smug satisfaction.

"I did," Su Xi nodded.

"I asked Eric to write it. He’s the uncle of one of my friends, and he works at Sports Illustrated," Huang Xiaoman said. "And my own uncle works at Yahoo. They have a partnership, so they pushed the article."

Huh?

Su Xi was astonished. He looked at Huang Xiaoman, never imagining this was all her doing. But thinking back to the post she’d made on the Georgetown University BBS before his first game there... it wasn’t so hard to deduce.

It was just... who would have thought she would go so big this time? In the words of Anthony and the others, she had detonated a shockwave in the NCAA, and everyone who cared about basketball had seen the brilliant fireworks.

"Uh... thank you," Su Xi said.

"You’re welcome. It’s what I ought to do." Huang Xiaoman lifted her head. She was very brave, her eyes looking directly at Su Xi, her affection unconcealed.

Su Xi felt a little embarrassed.

"How have you been lately?" he asked.

"I’ve already finished all my university courses and gotten a few certifications," Huang Xiaoman said.

"You’ve always been so amazing. Your academic abilities are something I could never hope to match," Su Xi said with sincere admiration. He suddenly recalled the first time he met Huang Xiaoman and said, "Hey, how about you come with me to visit my teammate now, and then we can go eat at that Chinese restaurant together?"

"Okay!" Huang Xiaoman chirped, practically skipping. She automatically moved to Su Xi’s left side and, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, linked her arm with his.

Su Xi felt as if he’d been struck by lightning. His face instantly flushed red, and he could feel a tingling sensation spread through every pore of his body.

But he didn’t pull away from Huang Xiaoman’s touch.

Seeing Su Xi’s reaction, Huang Xiaoman couldn’t help but smile.

"Are we going to see McNamara? Should we buy some fruit?" Huang Xiaoman started making plans for Su Xi. She was always so thorough.

Su Xi agreed to everything she said.

Then, they started talking about the recent weather, the wild ducks by the lake, and the weeping willows.

"By the way, Jack. I heard you turned down Jessica Alba?" Huang Xiaoman suddenly said during a lull in the conversation.

Su Xi hadn’t even processed it.

Before he could, she continued, "Thank you for that."

Huh?

Thank me? 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

Su Xi couldn’t follow. Huang Xiaoman’s genius-level thinking was too sporadic for him.

If Qin Xing had been there, he would have understood in a second. Huang Xiaoman had boasted to him more than once, ’See? For my sake, Jack even turned down a Hollywood bombshell like Jessica Alba. What does that tell you? Hmm?’

Whenever she got to this part, Huang Xiaoman would proudly lift her chin.

And Qin Xing, aside from offering praise, never knew what else to say.

Although, in the eyes of Qin Xing and the other Chinese students, Huang Xiaoman’s looks and figure were in no way inferior to any Hollywood bombshell’s.

...