"Jack!!!"

Carlos Boozer charged over excitedly. He jumped up to bump chests with Su Xi and was nearly knocked flat on his back.

"When did you get so powerful, Jack?! It’s unbelievable! You’re so fast, so explosive, so strong... Your defense is a hundred times better!"

Ah Bu roared with excitement, "Chris Webber is a total pushover in front of you!"

Ah Ka rushed in from the side, slapping Su Xi hard on the head. "That’s right! That’s the way! Take them down! You’re the Governor of California!"

Ah Ka and Ah Bu were Su Xi’s ride-or-die friends.

LeBron James came over afterward to high-five Su Xi. He was a bit surprised, even incredulous. He hadn’t expected Su Xi’s defense to be so strong, nor that he’d actually catch his pass and throw down a vicious dunk. ’When did he get so fast and explosive?’

Watching his teammates rush over to Su Xi to celebrate excitedly, James felt a pang of jealousy. ’This was supposed to be my debut.’

Stephen Silas was immensely proud. He kept telling his father, Paul Silas, "See that, Head Coach? Jack’s defense is fully developed, all thanks to my help. I told you he was a Payton-type player. I feel like he’s even more Payton than Payton."

Every son wants to prove himself to his father.

Paul Silas was inwardly very pleased, but he didn’t show it. When Su Xi returned to the bench, the coach went over and criticized his recent gamble of a block. "If Bibby had passed to Brad Miller back there," he said, "our defense would have completely collapsed."

Su Xi nodded.

He admitted it was a gamble.

But it was a gamble that had paid off.

If it hadn’t, the result would have been exactly what the head coach described.

"But you played very well," Paul Silas continued, "with a lot of passion. From now on, be a little more steady. Based on those last few plays, you’ve already put yourself in an unassailable position. Don’t try to win the war in a single battle. Chris Webber is a superstar, not the Berlin Wall—you can’t tear him down overnight."

After offering some praise, Silas cautioned Su Xi not to get carried away. He needed to know when to quit while he was ahead. A superstar of Webber’s caliber wouldn’t stay down for long. If Webber suddenly went off, any gains would be wiped out by the losses.

Su Xi remained silent.

He knew Paul Silas was right, but it still didn’t sit well with him. A feeling of resentment lingered.

’Why should I let you shut me down? Why should I have to listen to this whole arena curse my name? Why do you get to chase me down at full speed and get violent with me?’

’Just because you’re a superstar and I’m just Su Xi, the rookie?’

Su Xi refused to accept it.

’So, I’m going to turn things upside down and see what happens.’

’Let’s see if all of Sacramento can even handle the sight of my back.’

This was the swagger etched into Su Xi’s very bones.

BWEET!

The whistle blew, and the game resumed.

Chris Webber returned to the court, having just composed himself on the bench. He was a veteran, after all, who had seen it all during his years in the league; he was no longer an impulsive hothead. Once he determined that Su Xi wasn’t a pushover, he decided to change his mindset.

Adelman suggested that he focus on scoring off the ball for a while, avoiding direct confrontations with Su Xi. Webber readily agreed.

In simpler terms, he would no longer be the primary offensive initiator. Instead, he would let his teammates create opportunities for him.

It was a shift from creating his own shot to having the offense create shots for him.

In a way, this was an admission of defeat. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

It stood in stark contrast to his pre-game trash talk about annihilating Su Xi.

Mike Bibby brought the ball past half-court again. Su Xi wasn’t on him; he had switched defensive assignments with LeBron James and was now guarding Christie.

Doug Christie was the Kings’ lockdown perimeter defender. He had made the All-Defensive Team for three consecutive years and was named to the First Team just last year. He was a player whose ability far outstripped his fame.

Of course, his greatest claim to fame in the NBA was being notoriously henpecked. His wife, Jackie, was a formidable woman, hostile to any female who got near Christie—including his female doctors. She and Christie had once gotten into a big fight with Lakers forward Fox and actually won. But the most bizarre story of all was that his wife had once openly walked Christie down the street on a leash attached to his ankle. Because of this, Christie was also known as the NBA’s number one S&M practitioner.

A man with a wife like that had to be a strong defender.

But Su Xi wasn’t there to have a defensive battle with him.

Su Xi shadowed his every move.

As Mike Bibby and Chris executed a pick-and-roll, drawing the defense before passing to Webber... James had just switched onto Webber, bracing himself against him.

Su Xi shot forward like a predator.

Webber didn’t even have time to react before Su Xi was on him. Su Xi got right into his body, wrapped his arms around the ball in Webber’s hands, and with a powerful, vicious tug, ripped it away!

Su Xi used every ounce of his strength, unleashing a surge of explosive power.

The massive Webber was thrown off balance, and the ball was literally torn from his grasp by Su Xi.

The entire arena erupted.

No one had expected Su Xi to be so savage.

This was an outright mugging in broad daylight.

Charles Barkley exclaimed on the broadcast, "I’ve never seen a rookie this ferocious in his first game. Does he not need a warm-up period?"

"I feel like the banner tonight shouldn’t read, ’Welcome to the NBA, Little Sheep Su Xi.’ It should read, ’I finally made it to the fucking NBA, and I AM Little Sheep Su Xi.’"

Charles Barkley was voicing the exact thoughts of every fan watching at home.

Su Xi was like an armed robber, and Webber was the unlucky victim who’d just been cleaned out.