MTLNOVEL Chapter 203 Emperor's New Clothes
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After defeating the Timberwolves, the Bucks rested for two days at home, then headed to the away game in Indiana.
The Pacers set a unique league record last season.
They were the only team last season to pull off a three-game sweep against the Bucks.
Jermaine O'Neal played against the Bucks like Ultraman with the red light flashing.
Therefore, the Pacers, along with the Mavericks, were dubbed the two biggest nemesis teams of the Bucks.
Yet, this nemesis couldn't even face the Bucks in the playoffs before being eliminated, which was a big regret last season. For those who resented the Bucks, the stylistic matchup was a fact; if the Bucks met the Pacers in the playoffs, they were likely to be upset.
So why did the Pacers not even get the chance to stand in front of the Bucks?
The Pacers' new president, Larry Bird, made it clear with his actions: it was all Isiah Thomas's fault.
Thomas felt that Bird was prejudiced against him because, during his playing days, he made comments that if Bird were a black bird and not a white bird, he would be just another good bird.
"Larry and I never got the chance to work together. What disappoints me is that he didn't give me that chance," Thomas told ESPN writer David Aldridge, "I know he harbors resentment about what happened back then, but that's in the past now, and I'm disappointed that he didn't give himself the opportunity to get to know me. I think if he did, he might like me."
As for the claim that Thomas was fired purely out of personal vendetta, Bird didn't give it any attention. Instead, he cited the classic "three-year theory," "I've said that a team needs a new coach after three years."
Interestingly, while Thomas was on the verge of being fired, Jermaine O'Neal, who was playing for Team USA as a free agent, issued a warning to management.
"If it wasn't for Isiah Thomas, I wouldn't be here. He is not just my coach, but also my second father. I don't care who you get to coach. If you cannot find a coach who gets us to compete hard every night, I think I have no reason to stay."
Not long after, the Pacers announced the sacking of Thomas.
As if it were intentional, Bird had just suggested that he believed a coach should coach a team for a maximum of three years, and that belief conveniently fit his situation. He had brought the Pacers to the finals within three years and then stepped down from coaching. Now, the team had been treading water under Thomas's leadership for three consecutive years, and a coaching change seemed very normal.
However, when Bird brought in his good friend Rick Carlisle, he signed him to a four-year contract.
This effectively said: That's right, I fucking hate Thomas, and the whole damn three-year theory was just an excuse!
At the time of the incident, people thought Jermaine O'Neal would leave the team indignantly for his second father, just as he had indicated before.
However, Jermaine O'Neal didn't waste a second mourning the departure of Isiah Thomas; he directly signed a 7-year, 120 million US dollar extension contract with the Pacers.
As for what he had previously said? Jermaine O'Neal doesn't remember.
He is now saying, "Larry has made me understand that we have to fight for the team, for the championship, and not just for ourselves. When we get rid of self-consciousness, we come close to success."
And Thomas?
"He really is a great coach," Jermaine O'Neal said, "I wish him all the best for the future!"
Carlisle injected the Pacers with a sense of discipline and egalitarianism.
In Carlisle's eyes, there were no privileged classes; everything on the team served the system.
Thus, in their first game of this season, they managed to beat the steely Pistons with defense.
Now, sitting at home facing the defending champions, the Pacers were determined to prove they had undergone a complete transformation and were no longer the chaotic, disheartened, and inconsistently performing wildcard team of last season.
For the Bucks, they too had a demand to overcome the Pacers.
If they lost again tonight, their losing record against the Pacers would extend, which wasn't a good thing.
Although the Pacers had swept the Bucks in three games last season, Yu Fei didn't feel there was a stylistic counter issue between the two sides. If anything, it was just that Jermaine O'Neal became ferocious against the Bucks, as if collecting debts.
The Pacers under Thomas felt chaotic to Yu Fei.
It was clear Thomas tried hard to motivate the team, but he couldn't control it.
If the Bucks only had Yu Fei beyond the control of the coaching staff, then all of the Pacers were out of Thomas's control.
Thomas was merely a coach in name, with limited significance to the Pacers. The players might have felt playing for him was liberating, but once they experienced the guidance of a competent coach like Carlisle, they realized Thomas didn't know what he was doing.
Carlisle made the Pacers a better team; he didn't rely on Jermaine O'Neal's offense as much as Thomas did. He instilled the concept of defense into Jermaine O'Neal.
A willing defender and a good rim protector like Jermaine O'Neal, paired with Ron Artest entering his prime and the evergreen Reggie Miller, turned the Pacers into a better team.
Carrying his preconceptions, Yu Fei regarded the Pacers casually; several forays into the paint and he was blocked by Jermaine O'Neal.
The Bucks' overall strategy against the Pacers was also based on last season's impression.
Coach Karl was worried about Jermaine O'Neal exploding again, so he devised a strict zone defense and aggressive double-teaming tactics.
However, the Pacers' offense was concentrated on the perimeter.
Miller looked anything but a veteran on the verge of retirement, hitting open threes with precision.
The Bucks started out stunned, ending the first quarter down by a deficit of 13 points.
The Bucks wanted to win, but being dazed right from the start and looking at trailing the Pacers for the fourth consecutive time, Yu Fei directly asked Coach Karl not to bench him.
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"Frye, this is just a regular season game, you need to rest."
"No," Yu Fei said, "Not every regular season game can be lost."
If they lost this game, on the surface, it would simply be a loss of a regular season game, but who would care if it were just a regular game? Others would only say that the Pacers are the Bucks' nemesis, for they have beaten the Bucks whether in the last season or this one, regardless of whether it was Thomas or Carlisle coaching them.
To break this narrative, they had to defeat the Pacers.
The more consecutive losses they accumulated, the greater the psychological advantage the Pacers would have.
Once that advantage accumulated to a certain extent, even if they ultimately defeated the Pacers in the regular season, what then? If they met in the playoffs, the Pacers would remember that the Bucks are a team they often beat.
To reverse this psychology, Yu Fei played 20 minutes in the first half, and although the Bucks were once 13 points behind, they rallied back under his targeted tactics, exploiting both Ron Artest's foul trouble and Jermaine O'Neal's strong interior defense but weak individual defense.
The Bucks also chased down 10 points in the second quarter, finishing the first half trailing their opponents by only 3 points.
"Frye won't let us lose this game."
George Karl said to an ABC reporter during the halftime break.
On the other side, as a guest commentator, Lakers legend Magic Johnson couldn't help but express his amazement at Yu Fei's maturity.
"Junior player Frye Yu, who will be 21 years old in two months, is already one of the best players in the league," Magic said, "I think Frye's biggest strength is that he can always analyze his situation calmly and come up with the best solution according to the on-site conditions. I would call Jermaine O'Neal the pillar of the inside line, I would admire Reggie Miller's professionalism, but Frye, my friends, is the sum of all positive meanings. Yes, friends, Frye is everything!"
Magic's television colleagues were already used to him singing praises of Yu Fei.
This wasn't the first time, nor would it be the last.
Everyone knew why Magic liked Yu Fei.
Because Yu Fei was like Magic's "reincarnation," his avatar on the modern-day court.
This avatar was so much more impressive than the likes of Lamar Odom.
Therefore, ABC commentator Brad Nessler jokingly asked, "If Frye were placed on the Lakers, could he resolve the dispute between O'Neal and Kobe?"
"Oh no..." Magic said exaggeratedly, "That would trigger the Third World War!"
Exaggeration was Magic's style, but upon further thought, it wasn't an overstatement.
Yu Fei and O'Neal's grudges were common knowledge.
One could say that apart from Jordan, O'Neal was the player Yu Fei disliked the most. If they were put on the same team, Yu Fei would be more rebellious than Kobe.
Then what about Yu Fei and Kobe? No one knew what would happen, although there had never been any public conflict between them, Kobe was also recognized as having low emotional intelligence, difficult to get along with and communicate with, making it hard for him to coexist peacefully with someone with a strong personality like Yu Fei.
The topic of Yu Fei and O'Neal ended after the second half started.
In the second half, Yu Fei tied the game with a pull-up three-pointer.
After that, the Pacers lost control of the game.
Because the Bucks suddenly got serious.
In the fourth minute of the third quarter, Karl deployed Ray Allen, Devean George, Michael Redd, and Robert Horry alongside Yu Fei to initiate the X-Offense.
With Yu Fei by his side, Redd dared not mess up, and Ray Allen started the second half with a 100% three-point shooting spree.
The Pacers, who appeared to be defensively and offensively balanced and more restraining to the Bucks than last season, were suddenly suppressed.
In seven minutes, the Bucks secured a 16-point lead through a quicksilver offense, effectively setting the stage for victory.
Strangely, after the Bucks away victory over the Pacers, breaking the opponents' winning streak against themselves, the post-game media kept asking about the Lakers.
As Kobe's legal issues entered the trial phase, it had turned into a war of attrition. The NBA wouldn't respond until Kobe was convicted guilty, so Kobe could play for the Lakers in the new season.
Thus, the Lakers with F4 were the team that had already pushed this season towards its grand finale.
And as the absolute core of this team, Shaquille O'Neal would not forgive those who had offended him repeatedly in the past.
The first match of the season between the Bucks and the Lakers would take place on November 4th.
Just four days from now.
O'Neal in Los Angeles warmed up for this in his unique way: "I know everyone is talking about No. 44 right now, saying he's the new king, the heir to the throne, but let me tell you, he's nothing, what he won before was the emperor's new clothes, and if you think that makes him fit to ascend to the throne, then I'll tell you this season, it's all shit! Yes, shit!"
The reporters always had class; they wouldn't relay O'Neal's words to Yu Fei like gossiping shrews.
This is how they posed the question to Yu Fei: "How do you respond to Shaquille O'Neal calling you shit?"
"I think even a pile of shit has its value as a fertilizer, whereas O'Neal has no value in my eyes," Yu Fei recounted coolly, "He could abandon Orlando for the spotlight and flowers of Los Angeles, which shows he lacks loyalty and a sense of belonging. Kobe said he did something O'Neal had also done, which shows not only is he morally bankrupt, but he's also not a player who can bring a positive influence to the youth. Last year, he also proved himself to be a shameful racist."
"Such a disloyal, unrighteous, and depraved scum of the earth, no matter what he says to me, comes off as revolting as a rotting corpse, so don't bring up this scum again."
"Any other questions?"