Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters

"You know, LeBron is my little brother."

"What do you mean?"

"So I wouldn't dunk that motherfucker hard."

Yu Fei didn't have the ball in his hands, and James felt a sense of relief, thinking Brother Yu didn't want to do anything this round. Suddenly, he felt someone boxing him out from behind.

James turned around to see a figure even more muscular than himself blocking his path.

Mason's high-quality screen left James hanging on the perimeter, and Yu Fei spun for a cut inside.

Teacher Q was overjoyed, sending the ball into the air just like he used to do for Miles back at the Clippers.

Yu Fei soared like a rocket, known for his hard, violent, and extensive tomahawk dunks. Irgenskas wanted to turn the tide, but he couldn't even jump to disrupt the ball because his body was being overpowered midair by Yu Fei.

Pinned down and unable to move, Irgenskas could only watch as Yu Fei rode atop him, grabbing the ball with one hand and bringing it down on the hoop like the executioner's blade.

"BOOM!!!!!"

"Even the tallest peak in the world can't stop The Chosen One from reaching the top!"

"Welcome to The Frye Show!!!"

Yu Fei had commentators climaxing, howling like ghosts and wolves, and even the Cleveland home crowd was a bit shaken.

Just thinking of how the Cavaliers had drafted Yu Fei and yet he'd never played a game for them, they were fuming with anger.

They felt more wronged than the Wizards' fans.

To lose what you once had is indeed a tragedy in life.
Experience tales at empire

But what if you could have had it, only to miss out due to a moment's hesitation?

Jim Paxson (the general manager) be damned!!!

James had none of the fans' resentment; he only wanted to perform. The better Yu Fei played, the more threatened he felt.

Whether he liked it or not, comparisons between him and Yu Fei wouldn't stop until he caught up.

Face-offs like tonight's would only reinforce the media's narrative.

And this was precisely the impression LeBron least wanted to leave—that he was blown away by Yu Fei.

But what could he do? He couldn't even be considered the boss of the Cavaliers now.

Just past halftime, before deciding whether to play strategically or go one-on-one, Ricky Davis had made the decision for him.

Davis called for others to spread out, opting for a one-on-one against Quentin Richardson.

"Bron!"

Davis shouted.

James passed the ball.

"Do you always listen to him like that?" Yu Fei asked with a smile.

James replied, "He's an old bird."

That statement was loaded with meaning. Yu Fei understood it as, I, the A KING, am new here and don't want to clash with the veterans; so I'll endure it for a while.

"You give too much face to shameless old dogs."

Yu Fei actually knew James was right to show weakness first, to see if Davis could play. If he couldn't, then show strength. If the Cavaliers had to choose between James and Davis, the latter could pack his bags tonight.

That's what Yu Fei thought: there was no need to give too much face to Davis. A dumbass who tried to chase a triple-double but couldn't figure it out, ending up in the Hall of Shame, was disgusting even as a day's number two, better be gone quickly.

Meanwhile, Davis pressed on with his offense.

After a five-game losing streak at the start of the season, rumors of Davis's trade had already surfaced.

Learning from Yu Fei's success, the Cavaliers knew how to build a roster around James. They wanted to trade Davis for a sharpshooter, pulling Timberwolves' Szczerbiak into the trade rumors.

Davis's penetration was forced, and so was his shot, but it eventually went in.

His forced offensive play held the Cavaliers together for a possession.

What good did it do for the team? His play reminded Yu Fei of Michael Redd.

Was Redd so intent on ignoring tactics and breeding contempt among his teammates just to play like Davis?

Thinking over these issues, Yu Fei didn't really want to take the ball.

But Teacher Q, seeing Big Fei and the Little Emperor standing aside as tonight's main characters, decided they couldn't be idle.

Teacher Q had a brainwave: Here's how I think the play should go.

Big Q called for a clear-out, creating isolated space for Yu Fei to go one-on-one against James, then passed the ball over.

"@%@%!#￥"

The Gund Arena buzzed with excitement, fans eagerly anticipating James to stop Yu Fei in this direct confrontation.

The following few seconds became history.

Yu Fei surged right, slamming on the brakes while James swiftly sidestepped but nearly got shaken off. Before he could steady his stance, Yu Fei changed pace to the left side, dribbling with the deftness of an eel—so flexible you'd swear even God wouldn't know how such a tall forward could juggle the ball like a point guard.

With that shake-off, James was already past him. Yu Fei posed as if to shoot, luring James to leap out unreservedly for a block.

James, like an Alien, reached his peak height, while Yu Fei remained on the ground—it was a pump fake! The Gund Arena erupted in gasps and sighs; they hadn't expected James to be played like that.

The Yu Fei who sent James flying simply took a step forward and raised his hand for a plain jump shot: swish.

"20 years from now, will we look back on this play the way Michael Jordan's playoff one-on-one with Larry Bird is remembered?"

"Is this the beginning of a great rivalry?"

Only time could answer Brad Nessler's two questions.

At least tonight, LeBron James was no match for The Chosen One; the Little Emperor still had training to do.

The final score of the game, 117 to 89, with the Bucks triumphing over the Cavaliers, and Yu Fei becoming the focus of the game with 49 points, 11 rebounds, and 6 assists.