Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters

62 to 55 The Supersonics entered the second half with a 7-point lead. It was the same margin as at the end of the first quarter, and the effort the Lakers put in during the second quarter seemed to have been in vain. However, it wasn't a big enough deficit to be desperate about. It was just that Yu Fei's last basket of the first half had given the opponent a bad feeling, as they sensed that tonight might not turn out well. In the visiting team's locker room, Kobe stared at his fingers that were almost numb, thinking about what parts of tonight's game he did well and what could be improved... But no matter how he thought about it, the question always came back to the same point—was he better than Yu Fei? His answer was positive, but no one in the outside world agreed with this view. Even his own body didn't agree. He was severely drained of his energy, and his finger injuries clearly affected his offense. But was he supposed to give up just like that? No, it was still early, and they had a complete chance to change the outcome of the game. In the home team's locker room, many still discussed Yu Fei's mid-court logo shot. But Yu Fei had already put that behind him. "If you think a 7-point lead means you can rest easy, then we're going to have a hard time in the second half," Yu Fei said loudly, "We have to play better in the second half!" When the miracle maker himself disregards the miracle, others won't dwell on it, either. Yu Fei never underestimated his opponents; he expected tonight would be a game lasting all four quarters. The Lakers wouldn't collapse because of a mid-court three-pointer. This mental expectation of holding the opponent in high esteem allowed the Supersonics to go into the second half with a good mindset. In the third quarter, the Lakers played like the dominant championship contender they were after the trade deadline. Kobe's brilliance had dimmed, with his finger injury affecting his efficiency. Yet, a Kobe who couldn't make a basket still drew a lot of defensive attention from the Supersonics. This opened up scoring opportunities for the Lakers' other players. Jermaine O'Neal took advantage, exploding with post-up plays, pick-and-roll finishes, and second-chance points from offensive rebounds. In these difficult times, the Lakers got everything they could from the inside. Little O proved he was still a member of the immortal 1996 golden generation. "I'm the Western number one center!" Little O arrogantly shouted at Brown, "And you're just Frye's lapdog!" With the advantage in the paint, the Lakers closed the gap to 1 point. A few minutes before the end of the third quarter, the Supersonics hit a scoring drought, and the anxiety and worry spread through Key Arena. Then, Yu Fei took control of the ball from Roy, signaling clearly with a gesture for "ISO" as he crossed the half-court. The Lakers' double-teaming came swiftly, and the Supersonics' poor shooting in the third quarter intensified their tendency to double team. Yu Fei boldly broke through the middle, tearing open a hole in the defense and scoring with a jump shot from the free-throw line. "Your defense is like shit!" Yu Fei taunted coldly, "Want to add Kobe to it?" A force was exploding on the court. Or rather, it was something the Lakers Team had been waiting for. Only when Yu Fei went all out, the Supersonics were at their most powerful. From the start of the game, Yu Fei had been terrifyingly impactful, but that still wasn't the Yu Fei people remembered. The image of the domineering ruler who swallowed thousands of miles during his Bucks era had faded. The Supersonics' Yu Fei had constrained his power. But it was just suppressed, not disappeared. Walton was overwhelmed. Kidd's double-teaming was useless. Even Kobe's arrival couldn't stop this force. Years ago, when Kobe was on a scoring spree, the debate over who was stronger between him and Yu Fei was a serious discussion. But as Kobe got eliminated in the first round for two consecutive years, while Yu Fei claimed back-to-back championships afterward, any debate on strength was seen as disrespectful to the latter. Yet, the Los Angeles media and James' camp had a similar viewpoint. If the caliber of both players' teams was equal, Kobe wouldn't be worse than Yu Fei. Friend, to those at the summit, that is an offense. Yu Fei would not allow anyone to be in his position. In the last few minutes of the third quarter, Yu Fei took charge of all the Supersonics' offense, scoring 14 points in a row. The Lakers, who had closed the gap to 1 point, were behind by 8 points at the end of the third quarter, 89 to 81. Yu Fei ended the third quarter with 35 points, 11 rebounds, and 9 assists, once again putting the Supersonics in the lead. The most highly anticipated game of the 2008 playoffs thus proceeded into the fourth quarter. "Frye, go for the offense," Marion said during the break, "Don't worry about us." Brown, no longer preoccupied with outdoing Little O, fully agreed with Marion's suggestion, "That's right, we'll focus on defense, and Big Fei can just go on the offense!" Yu Fei looked at Roy, the other core member of the team, wondering what he was thinking. Roy realized everyone was looking at him and said, "As a piece of trash who went 0 for 5 in the third quarter, I think the only thing I should be doing right now is passing the ball to Big Fei." At that moment, George Karl was the most relaxed basketball coach in the world. He really didn't need to impose much personal influence on the team. Because it wasn't his turn. Wherever Big Fei went, the team would follow, and this place was already marked with his personal stamp all over it. "So, our offense in the fourth quarter is to give the ball to Big Fei, and everyone else get out of the way!" Karl emphasized defense, "But on defense, we can't let them do whatever they want..."