Champion, please stay!

Chapter 191, Section 189: A Second Battle Against Wade!

At noon, ESPN published a headline column – the top ten current NBA superstars.

LeBron James is number one. He was the regular season MVP last season, led his team to 64 wins, tied for first in the league, and had the best individual efficiency in the league.

Kobe is second only to the NBA champion and Finals MVP.

Howard is third, with awards including Defensive Player of the Year, Rebounding Champion, and Finals appearance.

Paul is fourth, the most individually capable point guard and second in efficiency in the league.

Wade is fifth, the scoring champion, and the league's strongest penetrator.

Yi Shui, ranked sixth, is considered the strongest rookie in history, leading the Knicks to revive their run-and-gun offense and is a candidate for the scoring title in the new season.

Yao Ming is seventh, the only super center in the league.

Bosh ranked eighth. He was the only power forward to average 20+10 per game last season, a dominant force in the mid-generation interior who excelled in scoring, defense, rebounding, and passing.

Dirk Nowitzki is ninth. Despite his poor performance in the playoffs, he remains the league's most prolific scoring power forward.

Durant ranks tenth, the second-best player of the new generation, and has the potential to challenge Embiid for the title of the leading figure of the new generation.

...

Yi Shui, Curry, and Chalmers sat together, staring at their phones, their expressions more interesting than the last.

Chalmers: "Boss, you're only 6th? Why is LeBron James number one! If he's number one, then you should be super number one. Durant has never even been tenth in the playoffs?"

Curry: "It's normal that Big didn't make the top five, after all, he's only in his second year. But James is number one... Duncan or Garnett should be in the top five. James is behind Big. Durant has improved so fast, he should be able to make the top ten this year."

Yi glanced sideways at the elementary school student: Look, Super Mario knows how to handle things.

Yi Shui: "Duncan and Garnett didn't make the top ten, and neither did Nash. ESPN just wants to create controversy and generate buzz."

Curry refreshed his browser, and sure enough, in a short while, there were already hundreds of comments below the column.

After the three finished lunch, they returned to the arena, went online on their computers, and saw that ESPN's column was generating a lot of buzz.

This is the first time that a media outlet has made specific rankings of star players before the start of the season!

Previously, star players were ranked into different tiers. For example, before the start of last season, Kobe, James, Duncan, Garnett, Yao Ming, and Paul were considered to be 'top-tier superstars'.
During last season's rookie rankings, which were divided into different tiers, Yi Shui's performance was so outstanding that he was placed in a separate tier.

Yi Shui remembers that ESPN started creating 'League All-Star Rankings' and 'Team Strength Rankings' after the lockout in 2011... Is this a trial run?
By 3 p.m., other media outlets had also launched their own 'Top Ten Football Stars' columns.

Even though we didn't get to eat the first bite of meat, we still had to fight over the soup.

American cable sports rankings: Kobe Bryant first, Dwight Howard second, Yi Jianlian third, Tim Duncan fourth, Yao Ming fifth, LeBron James sixth, Dwyane Wade seventh, Carmelo Anthony eighth, Chris Paul ninth, and Dirk Nowitzki tenth, based on their combined performance in the regular season and playoffs last season.

The SLAM rankings are: Kobe first, James second, Howard third, Yi Shui fourth, Yao Ming fifth... The reason is that the championship, MVP, and best defensive player should be in the top three.

NBC Sports ranked LeBron James first, Kobe Bryant second, Dwyane Wade third, Chris Paul fourth, Dwight Howard fifth, and Yi Jianlian sixth... claiming the rankings reflected their expectations for the new season.

The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and TNT all ranked Kobe first, Howard second, and Yi Shui third.

Major media outlets have successively launched "Top Ten Football Stars" columns, further boosting the topic's popularity, with discussions, controversies, and arguments escalating relentlessly.

When Yi Shui browsed domestic websites, he found that domestic fans were much more endearing, though of course there were also controversies and arguments.

But most normal fans are happy – our country has two star players in the top ten of all the lists!
This may also be related to the fact that surfing the internet in the country currently requires a relatively low barrier to entry.

When Yi Shui scrolled through those lists, he felt that Dolan and Salzburg (the owner of the New York Times) were being a bit too shameless; this isn't how you compete for traffic...

As evening approached, players began giving interviews and expressing their opinions on the various media rankings.

Other media outlets can only get a small share this time; the lists mentioned by the players are all from ESPN.

The opinions were almost entirely negative.

The focus is on two points – is LeBron James number one? And Duncan and Garnett didn't even make the top ten?
There were also those who agreed, with Zydrunas Ilgauskas saying, "In my mind, LeBron is number one. Before he came, we were last, but now we are number one. He will definitely lead his hometown team to win the championship."

Billups was dissing Paul: "If a player who loses by 58 points in the playoffs can be in the top ten, I think I can too."

Some fans questioned why Shaquille O'Neal, who was selected to the All-NBA Third Team, wasn't on the list, but the discussion surrounding this topic was relatively less heated...

Before warming up, Yi Shui also gave a media interview. When asked about the ESPN rankings, he replied, "I want to make a show. I don't know if there are any investors. The show is called 'Observations on Abnormal Humans'. I want to invite ESPN as the first guest."

...

At 7:30 p.m., the Knicks and Heat entered the court at Madison Square Garden.

There was no opening ceremony for the preseason game, but it was a near national broadcast on Dorland TV, and as it was the first preseason game of the new season, both teams took it very seriously.

Before the match, the players from both teams exchanged pleasantries. Although their relationship wasn't great, it wasn't too bad either, and they still had to be polite.

Wade looked up at Yi Shui in front of him and said, "It's unbelievable. I knew you would become a world superstar when you played in the Olympics, but I didn't expect it to happen so quickly. You were a superstar from the very beginning. I think you should be in the top five. That list is meaningless."

Big Cheeks spoke sincerely, and he was prepared to be mocked, but the unexpected happened.

Yi Shui replied, "Thank you, but I think that list is even more unfair to you. Next time you play the Lakers, beat Kobe! I remember your game against the Lakers is in early December, right? I'll definitely pay to watch the live stream and cheer you on!"

Big Cheeks paused for a moment, glancing at the camera that was almost right in his face. Shouldn't these kinds of things be said behind people's backs?
Are all the new generation of players this direct?

Since the other party had said that, Wade replied, "Of course, I think so too."

After exchanging pleasantries, Yi Shui took a look at the opposing team's lineup. This summer, the Heat's recruitment... was almost nonexistent.

Aside from splitting up the mid-level exception, re-signing James Jones (who doesn't have Bird rights) for one year at $4 million, and signing Arroyo to a one-year, $1.9 million mid-level exception contract, there were no other moves.

Role players like Haslem and Milicic, who were in the final year of their contracts, did not receive contract extensions.

The starting lineup remains the same: Conley, Wade, Beasley, Haslem, and Milicic.

Including Arroyo, Daquin Cook, Joel Anthony, James Jones, Magloire, and others who are at best usable substitutes.

This afternoon, while browsing the news, I saw the Heat's salary list. If Wade opts out of his player option for the final year after this season, and the Heat give up all their Bird rights, even if the salary cap doesn't increase, they can free up a full $50 million in cap space! That's enough to give three players without Bird rights max contracts and still have some left over!
The strategist has great composure. During the offseason, there were rumors that after the Magic rejected his demand for a multi-million dollar annual salary, Turkoglu's first target was the Heat, where he wanted to team up with Wade.

When Carter requested a trade, his preferred team was the Heat, and he also wanted to team up with Wade.

But the Heat refused.

The Heat had already completed their plan to clear salary cap space after trading Marion away last season.

The Knicks' cap clearing plan was only complete after they traded away Eddie Curry and Jeffries, whose contracts didn't expire until 2011.

However, Yi Shui felt that Walsh might not be as good as the Calculator in other aspects, but in terms of clearing space, Walsh did a better job than the Calculator in less than two years in office.

Their situation is more challenging. They have too many scattered high-salary contracts, and to clear cap space, they can't use buyouts. That would mean Eddie Curry and Jeffries would still occupy about $18 million in cap space next summer, enough for a seven-year veteran's Bird rights max contract at the current salary cap. And to package and trade those contracts, they can't even afford to buy out Jeffries to free up a roster spot; a buyout would truly make him a 'dead salary,' preventing them from using any matching contracts.

Just like with the trade for Shaq, the Suns didn't care who the tying contract was, as long as it was an expiring contract. If they hadn't bought out Mobley's contract, but instead opted to operate like they did with Eddie Curry and Jerome James, they might not have needed to trade away Big Q to tie his contract.

At the time, the only players who could match O'Neal's combined salary with Eddie Curry, besides Big Q's $950 million, were Harrington's $1003 million. If they used Jerome James' expiring contract, they would have to add Chalmers or Wilson Chandler, two quality role players, which would have been a worse choice.

It was also a stroke of luck that the Suns wanted to clear out O'Neal and the Bulls wanted to clear out their bloated backcourt, giving Walsh the opportunity to 'concentrate his bad contracts'. But to turn luck into opportunity and seize it required vision and the courage to act decisively.

...

At 8 p.m., the Knicks' preseason game against the Heat at home tipped off.

D'Antoni fielded a starting lineup of Duhon, Curry, Yi Shui, David Lee, and Ben Wallace.

In the first game of the new season, we have to give the veteran superstars some face.

But Ben Wallace lost to Milicic in the jump ball right from the start.

No one can slack off under the strategist's guidance... except for Shaquille O'Neal after winning his fourth championship.

During his time with the Grizzlies, Milicic already weighed over 125 kilograms, and was heading towards 130 kilograms.

But after joining the Heat, he was trained to weigh just over 120 kilograms in a few months!

In the first round of last season's playoffs, Milicic performed very well against Howard, averaging 21 minutes and two blocks per game, ranking first in shot-blocking efficiency among all players in last season's playoffs.

After losing weight, Milicic's mobility and speed of movement have recovered significantly.

The Heat take the first possession!
Conley advanced to the frontcourt and passed the ball to Wade.

After Conley led Curry to the right sideline receiving area, Wade faced Duhon's defense, dribbled the ball twice, didn't make any fake moves, and drove straight in!
The league's strongest first step! Duhon's charge only touched Wade's trouser leg!

Wade drove in, bracing himself for being surrounded by five players before passing to Conley... but in the process, he noticed that the Knicks weren't defending him like they had last season, and Duhon was beaten and blocked on the right sideline.

David Lee blocked the basket, and Curry on the right sideline collapsed in advance, forming a double-team in the elbow area!
Wade grabbed the ball, preparing to power through David Lee's defense with a Euro step, when he saw Haslem cutting into the middle and passed the ball...

The water has shrunk to the correct position!

Haslem received the ball, took a step, jumped, and forced a shot over Yi Shui, who had retreated to the basket... Luckily, the ball hit the rim, bounced, and hit the small rim below the backboard before bouncing into the basket.

Magic ball!
Haslem failed to clear Yi Shui, and his vision was completely blocked; this was absolutely a miraculous goal.

Just as Wade was about to high-five Haslem, he saw Yi Shui land and immediately pick up the ball and pass it to Curry, and the other team launched a fast break!

Wade immediately moved to block Curry, who promptly passed the ball. Wade chased after the ball, only to find that the entire opposing team was pressing forward!
Duhon, who had just cut off Conley's receiving line on the right sideline, Ben Wallace, who intercepted Beasley's cut-in on the left sideline, and David Lee, who was double-teaming in the elbow area, had all rushed out!
The Heat had excellent defensive discipline, working hard on transitions and blocking defenders, but the Knicks still managed to find opportunities.

Yi Shui took advantage of Curry's follow-up movement to draw attention, and Ben Wallace and David Lee's presence on the right and middle sides to draw defenders. He cut around to the left, received a pass from Du Hong, took a step forward, jumped over the onrushing Wade, and scored with a high layup!
Both Yi Shui and Du Hong missed Swift on this play... If the old second overall pick had come back, they would definitely have scored on this counter-attack.

It's no wonder that Ben Wallace is getting old. At the beginning of the game, he wasn't slow and had some opportunities, but his finishing ability was terrible... His shooting percentage when attacking the basket was less than 50%, which is unique in the NBA.

However, Ben Wallace's defensive positioning and blocking choices were excellent!

If Ben hadn't gone to block Beasley's cut-in from the sideline, Yi Shui would have had a hard time getting back into position. Beasley would have been able to score, and they would have missed a fast break opportunity.

It's the Heat's turn to attack again.

Wade continues to drive to the basket!

This time, Wade was much more cautious. After getting past Duhon and entering the paint, he noticed the opposing players' defensive movements... The formation was excellent!

Facing a double-team defense from David Lee blocking his shot in the elbow area and Curry blocking the baseline space, Wade grabbed the ball, sprang to the left, and stepped to the front of the basket. Yi Shui promptly collapsed to the basket, and Wade seized the opportunity, taking another step to the left with his right foot to the left sideline of the three-second zone, just missing Yi Shui who was rushing in.

Before Yi Shui could turn around and block him, Wade jumped up with the force of his right foot after landing, turned in mid-air, and made a layup!
That was a beautiful goal, but it put even more pressure on Wade, as he couldn't pass the ball out!
Duhon blocked Conley, their only running pitcher in the starting lineup. Ben Wallace did an excellent job of disrupting the left sideline, and the first player with a chance to receive the ball was Milicic, who was stretched out to the left mid-range... so he might as well have taken the shot himself.

and also……

Just as Wade predicted, Yi Shui's attempt to collapse and help defend failed, so he picked up the ball and took it in!
After landing, Wade lunged at Curry. Curry, without stopping, passed the ball back to Yi Shui, who had entered the inbounds area. Wade stopped abruptly and accelerated, chasing after Yi Shui. Before being cornered, Yi Shui passed the ball to Du Hong...

Big Cheeks: What's wrong with these two second-years? Are they both so bad at holding the ball? During the All-Star game, King and I were always fighting to push the fast break!

Haslem demonstrated good leadership, directing his retreating teammates to block the three-second zone.

David Lee received the ball on the left side of the free-throw line, attempted a mid-range jumper... but missed.

David Lee was frustrated, but he immediately turned around and retreated to a positional defensive stance.

After Yi Shui retreated, he patted the rich second-generation on the back to comfort him. He was also very regretful. He had rushed to the three-point line and was blocked by Wade before passing the ball out, missing an assist... However, such a shot is indeed difficult. In the past half month, the coaching staff had arranged for David Lee to practice chase-down shots, but it is not something that can be mastered in a short time.

When it was the Heat's turn to attack again, Wade received the ball but did not immediately drive forward.

He ran back and forth twice to slow down and catch his breath. He could clearly feel that his teammates had sped up when they ran over.

Besides this, there is another reason.

He looked at the opposing players' positioning... Good heavens, D'Antoni's team actually has a defense!

Although shocked, he quickly read the opponent's defensive intentions.

He drove and passed the ball, and Conley on the right sideline was basically 'useless'. The opposing team had two point guards, and their switching and help defense was very fast.

But Conley can only go to that spot because he is the most accurate catcher and shooter on the team. He must draw defenders on the strong side, and when there is no ball, a small guard like Conley can only complete the task of receiving the ball and facilitating plays on the sideline.

Nash, Deron Williams, Curry... all of them are like that.

Small guards with the ability to play from the high post and top of the key are few and far between in the entire NBA; only Paul and Rondo excel in this aspect.

Players like Calderon, James, and Odom, who are big-ball playmakers, are a different story.

After holding off for two or three seconds, Wade continued his drive!
This time he controlled the rhythm better, seizing the opportunity to pass the ball to Haslem when Yi Shui contracted and Ben Wallace blocked from the mid-range to the baseline.

Haslem moved to the left side of the free-throw line and took a mid-range jumper... and it went in!
The Heat led 6-2 at the start of the game!
After successfully making a mid-range shot, the Heat set up their defensive formation. Duhon received the inbound pass, advanced a few steps, and passed to Curry, forcing the Knicks into a half-court offense.

Curry advanced to the frontcourt and passed to Yi Shui at the top of the arc, who then moved to the wing.

Yi Shui raised his hand, causing Beasley to press forward. He stepped out with his left foot, pushed Beasley aside, and charged in!

Milicic retreated to the basket, and Haslem left Ben Wallace wide open to rush out, while Wade on the right sideline also began to collapse.

The Heat deployed a formation with three players surrounding Milicic and protecting the rim!
But Yi Shui didn't choose to get past Haslem. Instead, he stopped abruptly a step outside the free-throw line, grabbed the ball, and launched a jump shot over Haslem... and it went in!
Excellent timing, decisive stop-and-shoot, confident jump shot, and fluid, graceful movements... Wade could tell at a glance that this shot was unlike the one he saw during last year's playoffs, where most of his shots were based on luck. He had truly mastered the pull-up jump shot!

'A superstar who doesn't need to wait?'

Wade finally understood why so many people said that Duncan made other superstars panic when he first entered the NBA more than a decade ago!

(End of this chapter)