The longest river

Chapter 83 The Real Number One Boss
All-Star Weekend is an important time of year, as the season is halfway through and teams typically make decisions at this time about whether to push for the playoffs or tank for a higher draft pick.

This is also why the trade deadline is set after All-Star Weekend each year.

As soon as Yang Shuai flew back to Indianapolis, he received a call from Garnett.

"Hansen, you're right!"

As soon as the call connected, Garnett's incredibly excited voice came from the other end.

After the conversation, Yang Shuai learned that the Timberwolves had just made a trade with the Hawks, sending Laettner to Atlanta.

Yang Shuai's words hit the nail on the head: in order to develop Garnett, the Timberwolves management had to make the difficult decision to let him go.

After hanging up the phone, Yang Shuai couldn't help but feel emotional.

That's the advantage of tanking a team; as long as you play well, you'll eventually have bread and milk.

However, after expressing his feelings, Yang Shuai then opened the system panel.

Thanks to the unexpected gains from the All-Star event, he has now accumulated another 5 points.

Without any hesitation, he immediately redeemed the Grade B Agility and Physical Fitness Enhancement Pack.

His current one-on-one defense is sufficient, but if he can further improve his help defense to the same level as McGee, then his role on the court will far surpass McGee's.

Even with the Pacers at that time, he was able to become a starter.

After the exchange, his defensive support ability increased to 75, and his steals rating also increased to 82.

While it's still a ways off from surpassing McGee's defensive capabilities, it won't be too far off.

The Pacers made no moves at the trade deadline.

After acquiring Robertson in the previous trade, the Pacers' roster structure has become relatively stable. Now, all they need to do is stay healthy and strive for a better playoff seed.

They are currently ranked fourth in the Eastern Conference, three games behind the third-placed Cavaliers.

This is mainly because they dug themselves a hole at the beginning of the season, and now they need to climb out of it little by little.

A week after the trade deadline, the Pacers visited Orlando to play the Magic.

Due to scheduling issues, this is the first time the two teams have faced off this season.

Orlando boasts the largest Disney theme park and the largest SeaWorld in the United States, as well as The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, a collaboration between Warner Bros. and Universal Studios, making it a well-known tourist destination in the country.

However, after arriving, the Pacers players did not go out for sightseeing. Instead, they dropped off their luggage at the hotel and then boarded a bus with the coaching staff to go to the training facility.

This serious attitude is rare, but completely understandable.

After all, the Pacers lost to the Magic in the Eastern Conference Finals last season, and it was a close Game 7 defeat.

Just like the Knicks were determined to beat the Pacers at the beginning of the season, the Pacers are now equally eager to win back.

However, Yang Shuai, as a newcomer, didn't actually feel that much.

The Magic's two core players, the combination of O'Neal and "Penny" Hardaway, were stronger in both reputation and ability than the combination of Miller and Schmitz.

Not to mention the difference in the number of role players.

The Orlando Magic's power forward is former Chicago Bulls dynasty starting power forward "Cobra" Grant;

On the flanks, there's the combination of Nick Anderson and Dennis Scott.

Both of them were lottery picks by the Magic. Anderson is a versatile player who excels on both offense and defense and is a near All-Star caliber player, while Scott is the Magic's all-time leader in three-pointers.

Before O'Neal arrived, the two were the Magic's backcourt duo, averaging 20 points per game in the 91-92 season.

In addition, they have a starting-caliber sixth man on the bench, Brian Shaw.

With this roster configuration, it's even more surprising that the Pacers were able to drag the Magic into a Game 7.

However, Yang Shuai is also looking forward to this match.

The main reason is still because of O'Neal's negative energy back then.

Although he didn't know the reason, a guy who can generate negative energy without any interaction with anyone has a greater chance of becoming the number one influencer than Kobe.

That night, the Magic's home arena, TD Waterhouse, was packed to capacity.

The Magic are a very strong team, but they are a genuine young team, and such talented young teams are very popular in their local cities.

Who knows, they might just start a dynasty.

In particular, they defeated Jordan's Bulls last season.

During the pre-match warm-up, the photographer captured Yang Shuai on camera, and cheers erupted from the crowd.

Yang Shuai's dazzling performance at the All-Star Game, coupled with the subsequent massive media coverage, has made him the most popular player since entering the league.

"Negative energy from Shaquille O'Neal +198".

Suddenly, the system notification sounded in Yang Shuai's mind again.

This really excited Yang Shuai.

I don't know why, but I just enjoy the feeling of something falling from the sky.

It seems like it would be an injustice if he didn't put some pressure on O'Neal tonight.

After warm-ups, the game quickly began. The Pacers applied a lot of defensive pressure to the Magic from the start, and quickly built a lead through their defense.

But soon after, the Magic launched a counterattack amidst the cheers of their home crowd, quickly closing the gap and eventually taking the lead.

Schmitz had absolutely no way to contain O'Neal on the defensive end.

The current Shaquille O'Neal is not yet the "Shaq" he is today. He possesses both strength and agility, and can even perform incredible moves like jumping and passing with one hand when double-teamed.

Moreover, Hardaway's ball-handling offense is also a significant threat.

As fellow All-Stars, it's hard for Yang Shuai not to compare himself to Richmond, and once you do, you'll find that the gap between the two is huge.

Aside from his three-point shooting, Hardaway is superior to Richmond in all aspects, including explosiveness, speed, and flexibility.

As the first "Jordan successor," he clearly has more of a superstar quality than Richmond.

With about eight minutes left in the first quarter, the Magic took a 16-10 lead over the Pacers after O'Neal pushed past Schmitz, turned around, received a high lob from Hardaway, and slammed it home with a two-handed dunk.

Brown immediately called a timeout.

The cheers from the crowd were deafening. For them, their only real rival in the East now is the Bulls; the Pacers, a team they've already defeated, can't pose much of a threat.

After the timeout, the Pacers made a substitution, with Yang Shuai replacing McGee.

Yang Shuai made his first impact on the offensive end when he came on the court. As the newly crowned three-point king, his off-ball screen on the weak side immediately drew the attention of three Magic players.

Miller took the opportunity to run a high pick-and-roll with Schmitz, then received the ball and hit a mid-range shot.

Although O'Neal isn't fat yet, he still can't defend high pick-and-rolls.

Then, when it came to the defensive end, Yang Shuai directly led the defense against Hardaway at the three-point line.

This scene made the fans at the scene quite excited.

Although they are opponents, it is admirable that a rookie dares to directly guard an opposing superstar right from the start.

Of course, what they couldn't hear was that the instant he retreated to the defensive end, Yang Shuai had already shouted something to Robertson in front of Hardaway:
"Irwin, Anfernee is easy to defend, let me defend her!"

Upon hearing this, Robertson immediately switched onto Nick Anderson to defend him.

Hardaway, who was holding the ball and preparing to organize the attack, was stunned. When he came to his senses, he had a look on his face that said, "Are you guys being polite?"

However, before he could make his next move, Yang Shuai had already taken a big step back and then reached out to Hardaway, making a "please shoot" gesture.

Hardaway was genuinely amused and exasperated; he probably never imagined he'd be teased like this by a high school student.

He directly signaled to O'Neal to come out and run a pick-and-roll.

O'Neal was big, his pick-and-roll was of high quality, and his rolls to the basket were a big threat, so Schmitz didn't dare to switch on him.

Hardaway drove straight to the basket using a screen; he was incredibly fast.

There were no defenders in front of him anymore; this kind of ball was already within his grasp.

"Oh!"

Hardaway completed a beautiful flying gliding dunk.

"beep!"

But just then, the referee blew his whistle.

Hadaway looked puzzled; no one had made any physical contact with him just now.

However, after seeing the referee's offensive foul gesture, he noticed Yang Shuai lying on the ground and O'Neal already walking back.

A commotion broke out in the crowd, and everyone's attention was focused on Hardaway, so no one noticed what was happening on the field.

The large screen at the scene showed a replay of the ball that had just been thrown.

O'Neal's pick-and-roll was of high quality, but Yang Shuai's response was even more brilliant.

He had already taken small sliding steps and was waiting. The moment O'Neal blocked him, he slid sideways and passed him.

As the season progressed, he became increasingly adept at using the puppy-dog gait.

However, just as Yang Shuai passed by, O'Neal moved his body to continue the screen, which resulted in him knocking Yang Shuai down.

Robertson and Miller, realizing what was happening, ran to Yang Shuai and helped him up.

"Are you alright?" Robertson asked with concern, as Yang Shuai looked like he had fallen quite hard.

Yang Shuai stood up, shook his hand, and then shook his head with a smile.

He really wasn't acting just now.

Even with his current ability to draw offensive fouls, he can't pull off that level of performance.

After getting around O'Neal's screen, he was genuinely planning to chase Hardaway. After all, he hadn't improved his help defense for long, and he wanted to see if he could catch up.

But O'Neal stubbornly refused to give him that chance.

As for why he laughed, it was because just as the referee made the gesture, he saw O'Neal frown, and then the system notification sounded in his mind.

"Negative energy from Shaquille O'Neal +666".

If he were in the live stream right now, he would definitely say something like: "Thank you so much for the big rocket from the top donor! You're so generous, you're awesome!"
(End of this chapter)