Basketball miracles

Chapter 119 [I've never seen such an arrogant person!]

This Lakers-Celtics battle was broadcast live across the United States, and Xiao Tu delivered a double-double with 7 assists, becoming the star among stars.

The Lakers' role players are a bunch of bricklayers, and fans think that if Xiao Tu had taken a few more shots, the Lakers could have won in regulation time.

Actually, Xiao Tu's shooting touch wasn't great either, with 4 turnovers and 4 fouls, resulting in a very low shooting percentage in regulation time. But his performance in overtime was unparalleled, going 5-for-6 from the field and 2-for-2 from the free-throw line, scoring 12 points, grabbing 4 rebounds, and dishing out 1 assist, instantly boosting his shooting percentage.

Larry Bird went 0-for-3 in overtime, scoring no points, a stark contrast to Xiao Tu's performance.

More importantly, Xiao Tu scored 8 points in overtime with ease against Bird's defense, including three layups after pushing past his defender and one fadeaway jumper from the right low post.

Both sides played so fiercely that in the latter part of the final quarter, the other starters were exhausted, while Xiao Tu played better and better.

Xiao Tu had absolutely no reason to be polite to the Celtics. During halftime, he ate some premium grapes he had obtained from a treasure chest to relieve fatigue and restore his strength.

In overtime, Xiao Tu's athleticism completely outclassed everyone else. All the fans felt he was too strong, and in crucial moments, he was the Lakers' most reliable player on both offense and defense.

People in this era don't know what "cheating" means, otherwise Xiao Tu would definitely receive a lot of such praise. When others can't run fast enough, people watch him sprint back and forth on the court and still manage to finish with a powerful dunk.

The Celtics lost decisively because they had a clear home-court advantage, allowing the Lakers a staggering 48 free throws (26 more than the Lakers). McHale alone had 19 free throw attempts, making 15.

Lakers fans watching the live stream repeatedly cursed the referees for biased calls. Some calls were simply inexplicable; a Lakers player made the slightest contact with a Celtics player, and the Celtics player was sent to the free-throw line.

Commissioner David Stern felt the Lakers' record was too strong to be broken. He hoped a team would pose a threat to the Lakers in the playoffs and wanted the Celtics to win this game to boost morale.

The back-and-forth play between the two teams allows the league to continue promoting the Lakers-Celtics rivalry and attract more fans. He believes the Lakers' dominance is too strong, as it makes the game seem less competitive.

Stern did not expect the Celtics to be so disappointing at home, unable to win even with an eight-on-five advantage.

The Lakers' mere 113 points in overtime reflects a stagnant offense, with their scoring efficiency far below the team average. The Celtics, on the other hand, typically score just over 100 points this season and rarely achieve decisive victories.

In terms of offensive fluidity, the Celtics are far inferior to the Lakers. Their players rarely initiate fast breaks, giving the impression that they lack real strength.

At the Lakers' post-game press conference, Xiao Tu was the focus of attention, and reporters were eager to hear his thoughts.

Xiao Tu said calmly, "I think the league is about to enter the era of Lakers dominance. We defeated the invincible Celtics twice in a row during the regular season."

The reporter asked, "You've had the upper hand against Bird in two consecutive games. What are your thoughts?"

Xiao Tu deliberately paused for a moment, then laughed and said, "Just having the upper hand? I thought I had crushed Bird in two consecutive games, and the first one was a physical crush."

The Boston reporter was furious, while everyone else was amused; this was the big story they wanted.

Before the game started, reporters knew that no matter which team won, the players wouldn't have anything good to say about the other team afterward.

Xiao Tu can say whatever he wants today, because he truly dominated Bird, with overwhelming statistics. Bird had to swallow the trash talk he prepared before the game; he looked like a liability in overtime.

During the game, Bird didn't get a chance to trash talk to Xiao Tu. Because the moment he opened his mouth, Xiao Tu immediately rammed into him and made cuts, almost knocking him out of his skin several times.

Xiao Tu felt that bumping into someone who was talking was much more effective at provoking people than talking trash himself, and it would definitely make the opponent feel very uncomfortable.

The Celtics lost both of their regular season games to the Lakers, and Bird was completely out of the running for the regular season MVP. Even his second-place ranking seemed somewhat unreasonable, given his repeated defeats to Xiao Tu, who came in third.

The reporter asked, "How would you rate Bird's performance in this game?"

"His style of play is to trade high shots for points, that's my assessment. I'm sure some people will say I'm just a rookie and have no right to comment on a two-time MVP, that I'm disrespecting Bird, etc. Please forgive my bluntness, but go ask Dr. J, he'll definitely think Bird was even less respectful." Xiao Tu smiled slightly.

I don't respect my predecessors, but didn't Bird do the same?

If fans want to criticize, then criticize together; don't be hypocritical and only question me.

Another reporter asked, "Anything else?" "Before playing Bird, I always thought he was incredibly strong and could dominate the court with his individual skills. I approached the game with a learning attitude. Now I feel like I can't learn anything from him. It's obvious that I'm stronger. If I were to take more than 20 shots per game, I would definitely be the scoring champion, instead of scoring less than 30 points like him."

He's gone mad! Xiao Tu has completely gone berserk!

The entire room of reporters was stunned, including Lakers coach Pat Riley, who never expected Xiao Tu to dare to say such a thing.

I have never seen such an arrogant person in my life!
Xiao Tu had already planned what to say after winning the game: he had to thoroughly humiliate Bird, as it would benefit his future.

After hearing this, the Lakers' management and coaching staff will definitely consider giving Xiao Tu more shots. Fans who see the news will also hope he gets more shots and can compete for the scoring title.

The Lakers play an unselfish style, but who wouldn't want a superstar scorer on their team? Especially since Lakers owner Jerry Buss likes Shaw, a scoring leader means the team's games are more attractive to fans and can make more money.

In a parallel universe, Kobe led his team to three consecutive years that failed to advance beyond the first round of the playoffs, but won two scoring titles. He then pressured the Lakers, recording a video insulting Buss and Kupchak as idiots, and even donned a Bulls jersey to tell fans they could buy Bulls jerseys.

Kobe flipped the table in anger, but Jerry Buss wasn't angry. He reassured Kobe to stay with the Lakers and promised to trade for a star player to help him.

Xiao Tu is confident he can win the scoring title, though it's impossible this season. Next season, the management will definitely want him to give it a try. What if he succeeds? If Xiao Tu doesn't have that much offensive power, he can reduce his shot attempts later on.

Xiao Tu is never afraid of sparking controversy; the more people discuss it, the better. He has never considered creating a "good boy" persona for himself—that would be too foolish and wouldn't even get him exposure in the internet age.

This is not a personal vendetta.

If Xiao Tu wants to become the best player in the league, he has to deal with Bird sooner or later.

This guy is blocking the way, but he's not that strong yet. If a newcomer wants to rise to the top, who else should they step on but him?

In a parallel universe, Jordan's popularity skyrocketed, and he also stepped on Bird's footsteps. After returning from a major injury, he scored 63 points in a single playoff game, shattering all doubts.

The Celtics' defense was truly rubbish; they couldn't stop superstars with exceptional athleticism. If Bird was really as good as people say, a two-way player, could he have allowed Jordan to set the NBA playoff single-game scoring record?
Jordan could shoot however he wanted, and none of the Celtics players could stop him. He just dominated Ainge. Bird's post-game comments about "defying God tonight" just sounded like empty boasting.

No reporters asked about the number of free throws for either side, and Xiao Tu didn't express any dissatisfaction with the referee's decisions, making no mention of it at all.

That's what you call having a broad perspective; it's a trivial matter.

Xiao Tu didn't care about the unfair refereeing during the regular season; he let Stern do whatever he wanted, as it wasn't him who would be embarrassed. He just hoped the Finals wouldn't be like that. In intense games, if one side had an impressive number of free throws, they were likely to win.

At the Celtics' press conference, several star players and coaches were extremely embarrassed and unwilling to speak.

When reporters asked Bird to discuss the Celtics' prospects for defending their title and to comment on Xiao Tu, he refused to answer any questions and gave extremely perfunctory answers.

Whether on or off the court, Bird's performance was inferior to Xiao Tu's, and quite boring.

Bird is under increasing pressure and dares not make any more threats. Celtics fans wanted to see him decisively defeat Xiao Tu to avenge his earlier loss, but that didn't happen.

This time, Bird didn't dare to focus on defending Xiao Tu all the time, and handed over the difficult task to McHale for half the time.

When the Lakers countered, the two faced off, and Bird's defensive moves were surprisingly clean; he couldn't stop them but didn't commit any hard fouls.

Anyone who watched the game could see that Bird chickened out, and Xiao Tu had become a terrifying force to be reckoned with in the NBA. Ever since he threw that punch, he's transformed. Anyone who tries to foul him maliciously should be prepared to get beaten up.

In any industry, it's always the honest people who get bullied; few are willing to confront a tough person head-on. Schools are no exception; those who are bullied are almost always the cowardly ones who dare not fight back.

Xiao Tu is not only strong, but also fast. If he wants to beat someone up, that person will definitely not be able to escape unscathed.

Bird dared not foul Xiao Tu so fiercely anymore, his momentum was greatly weakened, and he would not get the better of him in the future.

(End of this chapter)