Chapter 11: Divine Mercy

Some of these voices were created by the women of the Kardashian family, who are doing everything they can to have Fan Xi make a comeback.

On one hand it is because they love Fan Xi, and on the other hand it is due to considerations of this weekend's program ratings.

They have communicated with the directing team and the TV station, and everyone is very satisfied with the footage already shot, which successfully portrays Fan Xi as a charming figure.

It will surely attract many TV viewers to pay for watching.

But to create a breakout moment, a spectacular game is still needed, just like Fan Xi's previous showdown with the Warriors' demigod, hitting three three‑pointers plus a free‑throw clincher.

So the Kardashian family showed up today, and they even used Odom's connections to persuade the Lakers' public relations department to bring the filming crew along.

They are now waiting for Fan Xi to make a stunning debut and sweep everything in this game.

Besides them, there are also Lakers fans.

People tend to think habitually; when Kobe was around, whenever the team fell into a slump, they would always shout for the person deep in their memory who had countless times saved the home court from disaster.

Now Kobe Bryant is injured and cannot play.

When the team's perimeter is a mess and Derek Rose makes it unmanageable, they naturally think of the superstar Fan Xi who shone brightly in previous games.

They hope Fan Xi will stage another miraculous comeback.

Lao Wente is the same.

However, just as Lao Wente was about to call Fan Xi's name, Phil Jackson on the bench gave Lao Wente a signal.

Lao Wente hurriedly shouted the name Xiang Nong Brown.

Xiang Nong Brown is a player with a very strong physical condition; his speed, vertical leap, and power are all impressive, and in training camp he often jumps and slams dunk flat against the rim. His most spectacular play for the Lakers was when, defending the Hawks' West from the backcourt, he gave West a shocking, board‑smashing block from behind, even hitting his head on the underside of the backboard, causing all the Lakers players to cover their faces and shrug in amazement.

In terms of physical attributes, Xiang Nong Brown is indeed the player closest to Derek Rose.

However, his basketball IQ is low, and both his defense and offense are mediocre.

After Lao Wente finished setting the tactics and the players returned to the court, he looked at Phil Jackson with some surprise.

The senior monk saw his confusion, then leaned over and whispered, "Let that kid observe a bit more."

The "kid" he mentioned refers to Fan Xi.

Phil Jackson has always been a 'teaching according to ability' head coach; he can get along with all kinds of difficult players and bring out their strengths.

The obsessive Jordan became Thus we include: English under his guidance.

The all‑round Scottie Pippen, under his guidance, gladly spent the prime years of his career as the second‑string player.

The flamboyant, unruly Dennis Rodman reached the peak of his career under his tutelage.

After joining the Lakers, he paired O'Neal and Kobe; despite constant conflicts, they still secured a three‑peat, and then won two more championships centered on Kobe.

Perhaps tactically, Phil Jackson is not as meticulous as contemporaries like Pat Riley or Larry Brown, but in handling players and assigning roles, he should be of top‑tier NBA standard.

He has just been observing Fan Xi.

He noticed that Fan Xi has been watching Derek Rose, his gaze fixed on every detail of Rose.

This made Phil Jackson immediately realize that this kid, on a short‑term contract and praised by Kobe and Lao Wente as being like Reggie Miller, is a guy with a very high basketball IQ; he is not the type who just stands idle when he gets the ball.

When dealing with a smart person, one should give him more time to observe.

Sharpening the axe does not delay the woodcutting.

Moreover, although Xiang Nong Brown certainly cannot handle Rose, his physicality can expose more of Rose's traits.

But what he didn't expect was.

The very first ball after stepping onto the court.

Xiang Nong Brown was immediately stripped by Rose, and while chasing the defense, Rose used a high‑speed, non‑decelerating change of direction to knock him down on the three‑point line… a laughable, humiliating sight.

Amid the roar of the crowd, Derek Rose, like a youth riding a gale, surged into the paint and, with astonishing leap and explosiveness, executed a massive, forceful wind‑mill dunk.

That dunk displayed Rose's physical attributes in full view.

Fan Xi sat on the sidelines, staring in amazement.

He already knew Rose was formidable, but now watching him effortlessly crush Xiang Nong Brown from the sidelines was even more shocking… Rose is faster, stronger, and more explosive than on video.

No wonder, even at such a young age, he can be compared with veteran stars Le Bu Lang Zhang Si, Kobe Bryant, and Wei De, and even leads the regular‑season MVP rankings by a wide margin.

What a handful!

Fan Xi took a slight breath.

Amid the boos from the crowd, Xiang Nong Brown grudgingly received the inbound pass and rushed forward.

When Derek Rose approached him again, he no longer dared to flaunt his change of direction.

He could only cautiously pass the ball to Pau Gasol.

As he passed, Fan Xi clearly heard Kobe, dressed in a suit beside him, let out a contemptuous sigh.

For Kobe the warrior, failure is not frightening; a cowardly abandonment of battle is.

If Xiang Nong Brown kept messing with Rose, he would hold Xiang Nong Brown in higher regard.

But when Xiang Nong Brown saw Rose come up and toss the ball to Pau Gasol like a hot‑potato, what else could he be but a coward?

A coward who backs down when facing a strong opponent will never have the ability to become an elite player.

Kobe Bryant at this moment even thought of just trading this guy away.

He has that privilege.

He is one of the few NBA players who can command the front office to act according to his will, the so‑called privileged player.

Kobe glanced at Fan Xi; he has great expectations for Fan Xi.

All these years, his partnered point guards have been mediocre; even his old friend Derek Fisher, who only attacks and never defends, was the best.

Now he feels his abilities have declined and his control of the court is waning; he hopes a competent point guard will appear beside him, like the one next to Boston's Three Giants, Lagunardo, who could give him some relief.

In today's league, good point guards are scarce, and the Lakers have even fewer options to acquire one via trade.

Steve Blake is already the limit of what they can purchase on the free market, but… Steve Blake's chemistry with him is also rather bland.

Bang!

The Lakers' frontcourt missed again.

Even though Pau Gasol shook off Buzell's weak defense and passed the ball to Bai Na Mu, Bai Na Mu's hook shot still didn't go in… Jia Ba'er had been teaching him the hook shot since the day Bai Na Mu entered the league, but he still hasn't learned it.

It's really frustrating.

Kobe Bryant was also disappointed with his interior partner Bai Na Mu, saying the chemistry had already earned them two consecutive championships. But the guy let the team down, they expected him to be the next O'Neal, a little shark, yet his on‑court dominance was far off, committing basic mistakes, and off the court he was constantly in trouble, even being filmed injured and then going to a nightclub to shoulder a woman and drink heavily.

Rumors even claimed his team said Kobe Bryant's harshness on the practice court had shattered his confidence.

That made Kobe Bryant especially angry.

He thought, if you are a diligent, self‑disciplined person, would I criticize you?

You can't even take that remark, yet you want to inherit the Lakers' great center's mantle?

Dream on!

Kobe Bryant sat on the bench, growing more angry as he thought.

He felt that now the Lakers only had Pau Gasol and Matt Barnes who still suited his taste.

Derek Rose kept wreaking havoc on the court.

Shannon Brown, while defending Rosa, was once again tricked by Rosa's fake move and jumped absurdly high; Rosa accelerated straight into the paint, drawing a foul on Bai Na Mu.

Kobe Bryant was utterly disappointed.

He stood up and said to the Lao Wente beside him, "Let that guy go in."

He pointed at Fan Xi.

Kobe Bryant had reached his limit with Shannon Brown on the court.

Being made a fool twice in a row, his brain seemed to consist only of muscle; putting it out was just shameful and eye‑catching.

Lao Wente looked at Kobe Bryant, then at Phil Jackson, who nodded.

He called Fan Xi's name.

Fan Xi quickly rose from the end of the bench and walked toward the scorer's table.

Passing the Kardashian family, Jenna stood up and gave him a hug.

The gesture caused a stir at the highly publicized Staples Center.

The magnesium lights flashed wildly for a few seconds.

Until Fan Xi stepped onto the court.

When Fan Xi entered, replacing Shannon Brown, some cheers rang through the arena.

Such cheers usually only erupt when a relatively important or popular player takes the floor.

Derek Rose looked over with some surprise; he felt unfamiliar with Fan Xi, who wore jersey number 10.

Meanwhile, as Shannon Brown handed off to Fan Xi, he whispered into Fan Xi's ear, "I was on the bench watching you get blown up by Rosa."

The guy actually had a schadenfreude attitude.

Fan Xi was extremely shocked.

He didn't expect Shannon Brown's bottom line to be so low.

People can be that shameless.

Both are teammates; even if not sharing a common enemy, they should at least be on the same side, right? He actually wanted to see me get dealt with by Rosa, even forgetting how Rosa had just trampled him like a weakling.

Despicable!

Fan Xi formed an assessment of Shannon Brown in his mind.

From this incident one can see Shannon Brown's limited outlook; he never considered the team, only worried about his spot not being taken by Fan Xi, even tolerating the opponent's humiliation. Such a person in wartime would be a more ferocious lackey than the enemy.

Bang!

Rosa's second free throw surprisingly missed.

Pau Gasol grabbed the rebound and passed it to Fan Xi.

Fan Xi advanced steadily with the ball.

He wasn't after quick results; he deeply understood that the team now needed him to link everyone together, letting the Lakers' offensive machine burst forth with strong momentum again.

Fan Xi's composure surprised Phil Jackson; when he saw Fan Xi directing teammates' movement at the top of the three‑point arc, he asked Lao Wente, "Did you brief him on the tactics?"

"No. I just sent him a tactical manual to his email. In fact, since he joined the team, we've only held three full‑team drills, each lasting thirty minutes."

Hiss!

Phil Jackson inhaled a cold breath.

He felt extremely surprised.

Although casual fans might see Fan Xi showing nothing, the Kardashian family even stomped impatiently: "Why hasn't Jie Ke thrown a Three-Point Shot yet? Can't he make Three-Point Shots 888 times in a row?"

But to the insider Phil Jackson, this scene was far more precious than Fan Xi making a three‑point shot.

Meanwhile, Fan Xi was already executing a cross screen with Matt Barnes at the top of the three‑point line.

Originally, Fan Xi wanted Bai Na Mu to come up for a pick‑and‑roll with him.

However, Bai Na Mu is proud, seeing himself as the new generation's top center; he refused to screen for the unknown Fan Xi. He has even drifted to the point of no longer screening for Kobe Bryant, believing a center should do higher‑level tasks, like scoring.

Not dirty or menial work.

So Fan Xi could only settle for a secondary option, cooperating with Barnes.

Barnes sprinted up from the baseline, about to screen for Fan Xi, when Rosa quickly shifted his body slightly… but at the moment Rosa slightly shifted his body.

Fan Xi suddenly accelerated, his speed at full throttle.

Like a bullet fired from a barrel, there was an explosive impact sensation.

In that instant, Kobe Bryant's eyes even flashed with light.

He saw the shadow of his fellow rookie Allen Iverson.

Fan Xi, like a bullet, burst through Rosa's defense in a straight line straight into the paint.

Rosa was shaken off and left behind.

Carlos Boozer had to come over to defend.

At the same time, Fan Xi passed the ball.

A very direct pass.

Pau Gasol caught the ball, no defender ahead, he took a quick step and slammed it home with both hands… completing this beautiful give‑and‑go with Fan Xi!

This scene stirred the Staples Center again.

The sound surged like a tide.

When the home‑court announcer loudly called Pau Gasol's name, the Spanish power forward pointed at Fan Xi… this assist made him look at Fan Xi in a new light.

He felt Fan Xi was the biggest contributor to that play.

He even wanted to ask Fan Xi: "How did you get past Rosa?"

Kobe, sitting on the sidelines, saw it clearly.

Fan Xi didn't use a screen at all; he had Marc Barnes come over just to confuse Rosa, making Rosa think he would use a screen to drive.

When Rosa took the bait and slightly turned his body, Fan Xi immediately exploded.

This proves one thing: he has great confidence in his speed.

Indeed, that is the case.

The speed Fan Xi just displayed is at least on par with Rosa's.

Kobe was surprised, wondering: "This guy is obviously so strong—why was he overlooked before? His speed and ball‑handling alone should have earned him a spot, not to mention his excellent shooting ability."

Could it really be that heaven is favoring me?

Does God want me to win a three‑peat, to achieve the same six‑championship double‑dynasty miracle as Michael Jordan, and therefore deliberately sent this hidden gem before my eyes?

…