Chapter 12: Two Foolish Clowns

Many say that a great scorer does not need an excellent point guard to support them.

But in reality, that is not the case. The period from 2004 to 2007 was absolutely the peak of Kobe Bryant's individual strength; the vast majority of his scoring records were broken during that time.

Yet, the Lakers' record was quite poor.

It wasn't until the Lakers acquired Spanish power forward Pau Gasol through a heist-like trade that they embarked on their path to championships.

Pau Gasol's individual strength among NBA interior players can only be called excellent, not top-tier.

During his time with the Grizzlies, his style was known for being "soft." However, he possesses strong playmaking ability and a solid handle, which helps Kobe Bryant unleash his individual offensive firepower to the extreme.

This season, they are all a year older, and the players have inevitably become complacent, so both their record and strength are far inferior to before.

Therefore, the Lakers' management, coaching staff, and Kobe all realized the need for fresh blood.

However, achieving success in the trade market is almost impossible.

At this moment, Fan Xi appeared.

Like a comet streaking across the dark night.

The figure of Fan Xi flashing into the paint just now brought back a long memory for Phil Jackson; he clearly saw the shadow of Allen Iverson from back then.

It's just that Iverson wasn't just fast in a straight line; his change of direction was even faster.

Allen Iverson is the shortest No. 1 overall pick in NBA history and the No. 1 pick of the 1996 Golden Generation. Even star players like Kobe, Nash, Camby, Ray Allen, Marbury, and Peja were inferior to him back then.

In reality, before 2004, Kobe Bryant's individual strength was slightly lower than Iverson's. Back then, Iverson single-handedly led the Philadelphia 76ers, taking down superstar players like Ray Allen and Vince Carter one after another, and with nothing but his own courage, he stormed into the Finals. In the Lakers' home arena, under the rule of the unstoppable OK duo, he stole a victory, relying on his ghostly agility and lightning speed.

That Fan Xi can be mentioned in the same breath as Iverson in terms of straight-line speed is already commendable.

Phil Jackson developed a great interest in him.

At the same time, Fan Xi stayed glued to the side of Derek Rose.

As Rose accelerated toward the frontcourt, Fan Xi remained in front of him the entire time; his speed was not a bit slower than Rose's, and perhaps even a fraction faster.

This scene was something neither Shannon Brown nor Derek Fisher had managed to do previously.

Derek Rose was quite surprised; he didn't expect this unfamiliar kid wearing the No. 10 jersey to actually have some real skills.

Steve Blake and Shannon Brown, sitting on the Lakers' bench, exchanged glances. They were shocked and caught completely off guard.

They didn't expect Fan Xi to actually be able to keep up with Derek Rose's speed.

Originally, they had been certain that Fan Xi would be left in the dust by Rose's speed and become a laughingstock.

But now... it feels like this game is going to become Fan Xi's breakout performance.

This isn't right!

Are we digging our own graves?

Is our conspiracy instead going to contribute to little Fan Xi's glory?

Panic appeared in their eyes.

Bang!

Under Fan Xi's interference, Rose's mid-range jump shot clanked off the rim.

This was the first person on the Lakers to defend Rose successfully... Fan Xi's sharp speed and rich defensive experience disrupted Rose's offensive rhythm, forcing him to choose a pull-up jumper when he couldn't penetrate into the paint.

But the rim refused his shot.

The rebound was secured by Pau Gasol, who passed it to Fan Xi.

Fan Xi received the ball and continued to advance with a steady handle, not letting himself be drawn into Derek Rose's rhythm.

This point made Phil Jackson very satisfied.

Once Rose defended out to the three-point line, Fan Xi called Pau Gasol to the arc, and Gasol set a solid screen for Fan Xi.

Fan Xi cut in rapidly.

As he cut, Andrew Bynum posted up Joakim Noah in the low post, calling for the ball.

But it wasn't a good position, and Fan Xi didn't pass to him.

Instead, taking advantage of the Bulls' defense failing to collapse in time, he accelerated in a straight line, blew past Carlos Boozer, and cut straight into the paint... Boom!

Fan Xi finished the play with a simple one-handed dunk.

The entire arena erupted in cheers.

Kim Kardashian finally captured what they wanted; the four sisters jumped up in excitement and sang in unison: "Jack! Jack! We're cheering for you!"

The Kardashian sisters are well-known female celebrities.

When they stand on the sidelines in unison to cheer for a player, the effect is very significant; it's a beautiful sight.

Amidst the cheers of them and the entire Staples Center, Fan Xi stole the show.

On the bench, the two instigators, Steve Blake and Shannon Brown, looked at each other; the panic in their eyes had turned into worry and fear.

How is little Jack so strong? If he really stays on the team, do we have a future? Why did we pick such an opponent for him?

The two sat there restlessly.

At this moment, the Fan Xi on the court heard a sharp voice: "Why didn't you pass the ball to me just now?"

Fan Xi turned his head to find Andrew Bynum looking at him with great anger: "Don't always think about showing off; you're a temporary player, it's easy to get fired, you know."

Bynum's eyes were full of arrogance and displeasure.

He was very angry that Fan Xi didn't pass to him, and also jealous of the Kardashian sisters cheering for Fan Xi on the sidelines.

In his view, all of this should have originally been his... if only this guy had passed that damn ball to him.

Fan Xi looked at Bynum's arrogant demeanor and felt inexplicably annoyed.

Why do I have to pass the ball to you?

You clearly weren't in a reasonable shooting position, and my opportunity was better.

Besides, I asked you to set a screen for me, and you didn't. Why should I waste my own offensive opportunity to fulfill you?

Fan Xi was full of resentment.

Andrew Bynum was just throwing his weight around, relying on the fact that he entered the NBA a few years earlier. All these years, the Lakers have pampered him, cultivating him with all sorts of resources, but he has never developed as expected, and he has also developed the personality of a giant baby.

Fan Xi was full of indignation.

At this time, Rose came charging down the court with the ball.

Fan Xi hurried to follow him.

He used his speed to interfere with Rose's offensive rhythm.

Rose was very uncomfortable; Fan Xi's lightning speed destroyed his comfortable rhythm.

Bang!

He clanked the shot for the second time.

Pau Gasol grabbed the rebound and passed it to Fan Xi, who saw Matt Barnes cutting rapidly and passed to him.

Barnes arrived at the three-point line with the ball and was about to shoot when he saw Luol Deng chasing him down regardless of anything else.

Just as he was hesitating whether to pass the ball quickly to Bynum at the free-throw line, he saw Fan Xi waving his hands at the top of the arc... Fan Xi was completely open, and Rose's line of sight was blocked by Gasol.

Barnes hurried to pass the ball in.

Fan Xi caught and shot... Swish!

The three-pointer went in.

The Lakers took a 1-point lead.

Staples Center instantly boiled over.

The arena DJ took the lead in shouting: "Super-Fan! Super-Fan! Super-Fan!!"

The Kardashian sisters danced in excitement on the sidelines.

The home-court momentum was completely back.

Fan Xi had been on the court for less than 2 minutes, leading the team on a 7-0 run.

Beep!

Bulls coach Thibodeau had to call a timeout, then turned to his assistant coaching staff and roared: "I want to know everything about that damn No. 10 player immediately; he's disrupted our rhythm!!!"

Thibodeau is a paranoid and irritable coach; he was very angry at his coaching staff: Why was there not a single word about such a powerful point guard in our pre-game preparation? With this kind of performance, how can we talk about winning the regular-season title?

Just as Thibodeau was roaring to find all the information on Fan Xi.

Fan Xi had already returned to the bench amidst cheers and applause. Passing by the Kardashian sisters, Jenner even ran over to give him a high-five.

"Nice job."

Kobe Bryant stood up on the bench, walked to Fan Xi's side, and patted his shoulder in encouragement: "You are stronger than I imagined."

Phil Jackson felt the same way.

Fan Xi's performance in these 2 minutes hit his heart completely, and his satisfaction with Fan Xi reached a very high level.

No matter what happens next, he will make a suggestion to the management: Fan Xi must be kept; this kid is the best point guard they have seen in the last ten years.

Although the Lakers' point guards over the last ten years have been at the bottom of the league.

But just as the team leader and the head coach were very satisfied with Fan Xi's performance, and the entire arena of fans was energized by the current comeback.

A discordant sound appeared on the bench.

Andrew Bynum actually walked over to Fan Xi and said: "As a guard, don't always think about showing off; you have to pass the ball to the center, understand? The person who controls the paint controls the whole game."

He was particularly angry.

Just now, Barnes didn't pass the ball to him, but to Fan Xi.

Leaving him with no presence.

He didn't dare to lose his temper at Barnes, who was known for being fierce, but he had the nerve to throw his weight around at Fan Xi, a temporary worker, and he had plenty of it.

To his surprise, Fan Xi didn't even acknowledge him and walked over to chat with Lamar Odom.

Just as he was about to lose his temper, he saw Kobe Bryant's murderous gaze staring at him.

That sentence of his just now wasn't just bullying Fan Xi; it was also an offense to Kobe. What did he mean by "As a guard, don't always think about showing off; you have to pass the ball to the center," and what did he mean by "The person who controls the paint controls the whole game"?

Was he being passive-aggressive and pointing at the mulberry tree while cursing the locust tree?

Kobe never tolerated Bynum's bad habits and said directly to him: "If you can play, then play; if you can't, then just don't play."

Bynum heard this.

He also felt his wings had hardened.

All these years he had been "bullied" by Kobe; Kobe had been lecturing him since he entered the NBA at 17. He felt he had had enough, and now that he finally had some status in the league, you're still helping a temporary worker bully me? Is there no justice?

Right then, he sat down on the bench, stubbornly saying: "I twisted my ankle, and my knee hurts too; I can't play."

The team doctor didn't see that he was just throwing a tantrum at Kobe.

Hearing that he twisted his ankle and his knee hurt, the doctor was anxious.

Bynum is a famous glass man on the team, getting injured at every turn.

The doctor was terrified of Bynum's old injury recurring and hurried over to help him check.

Bynum has a stubborn personality and actually took a pair of scissors and cut the tape on his leg directly. Once the tape was cut, he definitely couldn't play tonight.

Putting down the scissors, he let out: "I'm not playing today; I don't believe you guys can win. You'll see what kind of goods this temporary worker is soon enough."

He said this to deliberately provoke Kobe.

The two had a falling out.

Kobe didn't even bother with him.

He ran over to chat with Fan Xi about the details of defending Rose.

Kobe is one of the few superstars in the league today who can make both the All-NBA First Team and the All-Defensive First Team; he has deep accomplishments on the defensive end, and the advice he gave Fan Xi was very valuable.

Beep!

The whistle blew quickly.

Because of the tantrum Bynum suddenly threw, the Lakers had to substitute Odom into the game.

In this way, the Lakers' interior strength was inevitably greatly diminished, and Gasol had to move to the center position he liked the least.

The person happiest about this situation was Steve Blake and Shannon Brown.

Without Andrew Bynum's gravity in the paint, let's see how you jump around!

Little Jack, this time you really are dead. You haven't even stood firm on the team yet, and you dare to go against Andrew Bynum. Don't you know Bynum is the Lakers' darling? Don't you know his personality is eccentric? He often gives substitute players a hard time; aren't you afraid he'll use his power to kick you out? Hmph!

Steve Blake and Shannon Brown were extremely smug.

They believed that even if Fan Xi had a good performance, offending Andrew Bynum wouldn't end well for him.

After the game restarted.

Rose became cautious.

A commotion broke out on the Bulls' bench because, in the database, Fan Xi was actually an undrafted player.

"You call this an undrafted player?"

Thibodeau was very surprised; he even felt this report was an insult to his intelligence: "And it said his talent was very poor, said he had no shooting ability, and that his individual defense was only great in the NCAA system. But if his talent is poor, how could he keep up with Derek? And without shooting ability, how does he dare to shoot so decisively from the three-point line?"

Are they crazy!

Not only Thibodeau, but all the Bulls players felt this report was full of errors.

Because the information was incomplete.

Therefore, Rose was extra careful.

He and Carlos Boozer completed a screen, and after killing into the paint, he passed to Luol Deng.

Luol Deng's mid-range jumper... finally went in.

Breaking the Bulls' scoring drought.

And less than a second after the Bulls scored.

Barnes passed the ball to Fan Xi.

Fan Xi caught the ball and made a move that surprised everyone.

At that moment, the entire Lakers bench was stunned, and Phil Jackson widened his eyes.

Bynum, who was waiting to see the joke, couldn't believe what was happening before his eyes.

The two instigators, Steve Blake and Shannon Brown, looked at each other, looking exactly like two foolish clowns.