Chapter 302: Get up, stop kneeling. Even beasts have to celebrate the New Year

Unknowingly, Fan Xi had already developed a powerful aura that could rival Kobe Bryant's, standing toe-to-toe with him.

In today's league, the number of players who could stare down Kobe and remain calm and composed could be counted on one hand. After all, Kobe was a ruthless man who had fought his way out of the previous era; he was the epitome of a lone wolf.

But now, Fan Xi sat before him, perfectly calm.

For a moment, Kobe felt a sense of bewilderment.

He couldn't even recall what Fan Xi looked like when he first joined the Lakers. In just one short year, had his aura really grown this intensely?

In time, who else in the NBA would be able to compete with him?

Kobe sat there with Fan Xi for a while, watching the dragon and lion dances. Because too many staff members came over to take photos, they had to return to their respective locker rooms.

The players arrived one after another after Fan Xi finished his lunch. Except for Chairman Yao, who had asked for leave to accompany his family in Houston, everyone else had arrived at the arena by 2:30 PM... Usually, for home games, most players didn't arrive until around 5:00 PM.

Everyone considered this game very important, and they all knew it was significant for Fan Xi. Ron Artest's aggressive posturing on television had only made the Clippers more united.

While the players were filing into the locker room, Fan Xi went to the arena's public relations office to accept interviews from domestic media.

This was the first battle of the Lunar New Year, and fans back home were eagerly waiting.

For domestic fans, the significance of this battle far exceeded that of the Christmas game.

Although the country had been impacted by Western culture and some young people who thought they were trendy loved celebrating Christmas, regardless of the angle, the Spring Festival was still the biggest holiday for Chinese people.

In front of the camera, Fan Xi wished everyone a Happy Spring Festival and good fortune in the Year of the Dragon.

When a reporter asked about his expectations for this highly anticipated game, the young superstar—who almost never talked trash before a game—raised his eyebrows and said firmly with a confident smile: "I will not let the people of the country down. For the first victory of the New Year, I pay my respects to all the elders and fellow countrymen back home."

Once Fan Xi said this, there was no turning back.

The reporter was very surprised.

However, Fan Xi looked at him with absolute certainty.

…

While Fan Xi was being interviewed, Mike Brown was actively motivating the players: "This is a game we cannot lose. The whole world knows this game is of extraordinary significance to Jack."

"We absolutely cannot let those Lakers guys ruin Jack's day on such an important occasion. We must gather all our strength and launch the most lethal strike against the Lakers."

"The Lakers are destined to be beaten down by us. Starting tonight."

"……"

Mike Brown was almost hoarse, roaring with all his might. He wanted to make all the players tense up and unite, to overcome all obstacles for Fan Xi and crush the Lakers once again tonight.

In fact, there was no need for him to say these things; the players were already united.

Fan Xi was the unquestionable banner of the team; if the Lakers targeted Fan Xi, they were targeting them. For loyal younger brothers like Leonard, Kwame Brown, Butler, and DeAndre Jordan, it was a case of "the master is humiliated, the servant dies." If the Lakers caused trouble at such a critical juncture, they would definitely fight them to the death.

There was no room for ambiguity.

Therefore, when Fan Xi returned to the locker room after paying his respects to the people back home, his teammates all wore expressions of "bitter hatred," looking quite serious.

Fan Xi smiled and expressed his New Year's joy to them, even taking out red envelopes he had prepared long ago to give to every teammate and staff member, sharing the joy of the Lunar New Year.

The more Fan Xi did this, the more uncomfortable the players felt: Jack is such a good person, yet the Lakers still want to ruin his day. Tonight, I will definitely crush them.

"Don't be nervous about the game. Leave it to me; I have a way to deal with them," Fan Xi said with a smile. "They are coming for me."

Once Fan Xi said this, the players, especially the younger brothers, were deeply moved: Jack is too good; he is bearing everything alone. Such a leader—if I don't fight for him, who would I fight for!!

Little did they know, Fan Xi was full of confidence because he had acquired Stockton's pick-and-roll passing mastery. He even felt his overall individual strength was enough to touch the heels of the league's top seven.

Moreover, the current Clippers did not lack offensive firepower, nor did they lack defensive tenacity; they only lacked a stable tactic that could produce efficient offense under high-intensity confrontation.

Now, they had it.

The offensive power of Fan Xi and Nowitzki was definitely stronger than the Utah Jazz of that year, even though the era was different.

Was the current Lakers team as strong as the Chicago Bulls during their three-peat?

Fan Xi didn't think so.

Kobe at the tail end of his peak couldn't compare to Jordan after his second three-peat, and Paul wasn't as self-sacrificing as Scottie Pippen. Dwight Howard seemed willing to play a supporting role and do the dirty work in the paint, but could his impact compare to Dennis Rodman?

Pau Gasol was a strong point.

However, after Paul arrived, his ball possession was severely compressed. In D'Antoni's tactical system, he was far less utilized than he was under Phil Jackson.

Furthermore, Pau Gasol was not a player with a very strong spirit; he was habitually "soft." Having won three consecutive championships as a core player, he was already the most decorated international basketball player in the NBA, and he was more or less inclined to "lie flat."

…

The evening game finally arrived.

After a series of lively pre-game performances.

This game was being broadcast nationally by TNT, and Time Warner was also broadcasting it in the California region. After Fan Xi became the owner of the Clippers, they had discussed with the Clippers that they wanted to purchase the exclusive broadcast rights for Clippers games in the California region.

This power was granted to the team by the NBA league, and the team could charge for terrestrial channels separately.

Time Warner offered a price of $800 million for 10 years, which was more than double the previous terrestrial broadcast fee for the Clippers. But Fan Xi rejected this price because he heard that Time Warner was also negotiating broadcast rights with the Lakers and had offered a sky-high price.

Fan Xi didn't want to be lower than the Lakers, so the negotiation stalled.

Tonight was the Clippers' home game, and at least 90% of the fans in the arena were Clippers fans. When Fan Xi appeared, the whole arena erupted in cheers.

The chants of "MVP" were overwhelming.

Fan Xi walked onto the court, but what he saw were the cold, arrogant faces of Chris Paul, Dwight Howard, and the others. They were still acting aggressive, with expressions of looking down on everyone.

TNT's cameras swept across their faces.

Kenny Smith quipped on the spot: "I really don't know what these Lakers guys are being arrogant about? Can't they tell who the losers are?"

Charles Barkley, standing to the side, raised his eyebrows. His interest wasn't in the game, but on the sidelines, where he saw Selena, Scarlett, and Swift sitting together, looking quite harmonious.

"The thing I'm most curious about now is, which of the three of them actually spent the Chinese New Year with Jack?" Barkley said flippantly.

The host brought the atmosphere back to the game.

Seeing Jean Bas and Magic Johnson sitting behind the Lakers' bench, he said: "For the Lakers, the rise of the Clippers has become unacceptable. They are doing everything they can to suppress the Clippers. It's even rumored that their media relations department stated that if media outlets report on the Clippers, they won't be allowed to report on the Lakers."

"Although this is unconfirmed news behind the scenes, it's clear that the Lakers are indeed being pushed to the edge. For the past twenty-plus years, the Lakers have never considered the Clippers a rival."

The host spoke eloquently.

Kenny Smith chimed in sarcastically: "Doesn't all this have to be credited to Jean Bas? If it weren't for her jealousy, Jack would still be the Lakers' starting point guard. Where would the current Clippers come from?"

For Lakers fans, this sentence was undoubtedly a fatal blow; for Lakers shareholders, it was also a fatal blow; and for Jean Bas, it was an even greater fatal blow.

She now knew what a stupid mistake she had made. For capitalists, damaged interests were the only truly unhealable injury.

The reason Jean Bas was sitting there was that she hoped the Lakers would knock the Clippers down and trample them into the ground.

She wanted to let Time Warner know that there was only one king in the basketball field in California, and that was the Lakers.

Stop wavering and give us the $5 billion, 20-year contract immediately.

Jean Bas stared intently at the court, her gaze focused on Fan Xi's back. If her resentment could materialize, it would surely be a Gatling gun spraying crazy blue fire, and Fan Xi would have been riddled with holes.

But Fan Xi was still standing there perfectly fine. He smiled and greeted the crowd, and even took the initiative to find a camera and performed a New Year's greeting gesture.

This made the domestic fans watching the television across the ocean extremely excited.

This was a greeting that crossed the Pacific Ocean.

This was a true Chinese player, a true Chinese superstar playing in a game.

This sense of belonging was completely different from watching other superstars.

The CCTV commentator also said on TV: "Before the game, our reporter interviewed Fan Xi, and Fan Xi said he would definitely take a victory to pay his respects to the people of the country. We all know that Fan Xi is different from those other NBA players; he never talks big. So, dear audience friends, let us look forward to the arrival of victory."

"This will be a victory for Chinese basketball, and it will open the door of good luck for us this year. I believe that in this year's Olympics, the Chinese men's basketball team will definitely achieve a historic breakthrough."

The host narrated for the national audience with a passionate voice.

This was a festive Lunar New Year, and everyone was looking forward to a good omen.

"I will ruin your luck for the whole year, Jack. I understand you Chinese people's thinking too well. You will have bad luck, and so will the fans who support you, including all the Chinese fans watching the game on TV...!"

Before the jump ball, Ron Artest suddenly walked to Fan Xi's side, covered his mouth, and said a string of trash talk to Fan Xi.

This was a provocation, the most serious kind of provocation.

Using the customs of a nation and a country to provoke.

Fan Xi glared at him fiercely and pointed his finger at Artest: "You softie, you're the first one I'm going to beat up. You animal-like thing."

Fan Xi cursed him thoroughly.

Artest hadn't expected this; he had originally come over to irritate Fan Xi, but he didn't expect Fan Xi to tear off the mask and say "f*** you" directly.

Kobe hurried over to pull Artest aside because he saw DeAndre Jordan, Hamilton, and Leonard all walking over.

Artest was pulled aside.

Beep!

The head referee blew the whistle.

DeAndre Jordan and Howard jumped at the same time, both touching the ball almost simultaneously; they were both centers with outstanding physical qualities.

DeAndre Jordan used a bit more strength in his fingers.

The ball was tapped to the Clippers' side, and Fan Xi quickly ran over to control it.

Immediately, he dribbled the ball to the front court.

Fan Xi arrived at the arc of the three-point line, stopped, shook his head at Chris Paul who was about to come up to defend, and then extended his index finger to hook at Artest: "Didn't you say you were going to ruin my luck for the whole year? Come on, face me like a man."

Fan Xi fired a powerful shot at Artest.

He looked down on him, disparaging Artest as if he were a coward.

Artest was also a man with a temper, and he actually stepped forward to defend Fan Xi.

At this moment, waves of shouting and killing sounds erupted in the arena. Clippers fans were cheering for Fan Xi, shouting for him to finish him off, to finish off this ugly, dirty guy.

Artest's reputation had always been bad.

He was known for bullying the weak and fearing the strong. He claimed to be tough, but he never dared to attack real tough guys, only daring to deal with rookies who had just entered the league or fans who looked like they couldn't even truss a chicken.

He didn't dare to provoke any real villains.

At the Palace of Auburn Hills, the Wallace brothers beat him until he retreated step by step, not daring to make a sound, lying on the scorer's table acting like a rascal. Later, when a fan provoked him, he threw a heavy punch. As it turned out, he didn't even win the fight; if Stephen Jackson hadn't rushed up to help him fight, he wouldn't even have been able to escape.

After the Palace of Auburn Hills incident, Stephen Jackson publicly stated that Artest did not earn his respect and that Artest was a weak person. Because after Artest returned to the locker room, he kept gripping his shoulder, trembling and saying: "I won't be severely punished, will I?"

To a real gangster like Stephen Jackson, this was simply shameful.

Artest walked up.

Fan Xi was going to make him shameful too.

Artest's defense when he was young was very good; he had won Defensive Player of the Year.

But now, he had become clumsy, his lateral movement was terrible, and he only had his strong body left.

Fan Xi bent down in front of him, lowering his center of gravity to an extremely low level. This was a killer move he had learned from Isiah Thomas!

Bang!

Fan Xi slapped the ball hard; the ball was like a war drum being beaten fiercely, slamming violently against Artest's eardrums.

His heart tightened.

Bang!

Fan Xi's second dribble was even more violent, twice as strong as the first.

The ball changed direction sharply between Fan Xi's legs, like a curved blade.

Artest couldn't track the ball's trajectory at all; he stood there like a prisoner waiting to be sentenced.

But Fan Xi's dribbling wasn't over; he was still continuing his "slow slicing."

Bang!

The ball hit the ground hard again, creating an even more violent impact, the force doubling again.

Artest's heart shook along with this violent impact.

He no longer knew how to judge where Fan Xi was going.

Just after three exponentially violent dribbles, Fan Xi suddenly made a probe step to the left... like a steel spear piercing directly into Artest's left side.

Artest hurriedly moved to the left.

However, Fan Xi suddenly stopped.

He was like a cat playing with a mouse.

He made a slow change of direction, humiliating Artest's poor lateral movement.

Laughter erupted from the sidelines: the scene was comical. After a sharp rhythm, Fan Xi suddenly made a slow, elementary-school-style change of direction, just like using millet in his hand to tease stupid pigeons in a square.

Artest heard the laughter and was filled with shame and anger.

His body reflexively turned to the right.

But just then, Fan Xi changed direction again, neither fast nor slow.

Artest was furious. He couldn't bear the feeling of being humiliated, and he actually lunged fiercely at Fan Xi, wanting to end this possession with a foul; he didn't even care about knocking Fan Xi down.

That was exactly what he was aiming for.

But just as he lunged fiercely at Fan Xi, Fan Xi suddenly turned around. He seemed to have anticipated that this dirty thing would use such a sneaky trick... Fan Xi had automatically figured these things out from Stockton's assist experience; after all, when it came to dirty work, Stockton was Artest's ancestor.

Artest lunged into empty air, his body actually staggering a bit.

However, Fan Xi didn't let him off.

After shaking him off, despite the cheers from the whole arena.

He still didn't stop his work; he leaned toward Artest's position.

Taking advantage of Artest's unstable footing, he suddenly stepped to the left, and while performing a float step, he made a shooting posture. Artest jumped up immediately... Bang!

Fan Xi changed direction, sharp and swift—a "Buddha-worship" move!

Fan Xi sped past Artest's front.

Artest subconsciously made an emergency landing. He was already staggering and unstable, and after the emergency landing, to protect his ankles, he subconsciously retracted his feet, and then... couldn't help but kneel down... Thump!

Artest knelt on both knees.

Fan Xi had originally stopped at his side, and seeing him kneel, he stepped back again and, right in front of Artest, shot the ball with a stationary jump shot.

Swish!

The ball pierced through the net.

Staples Center was in an uproar.

This opening shot by Fan Xi ignited the atmosphere of the entire arena.

As well as the televisions of all the Asian fans across the ocean.

The host was roaring.

The audience in front of the TV were screaming.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Fan Xi directly shook Artest to his knees.

Performing such a grand gesture.

What could be a better New Year's gift than this?

"Get up, stop kneeling. Even the stupidest jerk has to celebrate the New Year."

After Fan Xi hit the three-pointer, he looked down at Artest with a cold tone, just like God judging evil subjects.

… ===== CHAPTER 303 =====