Chapter 400: I Believe They Are Innocent

Spain's starting lineup is: Jose Calderon, Rudy Fernandez, Lluís Meria, Pau Gasol, Marc Gasol.

The prodigy rookie Rikubio did not start; in fact, another outstanding power forward Ibaka also did not start.

Spain's roster is very strong; they have the most NBA players besides the Dream Team, all elite. Most importantly, this lineup has been solid for years, their style is extremely seasoned, and their chemistry is highly refined.

If the Dream Team is T0P0, they are TOP1 level, and far outpace the teams behind them.

For the national team to bite this bone is difficult.

The Zhongguo team first used Yao Ming; Yao Ming entered the starting lineup, and alongside him were Lao Wang, small forward Zhu Fangyu, shooting guard Ding Yuyuhang, point guard Fan Xi.

Zhongguo's starting five is strong; Fan Xi and Yao Ming are the core of Kuaisuan, Lao Wang's defense is almost a problem, but his offensive skill is truly slick, especially with Fan Xi's powerful point‑guard pressure and feeding; he moves like an 18‑year‑old girl, with fluttering hearts, tiny tricks that trap opponents, truly the man who once made Garnett bleed.

Zhu Fangyu is a home‑grown 3D; his body is strong and unafraid of contact, his defense is passable internationally, and his three‑point shooting is relatively steady… that steadiness depends on Fan Xi stretching the defense.

As long as Xiao Ding gets excited, he becomes a hard‑headed Ding Ding, unafraid of difficulty.

He is a ball‑handling wing‑forward swing player capable of international competition, a good prospect with body, contact, spirit, and a bit of drive; if Liao Cheng Guo is a bit cocky and simple, Shandong Xiao Ding is a bit clear‑minded foolishness… this foolishness is a compliment, the kind of reckless vigor of a greenhorn charging ahead.

Ding!

Bang!

Yao Ming won the jump ball against Marc Gasol.

Young Gasol is now truly a top‑five NBA center; his level is high.

Yet he is not taller than Yao Ming; Yao Ming's height is an absolute advantage.

Fan Xi gains possession and, under Calderon's defense, steadily pushes forward.

Calderon is a typical European point guard—steady, cunning, with strong game sense. He now earns near‑ten‑million‑dollar salaries in the NBA; after Ke Li Si Bo Shen left Duolunduo, he has the aura of a Raptors boss.

Calderon cannot guard Fan Xi in the NBA, nor in FIBA.

Fan Xi gets past him like crossing a morning road—an easy rhythm, plus violent acceleration leaves him behind; Fan Xi is a player who has fused breakthrough skill with talent to the extreme.

Compared with the NBA, international courts are more crowded… no three‑second rule fills the paint with tall players.

Yet Fan Xi's ability to thread the needle is unrivaled, and his passing out of the paint is also unrivaled… this is a secret art from Stephen Nash.

Fan Xi drives in; both big and small Gasol cannot stop the interior pressure. Pau Gasol behaves like any normal Lakers Player… he suffers from Fan Xi Stress Injury Reaction Syndrome; when facing Fan Xi he is always extra cautious.

This nervous tension increases his defensive mistakes.

Fan Xi passes the ball from his waist; Yao Ming receives it, easily tips it in… Jose Calderon tries to block from behind, but he is too short and cannot defend Yao Ming.

The Spanish team did not unleash the bullfighter's wildness; their offense is steady.

They patiently execute set plays; Calderon passes the ball to Fernandez.

Although Fernandez is a bit out of his element in the NBA, he has performed at near‑best sixth‑man value.

He is dominant on the international stage and once bore the nickname "King of Europe".

But as everyone knows, the "King of Europe" title has always been a wholesale marketing label.

Xiao Ding hardened up tonight.

His whole body seems blood‑pumped; he clings tightly to Fernandez, even hinting at Jimmy Butler.

A good man fears entangling women.

Although Fernandez does not covet Xiao Ding's looks, the young Asian teen behaves like a lecher, messing with him, disrupting his rhythm, making him a bit uncomfortable.

He bursts into the free‑throw line, stops abruptly, then jumps and shoots… Bang!

Fan Xi darts past him, slaps the released ball away.

Lao Wang quickly grabs the ball.

He passes to Fan Xi, who sprints with the ball; Zhu Fangyu follows from the other side, Fan Xi sends the ball to the corner; the ball arrives, Zhu Fangyu receives it with no defender in front or behind, he shoots smoothly, in his perfect jump‑shot rhythm… Swish!

Three‑point shot made.

5:0.

Zhongguo comes out and gives Spain a strong opening warning.

"Be careful, be careful. Don't let Jie Ke set the pace; he's best at sudden attacks," Pau Gasol motherly admonishes his teammates in Spanish.

He is like a startled bird.

Before the game started, he repeatedly emphasized how terrifying Fan Xi is and how well Fan Xi explodes in adversity. He demanded teammates stay fully focused, play each ball methodically, and never dance to Fan Xi's rhythm.

If it weren't for Pau Gasol's high standing in Spanish basketball, he would surely be labeled a nagging woman.

Or a cowardly nagging woman.

But Gasol truly is scared of Fan Xi.

Others may not know Fan Xi's prowess; he can't not know. When Fan Xi is a teammate, they play like gods. The 2011 championship left him puzzling for ten days and nights—how could one Fan Xi, with the team's main roster cut by eighty percent, defeat the Three Giants? He even sealed the win face‑to‑face; even God wouldn't dare imagine it, Jie Ke completed it.

Last season, in his first season with Kuaisuan, Fan Xi led Kuaisuan to the championship. They slaughtered the Lakers in the preseason, clinched a Christmas‑day win over the Lakers, reversed a New Year battle against the Lakers, finished the season by crushing the Lakers, and in the Western showdown again left the Lakers helpless.

Having endured so much pain, how could Pau Gasol not know Fan Xi's greatness? How could he not tremble and be overly cautious?

He has never been a hard‑headed, fierce style; meeting strength is not his destiny.

He is agile, intellectual, elegant, graceful, an all‑round power forward.

Looking back, Pau Gasol receives Calderon's pass at the free‑throw line, facing Lao Wang.

Lao Wang is also an agile, graceful, elegant, intellectual, all‑round power forward.

Only Lao Wang's talent lags a bit behind Gasol's; his back‑to‑back post moves and playmaking are also weaker.

His defensive ability is also a step behind.

Yet Pau Gasol actually tries to fake a shot to fool Lao Wang, then actually shooting is a bit excessive.

He fakes twice; Lao Wang watches motionless, a hint of bewilderment: "Is that it? A champion power forward is just that?"

Thinking of this, Lao Wang can't help but lament: "If I had gone to train in America at nineteen, I could have been a top‑tier power forward."

Boom!

Gasol, on his third attempt, simply doesn't fake and shoots directly, missing.

His younger brother was in the paint frantically wiping his butt for him, trying to snatch a frontcourt rebound, but Yao Ming locked him in place, reaching out to claim the board… The contrast between the two is like his recklessness versus his recklessness, the bright moon shining over the great river.

Fan Xi received the basketball and did not accelerate further.

He calmly pushed forward, quickly reaching the frontcourt; Yao Ming stepped out to set a screen for Fan Xi, Fan Xi drove into the paint, facing Mark Gasol's meticulous defense; Fan Xi suddenly hurled the ball hard from Mark Gasol's left side toward the backboard, while his body simultaneously sprinted to the right side of the paint; when the ball smashed the backboard and rebounded, he timed a perfect leap, snatching the ball with one hand… Boom!

He completed a slam dunk.

Fan Xi, under Spain's tightly compact defense, executed a self‑off‑the‑ball throw‑and‑dunk that only appears on All‑Star Weekend.

The nightstand girl in the London Sports Arena let out wave after wave of wailing, like the tide of the Qiantang River, as Big Ben stretched its wires.

This is the charm of Fan Xi's game; you can even hear some voices of fathers and mothers that they wouldn't normally let you hear.

7–0.

Spain looks a bit stunned.

The Dream Team sat in front of the TV at this moment, taking a day off. James bit his own finger and found it a bit hard to chew.

"Why is Spain playing so restrained? Normally, even if China fields Yao Ming early, Spain wouldn't be left taking a slap on the left and a slap on the right." Iguodala offered a plain metaphor.

He is the Dream Team's metaphor hero.

"Let the bullet fly a little longer," Chris Paul said calmly. "From what I know of Spain, as long as they stick to their own pace, beating the China team won't be a problem."

Dwyane Wade also agreed with Paul's view.

He had faced both the China team and Spain during the Olympics, so he knows the depth of the two squads. Consequently, he even studied China's lineup and feels it is weaker than in 2008, even with Fan Xi added. No matter how strong Fan Xi is, he is still just one person.

"China's stamina will soon become an issue; Yao won't be able to play long, at most a single quarter," Wade said.

However, Kevin Durant on the other side offered a different view: "Jie Ke knows many tactics; he can attack explosively one second and defend the position the next. A man so versatile can't be judged by ordinary logic. It's like he was photographed today watching a movie with Selena, tomorrow spotted at a hotel with Si Jia Li, and the day after at a recording studio moving a nightstand with Swift…"

Durant is also a metaphor knight.

But his teammate James Harden said, "I believe they are all innocent. That recording is likely a marketing stunt. Its purpose was to lull the Heat into complacency and reap commercial benefits, and from the current situation both goals have been achieved."

A spark of wisdom always glints in James Harden's eye corner.

Wade and James couldn't help but feel a sudden, crystal‑clear understanding.

So that's how it is?

It turns out to be like this?

Could it really be like this?

Indeed, it is like this!!

Jieke Fan, you're truly diabolical!

To think such a thing could be used as a weapon.

…