Chapter 529

This is the NBA, this is a business league.

Besides the players at the top of the pyramid having some say, all other players are essentially commodities that can be traded. Perhaps you were still fighting hard for this team tonight, but tomorrow morning you'll get a call from your agent telling you you have to go play for the team you were desperately trying to defeat last night.

When Raymond Felton and Shannon Brown were packing their bags to go and meet up with the Nets, Tyson Chandler and JR Smith, who were playing a game in Denver, also received this news and were also heading to Houston.

Tyson Chandler wasn't surprised by the trade, but JR Smith was delighted beyond containment. In Fan Xi's 101 Miracle Night, Nets fans regarded him as a war criminal, believing his poor defense prevented Fan Xi from stopping them that night.

So, he would get booed at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. This made him feel terrible; being able to return to New York, to go to Fan Xi's side, made him overjoyed—he really wanted to enjoy the feeling of "one person attains the Dao, even his chickens and dogs ascend to heaven."

He had played many years under Carmelo Anthony, who is a superstar. But he was still a bit short of attaining the Dao and ascending to heaven; a good bird chooses its tree, and JR Smith believed his opportunity had come.

Tyson Chandler had also guessed some things; he wasn't an idiot. Actually, in that "unusual" cross-town derby, he had already noticed the signs.

He guessed that Fan Xi might be eyeing him.

He didn't expect it, but that's exactly how it was.

When the trade happened, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Finally, he could leave the Nets.

In his view, the Nets were hopeless; their promoted "everyone can attack" strategy was futile in the playoffs.

At the same time, he also took a breath.

When he again witnessed Fan Xi's layout ability, subtle as a snake's shadow, he knew his spring had come.

Following such a leader, there's no doubt he would surpass following the Nets' so-called big names.

Moreover, Tyson Chandler had carefully calculated that the Knicks' roster isn't bad. Although there are a few more old-timers, they're not yet too old to move.

…

The second half of the game suddenly became meaningless, for Mark Cuban.

Mark Cuban was very clear about Tyson Chandler's abilities. Although he's a bit old, he's still a league-top defensive center with strong rim protection.

Although JR Smith is a loose cannon, Fan Xi has always had a way of developing players; what if he could stabilize JR Smith's output firepower?

"Jie Ke, did you calculate that these two strong reinforcements would be available when playing the Rockets?" Mark Cuban asked Fan Xi.

Fan Xi shook his head, saying: "I know nothing about it. This is a dispute between Larry Brown and Brook Lopez, a decision made by Zhan Mu Si Duo Lan and Phil Jackson. I'm just a player."

Fan Xi blinked his kind, pure eyes.

Mark Cuban didn't believe Fan Xi was some naive innocent.

People in Texas didn't believe it either.

Inside the Houston Rockets, the trade caused a huge reaction; Chris Paul immediately called Harden upon seeing it.

Over the past period, although they had some friction over ball usage, overall they maintained a decent relationship. They had common topics, and a common enemy: Fan Xi.

Before defeating Fan Xi, they were willing to be each other's left and right arms.

"I know Tyson Chandler well; as long as he gets a point from a top-tier point guard, he can instantly become a league-top center. He's taller than Dwight, so our next game will have some trouble; we need to reduce the number of times we drive inside." Chris Paul said to James Harden.

"We must make sure we win this game. We can't let the loss continue into Houston."

Chris Paul said firmly to James Harden.

This is a manifestation of his stubborn willpower.

He didn't want to repeat his past nightmare.

Now is the weakest moment for Fan Xi's team; if we let Fan Xi keep winning, the heart he painstakingly put together will collapse again.

James Harden's idea matches Paul's; he said: "I will never forget the shame of London; I will utterly strike him down."

Harden declared it solemnly.

The so-called London shame refers to his ex-girlfriend tying herself up and lying in the bathtub, then calling Fan Xi to come over.

A posture inviting anyone to pick.

This is a thorn in Harden's heart, also the reason he broke up with Khloe Kardashian. Khloe Kardashian often fantasizes about Jieke Fan, which makes James Harden feel very upset.

This is also one of the reasons he broke up with the Kardashians, focused wholeheartedly on basketball, and his skills improved by leaps and bounds.

This time, what upset Harden was that the Kardashian family came to Houston. They would film some game content, but mainly to make Fan Xi part of a reality show.

This made Harden jealous.

He didn't want to become Fan Xi's foil again, so he wanted to destroy that damned reality show, make Fan Xi lose face and reputation, and prevent the Kardashian family from getting what they wanted.

"Let's meet at the court tomorrow at eight; we'll join forces to deal with him."

"No, seven."

The two agreed.

They both had a strong desire.

They knew their individual abilities couldn't defeat Fan Xi, who has both scoring and passing ability.

But they believed that the combined strength of one plus one would be greater than two.

With Chris Paul's big-picture vision plus James Harden's scoring explosiveness, could they still not handle Fan Xi?

They had confidence.

…

The Knicks defeated the Dallas Mavericks.

This even exceeded Fan Xi's expectations; Fan Xi originally thought the Knicks would lose this game.

Both sides' offensive frenzy continued until the final moments.

After both teams' scores entered the 140-point range, Kevin Garnett blocked Blake Griffin's shot, and then STAT made a three-pointer.

The Knicks' two power forwards combination defeated the Dallas' two power forwards combination.

Perhaps this is the swan song of the Knicks' two starting power forwards……With Tyson Chandler's arrival, their chances of being on the court together will become even rarer.

The Dallas' two power forwards still have many chances to start together.

Perhaps that's the reason.

The Knicks laughed last thanks to a crucial three-pointer.

With this victory added to their record, the Knicks remained eighth in the Eastern Conference.

Next, Fan Xi made his comeback.

Everyone turned their attention to Houston.

People wanted to see whether Houston's new Three Giants could stop Fan Xi.

Some even said this was a youthful upgraded version of last season's Lakers. Chris Paul and Dwight Howard were both Fan Xi's nemeses; they teamed up with the Lakers but never even touched the Western Conference championship trophy.

All of this was caused by Fan Xi.

The media were frenetically portraying this as a so-called revenge battle.

Especially after Fan Xi once again confirmed that he would return in the game against the Rockets.

"I haven't watched any game footage of the Houston Rockets, because I am now an Eastern Conference player."

Fan Xi in Dallas frankly said: "I'll watch some highlights tonight. But based on everyone's descriptions, and my understanding of Chris, Dwight, Mike D'Antoni, and James Harden, they'll probably still play like last season's Lakers."

"I have no personal grudge against them, so the media hype is fabricated. I believe they respect me, just as I respect those who have defeated me."

"I don't want to predict the outcome of the next game. But I hope the new Knicks players get a winning start."

Fan Xi said that.

He also commented on the trade that just happened.

"I'm just as shocked as you are. I'm happy that Brook Lopez is returning to the Nets; he can now play in a comfortable environment. I'm also excited about the arrival of Tyson Chandler and JR Smith, who will bring the talent we desperately need. At the same time, I regret the departure of Raymond and Carmelo; they are both great people..."

When Fan Xi talked about this, it was all diplomatic rhetoric.

He has no habit of detailing things to reporters; he speaks to people as people and to ghosts as ghosts.

…

Fan Xi ran into Kanye West at Houston Airport, plus the film crew of Keeping Up with the Kardashians. Fan Xi was not unfamiliar with all this; his fame had even gotten help from that reality show.

In fact, if it weren't for the London binding incident, Fan Xi wouldn't have had much prejudice against the Kardashian sisters.

He now merely keeps his distance, and asks Jenna and them to keep some distance as well, because they simply love hype and love making headlines.

Traffic is their survival code.

But not Fan Xi's.

Kanye West has been doing well lately; his music has been widely welcomed. The brand he launched in collaboration with Fan-x also sells worldwide, with everyone going crazy to get a pair of Yeezys.

He will reap substantial commercial returns.

So he always says: "When I stand with Jie Ke, I automatically have good luck. My investment in the Kuaisuan club has made me filthy rich. Now, my fashion brand is also pushing its limits."

This is a strong-strong alliance.

The camera recorded the enthusiastic greeting between Fan Xi and Kanye West, which is great material; they then got into a luxury RV together and headed to the hotel to meet up with the Kardashian family, a scene also filmed.

Most reality shows are scripted.

Fan Xi does not accept the so-called script, but he went along with some of the Kardashian sisters' 'designs'.

They excitedly told the camera: "Next, we want to record something important. That is our family member, Jenna's fiancé, the renowned Thus we include: English, who will lead us to witness the real NBA. He will tell us how to win games."

"We will go to an NBA arena to feel the true charm of basketball."

"It's worth mentioning that the person Jie Ke is facing this time is still Khloe's ex-boyfriend; in fact, Chris also dated Khloe, and Dwight sent her a text, but she rejected him."

Fan Xi stood outside the camera with a furrowed brow, watching Kim's introduction.

He felt confused, with a strong sense: the NBA is just your backyard. You are the lifelong enemies of David Stern… Adam Silver.

It is said that Khloe has now hooked up with an NBA player.

Following this trend, sooner or later the NBA's top 400-plus players will all jump on the bandwagon.

The camera later filmed Fan Xi and Kanye West discussing sneakers; this was staged, Kanye looked natural, while Fan Xi appeared stiff.

He is not responsible for the production and sales of the Fan-x Brand, nor for marketing; he is merely a pure major shareholder.

These matters are handled by his parents.

He only knows that these shoes are selling exceptionally well now, and their resale price keeps being driven up.

…

The New York Knicks rested in Houston for a day, and Fan Xi met Tyson Chandler and JR Smith on the evening before the game.

They passed the team doctor's examination at the hotel, and they will enter the game as quickly as possible.

They don't even need to prepare extra jerseys; they can just wear the ones they previously wore with the Knicks.

Everything was so familiar and easy.

The only unfamiliar part is that they now have to meet and chat with Fan Xi.

Fan Xi is the owner of the Knicks.

Although the three's meeting lacked the authority and ceremony of a new godfather taking office.

But Tyson Chandler's nervousness and JR Smith's excitement reveal their psychological state toward Fan Xi.

They are compliant.

Tyson Chandler said: "I'm glad to be your teammate. Back when we were opponents, I was somewhat immature…"

Fan Xi smiled and patted his shoulder, stopping Tyson Chandler's 'worldly ways'. He said: "You are a respectable opponent; I believe you will definitely become a respectable teammate. I have high hopes for you; with you, our interior becomes formally complete."

"I have been waiting for your arrival; you are an important reason for my comeback tomorrow night."

Fan Xi said.

Fan Xi spoke very sincerely.

JR Smith hurriedly patted his chest and said: "Jie Ke, from now on I'll follow you. Don't worry, anyone who provokes you, I'll be the first to step up; I am your armed guard."

Fan Xi raised his eyebrows, smiled, and said: "I know you are a brave person."

"But I know even better that you are an outstanding high school genius. You possess innate super talent, as well as scoring explosiveness that can erupt anytime, anywhere."

I hope you become our outside line top scorer; this makes me more eager than becoming my sword-bearing guard.

Fan Xi patted JR Smith's shoulder.

His words made JR Smith quite moved; this feeling was like that of a loyal minister in the ancient Three Kingdoms finally meeting his lord.

Fortunately encountering a wise lord!

JR Smith's excited hands were trembling.

He had followed Carmelo Anthony for so many years, yet Anthony never said such words to him. Anthony also didn't want him to become the top outside scorer; he felt his many shots were never enough, always having to help him run routes and create space.

After so many years of serving him, he got nothing.

Now coming to Fan Xi's place, the first sentence is to let me become the top scorer.

What kind of pattern is this?

Thus we include: English's pattern.

Carmelo Anthony is nothing more than a superstar in this lifetime; let him guard his scoring title and cry.

I want to follow Thus we include: English and ascend to heaven with my chickens and dogs.

……