Chapter 537: Fan Xi's Glory, the Era's Tragedy

"What else can I say?"

De Antoni sat at the post‑game press conference.

His opening remark when answering the first question was exactly the same as La Li Brown's, even though one was the Rockets head coach and the other the Knicks head coach.

However, De Antoni's second half was: "Even God cannot stop him; he seized every chance, even chances that weren't really chances."

La Li Brown's second half was: "Jie Ke is God. I've never seen any player dominate a game like he does. He can drop 101 points in a single game, or act as the team's filler, filling every defensive statistic. Many people once said Jie Ke wasn't good at scoring; watch that 101‑point game and see how many scoring skills he displayed."

"Many say Jie Ke's defense isn't tough enough; watch the just‑finished game and see how charming his ubiquitous influence is."

La Li Brown lavished Fan Xi with superlative praise.

He rarely praises a player so; he never liked to cloak players in heroic hues. Even A Lun Ai Fu Sen received little of his commendation back then.

That's why, when a reporter asked about the difference between Fan Xi and Ai Fu Sen, he smiled and said, "You should ask A Lun. He'll give you a perfect answer."

La Li Brown was unwilling to comment on such a superficial question, because speaking truthfully would inevitably hurt A Lun Ai Fu Sen.

A Lun Ai Fu Sen's historical standing can't break into the top ten, not even the top twenty; he's roughly in the goalkeeper slot of the top thirty.

Ai Fu Sen, though a wildly popular superstar whose games inspire many and who symbolizes a culture, is limited by his height, his style makes it hard for him to be a winner, despite a fleeting championship run.

But Fan Xi already has three championships, all within his first three seasons.

Fan Xi's name is meant to make Michael Jordan stand up, while Ai Fu Sen merely shows he isn't the next Jordan.

De Antoni praised James Ha Deng at the conference, saying James Ha Deng's performance tonight left him in awe; he even lauded the sacrifice James Ha Deng made in the fourth quarter, noting that Ha Deng could have scored 70 or even 80 points, but gave up the isolation play for the team's overall benefit.

He also said the Rockets' loss was his tactical mistake, and emphasized that he hadn't expected Fan Xi's final block to so precisely read Ha Deng's pass.

【7】 He voluntarily took the blame, shouldering all responsibility.

He voluntarily took responsibility, assuming all responsibility.

De Antoni's accountability comforted Rockets fans; they believe the loss wasn't a talent gap, and they also trust Fan Xi's five‑double as a spectacular burst. A crime beyond battle!

If Ha Deng hadn't chosen to pass but had thrown the ball in, perhaps the Rockets would have won.

These 'ifs' keep Rockets fans full of hopeful championship fantasies.

But the media doesn't care whether Rockets fans still brim with hope.

They are now frantically reporting Fan Xi's super five‑double, calling it another feat in human sports history, a great achievement comparable to a single‑game 101 points.

Fan Xi once again establishes his unique edge.

He again stands atop a peak with no predecessor and no successor.

The media lavishes unprecedented hype on him; even ESPN can't help but follow, and they even proactively courted Lu Yuan, hoping to mend ties with Fan Xi and requesting an exclusive interview.

On their homepage, Fan Xi's large photo appeared for the first time, captioned: Michael Jordan is still Xi Fan, English is facing the toughest choice in basketball.

In fact, this was the hottest topic of discussion after the game.

In polls launched by major media and websites, in the Asian region, the Fan Xi versus Jordan ratio was 75% to 25%, with Fan Xi holding overwhelming advantage.

In Europe, Jordan won 65% to 35%; Europe isn't a traditional basketball world, they're more crazy about soccer. For them, they still prefer to trust the Jordan lodged deep in memory rather than Fan Xi.

But in the United States, in Jordan's stronghold.

Although each site and medium's audience differs, overall Jordan leads only by a slight margin: 55% to 45%.

Since the post‑Jordan era, this is the first time anyone in the U. S. mainland has come so close to Jordan.

Although this poll is nearer to Fan Xi's super‑101‑point and super five‑double feats, giving a natural dissemination edge, in the U. S. domestic protectionism can offset those advantages.

This is an infinitely close approximation to the real ratio.

Jordan did not respond to this.

But many veteran stars and many active players have started verbal spats because of it.

Any topic battling for the top sparks a war of words, especially when it involves the basketball number one.

In this process, JR Smith and Gilbert Arenas spat wildly, unleashing a super‑stirring effect.

"Michael Jordan in this era can score 100 points each game; a five‑double isn't impressive at all, as long as he wants it."

Gary Payton's golden career era was suppressed by Jordan, but now he has become a defender of Jordan's authority.

Equally fervent in his conversion is Ka Er Ma Long, who, after retiring, is largely out of touch, rarely speaks to the media, and quietly does his 'truck driver' role. But now Fan Xi's momentum is huge. This super power forward, twice beaten by Jordan in the finals, gave an interview.

He said, "Jieke Fan is a great player, but calling him the number one in basketball history would be too dismissive of Michael. Young kids haven't lived through that era; they don't understand the kind of defense we played. Moreover, now a casual 130‑140 points, data explosions, are nothing special."

"Jieke Fan has never won a scoring title; in both personal and team honors, he's far from Michael." Xiao En Kan Pu is also a casualty of the Jordan era, also stands on Jordan's side.

Overall, most supporters of Jordan are players who dominated the 80s and 90s.

Among active players there are also a group, but most have personal frictions with Fan Xi.

Among the retired superstars of the last century, only Isaiah Thomas firmly stands on Fan Xi's side.

He said, "A third‑year Jordan hadn't even set foot on the Eastern Finals floor, while Jie Ke already had three consecutive championships and three consecutive Finals MVPs. Before getting Pi Peng, he was just a scrub. But has he ever brushed out 101 points? A super five‑double?"

As everyone knows, Isaiah Thomas and Michael Jordan have a deep‑seated hatred. In the early part of Jordan's career, he was suppressed by the Smiling Assassin; the Bad Kids army led by the Smiling Assassin was Jordan's nightmare, and Jordan dreamed of crossing the Detroit Pistons.

He eventually crossed it, but also because the Bad Kids army aged and fell apart, and another key reason: Scott Pi Peng's rise.

Thus, Isaiah Thomas has always resented Jordan. He hated Jordan; when Jordan hadn't risen, he even isolated Jordan at the All‑Star game. At that time, Thomas's status was slightly higher than Jordan's. But after Jordan's rapid ascent, Jordan's retaliation was thorough... Isaiah Thomas never made the Dream Team because he lacked support from Jordan and the Magician.

Moreover, Jordan always portrayed Isaiah Thomas as a villain. This kept Thomas a side character for a long time; people cast Thomas as the antagonist in Jordan's story, forgetting that Thomas in the 80s was the only one to defeat the black‑white duo Magic Johnson and Bird, and to suppress Jordan's rise.

So his stepping up to back Fan Xi is unsurprising. He is the person who most hopes for Michael Jordan's Thus we include: English golden figure to collapse.

"Jordan isn't that great, nor is he unbeatable. Only those he has beaten wish to maintain his standing. That way, it doesn't look so shameful."

Isaiah Thomas's final line: 'Boomkill'!

By contrast, JR Smith's muzzle is aimed at the active players who praise Jordan.

For example, Deron Williams, who wrote on his personal page: 'There's only one goat; I've only heard of mj, never heard of any fan!'

"Jordan should feel sorry for having such supporters. After all, this is the super point guard who lifted the rested Jie Ke from the bench to score 101 points. But it's fine; when he retires, he'll be like Gary Payton, Ka Er Ma Long. When his grandson asks why Jie Ke Fan scored 101 points on his head, he'll say: 'Hey, that's Jie Ke! The greatest player ever; if he played in today's NBA, he'd average 202 points. I limiting him to 101 is already an unprecedented miracle!'"

Arenas retweeted and commented on Deron Williams' tweet.

He also retweeted Kevin Durant's tweet.

Kevin Durant is Fan Xi's good friend, but he backs Jordan, writing 'the eternal goat, mj'.

Then Arenas commented and reposted: Si Jia Li's bath water is no longer clear, because sweat from a new mountain goat has flowed down. Forever Jie Ke, forever the god!

This caused Kevin Durant to delete his tweet after 3 hours, and then people discovered that Durant's alt account started going crazy, a series of disses targeting those who said he is not as good as Jieke Fan, not as good as Derek Rose, not as good as James Harden.

Durant was originally the big boss among the new-generation superstars, the Thunder's record over the past few years has also been very good, and he also signed a super big contract with Nike. But in the past one or two years, the drive of other young superstars has been too strong, and he still has an unwilling Westbrook beside him, making his starlight slightly dim.

He was very unhappy.

But, the space is limited after all; nowadays even Le Bu Lang Zhang Si's influence can't keep up with Fan Xi, and Durant has nothing to regret.

It's just the winner-takes-all rule.

Compared to Arenas soaring on the internet and dueling with Deron Williams, Durant, Pierce, Artest… and others, JR Smith is indiscriminately firing off in the media.

The two of them are the heng and ha generals on Fan Xi's public opinion field.

"Jie Ke has no scoring title, does Jordan have an assist title? Jie Ke doesn't have that many regular-season MVPs, what was Jordan doing in his first three seasons? Wasn't he getting beaten? Jie Ke took down the league's number one in his first season, what was Jordan doing in his first season? Padding stats? Why not pad a 101-point game?"

"Jordan without Pippen is like a fish losing someone. Jordan without Pippen gets swept in the first round, while Pippen without Jordan can still make the Eastern Finals. What does this show? He's merely a system player."

"Jie Ke won a championship with the Lakers, won a championship with the Kuaisuan during a rebuild, then after another rebuild won another championship. Now coming to the Knicks, he has created two human limits, and soon will win another championship."

"What reasons remain for Jordan sitting on the throne? Is it his age? Is it his seniority?"

"If I were in the 80s or 90s, I would duel Jordan to the death. But in Jie Ke's era, I willingly run errands on the flank for him. That's the difference."

"The trend of 'revering the ancient, slighting the present' in the basketball commentary circle should have passed; Jordan nowadays is merely the core level of a second-rate team. His leadership ability might even be inferior to that of Johnson."

JR Smith is the standard loud-mouthed king with a blade-guarded guard.

His remarks amount to overturning the mainstream basketball commentary discourse; he has entered the realm of trolls.

Even Fan Xi, upon hearing it, felt a bit embarrassed.

Johnson was even more embarrassed; when reporters asked him about this, he scratched his head and said: 'This does not represent my personal view. I greatly respect Jordan, and I am far behind him.'

This heated discussion gradually subsided after a week.

Because at this time Kevin Garnett was being interviewed in New York, he said: 'I have played against Jordan; at that time I was a rookie, my physical condition was excellent, Jordan was already about to retire. But the physicality he displayed is still the best I have ever seen.'

"He is the best player in history to combine physicality and skill. If you ask me, who is better, Jordan or Jie Ke? My answer is Jordan."

"But if you ask me, who is smarter, who can better control the details of the game? My answer is Jieke Fan."

"They influence the game in different ways, but they can both dominate it."

Kevin Garnett was not just playing both sides; he gave his conclusion: 'If saying that the current Jie Ke surpasses Jordan is somewhat far-fetched, if saying that Jordan leads Jie Ke by a lot is also not objective, they have each reached the extreme in their respective strengths. Leave it to time; if Jie Ke wins another three or four championships, if he creates some more heart-pounding games, if his personal honors increase further, he will surpass Jordan.'

"After all, Jordan played in the league for over ten years, while this is only Jie Ke's fourth year."

"What should truly be sad now are these active guys; they face a ruler comparable to Jordan. If they are dominated in this era, they will never have a chance to rise."

Kevin Garnett hit the nail on the head.

If this era were to become a trans‑timespace battlefield between Fan Xi and Jordan.

Those real‑life players now are merely pawns on that battlefield.

This is a tragedy for any superstar.

And Fan Xi, in the week after finishing with the Rockets, completed three games, with lines of 18 points, 15 assists, 7 rebounds, 5 steals, 5 blocks; 31 points, 11 assists, 9 rebounds, 4 steals, 4 blocks; 21 points, 16 assists, 8 rebounds, 5 steals, 3 blocks.

These three games were a continuation of the battle with the Rockets.

Fan Xi in these three games still existed in the form of filling gaps and fixing leaks; he seamlessly integrated into the team's defensive system, as a 'tool person' comprehensively leading offense and defense.

This led many people to realize that Fan Xi's five‑double was not a random outburst; Fan Xi has the chance to repeat such a miracle, as long as he encounters sufficiently 'high‑quality' opponents.

As Dwight Howard said on the third day after that game ended: 'No one should mock Houston; anyone could become the next Rockets team.'

Compared to his spring‑breeze success on the court, off the court Fan Xi ran into a small problem.

The media in the United States always concern themselves with Fan Xi's gossip with Hao lai wu starlets; at this time, Jie Ke's Asian gossip came from the east, forming a whirlwind.

Because the media captured an explosive scene.

In New York.

…