Chapter 655: Do We Really Have to Overthrow the King

Mili Xiqi received a $50,000 fine and a seven‑game suspension.

In his own words: "My 2015‑2016 season is over."

Draymond Green was fined $60,000 and suspended for nine games.

Even though he was roughed up badly, he was deemed primarily responsible.

The media has a consensus on this.

In terms of reputation, Mili Xiqi has been harmless for years, often mocked as a knock‑off and seen as overly transparent. By contrast, Green is universally reviled, constantly stirring up hard‑line headlines or causing trouble for no reason.

How could public opinion favor him?

With Green suspended, the Warriors are basically done.

Green's role on the Warriors is still obvious: he contributes little on offense, but on defense, coordination, and playmaking he is the primary piece.

Kuaisuan won by 21 points.

Durant was in top form that game, scoring 49 points.

The third game was in Oakland; Kuaisuan again won comfortably, essentially hanging the Warriors out for a beating.

A 21‑point margin isn't enough to prove a huge gap between the two teams.

Fan Xi posted a monster line of 29 points, 19 assists, 16 rebounds, 7 steals and 4 blocks, completely dominating the perimeter.

Then the fourth Western Conference Finals ended even sooner—after just two and a half games there was no suspense.

The Warriors exited early.

Their new era hadn't even begun before they were swept.

Fan Xi has cleanly dispatched the Warriors for two straight years, leaving many who hoped the Warriors could end the Fan Xi dynasty visibly frustrated.

But what can they do now?

Kevin Durant delivered a classic line after the series: "Did the Western Conference Finals end like that? I thought we were still in preseason."

Durant's words made Warriors fans itch with anger.

But they have no remedy.

Fan Xi asked Durant: "Aren't you trying to join the Warriors? Aren't you afraid of offending them now?"

Durant replied, "I'll first beat them into submission, then join them. That way they'll respect me more."

Fan Xi gave a thumbs‑up, pleased that Durant had that insight.

Then Durant added, "But, Jie Ke. I have a new idea. I want to keep working with you; let's found a nomadic dynasty."

"That's so cool!"

Durant proposed an entirely new concept.

He always manages to give Fan Xi a fresh surprise.

Fan Xi said, "If you win the championship this season, you can work with me for a year. But when I return to Los Angeles, you stop following me—unless you're willing to take a minimum salary."

Fan Xi's remark completely threw Durant off.

Taking a minimum salary is too much.

…

James built a nomadic dynasty in the Eastern Conference.

This season he reached the Eastern Conference Finals again, and after a grueling six‑game battle led the Cavaliers past the Bulls into the Finals.

He truly has skill; even if he's a stats‑chaser, his talent is undeniable.

Having reached the Finals five times before, this is his sixth Eastern title.

Equal to Michael Jordan's tally.

Eastern Conference's permanent vice‑GOAT!

Le Bu Lang Zhang Si earned many accolades this season, after all he leads a rebuilding team.

But if you think carefully, that rebuilding squad has four NBA draft‑top picks: James, Irving, Wiggins, and Bennet.

Add Kevin Love, Tristan Tang Pu Sen, Coval… and a host of elite warriors.

In terms of lineup, it's no worse than Miami's Heat.

With the Cavaliers back in the Finals, James once again becomes the son of Akron, Ohio's hero, the Cavaliers' eternal king.

Though that title isn't very fair to Irving and Wiggins.

Moreover, with Le Bu Lang Zhang Si's style, every superstar teammate gets diminished.

That's probably why Wiggins sought a trade mid‑season.

Unfortunately, the Cavaliers refused to let him go.

As the Finals approach, public discourse revives the James‑vs‑Fan Xi narrative.

Even after five or six years of hype, the story never tires, and the media loves to write about it.

But this year the Clippers have Durant.

The situation is different now.

Kuaisuan has obtained a disruptive public‑opinion advantage.

Jie Ke Fan's faithful assistant Mr. Kevin Durant delivered an important speech before the Finals began: "Le Bu Lang Zhang Si's opponent, Jie Ke Fan? Is it your mouth that's wrong, or my ears?"

"In my mind, an opponent should be like this."

Durant held up two fingers and made a "woo‑woo‑woo" sound: "It's like racing; you chase, I chase, sometimes you're ahead of me, sometimes I'm ahead of you. That's what a true opponent is."

"But Jie Ke and Le Bu Lang Zhang Si are like this, woo… Jie Ke has ridden alone, beating James five times; what right does he have to be called Jie Ke's opponent?"

"Sorry, Le Bu Lang Zhang Si. I don't mean any disrespect; you're still one of the league's best players."

"But if you want to match up with Jie Ke, that's naive."

"You're now up against me. We're the only true rivals with wins and losses against each other. Besides, I think I'm equal to you in every way. Want to test it?"

Kevin Durant posted a war tweet.

When that was said, the media finally got smart. They no longer put James and Fan Xi side by side, after all Durant was angry and really biting.

No one wants to be hit by Durant's relentless attacks.

Look at O'Neil; O'Neil is now completely honest, and regarding Durant's issue, he is extremely deferential.

Durant now has Fan Xi's sincere invitation, and even the biggest basket is covered for him. He can recklessly carry out any attack.

O'Neil definitely doesn't want to cause trouble.

James is now much more honest, but only in front of Fan Xi. When talking about Fan Xi, he uses honorifics. But Durant? Du Laoer?

He was very angry.

"Kevin has been a bit arrogant lately."

James commented, "I don't mind giving him a little lesson."

"What are you waiting for?" Durant shot back, "Come at me fast; if the referee doesn't call your traveling and doesn't give you a star whistle, do you really think you can do anything?"

"Kobe, Jieke Fan, Michael Jordan, me, Derek Rose. Do you know what the biggest difference between these people and you is?"

"No team dares to guard me one‑on‑one, but other teams dare to guard you one‑on‑one and try to choke your teammates?"

"You think you're all‑round, but in fact you're completely incapable. Since 2005, your team has only run one kind of system, a system centered on you. No, it should be called a system that lets you pad stats."

"You claim to be versatile. Yet as a shooting guard you lack shooting, you can't hard‑solve mid‑range. As a small forward, your ball‑handling is poor; you can't break through in a real set‑piece battle, and against top defense you just freeze."

"Some still brag you can play point guard. Please. If you really could, why do you always bring a point guard with you on the floor? You lack that organizational ability, understand? All you have is the ability to pad assists."

Durant opened his mouth.

Simply sheer!

If James were a king.

Then Durant is the child who claimed the king was naked, tearing open a hole.

This made James thunderously angry.

He thought his usual relationship with Durant was fine, yet this person was so bold.

Leave a margin, so you can meet again later, understand?

Durant definitely doesn't get it; if he had any emotional intelligence, and as for constantly breaking defenses online and trash‑talking netizens? If he had any restraint, would he publicly claim to drink someone else's bath water on the internet?

James, this is an Italian cannon you shouldn't have provoked.

…

Durant's words inevitably caused a massive shock in public opinion, even making people rethink James's past games. Someone brought up his 2007 Finals appearance. The Spurs were just single‑covering him, choking his opponents, weren't they?

His production was astonishing.

Fans seemed to finally react: Yeah, Le Bu Lang Zhang Si was so fierce before, why was he never double‑teamed? Why were they always choking his teammates?

Actually, the Cavaliers' youngsters also had some thoughts; they were thinking: Durant is right. Our tactic is basically four‑guard‑one; should we try playing without him to see if we can do better?

Irving has nothing else, but his rebellious streak is intense.

Wiggins never really respected James; he admired Fan Xi more. Durant's words opened his mind; he found the reason.

The first game of the Finals arrived quickly.

At Los Angeles's Staples Center.

The Cavaliers' starting lineup: Irving, Wiggins, James, Kevin Love, Tang Pu Sen.

The Clippers' starting lineup: Fan Xi, Durant, Giannis, Capela, Jokic.

The game began, Capela and TT jumped for the ball; he beat TT.

Tang Pu Sen is a beast; over the years he has made Koler Kardashian submit completely. This is something Harden, Odom, and Griffin never achieved, showing his exceptional talent.

On the court, he is an elite blue‑collar, doing the dirty, tiring work.

Tonight, he topped Jokic.

Fan Xi faked a shot at the top of the three‑point arc, then drove straight into the paint; when he rose high in the lane, Kevin Love wisely chose to dodge.

Fan Xi completed a slam dunk.

Then Irving dribbled past half‑court.

Le Bu Lang Zhang Si took over possession.

Kuaisuan matched up with Giannis.

Giannis's defense has improved a lot over the past three years, after all he was trained by Kobe, very solid. Moreover, his physical condition is excellent; he's a genuine monster.

He remained steadfast against James's drive; he and James tussled for a while, James failed to finish his drive, and finally chose a high‑difficulty Stop-and-Go Jump Shot... Boom!

The basketball rimmed out.

Jokic protected the board, lofted it to Fan Xi, who passed to Durant; Durant called out Wiggins from the three‑point line and hit the three.

Le Bu Lang Zhang Si reminded Wiggins to hold his position, not lose his spot.

Wiggins turned and walked away.

And said, "Kobe and Jie Ke both guard each other's top attackers."

Those words made James uncomfortable; he glared at the younger brother.

The game continued; Irving used a screen to cut into the paint and executed a beautiful back‑turn layup... Fan Xi's defense was solid but still didn't stop it.

That gave Irving great confidence.

In the next half, Fan Xi easily back‑down faced Irving, using a turn‑around jumper to score.

Then Irving and Love set a pick‑and‑roll, passing to Love for a made shot.

Then Wiggins walked the talk, indeed defending the Greek monster, tossing Durant to James.

When James stood in front of Durant, the entire arena erupted in cheers.

Fan Xi also passed the ball to Durant.

All American viewers were watching a good show.

Even O'Neal was eagerly awaiting: "Can LeBron give Durant a little taste of his own medicine?"

As soon as his words fell, Durant jumped up and shot… swish!

It went in.

"LeBron, I know you have objections to me. But you really can't stop me. You'd better do some easy work, lest your underlings rebel."

Durant's words were truly heart‑cutting: "If the king is overthrown, the outcome will be very tragic."

James was somewhat exasperated, and he hurriedly took the ball from Irving's hands.

He held the ball and singled out Durant, he drove into the paint with Durant on him, then finished with a strong floater.

He stared fiercely at Durant.

Durant, however, turned and said to Giannis: "I can't stop him; you take over defending him next. Give him some physicality."

This is a rascal's move Durant learned from Green.

"I don't have a throne, why would I fight you to the death? I'm the second‑in‑command on Kuaisuan." Durant candidly told James: "But I feel that after this round of games, you too will have to become the second‑in‑command. Irving and Wiggins don't listen to you that much."

Sowing discord.

Durant has really mastered the Thirty‑Six Stratagems.

James was indeed very angry.

But after turning around, Durant used a quick breakthrough followed by a stop‑and‑go jump shot to nullify his defense.

Then the Greek Little Monster indeed went to defend him.

The Little Monster stuck to James, and James really suffered.

Irving also took the opportunity not to pass the ball to him, instead singling out Fan Xi, driving into the paint to draw a double‑team, then passing to TT, who finished with a layup.

Khloe Kardashian on the sidelines was beside herself, shouting loudly: "That's my horse! That's my horse!"

She really treated TT as a horse to ride.

But TT indeed has something like a horse's...

Otherwise, how could Khloe have become so obedient?

The game continued.

The Kuaisuan played very smoothly.

The Knights defeated the Bulls in six games, relying solely on offense.

But now, when they meet the Kuaisuan, their offense has no advantage at all.

Fan Xi could make them understand in a minute what 'flowing like clouds and water' and what 'mercury pouring onto the ground' mean.

As time moved forward, the Kuaisuan's lead gradually increased.

Durant played a secondary role in this, just as he claimed to be the second‑in‑command.

It is worth noting that James did not play the main role for the Knights tonight; he too could only be considered secondary, because he initiated fewer offensive plays than Irving.

Irving had a bit of the feeling that orders from the front cannot be obeyed.

Could it really be that we must overthrow the king?

…