Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters-Chapter 1034 - 592 He Doesnt Need a Statue_3

Chapter 1034: Chapter 592: He Doesn’t Need a Statue_3 Chapter 1034: Chapter 592: He Doesn’t Need a Statue_3 Yao Ming, though adjusting his style of play to appear less out of sync with the times, was still a lumbering big center. To cover for his defensive shortcomings, the team had to equip itself with defensively strong wings or power forwards.

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Rivers’ tactical adjustments had many Clippers fans worried, and even Yu Fei thought it a bit too aggressive.

Despite Jokić’s mature playing style, he still needed more confidence. The intensity of preseason and training games was far from comparable to that of the regular season, and to rashly start him, forming a “twin towers” with Yao Ming, seemed a bit like an animal displaying its skills during mating season—an adventurous act that opponents would surely frequently target this inside pair.

“I owe Doug an apology!”

Since summer, Bill Simmons had consistently been down on the Clippers. When Yu Fei chose to join the Clippers, Simmons thought it would mark the beginning of a tarnish on the GOAT’s reputation. Even when the Clippers made it to the Western conference finals last season, his voice was somewhat subdued, but the subsequent moves by the Clippers caused a media uproar.

As a response to the Clippers’ “big five” lineup, Simmons formally apologized, explaining, “I always thought Doug was a conservative coach, afraid to take risks and lacking in innovative thinking. Turns out I was wrong. Doug proved by his actions that in an era of small ball, he dared to play ‘super-sized ball’, as if reverting back to original basketball with unlimited offense under a 24-second shot clock rule. In any case, the Clippers have made history!”

The rise of social media changed the way media manufactured rhythm. In the past, TV news, blogs, and newspapers were the main channels, but now, short videos, tweets, and breaking news were the tools for attracting traffic.

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The Clippers’ new season opener was scheduled for November 1 against the Seattle SuperSonics. That day, countless media congregated at Seattle Airport, eager to interview Rivers and ask Yu Fei for his opinion on the “jumbo lineup”. A significant number of Chinese media were also present, particularly concerned about the impact of the big five lineup on Yao Ming.

Yao Ming said with a laugh, “What impact? No impact!”

Rivers, however, was unhappy with the tempo driven by Bill Simmons. “Before laughing at our experiment, perhaps Bill should reflect on his situation,” Rivers said, “Not long ago, he was ESPN’s star commentator, now just a suspended internet celebrity. He has a long way to go as a cultured human being.”

Rivers’ counterattack excited the media, who sensed more dramatic scenes were to come. Then, they also asked Yu Fei for his opinion.

“I think some people overestimate the defensive issues of the twin towers, yet underestimate the creativity this lineup has,” Yu Fei said, “I don’t like idle talk, I am a pragmatist, only trying will tell the result.”

In fact, Yu Fei’s announcement on media day not long ago that the Clippers aimed to win the championship this season had already caused quite a stir. Most media folks saw it as GOAT’s arrogance, but nobody expected Rivers to roll out such a jaw-dropping lineup.

All of this undoubtedly added many topics for the new season.

The Clippers then went to the Supersonics’ home court for adaptation training. This brand-new arena, which could seat over 24,000 people, was a leader in the League in both facility scale and technological level.

It was also the legacy of the Supersonics empire, the new Supersonics arena that Yu Fei and his teammates from Seattle had earned with their three consecutive championships, and it had officially come into use this season, named the Boeing Aerospace Arena by Boeing Airlines, the firstborn son of the United States.

“Frye, have you been here before?”

“No, I haven’t.”

“Ironically,” Brown said, “because of you, this arena can exist, but you’re not the first one to use it.”

Yu Fei looked around at the unfamiliar arena that seemed to have no association with him.

“That’s not fair to the others,” Yu Fei said, “This was won by Brandon, KD, Chris… and all of you too.”

“That may be,” Brown continued, “but without you, none of this would have happened. You brought all this to Seattle. They should have named the arena after you, and there should be a statue of you outside!”

Yu Fei had indeed had a fleeting fantasy in his mind—if he had chosen to stay in Seattle, how excited he would be standing here today.

However, he quickly cast this fantasy aside.

He thought of Clay Bennett, the unpleasant past, and the fall of the former empire.

At that moment, he knew he was never meant to stay.

He had done everything he could.

So, he simply said, “No, Kwame, I don’t need the name on the arena, nor do I need a statue.”

That night, the Boeing Aerospace Arena held a grand opening ceremony, but the most thrilling moment was when the five championship banners from Key Arena slowly rose in the new arena.

The director’s camera skillfully captured Yu Fei in his Clippers jersey.

The crowd immediately began to chant: “Frye!”

“!#@!#￥”

“!#￥Forever!”

“!#￥@#!￥”

In that moment, numerous Clippers players experienced the loudest din of their lives, yet amidst all the noise, they still heard the deep affection in the crowd’s shouts.

Frye—his name, along with those five championship banners, destined to endure eternally. This city would never forget him.

Brown listened, somewhat enraptured, and couldn’t help but glance back at Yu Fei.

On the surface, he was unflappable, but the flicker in his eyes proved his inner turmoil.

He was right.

He didn’t need a statue.