Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters-Chapter 457 - 311: Life Is Bigger Than Basketball

Chapter 457: Chapter 311: Life Is Bigger Than Basketball

Yu Fei’s 70-point night quickly generated a breaking effect.

In recent years, even those who don’t follow basketball closely knew that the NBA had seen two incredible newcomers. One entered the league with the title of The Chosen One, daring to challenge Jordan right from the start, avenging Jordan after being traded to the Bucks and leading his team to a championship, becoming a symbol of the new generation.

As for James, his reputation preceded him.

Just like the famous saying by Arthas’s father, “The forests of Lordaeron whispered the name on the day you were born”—from the moment James made a name for himself, he had been destined for the NBA’s top draft pick. When he was selected first by the Cavaliers, he carried the mission to surpass Jordan.

Indeed, at the beginning of his career, Yu Fei wasn’t even his target for surpassing.

But as Yu Fei led his team to defend their title in 2004 as a leader of the new generation, comparisons with James became unavoidable.

As these comparisons continued, those who saw James as the savior of the NBA discovered, much to their dismay, that young LeBron somehow fell short in every aspect.

The first to notice this discrepancy and criticize James were, ironically, those who believed he could surpass Jordan.

Now, after three years of waiting, the long-anticipated duel of titans had arrived.

But what unfolded was a one-sided massacre.

James managing to score 39 points, 10 rebounds, and 7 assists in one game certainly held promise for the future.

However, Yu Fei’s monstrous stats of 70 points, 15 rebounds, and 6 assists rendered all previous comparisons meaningless.

This left those who vehemently believed James was not inferior to Yu Fei in a difficult position, some remained stubborn, while others turned on James in the face of public opinion.

The New York Times wrote, “From today on, no one can say LeBron is on par with Frye. You can’t say the same after Frye scores 70 points against LeBron. The topic of a showdown is no longer relevant.”

The Times fired the first mainstream media salvo against James.

Then, The Seattle Times, which never missed an opportunity to chime in on Yu Fei’s controversies, chimed in, “LeBron is only the king of Akron, but Frye is the one chosen by the world. Only by understanding this can we see how absurd it is for those comparing LeBron with Frye.”

Amidst the tsunami of negative reviews, even Nike’s media machine was ineffective at that moment.

The near-term impact of the 70-point night was devastatingly quick.

Only media personnel friendly with James dared to speak up against the overwhelming criticism.

But what was there to say?

The game was lost by 50 points, and the stats were overwhelmingly in Yu Fei’s favor.

The only thing they could criticize was Yu Fei’s sportsmanship and competitive spirit.

Not to mention how ineffective this angle of attack was against someone who proclaimed not to possess these qualities, Yu Fei had only scored 1 point and 2 rebounds during garbage time; the rest was achieved while James was on the court.

Regardless of how things might unfold, one thing was certain—Yu Fei and James’s relationship could never return to what it was.

After the game last night, James did not speak with Yu Fei, nor did he call to apologize afterwards.

Yu Fei had no reason to call James either, both kept silent on the matter, and the overwhelming public sentiment against James would undoubtedly exacerbate the trauma of the 70-point night.

“Fulai, as long as you are in competition, this day was bound to come,” Lin Kaiwen said privately to Yu Fei.

“Do you think this is my problem, or his?” Yu Fei asked.

“Of course, it’s LeBron’s problem,” Lin Kaiwen replied. “He overreacted.”

It was precisely because the reaction was so intense that Yu Fei felt it couldn’t be viewed as a normal response.

It was less about James being enraged by humiliation than it was about a complete outburst after harboring deep resentments.

However, this was understandable.

Yu Fei could empathize with James’s perspective, having played alongside Jordan; he knew what “Jordan Hell” was like.

The issue was, Yu Fei had never used James for promotion, whereas James’s camp insisted on doing so. Thus, James had opened the gates to “Frye Hell” himself.

These resentments induced by Yu Fei could be attributed less to Yu Fei’s ruthless actions causing James to reach his limit, and more to the reality not matching expectations, leading to their drifting apart. The better Yu Fei did, the harder it was for James. The better Yu Fei’s face-to-face performance, the greater the pressure on James.

The already taut string snapped the moment Yu Fei hit 60 points.

Yu Fei quickly moved on from the incident.

Whether they were to be opponents, enemies, or even mortal foes, he was unfazed, for he never felt he had done anything wrong from beginning to end.

A day later, the second game of the series between the Bucks and Cavaliers began.

Yu Fei and James went through the motions of greeting each other, but no longer appeared close.

The first game had made it clear that the Cavaliers couldn’t compete on the same level as the Bucks, so in the second game, James, eager to salvage some degree of face, desperately sought to outdo Yu Fei in stats.

Even if he couldn’t outscore him, he aimed to surpass him in rebounds and assists.

Unfortunately, the Cavaliers’ roster was too far behind.

James had good intentions, but the Cavaliers didn’t have the inside presence to box out and let him gather rebounds easily.

On the Bucks’ side, allowing Yu Fei to grab defensive rebounds and push the fast break had already become part of their system.

Although Kwame Brown and others grabbed fewer rebounds, Yu Fei’s passing made up for it, and Yu Fei led the team in offensive boards.

A player who only gathers defensive rebounds, even if they average 10 rebounds per game, is unremarkable. But it is impressive if a player averaging 10 rebounds per game secures 2-3 offensive boards each match.

Yu Fei was not deliberately trying to surround James with stats.

After the 70-point night, LeBron James’ camp was despondent, utterly defeated in public opinion, with no chance of turning things around for months, so all he wanted was to send the Cavaliers packing quickly.

But the Cavaliers’ lagging defense allowed Yu Fei to score at will, and to prevent Yu Fei from racking up high scores again, Mike Brown resorted to brainless double-teaming.

This led to Yu Fei crazily dishing out assists.

With 36 points, 14 rebounds, and 13 assists, Yu Fei notched a large triple-double, covering every aspect of LeBron’s 27 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists.

And the Cavaliers lost once again by a whopping 30 points.

Then, the media eager for controversy began to hype up Yu Fei’s average stats over the past two games.

53 points, 14.5 rebounds, 9.5 assists.

Even though the second game pulled down the numbers a bit, Yu Fei still averaged 53 points a game.

Against such monstrous statistics, LeBron’s excellent 30-point near triple-double seemed completely powerless.

Although it was just a 0-2 deficit in the series, anyone with eyes could see that the Cavaliers were done for the year.

Both LeBron and the Cavaliers’ system needed an upgrade.

For the Cavaliers, they needed to emulate the system the Bucks built around Yu Fei to serve LeBron.

LeBron, on the other hand, needed to bring his skills in line with Yu Fei’s.

“What I want to say is, it’s not over,” LeBron said after the game, “We’re not out yet, as long as we’re alive, there’s hope.”

“Do you think you guys still have a chance to advance?”

“Of course,” LeBron retorted, “Don’t you think so?”

The reporters wouldn’t voice their true thoughts, but their expressions said it all.

LeBron, suppressing his anger, walked into the locker room and said, “We have to beat them on our home court!”

There weren’t many who responded to LeBron, but as the team’s lead figure, his confidence in the series managed to lift the spirits of quite a few.

However, when the Cavaliers returned to Cleveland, they received devastating news that could be described as cataclysmic for them.

Larry Hughes, the second key player on the Cavaliers, had lost his brother to heart failure in St. Louis.

Hughes doted on his brother, who was born with heart failure and had undergone a heart transplant surgery, and the two were extremely close. The brother’s death left Hughes devastated, and he wanted to leave the team to settle his brother’s affairs, but the Cavaliers were in the midst of the playoffs.

Hughes remembered what LeBron had said the night before, about wanting to defeat the Bucks.

Without him, the already slim chances for the Cavaliers would be even less hopeful.

Despite being torn between personal and professional obligations, Hughes still wanted to leave.

He approached the coaching staff, and the coaches suggested he ask for the owner’s opinion.

Dan Gilbert, the owner of the Cavaliers, made it clear who had the decision-making power: “You’d better ask LeBron what he thinks.”

Hughes did just that.

LeBron expressed regret over Hughes’ situation, but he also knew that if the team lost Hughes now, they would lose their ability to resist the Bucks; they would not find another player who could match up with Yu Fei on the perimeter.

LeBron definitely didn’t want Hughes to leave now, but the “good guy LeBron” side took over his thoughts.

He told Hughes, “Family is much more important than basketball.”

Larry Hughes was deeply grateful for LeBron’s understanding, and he left. And it was certain that he would not return until the semifinals had ended.

This was the “good guy” side of LeBron, but he had another side as well.

Right after Hughes left, LeBron called his good friend working in the Nike marketing department, Maverick Carter: “Larry Hughes’ brother died.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

“He’ll be leaving the team to take care of the affairs; we’ll be short-handed,” LeBron said matter-of-factly, “I know you guys have been under a lot of pressure at work recently.”

Carter didn’t think Hughes’ departure would reverse the current tide of public opinion, but it was a breakthrough, as no matter how bad the Cavaliers played in the next two games, they had an excuse.

“LeBron, people at headquarters want you not to lose heart; this is just a temporary win or loss.”

“Lose heart?” the “combative LeBron” took over again, “I can never lose heart.”

A while later, Gilbert arrived, “I’m very sorry about Larry Hughes’ situation.”

“It’s certainly regrettable, I hope he leaves, but everyone has to do what they have to do,” LeBron said, “Life is bigger than basketball.”

Yes, Gilbert nodded.

For someone like Hughes, life was indeed bigger than basketball.

But for LeBron at that moment, basketball was his life.

That’s why, after Frye ruined LeBron’s life, those around him were so eager to comfort him. In Gilbert’s view, however, LeBron didn’t need consoling; he had a powerful life force capable of withstanding any and all setbacks.

The more ferocious Frye’s offense, the stronger LeBron’s rebound would be, even if not now, the future was still promising.

Especially after LeBron allowed Hughes to leave the team, Gilbert felt even more that this young man’s character was incomparable, far better than the likes of Beverly Yu, who lacked sportsmanship.

Lucky to have this kid, truly a blessing for Cleveland!

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