Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters-Chapter 525 - : 365 Chapters Since Then

Chapter 525: 365 Chapters Since Then

The SuperSonics wrapped up the first game of their five-game road trip with a clean, decisive victory.

“You know, I like Vince, we’re good friends, and I sincerely hope he’s happy in Orlando,” Yu Fei told reporters, “Plus, that play was just for fun, Vince, you know I wasn’t targeting you.”

Even in the regular season, if there is an incredible moment that can’t be replicated, reporters will keep asking what happened at that time.

Yu Fei brought just such a response tonight.

First, he shook Carter off, then cleverly bounced the ball to change direction and assisted Durant in hitting a three-pointer.

“I learned that move from watching Pete Maravich’s instructional videos,” Yu Fei said modestly, “Actually, I didn’t do it as well as Pete could.”

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Another journalist asked, “Since your transfer to Seattle, the SuperSonics’ home support rate has increased by 20%. Do you think that helps in keeping the team in Seattle?”

A 20% increase in support rate means nearly 200,000 new supporters for the SuperSonics.

They definitely bring help, but it’s not enough.

“I don’t know, but it’s a good trend,” Yu Fei said.

On the other hand, Kwame Brown went on and on about how he, as the number one center in the League, dominated Dwight Howard on the court.

“I know people think Yao and Dwight are the first and second centers in the League, but in my opinion, I have a right to be part of this discussion,” Brown argued convincingly, “You can look at the third quarter, Dwight had nothing on me, I scored 10 points right over him. I even scored more than him tonight, and why I am overlooked, that’s really beyond me.”

Brown’s self-promotion had become habitual.

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Those who despised him treated him like a clown, while those who liked him enjoyed this very thing.

The SuperSonics team generally agreed with Brown’s self-promotion.

George Karl was one of Brown’s big supporters.

Next stop, the SuperSonics were heading to New York.

A reporter asked Karl, “What do you think Kwame Brown should do to handle Al Jefferson and Zach Randolph?”

“I won’t answer that question, you’re disrespecting Kwame,” Karl replied, “You should be asking what they need to do to handle Kwame. Kwame is a two-time champion, they are nothing.”

Yu Fei arrived in New York a day ahead of his teammates.

Because he had other plans.

That day, Yu Fei, along with the president of his media company, Quentin DiMio, came to the Time-Life Building in New York for a shoot with Fortune magazine, which rarely features athletes on its cover—Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods in the ’90s were exceptions. Now it was Yu Fei’s turn.

Fortune planned to present Yu Fei as a true business magnate, not just an athlete. They were putting him on the cover of a special issue that would list the twenty-five most powerful people in business, starting with Steve Jobs, then Rupert Murdoch, Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, the co-CEOs of Google, and so on. Fortune was also preparing to add some clever text next to Yu Fei’s cover photo:

Why Frye Yu?

“Because if he was a publicly-traded company, I’d buy in.”

——Warren Buffett

The “not just an athlete” has always been LeBron James’ path.

Because Jordan has taken the “basketball player” path to its ultimate, no matter how much you chase, you can only follow in his footsteps, but Yu Fei was forced to be “not just an athlete.”

From the perspective of his personal business empire, he needed to be extensively involved in various businesses.

Also, looking at the effort to keep the SuperSonics in Seattle, he really needed to rely on personal influence to accomplish some tasks beyond the reach of ordinary people.

Yu Fei’s stylist had meticulously designed a cover look for him.

That evening, Yu Fei had dinner with Buffett and took the initiative to bring up the huge market in Seattle.

“Warren, my five years in Milwaukee led to a 300% profit for the Bucks, but Seattle is a much bigger market than Milwaukee,” Yu Fei said, “There’s also one of the highest numbers of millionaires in the country. If I succeed there, I think the SuperSonics’ investors could see a tenfold return.”

The Omaha Oracle asked with a smile, “Frye, what are you proposing?”

“If I can’t count on the city government, then I need some smart people with financial power and vision to bring the best stadium to my team.”

For the wealthy, the NBA has always been like blue-chip stocks.

The value of franchise rights has increased by more than tenfold over the past twenty years.

The issue is, NBA teams are limited, and many owners treat their teams like century-old businesses, holding onto them for the long term unless they encounter uncontrollable forces or, like the SuperSonics, are restricted by their venue and unable to maximize profits.

For Buffett, investing in NBA ventures may be profitable, but the time commitment is too long, and the return is just so-so.

Unless it’s a cash magnet like the Lakers or Knicks, it’s hard to catch his eye.

“I need some time to observe the prospects of this project.” Buffett believed this investment would definitely make money, but how much? He wasn’t sure. “However, I believe many people would be willing to buy into your idea; you just need to let more people know about this deal.”

“I know, Warren, but we’re friends,” Yu Fei said with a laugh, “I would rather let my friends have the best part of the feast.”

The two chatted for a long time, discussing investments in Seattle and the increasingly hot internet economy.

“Next time we’re filming, I want to dunk over your head,” Buffett joked.

Yu Fei doubted Buffett could actually jump, but with a professional director, it wasn’t impossible for Buffett to even shoot a “basketball drama.”

“Like I usually dunk on others’ heads?”

“No, like you dunked on LeBron’s head before.”

A casual joke from Buffett suddenly made Yu Fei realize they were about to head to Cleveland for an away game.

An inescapable shadow looms like a ghost, following wherever one goes.

This had become LeBron James’s life after the last season’s Eastern Conference Finals.

Ideally, James leading the Cavaliers back to the conference finals after thirty years should have been uplifting, but being effortlessly swept by the Bucks, thoroughly defeated by Yu Fei, and even missing the fourth game under the guise of injury—only to sign off on a politically charged letter to differentiate himself from Yu Fei and score a temporary victory in public opinion through political correctness—did more harm than good.

Avoiding a media beating in the sport’s world was one thing, but it earned James the most dreaded thing in basketball—Frye’s hatred.

The incident in Las Vegas had left James’s reputation in tatters within the basketball community; anyone who had watched that match would never again compare him with Yu Fei.

Yu Fei had crushed James with a thunderous approach, claiming the starting small forward position on the Dream Team. A humiliated James, using dependency on a certain path and under the guise of injury, left the Dream Team, but this time, no one believed in the sincerity of his injury.

Coward, weakling, loser.

These terms, once solely used by Yu Fei, were now on everyone’s lips, without any sense of guilt.

James’s dream world had been shattered; he spent a summer shooting a thousand mid- to long-range jumpers a day and publicly joined forces with Jordan, making them actual allies, and sought Jordan’s advice on his low-post game.

But it was not enough.

Jordan pointed out, “You have no psychological limitations anymore, there’s no doubt you’re a great basketball player, but my biggest realization before defeating the Detroit Pistons was that I couldn’t do it alone. Only when Scottie became ‘the man’ was I able to lead the team to success. Yet, you lack a Scottie Pippen by your side.”

What Jordan expressed was the only narrative angle currently sustainable by James’s camp.

James lacked help.

If he had star companions like Sprewell, Ray Allen, Red, Martin, Granger, Aldridge, Roy, Durant, Rashard Lewis, he too could lead the Cavaliers to victory.

Now James had Ron Artest by his side, famous for his tenacity, but Jordan still felt it was not enough.

“The Cavaliers don’t look like a successful team. If they don’t make major changes next summer, maybe you should make the best decision for your future.”

James is a rational man, but no matter how reasonable he is, if he’s told every day that he deserves a better team, he starts to believe it himself.

Simply put, the Cavaliers aren’t worthy of him.

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A king wants a better palace, just as the SuperSonics need a larger venue. It’s fair, isn’t it?

After sweeping the Knicks with a high score of 124 points in New York, the SuperSonics moved on to Cleveland.

Here, legions of King’s followers brandished demeaning Yu Fei posters outside the airport in protest, hurling massive amounts of insults and screams, as if it would add extra damage to Yu Fei.

Yu Fei looked on with pity.

They seemed unaware that James was in the first year of his 2+1 contract, or that the Cavaliers were still not impressive enough to retain James.

“I’m glad the fans here are still spirited,” Yu Fei told reporters outside the airport before boarding the team bus, “If LeBron were as spirited as his fans, we might not see garbage time tonight. Unfortunately, as I know him, the odds of garbage time tonight are 100% because it’s common knowledge that LeBron is addicted to running away. Last season’s Eastern Conference Finals, he ran. Then at the training camp in Las Vegas, he ran again.”

“What worries me now is, some day in the future, he might lose faith in Cleveland and take off for another city. If that happens, how should the Cavaliers fans face him?”

Instantly, Yu Fei angered all Cavaliers fans, as a frenzy of cursing arose from all around. Concerned that the situation might get out of hand, the staff had the SuperSonics’ team bus quickly leave the scene.