Don't talk trash to him.

Chapter 72 The Barking Dog
What frustrated Michael Reed the most was that everyone on the Pacers was setting the stage for Suwan, while everyone on the Bucks, from Mo Williams to Mason, wanted to take care of everything themselves as long as they got the ball.

The Bucks are currently ranked 12th in the Eastern Conference, and everyone can see that they have not achieved anything this season.

Since you can't achieve good results, you have to improve your statistics.

Fighting alone is the most true portrayal of this team at the moment.

Reed usually doesn't rely so much on his teammates, but facing Suwan's confrontation, he couldn't cause any effective damage by asking for the ball directly, and could only rely on his teammates' passes.

If it was a night when Michael Redd was playing well, the other Bucks players would still be willing to pass the ball to him. After all, he is the nominal "boss" of the Bucks. But in this situation where he was beaten by his opponent in the early stages, the others had enough reasons to ignore his movement.

At the end of the first quarter, Suwan had a clear gap with Reed. He scored 11 points in a single quarter, in addition to 2 rebounds and 3 assists; Reed's stats were only 3 points, 1 rebound and 1 assist. He took 5 shots and only made 1 goal.

This was the moment when the gap between Michael Reed and Suwan was the smallest in the entire game.

第二节结束，苏万的数据来到18分3篮板4助攻，里德5分2篮板2助攻；

第三节结束，苏万28分5篮板4助攻，里德8分3篮板4助攻；

全场比赛结束，苏万砍下职业生涯新高的41分6篮板5助攻，里德仅仅12分4篮板6助攻，还有5次失误；
Suwan was interviewed amid the cheers of the audience: "Michael looked very unmotivated tonight, otherwise I would have definitely scored 50 points." - He meant that from the beginning to the end of the game, he had been trash-talking Michael Redd, but Redd did not respond to him even a word. Not only Redd, but the entire Bucks team became mute today and ignored his trash talk.

The host asked him: "Is this a counterattack against Bill Simmons?"

Su Wan showed a puzzled expression: "Who is Bill Simmons?"

The host laughed: "I think you should know who he is. He wrote an article about you, which caused a lot of controversy outside."

Su Wan said: "It turns out that they made money by relying on me. There are many people like this."

The host then asked, "Do you think tonight's game will change his opinion?"

Su Wan said: "I used to have a dog, it loved to bark at people, and until now, it has not changed this habit."

Post-match interview.

"I never said that I am more qualified than Uncle. I have always admired him. He is a phenomenal rookie!" - Reed mentioned that he is more qualified than Suwan to be the starter of the Eastern Conference All-Star Game.

"Okay, I think Bill Simmons can shut up now!" - Reggie Miller believes that Suwan's performance is enough to dispel all doubts.

"This is my uncle. He was able to make the All-Star starter in the first stage because of his performance on the court." - Ron Artest continued to support Suwan after the game.

"That idiot Bill should really come to Indiana, then he won't have any doubts about my popularity!" - A veteran Pacers fan was interviewed after the game.

The next morning, Suwan's 41 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists in defeating Michael Redd also made headlines.

Except for Bill Simmons, most media experts agree that Suwan ranked first among Eastern Conference guards in the first round of All-Star voting. Just kidding, he is the "third best rookie in history"!

His strength has been initially proven.

Otherwise, he would have been ridiculed by the outside world when he was competing with LeBron for position.

But even so, they did not expect that Suwan could put on such an explosive performance amid Bill Simmons' doubts.

You know, Michael Redd is also a relatively combative No. 23 player among the new generation. The Bucks sent Ray Allen away because they saw his potential. Although this is his first year as the nominal leader of the Bucks and he is still adapting, he averaged 44 points per game and shot % of the time, showing the "boss style". In this battle, Su Wan was defeated.

Bill Walton said: "Suwan has the qualities of a superstar. Such players can often give a stronger performance when facing doubts!"

There is nothing wrong with what old Walton said!
From Michael Jordan to Larry Bird and others before him, it is true that they often perform better when facing doubts.

Take Bird for example. When faced with reporters questioning his left hand, he actually used his left hand throughout the game against the Trail Blazers. It was not until the decisive fourth quarter that he took out his right hand and scored a 30-plus "triple-double" to lead the team to victory.

He also left behind the classic line, "Save your right hand for the next game against the Lakers."

This is what "super giant" looks like.

However, whether Suwan has the qualities of a "super giant" cannot be proved by scoring 41 points in a game against a bottom-ranked team.

Bill Simmons was sarcastic again: "The fourth in the East beat the twelfth in the East. Is it really worth praising like this? With a partner like Jermaine, Michael can play better!"

The Indianapolis Star published an article to mock the issue immediately, using Suwan's vivid metaphor: "Look, the old dog is barking again!"

There is a reason why Bill Simmons dares to perform against the odds. In the next game, the Pacers will go to San Antonio to challenge the Spurs, who are second in the Western Conference.

The Spurs have been on a strong run recently. In the past 12 games, they only lost to the Rockets and the Kings, and won all the other 10 games. Even the Suns, who have the best record in the league, could not do better than them in the past games.

Bill Simmons believes that this Spurs team will give Suwan a taste of his own medicine.

In addition, Popovich is particularly good at punishing rookies. Maybe Suwan, who scored 41 points against the Bucks, won't even get 14 points. He has already written a press release titled "Chinese rookies can only bully weak players" and is waiting.

After watching Popovich's speech before the game, he felt more reassured.

Popovich talked about Suwan before the game: "He is the best rookie in 04. His style of play looks very mature. Sometimes he gives us the feeling on the court, just like a machine that never makes mistakes. I am looking forward to playing with him."

It seems to be all praise, but Bill Simmons knows very well that Popovich is that kind of person. The more he praises a rookie, the more he will target him.

(End of this chapter)