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Chapter 262 When the King Becomes a Commoner

There is no room for negotiation.

I won't hit him if he hits me.

It can be said that Durant's dominance not only surprised the Knicks' management and coaching staff, but this dominance also plunged James into the biggest crisis of his career.

James never expected that the usually timid and easily bullied Durant would be so tough this time, as if he had been whipped by a dinosaur.

Moreover, what saddened James was...
At Durant's request, the Knicks' management and coaching staff actually began to seriously consider the possibility of DNP himself.

"Brown, they wouldn't really choose to DNP you for 'KD', would they?"

Rich Paul, one of James' close associates, immediately realized that James' current situation could only be described as extremely awkward.

Why was James able to reclaim his crown with the Knicks before?
At that time, James was very popular within the Knicks and had helped the Knicks management and coaching staff solve internal problems on several occasions.

However, it started with the Eastern Conference Finals.
Since James' performance on the court was not enough to completely outshine Durant, and Durant has rediscovered his prowess as the "successor to Qin Yue" on the court.

With Durant like this, no one on the Knicks could afford to flop.

After all, Durant was a rookie drafted by the Knicks themselves.

It carries the hopes for the revitalization of the entire Big Apple.

It is no exaggeration to say
If Durant can overcome the underlying aspects of his personality and don his Grim Reaper persona, then in New York, with the torch always in his hand, he truly has nothing to fear about the approaching long night.

In this "Durant vs. James" debate, from fans to the media in New York, there is absolutely no way they would abandon Durant and choose James instead.

This put James in an unprecedentedly passive position in the public eye.

This means that it is almost impossible for James to turn the tide through public opinion.

James initially thought Durant's accusations were simply the young man's attempt to reclaim his dominance.

However, to James's surprise, Durant was far more unreasonable than he had imagined.

Because now, Durant, by actively starting a fire, is clearly putting him on the hot seat.

Once he is indeed DNP'd by the Knicks.

Not to mention that his future with the Knicks is completely over.

At the same time, this experience of being DNP in the Finals will inevitably become a major stain on James' future career.

In fact, after Durant made a strong statement, James did consider using his willingness to back down to gain an out.

In James's dictionary, who is adept at assessing situations, knowing when to be flexible has always been his way of dealing with people.

just
James's kneeling before Durant did not change Durant's mind.

Instead, it made Durant realize once again that if he couldn't seize this opportunity to kick this player out of New York, who is far more intelligent than him and willing to do anything for personal gain, he might be betrayed by James again in the future.

"The Knicks must be my team, and can only be my team."

Durant's tough stance forced the Knicks' management and coaching staff to make a decision between James and Durant as soon as possible.

However, there was absolutely no suspense in this decision.

Because shortly after the Knicks' emergency team meeting, team owner James Dolan's implication that "LeBron is just a mercenary, 'KD' is one of us" immediately made it clear to the Knicks' management what they should do.

As it turns out, even if a mercenary manages to temporarily take over the NBA, he will ultimately not escape the fate of a mercenary.

About three hours later, the Knicks management contacted James' team separately.

They then requested that James withdraw from this year's NBA Finals due to injury.

"You can't DNP LeBron!"

Randy Mims, one of James' close associates, continued to advocate for him, saying, "He's contributed to the team, he's bled for them, he's one of the best NBA players in the league today. Your decision to select DNP LeBron will definitely become a laughing stock in the league in the future!"

In response, Knicks general manager Donnie Walsh said, "This is not an easy decision, but we will not change it."

Another of James' close associates, Maverick Carter, said: "Ridiculous! Do you know how ridiculous your decision is? Just because of one childish thing 'KD' did, you're actually going to DNP LeBron?"

Walsh said helplessly, "You should know that in the Knicks, 'KD' is everything."

Walsh's unequivocal tone plunged James' team into utter despair.

As for James himself?
“If you choose to treat me this way, I will formally request a trade this summer.”

At that moment, knowing that things were beyond repair, James felt utterly desolate and began to worry about his future.

James doesn't know if he can find a team that can meet his championship aspirations after leaving the well-equipped Knicks.

It remains to be seen whether he will still be the King James after being DNP'd by the Knicks this time.

Without a doubt, this is the episode where James misses Cleveland the most.

The next day.

Before Game 2 of the Finals, the Knicks officially announced that LeBron James would miss the remainder of the season due to a recurrence of his groin injury.

However.
Although the Knicks officially gave James a very respectable excuse for withdrawing from the Finals due to injury.

But this still doesn't change the fact that, from the outside perspective, James was actively abandoned by the Knicks.

After all, following Game 1 of the Finals, Durant brought his conflict with James from behind the scenes to the forefront.
Even the most dignified DNP (Democratic Nominee) is still a DNP. "The collapsed LeBron James has already played his entire Knicks career in Game 1 of this year's Finals." — ESPN Headline
Interestingly, on the same day that the Knicks DNP James, Nike also officially decided to offer Durant a five-year, $120 million contract extension.

What does this contract extension, whose total value far exceeds James' current contract, mean?
This means that Nike has chosen the younger Durant as the new crown prince of their future empire.

To be honest, compared to being DNP'd by the Knicks.

Nike's decision was the real fatal blow to James.

For the first time since entering the NBA, James has fallen into a state of depression and despondency.

James couldn't understand why, just six months ago, he was enjoying unparalleled prestige in New York, but now he was facing the biggest crisis of his career.

Now, James can only hope that the Knicks will suffer a crushing defeat in the upcoming Finals.

Only in this way can James prove that the Knicks' decision to DNP him in the Finals was a childish and naive act.

Unfortunately, reality did not grant James's wish.

In Game 2 of the Finals, the Knicks started Jeffries, nicknamed "Spider-Man," to partner Howard in the frontcourt.

On the court, Howard, who was only focused on assisting Durant, did not feel sad for his good brother James being DNP for a moment. He also became James's number one ingrate.

Jeffries is a player whose defense is far greater than his offense.

On the court, his presence greatly reduced the defensive pressure on Howard.

Furthermore, the Knicks, who had previously defeated LeBron James, quietly developed a defensive system with Jeffries on the court that allowed them to compete with the Warriors, even if their head coach was Mike D'Antoni.

In addition, the Knicks received another piece of good news in Game 2 of the Finals.

That is, Warriors players, including Qin Yue, all seemed to be stuck in a vicious cycle on the court, unable to make their three-point shots no matter what they tried.

That night, the Warriors took 37 three-point attempts, the vast majority of which were open shots.

However, this team, whose livelihood depends on shooting, only made 7 of those shots.

Although Qin Yue's inside attacks remained unstoppable during the game.

But Durant and Harden, who proved themselves worthy, combined for 61 points, 14 rebounds and 15 assists, unexpectedly leading the Knicks to victory at Oracle Arena after the Knicks selected James as DNP.

With LeBron James on the team, the Knicks have never beaten the Warriors, not even once.

Without James, this would be the Knicks' second victory over the Warriors, including the previous regular season game.

Post-game interview session.

Durant, who is always outspoken, bluntly stated: "I said, we would only play better without him."

"We simply DNP'd a player who had absolutely no impact on the course of the game."

Durant then added, "Perhaps you think I'm exaggerating, but you can check LeBron's plus-minus during this year's playoffs. To be honest, in my opinion, his basketball is as hypocritical as his humble appearance and can't stand up to any scrutiny."

Durant, who came prepared, was able to finally let out a sigh of relief on the night the Knicks tied the Finals series 1-1. He had been holding back his frustration for the past six months.

"I don't care what you think of LeBron."

As Durant's good friend, the usually taciturn Harden strongly supported Durant, saying, "Anyway, all I know is that only 'KD' can lead this Knicks team all the way to the end."

Furthermore, Dwight Howard, the number one ingrate, showed no mercy to his "good brother" LeBron James.

"Jaried's presence made my defense feel much easier."

Howard, without explicitly mentioning it, but with every word he spoke, said: "You know, defense is never just one player's job. But on the court, if one player is always dragging the team down, then the other four players are destined to be unable to play high-quality defense."

Iguodala was the only Knicks player who didn't kick them while they were down after Game 2 of the Finals.

However, when asked what positive changes the Knicks made in Game 2 after selecting DNP James, Iguodala said, "We just played the game as usual, without making any special adjustments or changes."

If being DNP'd by the Knicks marked the darkest moment of LeBron James' life, then this was the moment he faced.

After the Knicks' upset victory in Game 2 of the Finals, James's life, marked by dramatic ups and downs, seemed to have fallen into a neglected, stinking sewer.

In an interview, Gilbert, the owner of the Cavaliers who is still in the process of rebuilding after James chose to leave, said: "You ask me if I feel sad about LeBron's current situation? No, I am not sad at all. I just want to say that people have finally seen the true face of this chosen one."

Antawn Jamison, James' former teammate on the Warriors roster, also proved that the Knicks are significantly more difficult to beat without James.

"When LeBron is on the court, we can always easily create opportunities for our off-ball teammates to cut to the basket."

"I think this loss is a good reminder that the Knicks without LeBron are much stronger than we thought."

It must be said that this year's finals were indeed full of drama.

So far, only James has been injured.

But James' injury has only added suspense to this Finals series.

Before leading the Warriors to New York, Qin Yue, who finally realized how much he had relied on LeBron James in the past, said at the team's pre-season meeting: "Now, we have to adapt to this Knicks team without LeBron, in terms of defense and offense on the court."

Meanwhile, Brown reminisced about James, saying, "The Knicks are awful. They realized in just one game that LeBron is our best sixth man."

……

PS: Update delivered! (Oh no, I just praised Harden in Game 6, and now he's pulled off another big win in Game 7. Congratulations to the Nuggets for proving me wrong and advancing to the next round. But for tomorrow's Game 7 between the Rockets and Warriors, I still think the young Rockets will win.)

(End of this chapter)