Basketball miracles

Chapter 101 [Adding Some Dramatic Content]

Xiao Tu wasn't injured. He lightly braced himself with his left hand when he landed, but his buttocks hurt a little. He didn't get up immediately, intending to rest on the ground for a while, clutching his right knee as if he were injured.

He did this to give the media some juicy gossip, and he was calculating what the media would say.

This guy is an idiot. He fouled the player in an All-Star game, not the ball? Is he sick in the head?
I'm not injured, and I won't let you get away with this today. I'll make sure all the viewers remember your ugly face!
Parish's foul wouldn't be a big deal in the regular season, but this is the All-Star Game, which is different.

The fans in the stadium were furious, booing incessantly. Every reporter knew how to write the story; they had to highlight Parish's vicious foul after the game.

If Xiao Tu had only blocked Larry Bird's shot, the media wouldn't have given it much coverage when Bird scored consecutive points. After all, Bird is a star player heavily promoted by the league, and Commissioner David Stern certainly wouldn't want to see Bird's popularity decline significantly.

Xiao Tu has now single-handedly provoked two Celtics stars to the point of resorting to dirty tricks in the All-Star Game, which is incredibly sensational. No sports media outlet will miss this big story; Stern can't suppress it even if he tries.

At this moment, Stern wasn't on the Celtics' side either; he was furious on the sidelines. He wanted nothing more than to rush onto the court and slap Parish, but he was afraid his jumping ability wasn't enough to reach him.

A successful All-Star Weekend would be ruined if Xiao Tu got injured, going straight to the other extreme.

If Stern were writing a news article, he would think the headline "Nigger jealous of rising star, maliciously attacks him" would be more appropriate.

Robert Parish, known for his patience, stability, and low-key demeanor, seemed to have lost his composure today. Bird's repeated setbacks seemed to have irritated the Celtics players, and Parish couldn't tolerate Xiao Tu's continued arrogance.

After committing the foul, Parish saw that Xiao Tu didn't get up and felt a little regretful. He didn't regret fouling the player, but he knew that Xiao Tu was too popular and was afraid of being criticized by the fans.

Parish regretted his actions but wouldn't apologize because he wasn't a talkative person.

He gets a headache just thinking about talking to people, and feels like his brain is about to grow.

Parrish's nickname was "Chief," and he looked like an old Native American chief. He didn't even seem to speak English; all he did was lead a group of people around the campfire at night, dancing "Heave-ho, heave-ho."

Born in 1953, Parish entered the NBA in 1976 as the 8th overall pick in the first round. Initially playing for the Warriors, Parish struggled and considered retiring at the age of 25, only becoming a reliable player after his "leader doesn't speak" mode was activated. Rumors circulated that he was lazy and didn't like training, and that his statistics only reflected less than half of his potential. Subsequently, he was brought to Boston by Red Auerbach.

Then, Parish's stats, despite his hard work, were similar to what he had with the Warriors, and Auerbach was unable to unlock his potential.

This shows that personas are just something to be exploited.

Two Celtics legends were among the commentators today, and neither dared to speak up for Parish during the broadcast, fearing public outrage.

Heinsson's comment that "Parish's movements weren't that big" has already sparked controversy, with many fans expressing their dissatisfaction.

Coach KC Jones reluctantly called a timeout, substituting Parish and Bird, who had only played for a short time, for a rest.

He felt that if they continued playing like this, something terrible was going to happen. This wasn't an All-Star game anymore; the Celtics were becoming public enemy number one!
The fans kept booing Parish until Xiao Tu got up from the ground, moved his limbs, and said that he was fine, then they stopped and started applauding him.

When Bird walked to the sidelines, everyone on the Eastern Conference bench was startled. Bird's face was frighteningly dark; just a minute ago he was a white man.

Xiao Tu went to the free throw line and made the free throw, scoring his 19th point, making it 60-43.

During the timeout, the commentators started discussing Xiao Tu's scoring. The current NBA All-Star Game high score of 42 points is set by Wilt Chamberlain in the 1962 All-Star Game, and Xiao Tu seems capable of challenging that record today.

Before halftime, Xiao Tu had already scored 19 points, even more impressive than his regular season performance. What's most terrifying is that he made every single shot, without missing a single one.

All the viewers had a feeling that big news was going to happen today. If Xiao Tu won the MVP, he would be the youngest All-Star MVP in the league's history.

Some young "Shao fans" couldn't wait to find Bird fans at school and taunt them. Previously, Bird fans were generally arrogant, believing that their idol could beat everyone with his skills, and saying that Xiao Tu could only dunk and wasn't even worthy of shining Bird's shoes.

And what happened? Bird got completely dominated by Xiao Tu today, and before he could retaliate, the Celtics coach substituted him out. The coach realized he wasn't a match for Xiao Tu and wanted to protect him.

The Eastern Conference team brought in Laimbeer and Moses Malone to form the frontcourt, with Malone guarding Xiao Tu at the power forward position.

Malone was indeed the best player in the East to defend Xiao Tu, unafraid of physical contact and possessing top-notch physical attributes. However, on the offensive end, Malone was also contained by Xiao Tu, unable to penetrate the paint. Malone went 0-for-2 against Xiao Tu and failed to grab any offensive rebounds. His biggest advantage was gone, and he played like an ordinary blue-collar worker.

Xiao Tu played for 8 minutes in this quarter, making 1 of 2 shots against Ma Long's defense, and scored two more points with a pull-up jumper.

他半场出战14分钟，9投8中，三分球3中2，罚球3中3，得到21分6篮板1助攻1抢断2盖帽。

The Western Conference All-Stars led by a large margin of 75-57, dominating the Eastern Conference All-Stars for almost the entire game.

At this point, there was no data recording of positive and negative values; otherwise, Xiao Tu's positive and negative values ​​for this game would have been astonishing, as his presence on the court was when the two sides widened the score gap.

During halftime, basketball fans across America were discussing Xiao Tu's performance; no one on either team could compare to him in the first half.

Xiao Tu scored the most points, capable of scoring both inside and outside. His defensive performance was even more impressive; his opponents couldn't score against him.

Previously, most fans only knew that Xiao Tu was a great rebounder and could block more than two shots a day, but they weren't aware of how strong his defense was. Some even called him a stat padder, saying that his focus was all on rebounding and that his defensive performance was actually average.

As a result, Xiao Tu proved his defensive ability in the All-Star Game, showing that making Bird suffer is not something everyone can do.

In the Western Conference team's locker room, Magic Johnson chatted with Xiao Tu and praised him, "You played so well in the first half. Keep it up in the second half and beat Bird badly."

Xiao Tu laughed and said, "I probably won't have a chance to match up against Bird in the second half. If I were the Eastern Conference coach, I would definitely arrange for someone else to guard him; they can't afford to lose."

Xiao Tu's confidence soared; he had already tested Bird's extreme athletic abilities.

He's the kind of player Bird finds most troublesome, which is why he dared to make such bold statements in pre-game interviews, likely giving him the upper hand.

1981年NBA总决赛，火箭2比4输给了凯尔特人，但伯德被防的特别难受。伯德场均得到15.3分15.3篮板7助攻2.3抢断，投篮命中率仅有41.9%。

Robert Reed, who was primarily responsible for guarding Bird, is 203cm tall and weighs only 93kg. He has average physical strength but is very fast and constantly stays close to Bird.

Bird lost the Finals MVP award that year; the winner was Celtics small forward Maxwell.

Xiao Tu's physical attributes and static talent far surpassed those of the relatively unknown Reed. Bird was at a disadvantage in physical duels, and his shooting percentage would be dismal if he couldn't break through. If it weren't for Bird's numerous rebounds, his Finals stats that year would have been simply unwatchable.

Even with his long wingspan, Malone used his physical advantage to block Bird's shots in the paint several times. Today, Xiao Tu was chasing after Bird to block his shots.

Johnson nodded. "Indeed, it would be a huge embarrassment for Bird if you ended up with a high score and won MVP."

"There are only a few big men in the East, they can't stop me. If you pass me the ball more in the second half, I'm guaranteed to score over 40 points."

"I'll pass the call if you get a chance to make a call, don't worry." Johnson made a promise to Xiao Tu, showing great selflessness.

Xiao Tu is on fire today, and Johnson is willing to help him play his part.

At the start of the third quarter, Xiao Tu and Johnson were back on the bench, while Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was sent in by Riley for a short time.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's offensive performance was inferior to Xiao Tu's, with his one-on-one shooting percentage being only average. His defensive performance was even worse; his slow movement quickly led to two fouls, and he also failed to secure defensive rebounds.

Without Xiao Tu on the court, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's weakness in rebounding became apparent. He could only stay in the paint protecting the rim and didn't jump much.

Riley staggered the playing time of the Lakers' Big Three to facilitate fast breaks, which Kareem Abdul-Jabbar couldn't participate in. Abdul-Jabbar's defensive issues were already very apparent a couple of years ago, but that's okay; nobody stays young forever.

Riley knows better than anyone that Xiao Tu is the Lakers' best center right now, and he wants to help Xiao Tu win the MVP award today.

(End of this chapter)