Basketball miracles

Chapter 103 [Prison Record]

Xiao Tu's biggest gain tonight wasn't the MVP trophy, but rather the two golden treasure chests he received in one battle.

Winning the game and putting up a 40+10 stat line is a gold chest, winning the MVP award is another gold chest. He amassed three gold chests this All-Star Weekend, and he has a feeling he's about to make it big.

Xiao Tu was overjoyed, having figured out how to obtain the high-level rewards: he needed to achieve outstanding statistics and earn highly prestigious personal honors.

This is his first 40+10 game in his career, and if he can achieve this in the regular season, it will likely improve the quality of his performance.

He believes that any individual honor that elevates a player's historical standing should be awarded a "golden chest," such as the Rookie of the Year award. This reward is given only once, making it extremely significant.

Xiao Tu doesn't know if there are any rewards for being the rebounding champion, forming the All-Star team, or the All-Defensive Team, but he hopes there will be.

These accumulated honors can also elevate a player's historical standing. For example, Chris Paul, who has yet to win a championship in his career, is hailed by many as the god of point guards and by one person as a grandfather.

Simply being selected for the All-Star game doesn't come with any reward, even if Xiao Tu becomes the top vote-getter.

After receiving the MVP trophy, Xiao Tu gave his acceptance speech. "I want to thank the coach and my teammates, especially Erwin. Without his selfless passes, I couldn't have played so well. I got a lot of easy scoring opportunities, and he deserves half the credit for this award."

Since he already had the treasure chest, Xiao Tu was willing to share the credit.

He has always maintained this stance, attributing victory or defeat to the team even when he puts up heroic individual statistics.

Xiao Tu was speaking from the heart. Magic Johnson's willingness to pass him the ball was crucial; otherwise, he would have had a hard time scoring 20 points today. Playing basketball isn't just about individual ability; interpersonal skills are equally important.

Just look at Jordan's performance today, and you'll know how tough it is for isolated players.

Xiao Tu's public image is very solid now. Everyone knows that he is a selfless player who is willing to cooperate with his teammates, even though he mainly plays off the ball.

That's how basketball works; teamwork is the key to victory. A dominant, star-studded style of play also emphasizes passing the ball frequently, facilitating the flow of the game, and creating opportunities for multiple players to contribute.

In an era where post-up play is prevalent, Xiao Tu's scoring efficiency is unparalleled in the league. His advantage lies not only in his physical attributes but also in his basketball philosophy, allowing him to create numerous easy shot opportunities through his face-up style of play.

Even if Xiao Tu masters face-up ball-handling and low-post back-to-the-basket offense in the future, he won't completely abandon off-ball play. Playing like that is really powerful and can make opponents uncomfortable.

Let alone a tough guy like Xiao Tu, even the ultimate dry chicken Reggie Miller, who is 201cm tall and weighs 84kg, has averaged 20+ points per game for several seasons by relying on off-ball movement to catch and shoot.

At the post-match press conference, Xiao Tu was the star of the show and the focus of the entire event.

Reporters asked Xiao Tu to share his thoughts on facing Bird.

His two blocks on the defensive end, and his dunks and three-pointers on offense were all impressive. He had a clear advantage against Bird today, and the Eastern Conference players had to switch defenders in the second half.

Xiao Tu smiled and said, "I think it's normal. Everyone has off days, even a two-time MVP. Maybe Bird was in superb form when the Lakers played the Celtics and led the team to victory. We only matched up against each other for a few possessions. I can't get carried away and think I'm an MVP-level superstar."

"Bird's skills are very comprehensive. He can dribble and shoot with both hands and is also good at organizing the offense. I hope to have his skills in the future. I look forward to facing him again in the regular season. He has always been the person I most want to match up against."

Xiao Tu appeared humble, but in reality, he continued to dig a pit for Bird, putting him in a very difficult position.

I was so looking forward to facing Bird, and the media hyped it up for a month, so why did we only play a few rounds today?
In the second half, Bird focused on guarding other players. What was he thinking? Let's guess.

Is it because I'm too handsome that I feel inferior when he gets close? Or is it because he can't defend himself at all and is afraid?

If Bird performs poorly and loses consecutive games during the regular season, it would be even more embarrassing for the two teams, especially considering Xiao Tu's comments.

Once Xiao Tu beats Bird and the Celtics a few more times this season, he can say whatever he wants. Ultimately, players are judged by their performance and statistics; Bird can hide for a while, but not forever.

After today's game, Xiao Tu is convinced that he can dominate Bird one-on-one. Skill and basketball IQ are irrelevant; he'll just go for it by brute force against Bird.

Even if Luthor has a high IQ, can he beat Superman with his bare hands?
Unless Luther does 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats, and a 10km run every day for three years, it'll be a different story when he puts on his yellow jumpsuit and drapes a white towel around his neck. A reporter asked, "Would you be willing to primarily guard Bird when the Lakers play the Celtics in the regular season?"

Xiao Tu laughed and said, "That depends on the coach's arrangements. I will try my best to complete the tasks he assigns. I can only say that I am confident that I can defend Bird one-on-one and lower his shooting percentage."

Xiao Tu's matchup against Bird is the most intriguing, so he'd naturally be willing to primarily guard him. However, if Riley assigns James Worthy and Michael Cooper to guard him, Xiao Tu can focus more on offense to pad his stats, which would also be beneficial.

On the Celtics' side, Coach Jones might not assign Bird and Shaw to match up, as Bird clearly couldn't defend against them today.

In the 80s, no players systematically trained their strength, for fear of affecting their shooting touch.

The reporter asked, "Today, Parish committed a vicious foul under the basket to stop you from dunking. What's your take on that? Are you alright?"

"He startled me. I was surprised because it was the All-Star game, and a foul like that, targeting the player but not the ball, shouldn't have happened. Luckily, I'm quite strong; it hurt a little at first, but I was fine after a while."

A female reporter asked with concern, "Are you sure you're alright?"

"Probably. I'll get a checkup when I get back to Los Angeles."

The checkup was unnecessary. If Xiao Tu were truly injured, Riley wouldn't have let him continue playing; he would have withdrawn from the game and gone to the hospital. Star players don't play in All-Star games while injured; there's no precedent for that.

Xiao Tu continued, "I hope Parish didn't intentionally stand up for Bird, but I can't help but overthink it because Celtics players have a history of malicious fouls. I was lucky this time, but I might not be next time. I'm really afraid that a Celtics player will grab me by the neck and commit a clothesline foul; that would be murder, and I wouldn't even go to jail."

Yeah, I'm scared.

I'm afraid the media won't remember to compare McHale's clothesline foul with today's foul.

When it comes to being maliciously fouled, Xiao Tu absolutely cannot keep a low profile. If he chooses to let it go, he might save face for Parish, but what face does someone like Parish have?
Xiao Tu has to give his opponent a good dressing down, otherwise what if the opponent goes even further and commits even more egregious fouls next time? Many people are greedy and insatiable, that's just human nature.

The reporters' eyes lit up; this was big news.

Xiao Tu's tone almost convinced that Parish had done it on purpose. They also felt it was intentional; it was too obvious.

Such reporting will likely generate further news and attract attention. If the upcoming regular season game between the Lakers and Celtics is highly competitive, and the Celtics players commit some aggressive fouls, it could make headlines.

Xiao Tu mentioned "standing up for Bird," which immediately belittled both of them. What will fans think once the media releases the interview video?
Parish stood up for Bird, but what was Bird doing?
Did he back down? He couldn't defend against Xiao Tu at all.
In the second half, Bird didn't match up against Xiao Tu again, and he didn't step up on offense to lead the team to catch up; his stats were mediocre. Today, Bird was basically completely outplayed by Xiao Tu, right?

Xiao Tu likes to take a jab at his opponents, and he's making it clear: if anyone on the Celtics dares to play dirty against him in the upcoming games, he'll consider breaking Bird's leg.

He'll be in the right then and there, since the other party struck first and it wasn't the first time they'd attacked him.

Why did he target Bird instead of the players who fouled him? Because Bird was the core player, the one who decided the game—it's that simple. He wouldn't trade blows with the opposing role players; that would be too foolish.

He won't get up and fight Parish today, not only because it's the All-Star game, but mainly because Parish isn't good enough.

Xiao Tu always dared to speak his mind and was unwilling to suffer in silence. In his view, the idea of ​​mutual respect and empathy was nonsense.

Since we're rivals, I'll be ashamed of you!

If I were to hand the championship to my opponent, wouldn't I be a complete idiot?

But some people are just that stupid. They get fouled hard by their opponents and then speak up for them after the game, saying they believe the other person didn't do it on purpose. These people think they're being magnanimous, but in the eyes of fans, they're utterly brainless.

If you're this weak, who else will people bully if not you?
Xiao Tu just wanted to make a big fuss. Anyway, he was the victim, and he wouldn't be the one getting criticized, so why not?

(End of this chapter)