Basketball miracles

Chapter 217 [Dude, are you serious?]

After the press conference, countless NBA fans remembered the name Sebastian Shaw and waited to see his performance.

His words were so captivating; "showtime" and "competing for the championship" were very gimmicky.

The phrase "There's no word in English more harmful than 'not bad'" has been hailed as a golden saying by countless netizens. Ordinary people simply wouldn't grasp this, and fans consider Xiao Tu a fanatic.

How well Xiao Tu can lead his team in the new season has become a major point of interest in the NBA.

Nobody thinks the Heat should have promoted their fifth overall pick, Dwyane Wade, and nobody feels sorry for him. They're all rookies in the NBA; if Wade doesn't speak up, where will he get his fan base?

LeBron James, who has been hyped as the "Chosen One" for a year, does have a lot of fans paying attention to him, and he is often compared to Xiao Tu.

When the news broke on July 21, fans felt that it would be extremely difficult for the Heat to win the championship, because the championship for the new season had already been decided in advance.

Karl Malone and Gary Payton, two star players, joined the Los Angeles Lakers after taking pay cuts. Together with the Shaq-Kobe duo, the Lakers officially formed their "F4" super team.

虽然这两人的年龄都不小了，但35岁的佩顿上赛季场均20.4分4.2篮板8.3助攻1.7抢断，投篮命中率45.4%。

He remains an All-Star caliber point guard, having been selected for the All-Star team last season.

40岁的马龙没能入选全明星，上赛季数据也不差。他场均20.6分7.8篮板4.7助攻1.7抢断，投篮命中率46.2%。

Shaquille O'Neal remains the most dominant center in the league, while Kobe Bryant is a super scorer in his prime.

All Lakers fans were ecstatic, believing they would shine like stars in the night sky and leave behind an immortal legend.

Experts have also stated that, theoretically, the Lakers are invincible in the new season, and as long as the team is not plagued by injuries, they will definitely win the championship.

In contrast, the Heat not only failed to acquire any star players, but also lost some. All-Star center Alonzo Mourning, who returned from a kidney transplant, signed a four-year, $22 million contract with the Nets.

Alonzo Mourning, seeing the Nets reach the NBA Finals for two consecutive years, wanted to join them and compete for the championship. The Heat's biggest star in franchise history believed their chances of winning a title with the Nets were far greater than with the current Heat.

The Spurs offered the Timberwolves a six-year, $42 million overpaying contract to acquire center Rasul Nesterovic.

Role players averaging 11.2 points and 6.5 rebounds per game are worth this much; currently, there's a shortage of big men in the league, and all big men are valuable.

The Timberwolves immediately signed the draft bust Olavokandi to fill the center vacancy; even such a useless center has become a hot commodity.

There's no way around it; even short centers are in high demand this year. 201cm power forward Kenny Thomas signed a 7-year, $5000 million contract extension with the 76ers—outrageously expensive.

Thomas averaged 10.1 points, 8 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game last season, with a field goal percentage of 46.5%. Clearly, he's just an average role player; aside from rebounding efficiency, his other abilities are unremarkable.

The Dallas Mavericks, aiming for a championship, lack a good center. Dirk Nowitzki, the infamous "soft" power forward, is the Mavericks' best rim protector. The Mavericks don't have salary cap space and can only acquire a center through trades. The general manager is practically going bald from worrying too much about signing a reliable big man.

This reflects a serious problem: there are really no centers in this year's free agency market, and the Heat can't sign one no matter how much salary cap space they have.

Every team is treasuring their centers, determined to acquire one or two big men to contain Shaquille O'Neal against the Lakers. Heat general manager Randy Finder sought a trade, but the other team rejected it outright without even hearing the offer, upon learning they wanted a center.

Randy was at his wit's end. Talking to Riley was useless; he had money but couldn't spend it.

Xiao Tu had been following NBA news closely, and he now understood that the Heat's high-salary signing of Odom was a desperate move. Odom's impressive performance at power forward was purely accidental.

In a parallel world, the Heat's management felt that although Odom played small forward for the Clippers, he had a height of at least 208cm and excellent physical attributes, so playing power forward might allow him to protect the defensive rebounds.

Odom did not disappoint, playing excellent defense at the power forward position and averaging a career-high 9.7 rebounds per game, making him the Heat's leading rebounder.

Offensively, Odom was somewhat lacking. He weighed 100 kilograms and had a wingspan of only 211 centimeters, lacking physical attributes. Whenever the Heat played a half-court offense, Odom struggled to score, yet he remained the second-leading scorer in the regular season, averaging 17.1 points per game.

Xiao Tu believes that if he leads the team to play a fast-paced, high-scoring game, Odom's performance will improve. He is well-suited to a fast-break system, but unfortunately, he has played for several teams, all of which primarily focused on half-court offense.

At the end of July, the Heat still signed Lamar Odom to a six-year, $71.7 million overpriced contract. Additionally, the Heat signed 216cm blue-collar center Lauren Woods to a minimum contract, despite his mediocre performance in the Summer League.

Woods thought his career was over, but things took a dramatic turn for the better. He didn't ask for much; just one more year in the NBA would be a success.

The Heat's roster has obvious flaws; they lack a starting center. Brian Grant, at 206cm and 115kg, is a power forward with little shot-blocking ability.

Before the draft, Riley first worked out center Chris Kaman, and then worked out Dwyane Wade. Kaman was the Heat's top pick, but Riley felt that Kaman's physical talent was average and his potential was limited. After consulting with coaches who knew both players, he temporarily switched to Wade.

After Wade officially signed with Miami, he moved from Chicago to live in the same neighborhood as Xiao Tu. Together with local Haslem, the three of them trained together every day.

That morning, after the three met, they first talked about trades in the league. Wade sighed, "Seb, there are no centers left in the free agent market. We'll be playing without a center next season. Do you still think we can contend for the championship?"

Xiao Tu laughed and said, "Of course, not having a center forward is not a big deal. We have a style of play without a center forward, and we can make up for the lack of defense with fast counterattacks."

He knew this would be the lineup for the new season and was mentally prepared. With this lineup, he has even more reason to lead the team to speed up the pace and win through offense.

If you lose your horse, you will know no blessings.

The lineup has flaws, but Xiao Tu's team performs well, earning him higher praise.

Wade couldn't see that far ahead; like everyone else, he believed that "whoever controls the paint controls the game."

Wade asked, "What about rebounds? We don't have any big men, so we might not even be able to protect the defensive rebounds."

Xiao Tu said casually, "UD (Haslem) and I can grab rebounds, we don't need big men. You don't need to worry about defensive rebounds, just be ready for a fast break. There are many short rebounding experts in the league, Marion and Jamison can do it, so can we."

Wade laughed and said, "You're really optimistic. It seems you're confident you can play well no matter how bad our lineup is."

Xiao Tu shook his head. "I have to correct you on one thing: the Heat's roster isn't bad. Last season was indeed very bad, but with us joining them, it's not bad anymore. You need to change your habit of always underestimating yourself."

Wade asked, "Do you really think we can compare to those established stars?"

"Yeah, I'll guard all the big-name stars. What are you afraid of? I can beat McGrady, Kobe, Carter, and all those other players. Only Iverson is someone you have to guard. He's a mismatch against me."

Haslem exclaimed, "Are you trying to win MVP in your rookie season? If you beat them and have a good record, you'll win the regular season MVP."

Xiao Tu laughed and said, "Well said! I won't hide it from you guys anymore, I need you to help me pad my stats. I just want to win the MVP in my rookie season. On offense, I need you two to catch the ball and shoot to help me pad my assists, and on defense, I need UD to help me get the defensive rebounds."

Haslem's mouth dropped open: "No, man, are you serious? But... thank you for thinking so highly of me."

Wade laughed and said, "In all my years, I've never seen anyone as arrogant as you. Besides you, which other rookie dares to even think about competing for MVP?"

Xiao Tu said, "Chamberlain and Wes Unseld won the regular season MVP in their rookie seasons. If I win, it will be much more prestigious than theirs. D. Wade, my brother, I solemnly ask you to support me. Let's surpass Jordan and Pippen together and become the strongest duo in NBA history."

"..." Wade took a deep breath, feeling that Xiao Tu's idea was absurd, but he couldn't help but agree with him.

Wade himself dared not think about these things. What if he followed Xiao Tu and his dream came true?
This is the charisma of a leader; bosses or leaders are generally adept at "making grand promises." Doing so can motivate the team, attract investors and partners, build confidence, and cope with challenges and pressure.

While making grand promises can be beneficial in some situations, excessive and unrealistic commitments can lead to a breakdown in trust and disappointment. Therefore, leaders need to find a balance between making grand promises and ensuring their practical feasibility.

Xiao Tu can find a balance because he led the team to perform very well in the Summer League.

He was well aware that if he could lead the team to speed up their offense and play a dazzling game before Nash, he would have a chance to be named the regular season MVP in his rookie season!

In this world, Xiao Tu doesn't want to ride on the coattails of any established star players; he wants to be the one to change the NBA!

(End of this chapter)