Chapter 604 93: [Goat Su Xi Must Answer the Challenge]

If Kwame Brown had a tail, he'd be wagging it furiously at Kobe right now.

But a dark cloud still hung over Phil Jackson's face.

The team was down by 5 points. With 19 seconds left, they could theoretically still take the lead. But if they missed the shot, it would be all over.

So, he laid out the play.

He designed an isolation play for Kobe Bryant. But Kobe gave the opportunity to Vujacic instead, telling him to go to the corner for a catch-and-shoot. Vujacic had already hit two shots from that spot tonight.

Kobe making such a call was completely unexpected.

But it was the most logical one.

Phil Jackson was incredibly impressed with Kobe Bryant.

He thought Kobe had truly matured, to an unprecedented degree.

For Kobe, this was incredibly difficult—a change so profound it was like he had been completely reborn.

In the past, Kobe didn't have a pass button. But now, he was making this kind of decision at such a critical moment.

TWEET!

The whistle blew, and the game was back on.

Yao Ming inbounded the ball from the sideline.

Su Xi stuck close to Kobe Bryant. No matter what, Kobe was the most dangerous offensive weapon.

His iso game was the best in the world.

But the moment Kobe ran towards the paint, Su Xi scanned his surroundings.

Especially after Vujacic and Kobe set a cross screen for each other and Kobe suddenly cut back out to the perimeter, Su Xi made his decision.

Just as he expected, Yao Ming passed the ball to the corner.

But the instant Yao released the ball, Su Xi, who had been glued to Kobe, suddenly changed targets. He lunged, making a beeline for the corner.

He leaped into the air, snatching the ball right before it reached Vujacic.

Then, he yelled, "Fast break!"

Lowry immediately sprinted downcourt, and Su Xi passed the ball ahead.

Lowry received the ball in the frontcourt. The Lakers didn't even have time to foul.

He caught the ball, casually entered the paint, and just as the Lakers players desperately caught up to foul him, he laid the ball into the hoop.

Only 10 seconds remained in the game.

The Lakers were down by 7, with no timeouts left.

It was over.

A wave of disappointment washed over the Staples Center.

Su Xi walked over to Kobe and said, "Kobe, you've changed. How could you do that? You actually passed. Are you still the best guard in the league?"

Su Xi's words were dripping with sarcasm and incredibly grating.

Kobe's face was grim. He didn't argue with Su Xi.

He wasn't in the mood.

His teammate quickly got him the ball. With Su Xi pressuring him, he put up a quick shot... SWISH!

He hit the 3-pointer.

The lead was cut to 4 points.

But only 5.6 seconds were left on the clock.

Su Xi received the inbounds pass, and Kobe immediately fouled him.

SWISH!

SWISH!

Su Xi made both free throws.

The Lakers subbed out their starters.

There was no point in the Lakers playing out the last few seconds.

Jordan Farmar heaved a long-range three that didn't even touch the net.

It flew straight out of bounds.

In the final second, the Knicks inbounded the ball to Su Xi.

BZZT!

The final buzzer sounded, and the game was over.

Kobe Bryant scored an astonishing 52 points in the game.

Yao Ming had 28 points and 16 rebounds.

But the Lakers still lost their first game, 109-115.

The Lakers' dual-core strategy was very successful. The duo's firepower was as good as the old OK Combination, if not better.

It's just that the players around them weren't as strong as the role players from the three-peat era.

The Knicks won, and their style of play was dubbed the "One Super, Many Strong" system by Charles Barkley.

The "Super" was, of course, the superstar Su Xi, a historic-level player.

The "Many Strong" were Zach Randolph, Milicic, Stephen Jackson, David Lee, Lowry, Ariza... players with different functions but all extremely effective on the court.

Isaiah Thomas couldn't wait to start gloating.

"It feels great to get the first win of the Finals in Los Angeles. The Lakers are very strong, even stronger than we imagined. The Kobe and Yao combination has surpassed the OK Combination. That's a fact."

"But another fact is, no matter how strong they are, they must submit to the rule of Goat Su Xi. Su Xi is the sole ruler of this era, and also the greatest ruler in NBA history. Who dares to disagree?"

"Shaquille O'Neal, Tim Duncan, Kobe Bryant—they are all elites of their time, but in front of Jack, they are nothing."

Isaiah Thomas was silent during the game and wildly arrogant after it. This was his unique way of working.

This was what he was paid for.

The players loved it, the owner loved it, and the fans loved it even more.

Every coach and general manager in the league envied Isaiah Thomas's job: the guy clearly did nothing, yet he had already won everything.

Coach of the Year, Executive of the Year... he had them all.

What more could he possibly regret?

As soon as Su Xi surpasses Jordan, the seal on his own playing career will be broken, and people will recognize him as one of the rulers of the '80s and '90s.

Because he did indeed lead the Pistons to a back-to-back championship, and he did indeed take down three rulers of the '80s and '90s: both Bird and Magic had lost to him in head-to-head matchups. He even suppressed Jordan for several years.

The reason he never received widespread acclaim during his playing days was because of the Pistons' "Bad Boys" reputation. On the other hand, the media narrative and the league's promotion had to cater to the 'Jordan as the God of Basketball' storyline.

But if Su Xi could dethrone Jordan, then as Goat Su Xi's coach and mentor, he would be completely vindicated.