Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters

The tension between the Bucks and the Brooklyn Nets was so palpable, it seemed to transcend the game itself.

Kenyon Martin was still making excuses, but as long as Yu Fei kept blowing him away, his excuses would become fewer and fewer.

Sooner or later, he would look back on the past, reminiscing about their first-round elimination of the Wizards with the most passionate emotions.

To the Nets, Yu Fei was like an uncontrollable X-factor.

Last season, when he was with the Wizards, the Nets could use zone defense to limit Yu Fei. But now, they seemed to have no answer for him.

Had it really been just over half a year since Yu Fei had managed to open his governor and conception vessels and thoroughly master his divine shooting? The answer wasn't that simple.

Indeed, Yu Fei's shooting stability had increased, but as a forward who constantly handled the ball and combated opponents, it was difficult for him to keep his shooting touch at an extremely high level.

This required long-term training and real combat experience. What made Yu Fei hard to defend now was that his current support was far stronger than when he was with the Wizards.

Especially when it came to outside shooting support; starting Ray Allen and bench player Michael Redd both were top shooters with over 40% three-point shooting, and Sprewell, Ratner, Devean George, and the others were all above average. Their threat from the perimeter was causing much more trouble for the Nets than anticipated.

Coach Byron Scott even had a feeling that, if Yu Fei had the Bucks' support during his rookie season, they might have lost that playoff series.

If Yu Fei, who was less stable at shooting back then, could lead that Wizards team to a win over the Nets in the first round, could an improved Yu Fei, now with several sharpshooters on his side, crush the Nets?

The answer to this question had already emerged earlier.

But led by Kenyon Martin, the Nets still said that they were simply careless, unprepared, and that Yu Fei and the Bucks had been overestimated.

Tonight, Yu Fei started with five quick points and completed an incredibly ruthless dunk over Martin's head, heavily striking the latter's morale, and connecting the team together.

Although his playmaking and on-court adjustments couldn't compare to a mastermind like Kidd, his raw talent was so immense that he didn't need to operate a complex tactical system like Kidd's.

The tactics led by Yu Fei were often straightforward and brutal, driving with the ball to create chaos and then passing it to an open teammate.

The Bucks had many possessions that went just like that.

It looked simple, mindless, yet there was an indescribable sense of harmony and fluidity.

Byron Scott found this style both familiar and strange.

Since the ancient times, basketball games had been categorized into two styles: controlled half-court offense and the undisciplined full-court fast break. Since the George Mikan era, teams with giants have been adamant proponents of the half-court system, while teams lacking a great inside presence would look for one. If they couldn't find it, they'd resort to fast breaks.

It wasn't until the 80s that the gifted Magic Johnson first turned heads with his novel approach to the point guard position, then revolutionized the concepts of "half-court offense" and "fast break."

Showtime Lakers could play half-court offense—they had the most reliable two-point scorer in Jabbar—and they could also fast break, with Magic Johnson taking the defensive rebound and counterattacking as their trademark. However, as Magic evolved, the Lakers gradually formed another style—they began to play their half-court game with the speed and penetrating drives characteristic of fast breaks.

Scott found Yu Fei's style familiar because he saw a shadow of Magic in it, yet it wasn't entirely Magic's.

Yu Fei played even less frequently than Magic did.

A completely chaotic ground game.

Yet it was this style that allowed Yu Fei to achieve 15 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists in the first half, a triple-double night was once again drawing near to him. He secured a comprehensive stat line and helped the Bucks take a 58 to 46 halftime lead over the Nets, a 12-point advantage.

As per league rules, the head coaches of both teams needed to accept media interviews.

"Coach Karl, your team is leading the Nets by 12 points at halftime in an away game, which is a remarkable achievement, why don't you seem happy?"

Karl replied, "I'm not unhappy, but happiness doesn't have to show."

"Throughout the first half, there were three instances where the game was paused due to player altercations. What do you think of these conflicts?"

Karl's face briefly flashed anger: "Oh, there's nothing wrong with that. I'm pleased most players are willing to stand up for their teammates."

As the interview ended, the stoic image of Ray Allen still lingered in George Karl's mind.

Ray Allen kept reminding George Karl of another player, one forgotten by the world but never by him—1981's NBA draft number one pick Joe Barry Carroll. Karl had coached Carroll during his early coaching days with the Warriors.

Carroll's cold, rational, transcendent worldview drove Karl crazy. When they faced Magic Johnson and Jabbar's Lakers team in the playoffs, Carroll did nothing on the court. Karl spurged him on, and Carroll said, "Stop yelling, we have no chance against the Lakers."

The Warriors indeed couldn't beat the Lakers, but Karl could not accept such premature surrender. After that game, he tore apart Carroll's locker in a fit of rage, nearly igniting the locker room with his uncontrollable fury. After nearly ending his NBA coaching career due to his temperament, he spent some time in Europe and then received an opportunity to coach in Seattle.