Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters

Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Seven: The Birth of Dominance

Yu Fei, waving the banner of racism, somehow made Shaquille O'Neal seem smaller in his presence.

It was as if whatever Yu Fei said was correct, and whatever Shaquille O'Neal said was wrong—after all, wasn't he a racist?

But Shaquille O'Neal felt he had already apologized, Yao Ming had accepted it, so why was Yu Fei unwilling to let go? It was clearly because they had a personal vendetta; racism wasn't the issue, the problem was his feud with Yu Fei.

Since reason was getting nowhere, Shaquille O'Neal decided to let his power do the talking.

In the frontcourt, after several unsuccessful attempts to establish position, Shaquille O'Neal finally received support from a teammate, and Fisher passed the ball in from the perimeter.

Although Shaquille O'Neal's performance on both offense and defense had declined considerably since his toe surgery, he was still not someone Dan Gadzuric, a center of that caliber, could contend with.

Shaquille O'Neal easily bulldozed into the paint and slammed the ball home.

4-2

After scoring the response basket, Shaquille O'Neal displayed an imposing expression and glared fiercely at Yu Fei.

"Dan, if you really can't guard him, just foul him," Yu Fei called out loudly, "at most that cripple will sink one free throw."

Shaquille O'Neal, furious, wanted to retort, but the Bucks' offense was already underway.

Yu Fei dribbled past half court and called Gadzuric out for a pick-and-roll, while Shaquille O'Neal decided to stick to the paint, knowing that Gadzuric posed no shooting threat.

However, giving up on defending the pick-and-roll like this not only considered the offensive skills of the screen setter, but also the teammate's ability to defend two-on-one.

Last season, when Yu Fei was still a rookie, he had already left Rick Fox helpless, and now, with the growth of Yu Fei into a top-ten force in the League in his second year and with the aid of a pick-and-roll, how could there be any resistance?

Yu Fei began his move towards the direction of the screen, but in the instant that Fox reacted, he pulled the ball back, changing direction to the opposite side, sprinting to a step inside the free-throw line, and abruptly pulling up for a jumper almost within reach of Shaquille O'Neal had he stepped forward.

"Swish!"

6-2

"That's why Kobe doesn't respect you, you cripple who won't take even one step forward is not worth serving!"
Your adventure continues at empire

"Shut your damn mouth!" Shaquille O'Neal, getting a bit heated by Yu Fei's taunts, retorted, "You have no right to judge our affairs!"

Yu Fei, intending to press the Lakers' ball-handler in the frontcourt, retorted: "What I want to say is not for a racist cripple like you to decide!"

Strangely, none of his teammates stood up for Shaquille O'Neal.

Because Yu Fei was shielded by political correctness, Shaquille O'Neal's recent racial comments about Yao Ming had been suppressed, but as long as there were people like Yu Fei constantly reminding everyone of the incident, its impact wouldn't fade away.

Then there was the term "cripple," which was obviously an attack on Shaquille O'Neal's pre-season toe surgery, also the biggest grievance within the Lakers Team against him.

With these two issues, one indefensible, the other no one willing to defend, an isolated Shaquille O'Neal had to face the brunt of Yu Fei's furious barrage alone.

"Give me the ball!" Shaquille O'Neal roared, "Damn it, give me the ball!"

Kobe's actions spoke volumes: The man couldn't hear a thing.

While Shaquille O'Neal fought for position in the low post, Kobe shook off Ray Allen with a crossover and, like an assassin, burst into the paint. Even without Shaquille O'Neal making space, and even with the paint as crowded as a supermarket on a sale day, he managed to score using a great body control layup.

Since entering the League in 1996, Kobe for the first time displayed the confidence and power of the main man for the Lakers Team, completely overshadowing Shaquille O'Neal.

Being ignored when asking for the ball and deliberately refusing to clear out—only to see Kobe still put on a show—left Shaquille O'Neal seeing stars as he yelled at Kobe, "You must pass the ball to me!"

Kobe responded, "The team is mine now, I'll do what I want!"

Way to go, Kobe! This three-day-old Kobe fan will always support you as the Lakers' boss!

Although they were adversaries at the moment, both Yu Fei and Kobe were the bane of Shaquille O'Neal's life.

Watching Yu Fei warily, Shaquille O'Neal found the following rounds to actually be a contest of vigor between Ray Allen and Kobe.

Remember how Ray Allen wasn't a fan of Jordan's? Actually, what he really disliked were people who thought themselves above everyone else on the court, like Jordan.

Kobe was also that kind of person. Ray Allen believed that if he and Shaquille O'Neal were teammates, there would be no conflicts between them, and the Lakers could still win three championships in a row, because he wasn't Kobe⑴.

When Kobe ignored Shaquille O'Neal's call for the ball, forcefully initiating an attack and scoring, Ray Allen did the same from Yu Fei, taking possession and, with Mason's screen, shaking off Kobe. He then took on the Lakers' starting power forward, Mark Madsen, in a mismatch at the left side of the paint, scored, and drew the foul.

The ball was in Kobe's hands for the Lakers.

In this possession, Shaquille O'Neal didn't ask for the ball, and even set a poor screen for Kobe. A bad screen could result in a double team on the ball-carrier, which Shaquille O'Neal took as an opportunity to move to the basket.

However, Kobe, trapped, saw Shaquille O'Neal open and without hesitation passed the ball.

Shaquille O'Neal didn't expect the pass and caught the ball with trembling hands. By the time he steadied himself, Yu Fei came out of nowhere, his hand like a blade, viciously chopping the ball out of Shaquille O'Neal's grasp, and the ball went out of bounds.

"Damn it!" Kobe shouted in frustration, "Don't you f*****g say I don't pass to you anymore, you just can't handle it!"

The culprit who spoiled Shaquille O'Neal's offense sarcastically said: "You must have had a hard time being the sidekick to somebody like that for so many years; he simply isn't worth it."