Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters

The moment Yu Fei openly expressed his intention to wrestle power from Jordan, the locker room fell into a deathly silence.

Including Richard Hamilton, no one made a sound, everyone pretending not to hear.

As for Jordan, he just coldly stared at Yu Fei before walking away.

There was nothing left to say between them.

At present, the Wizards had 29 wins and 31 losses, ranking ninth in the Eastern Conference.

However, there was no difference in the number of wins between them, the eighth-ranked Raptors, and the seventh-ranked Pacers; the three teams had the same record, and the Wizards were ranked ninth only because of the head-to-head results.

Half a month ago, the Wizards were still among the top four teams in the Eastern Conference, but after the All-Star Weekend, Yu Fei's flu (and the slight dip in his performance post-recovery) combined with Jordan stubbornly playing against worsening injuries, with extensive time on the court and numerous shots, led to a string of losses for the Wizards, who now found themselves battling again for playoff contention.

Jordan's season-ending injury vacated a starting spot and over 38 minutes of game time per match.

Richard Hamilton benefitted the most from this, no longer having to play the small forward position to accommodate Jordan.

Then, as Jordan's loyal but often verbally ridiculed follower, Tyrone Nesby's playing time was set to increase significantly.

The biggest change for the Wizards was that Yu Fei moved from playing point guard back to the small forward position.

This was his own request.

Although playing as a point guard was enjoyable, it was also exhausting, but now that Jordan was out, they could freely play a fast-paced basketball game. As such, he could perform even better playing small forward, especially since the Wizards had Tyronn Lue, an American sports car, at the point guard position.

After Jordan's injury, by rights, the leader of the Wizards should have been Richard Hamilton.

But everyone knew what Yu Fei had said before Jordan left.

"You go in peace, I will complete the mission you couldn't finish."

"I swear, I will lead them to the playoffs."

"By then, this team will no longer belong to you."

So, to whom would it belong?

Whether it would belong to Yu Fei or not was uncertain to everyone, but it definitely wouldn't belong to Hamilton, who never dared to defy Jordan.

This was also the reason for the strange atmosphere between Yu Fei and Hamilton.

Although Doug Collins was worried about Jordan's health, he felt an indescribable sense of relief.

Suddenly, the shackles on him disappeared.

He seemed to regain the full authority of a head coach, and then, just two days later, he realized that his troubles were only just beginning.

The Wizards' first game without Jordan was against the Orlando Magic.

The Magic were only one win ahead of the Wizards, and if they lost this game, they would directly drop to eighth in the Eastern Conference, according to head-to-head results.

In essence, the two were true competitors.

Yu Fei exploded against Mike Miller and Pat Garrity, but Hamilton was completely dominated by McGrady.

Or more accurately, McGrady overwhelmed everyone on the Wizards Team.

Recognized as the best player in the Eastern Conference and the only perimeter player in the League's top five, McGrady scored an amazing 50 points, 10 rebounds, and 3 assists with a 66% shooting rate in that game.

For the world, he was like a young Jordan, just without enough support.

But what did that matter? Jordan also struggled to lead his team past the second round until his supporting cast developed. McGrady was young enough; as long as he was patient, his support would eventually come. Eventually.

After scoring 21 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists, Yu Fei found Coach Collins at the end of the game, "I think Kwame should be in the starting lineup."

Jordan was out, but did that mean Yu Fei would become the player Coach Collins imagined?

No, with Jordan gone, he would become the new Jordan.

"Kwame is not ready yet," was Collins's reasoning.

"If we don't let him play, he'll never be ready," Yu Fei replied. "Our front court lacks vitality; no one can provide the energy and athleticism that Kwame can."

Collins countered, "What if he performs poorly after starting?"

"Then he should play even more. Only games make a player grow. He's a top draft pick; why not give him the chance to make mistakes on the court?" The current Yu Fei was like a ferocious tiger, and Collins saw no reverence for the authority of a head coach on his face.

This was someone who dared to openly break with Jordan at his most dominant. With Jordan injured, could Collins really expect this under-20-year-old to suddenly become a docile and sensible player?

Collins had no choice but to step back, "I'll consider your suggestion."

Those words were already a clear indication he was ready to do so.

But Yu Fei didn't like this ambiguous phrasing, and he emphasized, "It's not about considering, it's something we must do."

Looking at Yu Fei, Collins felt a sense of weariness.

"No problem," he gave up resisting, "do it your way."

Really? Can I arrange a retirement ceremony for my dog? Although he's getting ready for surgery, I think we can organize the two things simultaneously.

With a smile on his face, Yu Fei nodded and said, "You truly are the most enlightened coach in the League."

Doug Collins, who considered himself the most humble coach in history, said sarcastically, "You are also the most disciplined rookie in the entire league."

"Haha, then we really are a golden pair!"

Afterward, The Wizards faced The Celtics for the fourth time.

Tonight, Kwame Brown was in the starting lineup.

In a pre-game interview, Doug Collins said, "Michael's injury has had a big impact on us, and now we must try to find other strategies to win games. I will consider all combinations; everyone has a chance."

To justify Brown's position in the starting lineup, Yu Fei called for Brown to come out for a pick-and-roll every time he had the ball this evening.

The Celtics' center Vitaly Potapenko and power forward Antoine Walker each had their own defensive issues, with defending pick-and-rolls being their weakest point.

Brown gained something every time he rolled after setting a pick.

Yu Fei's leadership began to show.

Initially, with Jordan on the team, although Yu Fei didn't get along with him, he still had to play around him, unless Jordan was playing exceptionally poorly, taking many shots with a low success rate. Only then would Yu Fei completely ignore him.

Now, with Jordan out, Yu Fei became the loudest voice on the court.

Richard Hamilton was a player whose offense relied solely on moving without the ball and who disliked confrontation on defense. Such a person might become a sharp weapon on the offensive end but could never become a leader on the court.

A so-called leader either had to be irreplaceable on offense like Iverson or dominating on defense like Ben Wallace, and at the extreme, they could dominate both offense and defense like Duncan. Hamilton's qualities did not meet the standards of a leader.

He claimed to be the leader of the New Jacks, but half a season had passed and this title existed in name only. The real leader of the young players was Yu Fei.

With Jordan out for the season, Yu Fei was becoming the team's new leader.

Yu Fei set Brown up for scores again and again through assists and loudly corrected Tyronn Lue's game habits that had been skewed by Jordan's influence.

Speed was inherently Lue's greatest advantage, and before joining The Wizards, Collins had also convinced Lue that he would play a fast-paced offense with the team. But after Jordan's comeback, The Wizards were forced to play at a slower pace to suit his style.

Furthermore, Collins was the type of coach who liked to direct the point guard's play from the sidelines, which likewise had an effect.

Lue suddenly found himself in basketball hell.

When The Celtics missed shot after shot and failed to get back on defense quickly enough after completing their half-court offense, Yu Fei hoped the team could seize these opportunities for a fast break.

But Lue, having been tainted by Jordan for too long, seemed to have lost this instinct.

So, during a timeout, Yu Fei went up to Lue and said, "Tyronn, you need to be yourself on the court! Ignore what outsiders say, know what you can do. Don't slow down the pace, run as you can! Don't let others influence your judgment, now we have to play our own game; it's time to overthrow the old regime!"

99 to 91

The Wizards ended their four-game losing streak, with Yu Fei scoring 17 points, 11 rebounds, and 14 assists, marking his sixth triple-double of his rookie season.

And Kwame Brown was undoubtedly the biggest beneficiary of Yu Fei's triple-doubles.

Half of Yu Fei's assists were fed to Brown.

With 18 points and 6 rebounds, Brown achieved a new scoring high.

"I have to thank Fulai; without him, I wouldn't have scored so much! He's my brother forever, and we will enter the playoffs together."

What about Michael?

"I wish him longevity."

Brown's expression and tone revealed his dissatisfaction with Jordan.

Yu Fei really wanted to criticize him; how could he express his true feelings to the media?

Look at what the "New Jacks" leader said.

"We all hope Michael could be here, we really need him." Very good, it's time for Collins to put you in the small forward position, "but you know, we are a young team, in five years, we'll still be here, and Michael...you know. We all understand this, so in the time that Michael is not with us, we need to grow, and we should grow, not just for ourselves but also for the team."

If Yu Fei had said that, Jordan would have been very pleased.

But Yu Fei would never.

And even with Hamilton's best disguise, the last sentence gave away his real thoughts: "I am proud of us for winning this game without Michael; we proved ourselves."

That night, Yu Fei missed the post-game press conference because he accepted an exclusive interview from ESPN columnist and one of the NBA's 50 greatest players, Bill Walton.

Since retiring from The Celtics in the late 80s, Walton had been working in the media. Despite a stutter, his exaggerated and ornate on-court metaphors were a highlight of NBA games.

Besides, Walton didn't ask as many questions about Jordan like other reporters.

He knew the questions about Jordan were the most important, so he prepared just one and saved it for the end.

The question went like this, "If Michael were to retire now, do you think that spending most of the season fighting alongside him is worth remembering?"

"Of course, because everything is worth remembering, even if you step in dog shit on the side of the road today, you'll remember that to make sure not to make the same mistake again."

Yu Fei responded with several sentences, none of which seemed to have any substantial content, but Walton and the audience noticed an issue.

Was Yu Fei comparing Jordan to dog shit?

Well.....

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