The Best Point Guard-Chapter 101 - 28: Little Sheep Su Xi, Can Be Appointed High General

Chapter 101: Chapter 28: Little Sheep Su Xi, Can Be Appointed High General

Billups was the third pick in the 1997 draft. The first pick that year was Tim Duncan, and the second was Fan Hoen, who was hailed as the next Big Bird.

The first few years of Billups’s career were unremarkable. His time with the Celtics, the Nuggets, and the Minnesota Timberwolves could only be described as underwhelming. But when he came to Detroit, all of his potential was unleashed.

He liked to slow down the pace, to feel the rhythm of the game.

He was comfortable to play with. He was a point guard whose assist numbers weren’t flashy, but his ability to run an offense was excellent.

Billups didn’t look very strong, probably due to the shape of his head. In reality, he stood 191 cm tall, often weighed over 93 kilograms, and possessed a very stable base and powerful upper body strength.

His offensive style was actually a bit like Arenas’s. He’d rely on his formidable strength to suddenly accelerate, sinking his shoulder to gain position for a drive. Or he’d just power up for a shot.

His explosiveness and speed were both excellent; it was just that his style wasn’t flashy. And he wasn’t a fan of explosive scoring sprees like Arenas... or rather, he knew he didn’t possess that kind of elite scoring burst.

Billups brought the ball past half court and suddenly decided to take his man on. He executed a quick, intricate fake in front of Su Xi... Su Xi’s balance wavered slightly, and Billups immediately followed up with a hard jab step.

Su Xi was slightly caught off guard... but he was all too familiar with this move.

Arenas had used this move to school him for a whole month in Chicago.

He quickly took half a step back. His innate super burst allowed him to instantly recover and seal off the lane ahead of time. His explosiveness already surpassed Billups’s.

Billups was completely unprepared. He quickly pulled back... but as he did, Su Xi was already on him. The moment Billups rose up for the jumper, Su Xi stretched out his long arm to contest... ’How can this be?’

Billups was shocked. He never expected Su Xi to anticipate all of his offensive moves.

Under Su Xi’s aggressive, high-pressure defense, his shooting form was slightly distorted.

"Rebound! Ah Bu!"

The moment Billups released the ball, Su Xi shouted loudly.

In the paint, Boozer quickly boxed out. Though not particularly tall, he was strong, and his ability to secure defensive rebounds was excellent.

CLANG!

The ball clanked off the rim, and Boozer grabbed the rebound.

Then, he passed it to Su Xi.

After catching the ball, Su Xi didn’t rush to push the attack.

This surprised Billups a little. ’Little Sheep Su Xi is very poised.’

Su Xi dribbled past half court. Billups applied high-pressure defense, constantly disrupting his offensive rhythm.

Billups’s pressure made Su Xi uncomfortable, but he maintained steady control of the ball. He called Carlos Boozer over for a pick-and-roll, drove past him on one side, and hesitated at the free-throw line.

"Cut!"

He shouted to Ricky Davis.

Davis instinctively cut to the basket, and Su Xi faked a pass in his direction. Davis got ready to receive it.

But Su Xi quickly swiveled and fired the ball to the corner. Jason Kapono caught it... SWISH!

He hit the 3-pointer.

Gand Arena erupted in cheers.

Paul Silas also smiled. He liked that pass from Su Xi; it had the flavor of a veteran point guard threading the needle.

On the sideline, Larry Brown slapped his thigh in frustration. ’It would’ve been so much better to pick Jack as our backup point guard,’ he fumed. ’That number 2 pick was a freebie anyway. Why draft some European prodigy? His English isn’t even fluent.’

James was even happier. He loved seeing Su Xi deliberately messing with Ricky Davis.

Meanwhile, Davis had already confronted Su Xi. As they got back on defense, he walked up beside Su Xi and growled in a low voice, "Rookie, what the hell are you doing? I made my cut! Why didn’t you pass me the damn ball?"

"You were too slow. Prince was right on you. If I had passed it to you, you would have gotten blocked."

"I would have gotten blocked? Last season, only three superstars got..."

Before Davis could finish, Su Xi had already run over to cover Billups.

This made Ricky very angry.

But deep down, he knew Su Xi was right, because that long-armed monster Prince was indeed very close to him at the time.

’Still, if he’d just given me the ball, couldn’t I have thrown a pump fake? Do I look like some one-dimensional rookie?’

He was furious.

Billups dribbled to the top of the arc, his sharp gaze sweeping the court. He didn’t try to force the issue just because Su Xi had stifled him on the previous possession.

Suddenly, he made a simple change of direction and lobbed the ball into the paint. Su Xi quickly turned, just in time to see Prince leaping up. Prince caught the ball in mid-air and, with Davis fouling him, slammed it through the hoop.

He even hung on the rim for a moment, dangling over Ricky Davis in a show of dominance.

Davis angrily shoved Prince away.

He walked over with a resentful look on his face and said to Su Xi, "Give me the damn ball next time."

Su Xi took the ball from Boozer and brought it past half court. He passed the ball to Boozer at the free-throw line, then quickly spaced out to the wing and, following the play, moved towards the corner... he would cut along the baseline to the other side to draw the defense.

Boozer passed the ball to Davis.

As soon as Davis got the ball, he went into an isolation play against Prince.

Prince was known as the best wing defender in the East. He had a slender build, a ridiculously long wingspan, great mobility, and could also shoot from the outside.

Davis used a rhythm dribble to lull his defender, then quickly spun past Prince and went up for a fadeaway jumper. The combination was silky smooth, clearly the result of countless hours of practice.

But he had fallen into a trap from the very beginning. Prince had deliberately given him a lane.

Davis, caught up in the play, was blind to it, but Su Xi, the bystander, saw it clearly.

That’s why, a moment before Davis released his shot, Su Xi started running in from the corner.

And just as expected, Prince leaped up and viciously swatted the ball away with his long arm.

Su Xi’s reflexes were sharp. He stretched out his own long arm and snatched the loose ball.

At this moment, Prince was still over there, roaring.

But Su Xi had already quickly flung the ball back into the paint. "Three Superstars!"

He shouted.

Ricky Davis had still been angry, but when he heard the keyword, he immediately snapped out of it. Then he saw the ball speeding towards him. He grabbed it, and with no defender in front of him, he took one step toward the hoop and viciously slammed the ball in with both hands.

Venting all his frustration.

After Davis scored, the initial gasps from Gand Arena turned into cheers.

Prince still hadn’t quite processed what happened until Ricky Davis landed and started talking trash to him: "You think that pathetic defense can stop me? Huh?"

Davis glared with bulging eyes.

’Classic Davis. All he was missing was his signature line: "Do you know who the only three superstars to average 20-5-5 last season were?"’

Prince, however, locked his eyes on Su Xi, the one who had ruined his play.

Larry Brown was also frowning. ’Did that kid just happen to be in the right place?’ he wondered. ’Or did he anticipate Prince’s defensive play all along?’

Su Xi ran to his defensive position, standing at the top of the arc waiting for Billups.

Just then, Prince ran over and deliberately bumped Su Xi.

The move was clearly a provocation.

Su Xi had read Frank’s ’death note’ last night and already held a grudge against Prince. The fact that this guy would run over and provoke him like this made Su Xi even more annoyed.

But he didn’t lash out. His expression remained placid, betraying nothing.

Billups brought the ball past half court, ran a pick-and-roll with Campbell at the arc, and passed to Prince. Prince did a quick pump fake, sending Davis flying. He took one step into the paint, leaped high, and completed a two-handed dunk... Su Xi rushed over to attempt a steal, but he was a beat too late.

After completing this fierce answer-dunk, Prince was exceptionally arrogant. He trash-talked Davis and Su Xi: "One’s a stat-padder, the other is a sneaky little piece of trash. I’ll chew you up... like ’Su-shi’! RAH! RAH! One bite at a time."

This one sentence offended both Su Xi and Davis.

Davis was trembling with anger, his eyes wide with fury.

Su Xi’s expression, however, remained as placid as a lake.

He took the inbound pass from Kapono and advanced unhurriedly. Once in the frontcourt, he ignored Davis’s furious demands for the ball. Instead, he stuck to the set play, assisting Boozer on a made basket.

Billups was surprised by Su Xi’s composure. Su Xi had already surprised him three times this game: first by stopping his jumper, second by saving Davis from being blocked, and third, right now. Each time was more unexpected than the last. Billups really liked Su Xi’s style: cool and collected.

Su Xi knew exactly when the best time for revenge would be. His grandfather had long ago taught him: a wise man conceals his strength and waits for the opportune moment to act.

The game continued.

Su Xi continued to run the Cavaliers’ plays. After he entered the game, the Cavaliers slowly closed the 3-point deficit.

His pick-and-roll with Boozer was very threatening, and he later assisted Davis on a basket as well.

But Davis was only thinking about how to get his revenge.

This, in turn, allowed Prince to get free for two open shots, after which he talked more trash and got to look smug.

And with just 28 seconds left in the first half, the moment Su Xi had been waiting for finally arrived.

Billups once again passed the ball to Prince. Prince tried to make a backdoor cut, but it wasn’t successful; he was held up under the basket by Davis.

He wasn’t a very good on-ball offensive player to begin with.

But perhaps his sense of superiority from earlier was too strong, because he actually didn’t pass. He used a rather clumsy spin move... and actually managed to get past Davis.

And so, he leaped, attempting another thunderous dunk.

But at the very moment he leaped, holding the ball with one hand and exposing it, Su Xi came rocketing in from the middle of the paint. He was like a cannonball shot from a cannon’s barrel!

In that one instant, surging explosive power and a formidable physique combined perfectly. He pounced, viciously swatting at the ball... SMACK!

His right hand pinned the ball directly against the backboard, while his body had already collided with Prince.

Prince, in mid-air, suddenly felt like he’d been hit by a speeding truck. His slender body instantly lost its balance, and like a kite with its string cut, he plummeted to the ground... THUD!

He was sent flying into the press row, his head slamming hard against a camera. Blood immediately began to gush from the wound.

At this point, Su Xi had already secured the ball under the basket.

He turned around, ignoring the worthless loser who had just been sent flying.

"Fast break!"

He yelled.

Ricky Davis, standing nearby and witnessing the whole thing, was completely dumbfounded. That pin-block was just too stunning. He had never dreamed Su Xi was so ferocious! So insane! Prince looked like a helpless chick in front of him. The impact was simply overwhelming!

The next second, he broke into a full sprint.

Like a sprinter hearing the starting gun.

Su Xi took three dribbles before Billups quickly stepped up, trying to contain his speed.

Su Xi immediately threw a long outlet pass.

Davis received the ball in the frontcourt, charged ferociously to the basket, and finished with a powerful two-handed slam!

After scoring, he beat his chest and roared.

He was electrified, ecstatic.

’Man, getting revenge feels so damn good!’

He glanced backcourt. Su Xi stood there quietly, an imposing, unmovable presence.

The entire Gand Arena was roaring! Cheering, shouting, and bellowing for this beautiful defensive counter-attack.

Only Su Xi was quiet. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

He had nothing to vent.

He who holds thunder in his heart but keeps a face as placid as a lake is worthy of being a great general.

The two old-school head coaches watched Su Xi, undisguised admiration in their eyes.

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