Jim Paxson didn’t rush to call Bird. His upbringing had taught him to remain calm at crucial moments.

Su Xi and his team were even more composed than he was.

In San Antonio, LeBron James completely took over the offense. Su Xi didn’t contest it. He just relentlessly tracked and defended Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili. One was incredibly fast, the other agile and unpredictable. Su Xi’s defense wasn’t particularly effective, but he gladly accepted the task. Especially when James couldn’t guard Ginobili, Su Xi practically jumped at the chance to switch onto the Argentinian.

This was because Ginobili’s coordination was incredible, and his flexibility was exceptional. He was one of the few NBA players Su Xi felt had flexibility that reached a super-tier.

Su Xi benefited greatly from the matchup. His Super Coordination Talent increased by two points, reaching 88. While an 88 in coordination wasn’t considered outstanding among top-tier guards, it was enough for Su Xi to improve his control on his drives and his shooting stability after contact.

The Cavaliers suffered a blowout loss in San Antonio, but LeBron James earned praise for his performance. He posted an incredible stat line of 29 points, 10 assists, 12 rebounds, and 2 steals.

Even though James lost the game, Popovich praised him, claiming he had won the future.

Su Xi had a "mediocre performance" in this game, finishing with only 7 points, 5 assists, 3 rebounds, 3 steals, and 1 block.

This seemed to prove Larry Bird’s prediction: Su Xi had only performed so well before because he had usurped James’s tactical role. Now that things were back on track, he had reverted to his proper place.

After the game, Popovich commented on Su Xi, saying, "He’s a decent team player. You want me to say more? He didn’t show anything more than that!"

"I don’t think he and LeBron can be mentioned in the same breath. One is Jordan, the other is Pippen."

Popovich said it all with a nonchalant air.

This sent the pro-James media commentators into another frenzy, and Cleveland was delighted. Some Ohio media outlets even claimed: "That kid Su Xi should recognize his place. Acting like he did tonight is just fine."

O’Connor, who was in Cleveland, relayed the Ohio media’s sentiment to Su Xi, but Su Xi just laughed it off.

He no longer had strong feelings about Cleveland. They wanted to secure the future, whereas Su Xi wanted to win in the present.

This was a fundamental conflict.

’Besides, who are they to force me into being Pippen? Can’t we just compete fairly?’

Su Xi didn’t like these games.

It was just like when Popovich sought him out after the game. "Are you willing to come to San Antonio?"

Popovich showed one face to the media, but he was completely different in front of Su Xi.

When it came to winning a championship, the San Antonio Spurs were an excellent option. Duncan was already the greatest power forward in history. Moreover, during their matchup, the Little Elf had even automatically awoken to inform Su Xi that Duncan was a pioneer of acquired super talents and possessed several of them himself.

However, Su Xi had already established a good relationship with the Pacers. Larry Bird had agreed to Su Xi’s proposed contract amendments, showing great sincerity.

’If it were Popovich, he definitely wouldn’t have agreed to that.’

So, he replied, "I’m not interested at the moment."

Popovich said, "I don’t think you’re the kind of player who’s willing to play second fiddle to LeBron James. You deliberately deferred to him tonight. But you won’t be able to tolerate that for long. You might as well demand a trade. I’ll make Cleveland an offer they can’t refuse."

Su Xi just smiled and said nothing.

And with that, their conversation ended.

"What a great kid," Popovich remarked to his assistant, unable to help himself as he watched Su Xi’s retreating back.

"Then why did you tell the media he was worthless?" the assistant muttered under his breath.

"Sigh, you’re so naive," Popovich said, glancing at the young kid who’d gotten the job through connections. "My interests aren’t tied to LeBron James, so praising him is just a free gesture of goodwill. But Little Sheep Su Xi... I’m truly coveting him. Of course I have to try and drive down his market value."

The young assistant looked on, only half-understanding.

After leaving San Antonio, the Cavaliers headed to Dallas. Their next stop was Memphis, followed by Houston.

...

LeBron James was feeling frustrated. He had suffered another loss in Dallas. While the San Antonio Spurs had only beaten them by 15, the Dallas team showed no mercy. The German Tank went on a tear, scoring 42 points and handing the Cavaliers a crushing 28-point defeat.

Su Xi didn’t even start in this game.

LeBron James had suggested it to the coaching staff. He had originally thought Su Xi would protest, which would give him an opening to negotiate and convince Su Xi to properly support him as his second-in-command.

Instead, Su Xi accepted it without a word of protest.

It was Carlos Boozer, however, who got angry, shouting from the sidelines, "What are we doing? Why are we putting a leader who can win us games on the bench, and making the guy who can’t win the focal point of our offense?"

Huh?

James was furious.

But he couldn’t very well lose his temper with Boozer. Boozer was his hand-picked third option on the team. Their on-court chemistry was excellent, and Boozer’s shooting, pick-and-roll skills, and even his defensive rebounding were all things James valued in a teammate.

What made him even more uncomfortable was the realization that it wasn’t just Boozer; other players felt the same way.

This resentment was spreading throughout the team.

No one likes being suppressed by special privileges. After all, most people in this world are ’little sheep,’ not ’the Chosen One.’