The NBA world loves to gossip about Isaiah Thomas being two-faced. To basketball fans, he was the epitome of a man who hid his true intentions behind a constant smile. Even his nickname, the Smiling Assassin, reeked of insincerity.

However, when Isaiah Thomas reached out with a broad smile and patted Su Xi’s knee, he said, "Of course, Jack! I’m willing to teach you everything I know, let alone my super-low center of gravity rhythm."

ZING!

An immense and complex stream of information instantly flooded Su Xi’s mind. His understanding of driving to the basket deepened in a flash, and he could feel the subtleties of lowering his center of gravity to alter the rhythm of his dribble.

It was a profound, almost mystical on-court sensation. Su Xi’s abilities had grown immensely.

Previously, his style was all power, a straightforward whirlwind. In the words of the New York media, not much different from James. But in truth, even at his peak, he couldn’t replicate James’s effectiveness because James was taller and heavier. On the court, height and weight are always the most direct and potent talents. That’s why James is called the Chosen One: the physique of a center, the speed of a forward, and the explosive quickness of a guard.

However, once Su Xi absorbed Isaiah Thomas’s ’super-low center of gravity rhythm’ talent, he started down a completely different path.

He was strong and powerful, with incredible explosive speed. He could always rely on his physique to play, but now, he possessed one of the greatest driving techniques in NBA history.

Although, with his current physical attributes, his fusion limit for the skill was 86%. This was because the technique placed high demands on the physical attributes of coordination and agility.

However, if Su Xi reached an 86% fusion, his on-court effectiveness would absolutely surpass that of Isaiah Thomas himself at 86%, and might even exceed 90%.

Why? Because Isaiah Thomas wasn’t as tall, didn’t have as long a wingspan, and wasn’t as strong as Su Xi.

This was Su Xi’s mismatch advantage.

And by gaining Isaiah Thomas’s ’super-low center of gravity rhythm’ talent, he began to possess a true skill-based mismatch, the ability to dominate opponents.

Commonly known as a bug.

It was like how the Shark, despite being an unstoppable force in the paint who could get seventy percent of his work done with dunks, also possessed an incredibly delicate and soft touch on his floaters and baby hooks.

"However, Jack... I’m teaching you all this, so after your two-year contract is up, can you come play for the Knicks? You know, I think just as highly of you as Larry Bird does. Besides, our owner really, really likes you. He even offered the Cavaliers a blank check for you, but for some reason, they didn’t take the deal."

Isaiah Thomas said to Su Xi, his face still wreathed in a smile.

If Su Xi hadn’t received Thomas’s ’super-low center of gravity rhythm’ talent, he too would have doubted the man’s sincerity. The label the media had slapped on him was just too memorable.

Su Xi thought about it seriously for a moment before saying, "If I win a championship in Indiana and get the Finals MVP, I’ll seriously consider coming back to New York. After all, it’s my second home."

Isaiah Thomas was thrilled to hear this. He quickly asked, "When can we find some time to practice?"

Su Xi glanced at his watch. It was 11 o’clock. "I’m free tonight."

Uh...

Thomas was taken aback.

But forty-five minutes later, they were on a streetball court.

Isaiah Thomas began teaching Su Xi the art of the driving layup. He covered everything from how to shift a defender’s center of gravity and force bad reads to how to set up an attack and escape defensive traps.

He went into great detail, teaching him real, battle-tested techniques.

If Su Xi hadn’t received the ’super-low center of gravity rhythm’ talent, he would have been completely lost, with Isaiah Thomas teaching such advanced concepts right from the start.

But with the super-talent as his foundation, Su Xi absorbed and integrated the knowledge incredibly fast. Isaiah Thomas was blown away, left dumbfounded by Su Xi’s learning speed. "Jack, you’re hands down the smartest student I’ve ever had. I’ve taught a lot of guys, and some of them still can’t get the hang of it after a week."

Su Xi smiled. "Gary Payton said the same thing."

They practiced until 2:30 in the morning.

If a few homeless people hadn’t started to gather nearby, they would have kept practicing even longer.

After that session, Su Xi had fused 70% of the ’super-low center of gravity rhythm’ talent. This was already a massive boost to his abilities. After all, he had previously been a brutally direct sledgehammer, but now, in the midst of his powerful drives, he could add a few deft, tricky changes of direction with a flick of the wrist.

He was becoming incredibly difficult to guard.

If he were to play against the Brooklyn Nets again now, it would be much harder for Jason Kidd to funnel him into Kenyon Martin’s defensive traps.

It was safe to say that under Isaiah Thomas’s tutelage, Su Xi had officially taken his first step toward becoming a monster of the basketball world.

Before, he was still a basketball player who fit within established archetypes. From now on, he was going to create something entirely new.

Isaiah Thomas was delighted with Su Xi’s progress, convinced in his heart that Su Xi was destined to be a superstar. As they parted ways, he once again stressed that Su Xi had to remember to give him a leg up when the time came.

Su Xi smiled and waved goodbye. Although he didn’t make a firm commitment, he had his own thoughts. ’Isaiah Thomas is a good guy. If I do change teams in the future, all else being equal, I’d definitely choose his team. No question.’

「As Su Xi headed back to the hotel to rest and prepare for the next day’s commercial shoot.」

Isaiah Thomas couldn’t contain his excitement and immediately called James Dolan.

James Dolan was in the middle of a wild party, dancing in a club with a woman on each arm. The moment he heard Isaiah Thomas mention Su Xi, he waved his hand, silencing the entire room. On the dance floor, the bevy of sexy, scantily-clad women of all shapes and sizes froze as if someone had hit the pause button.

"What!"

"You’re telling me Jack is a once-in-a-generation super-talent? You think I don’t know that already?"

"He learned your signature move in a single night? Seriously?"

"It took less than three hours? Oh, damn it! Why didn’t you call me then? I would’ve brought some girls over to cheer him on. He’d practice with more passion that way!"

"He promised to come to New York for his next contract? Great job, Isaiah! You really are my right-hand man. But from now on, if you’re meeting with Little Sheep Su Xi privately, you call me! Alright, good work. I’m hanging up!"

James Dolan hung up, buzzing with excitement.

He grabbed the microphone and yelled, ecstatic, "Keep dancing! Keep the party going! Everything tonight is on me!"

"Boss, you were already paying for tonight. This is your house," an assistant whispered, sneaking onto the stage to inform him.

"Hahahaha, I forgot!" James Dolan roared with laughter, then told the DJ to crank the music up to full blast.

He was on cloud nine.

He liked Su Xi, for no particular reason. He was determined to prove his own basketball acumen through Su Xi. The better Su Xi performed, the happier Dolan became, and the more he felt it proved his keen eye for talent.

In a way, he had pinned his personal ego and preferences onto Su Xi. In modern terms, you could call him a stan.

...

Su Xi filmed a commercial for China Mobile at the Hilton Hotel. The company paid him over 10 million RMB for the endorsement, a power play against their rival, China Unicom, who had Yao Ming as a spokesperson. A similar scenario played out for Su Xi’s second commercial. He became the face of the People’s Insurance Company, a move to compete with China Pacific Insurance.

For Su Xi, these were all brands that had been carefully vetted by Yao Ming, so there was no need to do much background research. They were no-brainers.

Su Xi’s commercial value was much greater than Yao Ming’s. He could not only endorse these corporate giants with his image, but he could also connect with more fast-moving consumer brands and products that appealed to a younger demographic.

This was largely determined by height. Psychologically, ordinary people couldn’t help but feel a sense of distance from Yao Ming. But not with Su Xi. Su Xi’s more conventional height made the general public feel like he was one of them.

This was probably the reason why centers don’t sell shoes.

After his trade from the Cavaliers to the Pacers, Su Xi solidified his role as the team’s core perimeter player. His usage rate steadily increased, and his scoring numbers climbed higher and higher. In China’s domestic basketball market, his status had already surpassed that of the homegrown Yao Ming.

This was directly reflected in the All-Star voting. Although Su Xi was eventually surpassed in votes by Iverson and Tracy McGrady, he still finished with over 180,000 more votes than Yao Ming.

In fact, at least 100,000 of that 180,000-vote lead came from voters in North America.

Su Xi was dominating on both sides of the Pacific Ocean.

After filming the two commercials, Su Xi received an invitation from Ron Artest.

Artest was hosting a party at his new home in New York. A native of the city, he had purchased a five-million-USD mansion in a famous affluent neighborhood on Long Island, and he invited teammates, coaches, and some socialites to celebrate.

Su Xi and Artest weren’t particularly close, but there was no bad blood between them either.

Artest was a blunt, outspoken guy. If Su Xi played poorly, he’d call him out directly, either in the locker room or on the court, but he wouldn’t hold a grudge. The very next possession or the next game, they’d be back to cooperating seamlessly. Artest would even take the initiative to help with Su Xi’s defensive assignment when Su Xi was focused on offense.

Su Xi rode in the same car as Tony Battie and Reggie Miller.

Tony Battie was Su Xi’s loyal bodyguard. The guy was fiercely loyal, a real bulldog. On or off the court, if anyone messed with Su Xi, Battie would be right there, glaring them down. During the game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, when Garnett knocked Su Xi out of the air, Battie rushed over and headbutted the Wolf King.

The Wolf King just grumbled and said a few words to save face before letting it go.

After all, Tony Battie had a certain reputation in the unwritten world of the NBA. Years ago, when Paul Pierce was stabbed thirteen times in thirty-five seconds outside a club, it was Battie who rushed him to the hospital. If not for him, Paul Pierce would have been in much more trouble.

"Jack, what does ’Hu Su Bao’ mean?" Tony Battie asked in the car, pronouncing the term in Chinese.

Su Xi didn’t quite understand.

"The Chinese reporters told me that fans in China have affectionately nicknamed me ’Hu Su Bao.’" 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Tony Battie had gotten very close with the Chinese press lately. He would regularly give them interviews, providing them with first-hand news about Su Xi. Furthermore, through the coverage from these reporters, he had attracted the attention of many Chinese brands. He had recently signed deals with a Chinese mineral water company and even a sun umbrella brand.

In the Chinese media reports, he was billed as Su Xi’s number-one bodyguard. He enjoyed the title immensely and told the reporters, "That’s right, that’s my job on the court. I’m like Oakley to Michael Jordan. Nobody lays a finger on Jack."

This earned him immense goodwill.

The fans back in China loved that kind of loyalty.

Su Xi frowned, thinking for a long time. His Chinese wasn’t the best. He repeated the name to himself a few times before it clicked. "*Hù Sū Bǎo*... ’Guardian for Su.’ They’re basically calling you my bodyguard."

Tony Battie understood immediately. Beaming, he made a fist. "Yeah! That’s right, I am the Hu Su Bao! The Hu Su Bao!"

He said it with increasing fluency.

Reggie Miller, sitting nearby, chuckled. "Tony, you might as well just build your career in China. You have more fans over there than the entire population of Indiana."

"I’d love to," Tony Battie said earnestly. "But I don’t know if they’d have me."

Just as they were speaking... CRASH!

Their car, driving on a winding mountain road, collided head-on with a vehicle speeding from the opposite direction.

The three of them were jolted by the massive impact. Even in the midst of the collision, Tony Battie instinctively threw an arm out to shield Su Xi.

Su Xi was deeply touched.

But everyone was wearing their seatbelts, the impact hadn’t been too severe, and the airbags had deployed. So, while they were shaken up, no one was injured.

As they opened their car doors, a call came from the other vehicle—a Rolls-Royce. "Help! Help!"

It was a woman’s clear voice.

...