Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters

The day after the Bucks won the King of the Hill battle, the media heaped praise on Yu Fei's epic individual performance in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals. The New York Times called it "great." Sports Illustrated considered it "immortal." In just one evening, Yu Fei had earned the highest accolades because people believed that even for someone like Jordan, this would be classified as a top-notch performance.

No one was more pleased with Yu Fei's performance than Reebok's CEO, Paul Farman.
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Last summer, Farman had led the support to re-sign Yu Fei with a record-setting offer, but not everyone inside Reebok was as confident in Yu Fei as Farman was. Some within Reebok thought Farman had spent too much money on Yu Fei. But after Game 5 in Milwaukee, all the skepticism disappeared.

Before Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals, Reebok probably had only four or five people working full-time on Yu Fei and his brand (Chosen One's Boot). After Game 5, that number increased to 50. Even the AAU tournament Reebok was about to hold nationwide was renamed "The Next Chosen One" riding on the momentum of Yu Fei, and set the final stage in Seattle.

Within Reebok, this series of changes was termed "AGF," for "After Game Five."

Subsequently, Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals also kicked off at the home of the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The Timberwolves were already in a dire situation with a 1-3 deficit, but it went from bad to worse when, just before the game, their key point guard Sam Cassell was sidelined with a crippling injury that prevented him from participating in that day's training.

In that evening's game, Cassell's performance was a mess, as the injury significantly affected his play. The Timberwolves substituted him out three minutes before the end of the third quarter, and he never returned to the court.

Kevin Garnett's journey through the Western Conference Finals would end in failure once again.

Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Times dismissively called the Western Conference Finals "a farce without any suspense."

Despite the Timberwolves having a better regular season record than the Lakers, the expectations for the two teams were completely different.

The Lakers were considered the bane of the Timberwolves, and the regular season rankings? Irrelevant.

Before the playoffs started, the media in Los Angeles had already defined the Timberwolves as a team that would be successful if it just made it past the first round.

For the past seven seasons, they had always made it to the playoffs and then were eliminated in the first round.

Even after bolstering their lineup this year, the Lakers could use the historical head-to-head record to argue why they would completely destroy the Timberwolves.

In Garnett's past nine seasons, the Timberwolves had faced off against the Lakers 41 times, winning only 13 of those games, and three of those wins were during the middle of the regular season when the F4 Lakers were in turmoil.

Now, the playoff results undoubtedly confirmed the predictions of the outside world.

Garnett, as the MVP, but did not have the ability to change the direction of the Western Finals.

When the Lakers won decisively against the Timberwolves on their home turf, earning their fourth finals ticket in five years, the media supporting them were elated.

Were the F4 Lakers invincible? No.

Had O'Neal and Kobe made amends? Not at all.

But so what? For those sportswriters, the Lakers' performance fit all the definitions of a sports epic. They had a story that needed to be told, a story about a team rife with contradictions, internal and external troubles, almost imploding during the regular season, yet steamrolling every adversary in the playoffs.

It sounded like the Yankees of the '70s.

But unlike the drama of the legendary Bronx Zoo, this was about Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe overcoming their hatred for each other to prioritize victory.

The Lakers crushed the Timberwolves' ambitions, and off the court, OK still acted as unreasonably as a baby.

The night they eliminated the Timberwolves, Shaquille O'Neal didn't forget to take a jab at someone during an interview, "We played too selfishly."

He accused the team of selfishness, but the finger was pointing directly at Kobe.

Because the team was selfish, no one passed the ball to him under the basket. So who was the one holding the ball most of the time? The answer is self-evident.

Kobe retorted, "He's strong, he can take care of himself."

Then, Shaquille O'Neal played the same old tune, talking about his unresolved contract extension.

He made his position clear, "I'm not going to take a pay cut, I will never take a pay cut. I will never accept a salary lower than my ability."

This meant that the Lakers needed to offer this 31-year-old veteran a contract extension of at least $20 million per year.

Not only that, but Shaquille O'Neal also publicized some secrets, like how he was actually the Lakers' true general manager for the past two years.

Why? Because: "I'm the real manager of the team, I don't want to talk nonsense, I'm the one who brought them here (to the finals four times in five years). I'm the one who made the calls (to recruit Karl Malone and Payton). Who wouldn't want to play with me? Everyone wants to play with the Diesel!"

That's why the Los Angeles Times called the Western Conference Finals a "farce". The Lakers took out the Timberwolves in just five games, but they weren't wholly invested in the series.

This also reflected the Lakers' mindset after advancing to the finals; since Jordan's second retirement, there's been a clear distinction between the strengths of the Eastern and Western Conferences, the West being strong and the East being weak. Last season's Bucks were considered a fluke, and the Lakers always felt like the Western Finals were a dress rehearsal for the finals. Now by taking out the Timberwolves, they've pretty much secured this year's championship.

No wonder the Shaquille O'Neal era Lakers had a finals record of 12 wins and three losses against the champions from the Eastern Conference.

"If the Bucks make it to the finals, will the situation change?"

In the past two seasons, the Lakers' regular-season record against the Bucks is 1 win and 3 losses⑴.

⑴The Bucks' loss was because Yu Fei and Shaquille O'Neal got into a fight and were ejected.

"Our regular-season record against the Timberwolves was 1 win and 3 losses," Shaquille O'Neal said with his characteristic grin, "Do you think the situation has changed in the playoffs?"

The Lakers considered the Bucks on the same level as the Pacers, 76ers, and the Nets, suggesting they would get blown out just like those previous Eastern teams.

But the team that was most angered by this wasn't the Bucks, but the Pistons.

The Lakers didn't even mention them.

Yu Fei didn't care about Shaquille O'Neal's words; the pig always forgot the pain once the wound was healed.

In fact, Yu Fei thought their Eastern Finals against the Pistons were the real dress rehearsal for the finals.

In his past life, the '04 Pistons slaughtered the Lakers in the finals, and now, the Bucks had already taken a dominant position in their series.

After losing the crucial fifth game, the Pistons, with all cards on the table, didn't know how to win anymore.

Once the Pistons were eliminated and they faced the Lakers in the Finals, Yu Fei thought that the only way to prove themselves superior to the '04 Pistons was to send the Lakers packing in fewer games.

How many games did it take the Pistons to finish off the Lakers? Maybe five or possibly six, Yu Fei didn't know, but it certainly wasn't a sweep.

Though being swept wasn't really a big deal in Shaquille O'Neal's career, it was quite significant for Kobe.

Because in his previous life, Yu Fei had never seen LeBron fans mock Kobe for being swept in the finals on forums; instead, Kobe fans would bring up LeBron being swept in the finals.

That was the sole reason Yu Fei believed the '04 Pistons didn't sweep the Lakers, and he felt certain he was right.

The day after, the Bucks headed to Detroit.

The Palace of Auburn Hills was notoriously challenging for visiting teams, and Pistons fans, believing they weren't yet at the brink of elimination, did everything they could to disrupt the Bucks' warmup before the game began.

Yu Fei noticed that Ray Allen hadn't missed a single shot during the pre-game warmup and joked with him, "Looks like you plan to make all the shots you missed last game tonight."

Ray Allen coldly retorted, "Why not?"

Good, if he didn't manage to do it, they could just trade him to the Clippers when the season ended.

Soon after, the game started.

The Pistons proved that when people start to feel desperate, they can do some unimaginably daring things.

In the five previous games, the Pistons' defense on Yu Fei was tight and sophisticated, full of strategic nuances that seemed meticulously planned.

Especially with double teams—Detroit used them frequently and cautiously on Yu Fei.

Unless Yu Fei's teammates all turned into sharpshooters, blind double teams wouldn't be the strategy.

Normally, their traps on Yu Fei were set up on his driving lanes. Plus, these traps heavily relied on the Wallace Brothers' judgment, only opting to double when the situation was right.

Thus, although Yu Fei did find quite a few flaws, he seldom got easy opportunities to dish out assists because of mindless double teams.

But tonight, the Pistons went nuts.

Their double-teaming of Yu Fei was brazen, as if Larry Brown had bet a hundred million US Dollars that Yu Fei wouldn't score in double digits that evening.

Bringing the ball past half court? Double team!

Calling a play from beyond the three-point line? Double team!

Catching the ball at any position? Double team!

Driving with the ball? That's a no-brainer—triple team, at least!

According to the stats on site, whenever Yu Fei touched the ball within the sight of Pistons players, he was 100% certain to get double-teamed.

Sure, the Pistons' strategy did limit Yu Fei to a very low scoring number—just 10 points for the whole game.

If the Pistons' goal was to contain Yu Fei, who averaged 34.4 points per game in the series, then they achieved their goal.

Ten points in a single game. Not only was it the lowest in the series for Yu Fei, but it was also his lowest scoring playoff game since his debut.

However, for a player who almost averaged a 30+10+10 in the playoffs, simply limiting his scoring wasn't enough.

If you're too eager to achieve this one thing, you might just let the opponent focus their strength elsewhere.

Yu Fei had figured out the Pistons' strategy from the get-go.

"Their defensive logic is simple, stop me and they win the game. That's their thought process. Which means, the rest of you are useless. Don't glare at me, if you disagree, prove yourself at the Palace!"

As harsh as it sounded, that was precisely what the Pistons implied.

Yu Fei didn't want to put pressure on his teammates, but he wanted even less to face a Game 7, so he had to speak the truth.

He loved telling the truth.

Telling the truth was refreshing to the mind and body.

From then on, the offensive enthusiasm of the other Bucks players soared, starting with Ray Allen punishing the Pistons' ill-advised double teams.

Next was Sprewell, followed by Horry.

Suddenly, everyone except Yu Fei started scoring.

The Pistons' misguided defense led to Yu Fei dishing out 13 assists by halftime.

By then, they realized their mistake, but the disadvantage was set, and there was no turning back, only to keep defending the same way.

From the second half on, the Pistons seemed willing to lose the game, but definitely not to let Yu Fei score.

Even if it meant allowing Yu Fei to rack up 30 assists in a single game, they were determined to shut him down completely.

The Pistons' execution was admirable, and indeed, Yu Fei couldn't find his scoring chances, so he just continued passing.

In the end, Yu Fei tallied 10 points, 9 rebounds, and 25 assists in 34 minutes of play, leading his team to a resounding 117-79 victory over the Pistons and advancing to the finals with a series score of 4-2.

After the game, reporters asked Yu Fei for his thoughts on the Pistons' defense.

"Their defense was intense and they successfully reduced my average scoring by 4 points," Yu Fei said with a mix of laughter and dismay. "But they also increased my average assists by 3, so I'm not sure if this is the result they wanted."

PS: Taking a half day off today.

PPS: Since we know that in reality the '04 Lakers were soundly defeated by the '04 Pistons, and that the Bucks, having overcome the Pistons, would likely have an easy time against the Lakers' F4, I won't go into detail about the finals to avoid dragging out the defeat of Shaq. The finals will end quickly.