Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters

Chapter 492: Chapter 339 When Big Fei Doesn’t Hog the Feast

The 2007 trade deadline didn’t witness any impressive trades.

The Trail Blazers had an attractive expiring contract (Jamal Magloire), but they overestimated its value, making exorbitant demands that didn’t yield the returns they wanted.

The Memphis Grizzlies were eager to sell Pau Gasol, but they didn’t receive any satisfactory offers. It’s fair to say that among the many losers on trade deadline day who weren’t able to make a deal, the Grizzlies had the best excuse.

However, their desire to sell Gasol for a high price without willing to part with him easily could make them miss out on some seemingly decent offers. The longer they waited, the lower Gasol’s trade value became, until they would eventually be forced to trade him for an offer that infuriated everyone.

Another club that desperately needed to act but did nothing was the Lakers, who seemed not to realize that Kobe’s mood had begun to sour. After seeing the Spurs put Kidd on the trading block, they went to inquire with Caron Butler in tow.

But the Spurs wanted Butler and Bynum, plus a draft pick package.

Considering Kidd’s age, the Lakers did not want to gamble all their chips.

Even though the Spurs were willing to trade Kidd, if they didn’t encounter an irresistible set of chips, they would not just hand over a star point guard to the Lakers for nothing.

The Bucks turned down the proactive Memphis Grizzlies.

They tried to trade Gasol for Sprewell and Aldridge.

Because Aldridge had already begun to show his talent, and Sprewell was essentially an expiring contract, as his overpriced big contract was in its second year, with the team holding an option for the third year. Completing the trade would not only exchange Gasol for a quality prospect but would also free up tens of millions in cap space.

Naturally, the Bucks were not willing to dismantle their team just to accommodate the Grizzlies and bluntly refused.

The Bucks hoped to sign some veterans in the free market like they did last year.

But this year, not only was the trade market bleak, but the free agent market also lacked exciting, skilled veterans.

When the trade deadline came to a close, only a few inconsequential small trades took place; championship-contending teams basically maintained their rosters, and there were no surprises.

This made it easier for experts to predict the upcoming playoffs.

Yu Fei’s old friend, ESPN’s Marc Stein, believed that the NBA was ready for a Finals rematch between the Bucks and the Mavericks.

“There’s no force, no one in this world that can prevent this from happening,” Stein said, “unless these two teams encounter major injuries. Otherwise, this is what we’re going to see.”

However, at the beginning of March, the Golden State Warriors defeated the Mavericks 112-98, with multiple players scoring in double digits.

This overly underestimated team had, after several years of operation, gathered strong attackers like Vince Carter, Al Harrington, and Baron Davis, and played a wildly aggressive offense under Don Nelson.

That night, the Mavericks were completely overwhelmed by the opponent’s robust offense.

For the Mavericks, it was just an ordinary game.

But for the Warriors, they clearly knew that the Mavericks were not as strong as their record showed.

On the other hand, the Bucks also lost games, but they never got completely bested in the areas they were good at.

Generally, they lost for two reasons.

Either they got blown out in the paint or they couldn’t make shots from the perimeter. But even if one of these situations occurred, they could still rely on star player’s individual abilities to support the team. So, unless both problems occurred simultaneously, beating them was not easy.

Furthermore, as the season progressed, Yu Fei increasingly felt the conflict between his role as a major nucleus and the need for more playing styles to accelerate the growth of the young players yearning for more.

However, they wouldn’t show it.

But Yu Fei knew that if they had more ball-handling responsibilities, they would perform even better.

If Yu Fei were indifferent to this, the Bucks’ battle strength wouldn’t change. Only, the immediate combat ability of the team would have little room to improve this season.

Because the system structured around a ball-dominant nucleus firmly set a role for everyone outside the big core.

They just needed to play their role well, and leave the rest to Yu Fei.

If one day, Yu Fei wanted to slack off, he would find that his teammates had grown accustomed to being side characters and unable to share more of the burden.

What the ball-dominant nucleus devoured wasn’t just statistics, but also the players’ potential for development.

Mid-March, Yu Fei decided to make a change.

He took the initiative to find George Karl and said, “We need some changes.”

Karl responded, “You could be more specific.”

“My ball possession rate is too high,” Yu Fei said. “We have two All-Stars, so why should I dominate the ball so much? You should give Kevin more of the workload, and also set up more one-on-one plays for LaMarcus. This guy has improved a lot since coming back from Las Vegas.”

Yu Fei also suggested that Granger could replace Bell in the starting lineup for some games. And not to worry about Bell’s mood, as he would handle that. Additionally, it seemed like a waste for Louis Williams to play only during garbage time, and they should consider giving him a shot in the rotation.

Every improvement Yu Fei proposed was beneficial for the team.

“`

But what’s good for the team isn’t necessarily good for him.

Now, Yu Fei averages 27 points, 10 rebounds, and 12 assists per game, largely because the Bucks system utilizes a group of players willing to sacrifice their own stats, to hit three-pointers for him, and actively box out to deliver the rebounds into his hands.

Thus, guards like Lou Williams who need ball control struggle to enter the rotation, and small forwards like Granger who urgently need the ball to hone their skills must wait for their opportunity, while Martin must suppress his desires, and although Aldridge is on fire, he must play the starting of the season as a shooting blue-collar worker.@@novelbin@@

Once they don’t do this, the Bucks’ system would undergo an earth-shattering change, their strengths would surface, and the Bucks’ firepower would increase significantly.

The result of all this is that Yu Fei’s stats would drop, and an average triple-double would be impossible to maintain.

Karl always felt that this was a ticking bomb for the Bucks, but when he heard that Yu Fei turned down the Bucks’ early renewal negotiations, he knew this guy was preparing to leave. Thus, the young players in the team would eventually get what they want, they just needed to wait one more season.

Karl believed they could bear it because their sacrifices would be rewarded with a championship, and Big Fei had already proven he had the strength to do so.

What was unexpected, though, was that the self-centered, imperious Big Fei would actually volunteer to share the ball with the youngsters?

“Frye, do you know what you’ll lose by doing this?”

“Some stats.”

Karl believed that Yu Fei could still average 27+7+7, but this was a far cry from his past averages of 36+10+9 two years ago and 33+10+10 last year.

An average triple-double is a godly standard, and 27+7+7 is still great, but with active players like James and past players like Bird and Jordan, they’ve all managed these numbers.

Yu Fei could become the most coveted superstar in the entire league in just a few years, with a distinctive feature being that he takes care of the fans’ fantasies, with all-encompassing stats while still winning championships – his record was impeccable.

Now, he was going to lose part of that.

Karl asked, “Can you bear to let it go?”

“George,” Yu Fei said, “stats are like the bikini of a beach beauty, it means a lot, but it’s not everything.”

Since Yu Fei had decided to do so, Karl had no reason not to support him.

It was also through Yu Fei’s decision that Karl was sure that he would leave Milwaukee this summer.

Because he seemed to overly consider the team, but Big Fei wasn’t a person who put team interests first; to be honest, besides management and owners, who puts the team’s interests 100% first?

Before the next game, Yu Fei said to Martin, “You’re an All-Star too, don’t just define yourself as a scorer.”

Martin asked, “What else can I do for you?”

“You know I don’t like being treated as a point guard,” Yu Fei said, “but I can’t say I’m not a point guard when I’m dishing out 12 assists per game, so please, help me out and take over a few assists.”

Martin was sweating profusely when he heard this.

Many haters said that the stats within the Bucks were like a big cake, and Big Fei took the tastiest piece, leaving the rest to be divided among them. This was true, but it wasn’t equally divided; to put it bluntly, the person cutting the cake was Big Fei, he decided who got the slices.

The control of the ball is the sweetest part, as long as Big Fei is on the court, he would firmly occupy it.

Now, he was actually willing to share it?

“Frye, I don’t need this,” Martin said, “Did you get hurt?”

Yu Fei snorted: “I’m very healthy.”

Martin began to suspect that Big Fei was testing him to see if he had any ulterior motives.

However, Yu Fei continued, “You must learn to engage your teammates, for you, scoring 20 points a game is as easy as drinking water, do you know how precious that talent is? It means you can attract a lot of defense, and you should make full use of it.”

Afterward, as Yu Fei said, Martin began to receive the ball.

Although Yu Fei still had the most control, Martin’s role on the court was no longer just that of a shooter and secondary attacker.

That night, Yu Fei efficiently scored 30 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 assists, while Martin, now in control of the ball, naively dished out 7 assists.

The downside was that he also had 3 turnovers.

“It’s a good start,” Yu Fei said to Martin, “Keep it up.”

Martin responded excitedly.

First it was Martin, then Aldridge and Granger, and finally Lou Williams; the young players in the Bucks began to develop upwards, injecting a robust force into the Bucks, who were already first in the league.

This was where the Bucks were different from other strong teams; while other teams tried to enter the playoffs in their best shape, the Bucks’ strength kept rising.

And this wonderful change originated from Yu Fei wanting to change his style, and doing something good for the Bucks’ future before making that decision.

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