Su Xi spread his arms at the top of the arc, directly blocking Victor's path.
This sight startled both head coaches.
Neither of them had expected this.
Jim hurriedly shouted for Su Xi to switch defenders.
Eddy, however, just folded his arms. He couldn't understand why Su Xi was guarding Victor; all his scouting reports indicated Su Xi was poor at defending quick, agile players.
'Was it an impulsive move?'
Larry Bird sat up straight, his eyes sharpening.
In the 80s, he and Magic Johnson were the two titans of their era, one of the few truly dominant forces in the NBA. He could read a player's character in a single glance, which was why his legendary trash talk was so effective—he never made a boast he couldn't back up.
Su Xi's decisive move to step up on defense just now showed Bird that he was a smart and rational person.
'And now, this smart, rational person was suddenly doing something completely unconventional.'
A relaxed smile spread across Victor's face. He was a little twisted. He knew he'd never make it to the NBA due to his height and weight, so he found his joy in schooling the phenoms who had a shot.
He'd just blown past McNamara twice, and he was thrilled.
Now, the man of the hour, Little Sheep Su Xi, had come to him. He decided to have a little fun and toy with Su Xi.
He deliberately dribbled closer to Su Xi. When Su Xi quickly came up to apply pressure, Victor abruptly spun. Su Xi had been prepared, and his explosive first step was even a little better than Victor's.
But Victor's nimble and fluid movements still allowed him to slip away.
However, in the instant Victor slipped past, the un-fused Super Flexibility Talent inside Su Xi surged, immediately shooting up by 2 percentage points.
Those 2 percentage points made Su Xi ecstatic.
What made him even more ecstatic was that Victor actually came back at him.
Instead of using the half-step of space he'd created to break free, he changed direction to continue showing Su Xi up.
Su Xi knew what he was thinking.
He deliberately pressed up on him aggressively.
'Who's toying with who here? We'll see about that.'
Victor used his nimble frame for another spin move… Su Xi was beaten again, though not by much this time. But his Super Flexibility Talent shot up another 3 percentage points.
Su Xi was thrilled.
Victor was thrilled too. He savored this kind of fun.
He turned back and started showing off his handles, dribbling between his legs and changing directions back and forth, just like that classic highlight of Iverson facing Jordan.
Su Xi reached in to swipe at the ball, deliberately making himself look clumsy.
Victor quickly went into another nimble spin… This time, he pulled out all the stops, looking for a move that would bring the crowd to its feet.
But the Super Flexibility Talent inside Su Xi only crept up by 1 percentage point.
It wasn't surging like before.
Su Xi felt a pang of disappointment.
Meanwhile, in the stands, Bird was frowning. 'What is this? This guy really isn't NBA material.'
He hated this kind of flashy dribbling that didn't even get you past your defender.
'In basketball, if you can beat your man with one simple step, why bother with all this flashy nonsense?'
Just then, on the court, Su Xi saw his chance. He pressed forward, unleashing his full strength… Victor immediately staggered.
As Victor stumbled, Su Xi instantly bent low, his body leaning at an extreme angle… his long arm shot out like a striking viper… SLAP!
Victor was caught completely off guard. Su Xi had cleanly stripped the ball from his hands.
He moved to protect the ball.
But Su Xi's body was already plowing into him like a bulldozer; Victor was powerless to stop him. Su Xi simply shouldered him aside, grabbed the loose ball, and sprinted downcourt.
On the other side of the court, Carmelo Anthony was accelerating, streaking down the floor.
Amid the roar of the crowd, Su Xi reached the frontcourt and threw a powerful pass into the paint. Carmelo Anthony caught it, exploded into the air, and slammed the ball through the hoop with one hand.
BOOM!
Anthony let out a triumphant yell, the powerful dunk serving as a wake-up call for the Cowboys.
"Not bad."
Larry Bird nodded. He said to the scout, Terry, "A steal like that is worth taking a gamble on with a 40th pick. We need players with sharp defensive instincts like that. His agility is a bit lacking, sure. But that's fine. Our strong defensive system can cover for that."
The Indiana Pacers' defense was extremely strong. They had Little O'Neal, Stephen Jackson, Ron Artest, Reggie Miller… a whole squad of tough, elite players. Su Xi's grit was a perfect match for that team.
That was exactly why Terry had recommended him to Bird, and why Bird had come to scout him in person.
Su Xi had no idea that his draft stock in Larry Bird's mind had just jumped from the 50th pick to the 40th.
He looked at Victor with a hint of disappointment. 'He's so small, but his flexibility talent is this meager? All that twisting and turning looks fancy, but it gives less of a boost than Jessica Alba whispering in my ear.'
Victor had no idea why Su Xi was looking at him with such disappointment.
But it infuriated him, and he was determined to get him back.
Meanwhile, Jim signaled for Su Xi to quit while he was ahead and let McNamara take back the defensive assignment.
Su Xi gave him an OK sign.
But it wasn't the "OK" Jim was thinking of.
When Victor brought the ball past half-court again, Su Xi was still the one waiting for him at the top of the arc.
Jim froze. 'Did I misunderstand something, or do my players just not listen to me anymore?'
But ten seconds later, he stopped wondering.
Because Su Xi had locked down Victor once again.
Victor was still trying his quick cuts, but he shouldn't have settled into a static position. His speed and agility were great, but trying to size up his opponent from a standstill gave Su Xi an opening. Su Xi was much stronger, more explosive, and now, even though his flexibility talent hadn't fully fused, it was enough to make him a threat.
After a couple of quick crossovers and a spin from Victor, Su Xi used his astonishing explosiveness to lock him down.
He was trapped by Su Xi's strength, caught in a defensive quagmire.
He had no choice but to look for help. As he picked up his dribble and turned his back to make a pass, Su Xi saw his opening and chopped down at the ball… SLAP!
The ball was knocked loose.
Victor screamed for a foul, but Su Xi simply bodied him away again… he was completely unable to cope with Su Xi's strength.
Su Xi scooped up the ball and charged ahead.
Tony Allen had to step up to stop him, so Su Xi passed to McNamara, who took a shot from behind the three-point line… SWISH!
He drained it.
After making the shot, McNamara gave a nod to Kobe Bryant.
They both hailed from Pennsylvania, and both had been named Pennsylvania's Mr. Basketball in high school.
Kobe returned a gesture representing their high school alma mater.
It was an interesting interaction.
TWEET!
The Cowboys called a timeout. They had to adjust their strategy. Coach Sutton had previously planned to use the "Tian Ji's Horse Racing" strategy of exploiting matchups. Now, that strategy seemed to have been cracked. They had to find a way to deal with Su Xi and free up their offensive weapon, Victor.
"Arrange a meeting for me with Jack after the game. I'm ready to give him a draft promise," Larry Bird said, turning to Terry.
Terry was instantly overjoyed.
Two successful defensive plays were enough to win over one of the two titans of the 80s.
'Incredible! Jack!'