Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters

Chapter 921 921 554 Vitality_3

?Chapter 921: Chapter 554: Vitality_3 Chapter 921: Chapter 554: Vitality_3 Now that he had become a core power forward, Yu Fei was wondering, whom could he learn from? The power forward position is historically one of the least talented in the NBA. You can talk about Duncan, but Duncan was a center playing as a power forward. You could also mention Garnett, but Garnett’s achievements are limited, offering little for mimicry.

Going further back, there’s Karl Malone, Charles Barkley.

Unfortunately, the GOAT doesn’t learn from losers.

Even further back, you’d be looking at Bob Pettit, a white power forward who, in today’s era, might not even make it as an NBA player. What could Yu Fei possibly learn from him?

So, Yu Fei had to find his own path.

His choice was to control the game using his strengths—only now, instead of monopolizing the ball, he was making his presence felt on the court even when not holding the ball.

He wanted everyone to feel his presence, to feel as if the GOAT were watching them. They had to be careful and play seriously; if you made a mistake, like Durant…

Durant’s second half was a mixed bag. The good part was his shooting touch had returned, but on the downside, the Brooklyn Nets were targeting him a bit excessively.

Paul called him out; Anthony posted him up; Metta World Peace guarded him one-on-one; even three of the blocks that Howard had so far included one on him.

What was most infuriating was that Anthony kept taunting him.

Metta World Peace’s words were full of insult and provocation.

When he made two shots over Durant’s head, then missed one, Metta World Peace said, “I used to think you were the smartest guy in the league because you were willing to be Frye’s dog. Now I find you incomprehensibly stupid, because this dog has the audacity to bite its own master!”

That almost made Durant lose his cool.

Durant went on the attack with the ball; he almost got past Metta World Peace in one step, but as he jumped, he was hit hard in the chest with an elbow, lost his balance, and fell hard to the ground.

The vibrant life of the SuperSonics had nothing to do with him.

No one was going to help him.

As long as he was on the court, his teammates would rather play four against five, leaving him to fend for himself, one against five.

This was his retribution; could he really complain?

Durant fell to the ground, struggled to stand up, and the fury in his chest made it impossible to hold back. Even if he was alone, he had to fight back.

Then, he saw that someone had already rushed to his side.

The GOAT wearing number 44 forcefully pushed Metta World Peace away, saying icily, “Whether you want to fight or play ball, I’ll stick with you to the end!”

Metta World Peace liked to start trouble, but he didn’t have the courage to face the consequences.

When he saw Yu Fei come to push him away with a murderous look on his face, he couldn’t help but shrink back, but he was still pushed aside.

Teammates from both sides came over. Anthony tried to defuse the situation, but Yu Fei gave no quarter, “If you have time to play peacemaker, you’d better first make that son of a bitch keep his hands clean!”

Vibrancy doesn’t just appear out of nowhere.

Some people are destined to be extraordinary.

The referee called a technical foul on Metta World Peace, and to control the situation, the Brooklyn Nets subbed him out.

Durant got ready to take the free throw.

Yu Fei, who had stood up for him, walked away as if nothing had happened.

That long-lost feeling surfaced.

Guilt.

When the burner account incident was first exposed, Durant felt something similar, but it was more of shame and panic from having his dark side poked. He had never considered the impact of the incident on the team.

Now, he realized it, and Yu Fei stood up for him even when he himself couldn’t believe anyone on the team would defend him.

Yu Fei still treated him as one of their own; it was he who had put himself in opposition to the team.

The more he thought about it, the deeper his sense of guilt became.

Afterwards, momentum completely shifted towards the SuperSonics, and the Brooklyn Nets were suppressed until the end of the game, with no sight of a comeback.

114 to 102
This was a victory the SuperSonics desperately needed.

They needed to beat a strong team to prove they were still competitive after Yu Fei’s return, but the significance of the game itself had been overshadowed by matters outside the game.

After the game, Yu Fei called Durant to join the press conference together.

Durant didn’t refuse.

This was his first interview with his teammates after many days.

In the media room, Durant was as awkward as he had been during his very first interview, unsure of where to put his hands and feet, or what to say.

The media, naturally, did not miss this opportunity. After a few questions about the game, they went straight to the “burner account incident.”

“Frye, what do you think about KD using an anonymous account to post a lot of negative comments?”

“I can understand,” Yu Fei said slowly, “Once you play in the NBA, you become a public figure, getting All-Star selections wins you the same kind of attention as Hollywood stars, but after leaving the basketball court, we are just ordinary people. We need a normal life, but you know, some tabloids lacking professional ethics will take our words out of context, so this leads to a phenomenon: everyone has freedom of speech, but NBA players cannot freely speak their minds.”

“For example, if I publicly say ‘Brandon is a hypocrite, but after many years of knowing him, I know he’s a good person.'” Yu Fei smiled, “Then tomorrow, I’d see headlines like ‘Frye thinks Brandon Roy is very hypocritical.'”
“That’s part of the media’s job, you need to gain attention, but we need to live. So having an anonymous account lets us be ourselves without worrying about being overinterpreted. In the end, we just want to live like normal human beings.”

Then, a media outlet from Seattle asked, “Frye, do you have a burner account?”

Yu Fei said with a noncommittal smile, “What do you think?”

Yu Fei didn’t follow the team’s official stance, but explained the reasons for the existence of burner accounts in his own way; this was his attitude towards the matter.

Once he set the tone, the rest of the SuperSonics could only accept this attitude.

He didn’t care, and neither did the others. That was that. As for those who think Durant’s image has been shattered? Well, they’re welcome to get to know the new Kevin Durant.

After the interview, Durant followed Yu Fei, wanting to thank him, but not knowing how to start.

In front of the media just now, Yu Fei was like his spokesperson, expressing all of his views on the burner account.

Durant was happy that Yu Fei saw the situation the same way he did.

“Frye,” Durant finally spoke up just before returning to the locker room, “I’m really grateful for what you did today, thank you…”

Yu Fei interrupted him.

“Don’t get me wrong, I don’t like what you said with that anonymous account either, but I had to do what I was supposed to do,” Yu Fei said, “And besides, instead of thanking me, you should be apologizing. You owe an apology to those you have truly hurt. You know who I’m talking about.”

After speaking, Yu Fei walked away without turning back.

Durant took a deep breath and quickened his pace to follow him.