The Best Point Guard

This was basically an entirely new team.

While the outside world was abuzz with speculation, the pre-season began.

The first game was against their neighbors, the New Jersey Nets.

The Nets were still rolling with their same old Big Three: J Kidd, Carter, and Jefferson.

The trio had made the playoffs last season, and they would likely do so again this season.

The pre-season itself doesn’t attract much attention. After all, the games don’t count toward the official record and are mostly just a chance for players to get back into game shape.

However, Madison Square Garden Arena was still packed to the rafters. New York fans’ love for the Knicks had reached a whole new level after their championship win.

Of course, James Dolan had also let ticket prices skyrocket, along with the fees for various sponsorships.

He was a businessman, after all!

James Dolan was now being hailed as a business guru. Who would dare call him a spendthrift anymore?

He was probably dancing on his father’s grave.

Perhaps his father had left a dying wish: *On the day New York wins the championship, be sure to tell your old man.*

The game did not disappoint the fans in attendance.

Everyone had expected the Knicks to be listless, their energy and morale no match for the Nets. After all, the Nets were, at the very least, a normal team, whereas the Knicks looked anything but normal.

But from the moment the game started, the Knicks’ new players were bursting with energy.

Su Xi led the charge with the ball, with David Lee, Channing Frye, Ariza, and Kyle Lowry following swiftly and methodically behind him.

In an instant, their offense was like a tidal wave.

The Nets were overwhelmed almost instantly. They were still playing at a slow, leisurely pace, as if they were taking it easy for their health.

The young Knicks players completely upended their opponents’ old-man game, kicking over their classic car, smashing their thermos of goji-berry tea, and screaming for everyone to get hyped.

The Nets, however, were not hyped.

So, they could only watch as the Knicks held them down and thrashed them repeatedly.

The Knicks were too fast. If the Phoenix Suns ran a seven-second offense, these young Knicks were the model of a five-second offense.

They gave the Nets no time to react, putting up a shot almost as soon as they got the ball.

And even in that short amount of time, they still managed to get into position for set plays.

David Lee even showed some talent as a pick-and-roll forward, with Su Xi often running plays centered around him.

When the first game was over, the Knicks had effortlessly steamrolled the Nets, winning by a commanding 28 points.

The second game was against the visiting Detroit Pistons.

The Pistons were in a state of steady decline, getting worse with each passing year.

After Larry Brown left last season, they had even lost to the Knight led by James, and their overall strength was even weaker this season.

Their fighting spirit had long since been crushed by Su Xi.

Now, seeing Su Xi again—and in the pre-season, no less—they had no fighting spirit left.

After a bit of a struggle, they simply surrendered without much of a fight.

The Pistons lost by 21 points.

Then, the Knicks headed to the West for a road trip. In Golden State, the Knicks got into a shootout with the Warriors. The ’Mad Scientist’ Nelson had his team playing with rapid-fire progress, and their pace was also incredibly fast.

But the Knicks were faster.

Moreover, their new star player, Baron Davis, was even given a hard time by ’Little Steel Cannon’ Kyle Lowry.

The Knicks won with ease. The same thing happened in Sacramento.

Next up was Los Angeles. After defeating the Clippers, they were set to face the Lakers.

The Lakers had made an epic upgrade this season.

Last season, Kobe reached the pinnacle of his career. He won the scoring title with a monstrous average of 36 points per game and single-handedly led his team to the playoffs.

This season,

after winning a gold medal at the World Championship, Yao Ming announced that he was joining the Lakers.

This became the most explosive news of the offseason.

Because the Lakers had once again acquired a superstar center.

Throughout the Lakers’ long history, whenever they had the number one center in the league, they were a lock to win the championship.

Yao Ming was undoubtedly the number one center in the league today. While some might argue, O’Neal, at least, was willing to admit it.

He was getting old, he had packed on quite a few pounds during the offseason, and after consecutive losses to Su Xi, his competitive fire had been extinguished.

If it weren’t for Eddie Curry being so obviously overweight, O’Neal would have been crowned the most undisciplined player in the NBA.

When commenting on Yao Ming joining the Lakers, O’Neal said, "While I don’t want to congratulate the Lakers, I have to say Kobe got his most suitable teammate. Yao Ming’s personality is great; he won’t compete with Kobe to be the number one guy. Yao will also efficiently convert his passes into assists, set screens for him, and spread the defense."

"The Lakers will definitely be the best team in the West this coming season."

For O’Neal, of all people—one of the players who disliked the Lakers the most—to say that... you can imagine what all the other commentators were saying.

In fact, the day after Yao Ming joined the Lakers, the Lakers sent out a deluxe delegation to welcome him. They even had their legendary center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and others give Yao Ming specialized coaching, and their coaching staff sent him information on their tactical systems.

Clearly, after losing O’Neal, the Lakers had been waiting for a new dominant presence in the paint.

Now, Yao Ming had arrived.

To get Yao Ming, they traded away the rising star Bynum, which was considered a very high price to pay.

But Kobe was very satisfied.

He liked Yao Ming, and he made no secret of it.

"Yao Ming is an honest person. He’s not like Little Sheep Su Xi. Little Sheep Su Xi is always playing with my emotions. Now that I have Yao Ming, I’m going to kick his butt hard."

"We will definitely compete for the championship. No one can stand in our way."

In this game, however, Yao Ming sat out.

Yao Ming had played in the four previous preseason games, and the Lakers had won them all decisively.

However, before this game, Yao Ming felt some pain in his toe, so the Lakers immediately arranged for a comprehensive examination.

In the entire league, no team had more experience taking care of giants than the Lakers.

They had the complete user manual on how to handle centers.

After all, the number of great centers in their history was simply staggering.

And for the most part, all of those players maintained peak physical condition during their time with the Lakers.

With Yao Ming absent, Su Xi and the Knicks showed no mercy. They unleashed a run-and-gun storm that sent the Lakers into a steady retreat.

Kobe didn’t put up a desperate fight; he played for a little while before coming off the court to rest.

"It’s just the preseason. Let them have their win. Little Sheep Su Xi is always chasing those kinds of winning records."

Kobe said after the game, "Once Yao Ming is back, he’ll find out how good we really are."

In fact, the Knicks’ opponent for the season opener was the Lakers.

They would play one more road game in Portland to wrap up the preseason.

Then, they would return to Los Angeles to kick off the first game of the regular season.

This was all the league’s doing.

As soon as the league learned of Yao Ming’s move to the Los Angeles Lakers, they immediately scheduled the Lakers’ season opener against the New York Knicks.

Furthermore, the other regular-season showdown between the two teams was scheduled as a Christmas Day game, to be held at Madison Square Garden Arena in New York.

The season opener and a Christmas Day game.

The NBA certainly knows how to generate hype.

That evening, Su Xi went to have dinner with Kobe and Yao Ming.

They were close, so they could joke around with each other.

Su Xi said to Yao Ming, "Ever since you left Houston, Tracy McGrady has been complaining nonstop. He says you betrayed Houston, and you betrayed him."

Yao Ming just smiled. After joining the Lakers, he felt more comfortable than he ever had before.

Things had been good in Houston, of course.

But here with the Lakers, he was getting more.

To be fair, the two franchises weren’t in the same tier to begin with.

"It’s like you said, the NBA is a business. A person has to pursue a better future,"

Yao Ming said.

Su Xi nodded, glad that Yao Ming had come to terms with it.

"Hey, can you guys not speak Chinese in front of me?"

"Okay, Kobe. I was just saying that Yao Ming made the wrong choice. That being your teammate might not be as good as being teammates with Tracy McGrady."

"Hey, what are you talking about? How could I possibly lose to Tracy McGrady? I could never lose to Tracy, anytime, anywhere. Whether it’s skill or willpower, I’m stronger than him. You just wait and lose in the season opener. You’re going to see a more powerful Yao than ever before!"

"The ultimate version of Yao only emerges when he’s playing alongside a truly elite point guard!"