The Best Point Guard

Randolph was talking about his experience of ’achieving enlightenment on YouTube’.

His two teammates, Ruben Patterson and Darius Miles, were sick of hearing it. Clearly, Randolph preached about this "Chinese culture" of his all the time.

"By the way, Quentin, what kind of player is Little Sheep Su Xi, really? You guys seem like a totally different team lately," Darius Miles asked. "I’m really curious about him. The Knight originally acquired him in a trade. Speaking of which, without me, he wouldn’t be where he is today. I feel like after that trade happened, he stole my life. I’m the one who should be having such a brilliant career."

"Oh, right, right, right," Ruben Patterson chimed in sarcastically from the side. "It’s not like you were setting the world on fire before Little Sheep Su Xi even entered the league."

"You don’t get it." Miles had no desire to talk to Ruben Patterson. The guy called himself the "Kobe Stopper," yet he got his ass handed to him by Kobe every single time.

Quentin Richardson thought for a moment, then said seriously, "I think he’s a natural-born leader. I don’t know how to explain it, but being around him makes me want to go out and achieve something big. Plus, he’s definitely made me a better player. Honestly, if you guys hadn’t mentioned this Chinese culture thing, I’d probably be in my hotel room studying film on shooting techniques right now."

Jalen Rose nodded in profound agreement. "I was just planning to coast to retirement. But following him, you just naturally want to give it one last real shot. Damn it, I can’t have missed out on a college championship and then get nothing in the NBA, too."

The two of them went back and forth, painting a larger-than-life picture of Su Xi.

Randolph furrowed his brow. "Is he really that magical?"

"He’s not that magical." Antonio Davis waved a dismissive hand. "It’s not like that at all. He’s just good at selling you a pipe dream. He actually thinks we can win a championship."

Davis hadn’t heard Su Xi’s speech; he was out with an injury at the time. Besides, he felt his playing time was dwindling. Tony Battie, David Lee, and Channing Frye were all cutting into his minutes. Sometimes, they even made him fill in at center, which he hated.

As a result, he was the only player on the Knicks whose stats had declined, the only one not reaping the rewards of the team’s turnaround.

"A championship?"

Randolph burst out laughing. "Now that’s hilarious."

"Sounds like Little Sheep Su is just like the guys in the front office, always selling you a pipe dream. Honestly, I used to get all fired up too, but then I realized that’s not how it works. You can play your heart out, but the team will still be trash. It’s not something one person can change. So, you might as well just be good to yourself. The money’s the same either way. Living your life is what’s most important, right?"

Randolph preached with absolute conviction. This was all part of his newfound "enlightenment."

Just then, Patterson piped up, "Zach, we’ve been ’cultured’ for long enough. Let’s have the girls take off those cheongsams and come drink with us."

Randolph shot Patterson a look. "That’s disrespectful to the culture. We haven’t even finished listening to ’Guangling San’ yet."

...

Isaiah Thomas suspended Antonio Davis. The man was so hungover he couldn’t even get out of bed for the team meeting the next day.

Quentin Richardson and Jalen Rose were reprimanded.

They had been drinking, but they hadn’t gotten drunk. They’d indulged in some "uncultured" fun, but they hadn’t overdone it.

Isaiah Thomas made them run four suicides at the Rose Garden Arena. After they were done, Thomas, ever the character, dropped his serious act and secretly pulled Quentin aside, asking him to tell him more about this "Chinese culture" business. He’d lived a "vulgar" life and wanted to try being "cultured" for a change.

Fortunately, Richardson knew what kind of man he was dealing with.

The whole team knew the Smiling Assassin was a mascot, a public spokesman, and maybe half a defensive coach.

So, his lack of seriousness didn’t have much of an impact.

"You need to hit five threes today."

"You need to score eight points in isolation on the wing."

These were the tasks Su Xi had assigned to Richardson and Jalen Rose. Only those who performed well would be allowed to go out and party.

For them, a punishment like this was another form of trust.

This was exactly why they had shown restraint the previous night and hadn’t gone all out.

’If a man has no sense of honor, what’s the difference between him and Antonio Davis, passed out drunk in bed?’

BEEP!

The whistle blew, and the game began.

At the Rose Garden Arena, Su Xi heard the entire crowd chanting: MVP! MVP! MVP!

The roar was deafening.

This was the first time this season Su Xi had heard "MVP" chants on the road.

When a city’s fans have completely lost hope in their own team, you get this strange phenomenon: they start cheering for the opposing team’s superstar.

For the home players, this was nothing short of a massive blow.

It was devastating to their morale.

This often traps a team in a vicious cycle, making their tanking even more severe.

The Knicks’ starting lineup tonight was: Su Xi, Crawford, Trevor Ariza, Tony Battie, and Eddie Curry.

The Trail Blazers’ starting five were: Marbury’s cousin, Telfair; Monia; Darius Miles; Zach Randolph; and Pulzibilla.

SLAP!

Eddie Curry easily won the tip-off against Zach Randolph.

The two had similar, heavy-set builds. Although Randolph played power forward and Eddie Curry was a center, they were matched up directly tonight.

Su Xi brought the ball past half-court and passed it to Crawford.

Crawford easily sliced through Monia’s defense. When Miles came over to double-team, Crawford, surprisingly, didn’t try to force a shot but instead passed the ball to Ariza.

The team was specifically developing Ariza as a 3-and-D player for the bench. He had good defensive instincts, and while his shot was a bit stiff, he was gradually starting to figure it out.

This was why Su Xi had put him in the starting lineup.

SWISH!

Ariza drained a three to open the game.

"That’s right, play just like that."

Crawford encouraged Ariza.

Su Xi also nodded in approval.

’A game like this is the perfect chance to develop the younger guys.’

On the other end, Zach Randolph went one-on-one against Tony Battie.

Randolph’s game had a surprising amount of finesse, and he had a very low center of gravity. The man wasn’t just heavy and seemingly neckless; most importantly, he had a long reach. This meant all of his height was effective, making his face-up game a serious threat. With a jab step followed by a crossover, he drove into the lane and went for a left-handed layup... Su Xi lunged for the steal but came up empty.

The guy was a lefty.

And he could use his right hand, too.

BANG!

His layup missed, but he immediately jumped again as if he knew exactly where the rebound was going, bumping into Eddie Curry as he tipped the ball into the hoop.

In a single offensive possession, he managed to pad his stats with two points and an offensive rebound.

He even made Su Xi whiff on a steal attempt.

’What a talent.’

Su Xi couldn’t help but admire him.

He truly was a special talent.

"Don’t take it so seriously, bro. Loosen up."

Randolph even offered Eddie Curry an encouraging, toothy grin. "Scoring points and grabbing boards isn’t the point. Having fun is what really matters."

Eddie Curry’s response was simple: ’Go fuck yourself.’

Randolph didn’t get angry; he didn’t care.

He was feeling very "cultured" right now and didn’t want to engage in such vulgar games.

Back on offense, Su Xi passed the ball to Eddie Curry, who went to work on Randolph in the post.

The two big men banged against each other in the paint with a series of heavy THUDS. Finally, Eddie Curry turned sideways and sank a hook shot.

Eddie Curry’s post game was quite good. Combined with his size, it was a reliable weapon and an extremely stable source of inside points for the Knicks.

"I’m not like you. Your career is going nowhere, but I can still win a championship. You’re getting worse day by day, while I’m getting better. We’re not in the same league."

Eddie Curry said proudly, turning his head.

He sounded as proud as a grade-school hall monitor, his chest puffed out with self-importance.

That proud tone made Randolph extremely uncomfortable; he would have preferred it if Curry had just cursed at him.

’Just putting on an act!’

Randolph said nonchalantly.

In reality, his mind was a mess.

Someone who has given up is most afraid of seeing a person who was once just like them suddenly start trying again. It brings an unparalleled sense of dejection.

They just want to drag more people down with them; they don’t want to see a companion repent and turn back.

...