The Best Point Guard

D’Antoni was stunned.

He had made meticulous arrangements, had laid out a powerful tactical plan.

But Su Xi shattered it all in the simplest, most direct way. He stole the ball from Nash. He charged down the court. He stopped on a dime. He hit the three-pointer and then spread his arms wide in the opponent’s arena.

The sight of him with his arms outstretched was devastatingly cool.

It was as if the Phoenix fans had baguettes stuck in their throats; no sound could escape. The shock Su Xi delivered had paralyzed their nerves.

Down by 4.

seconds left.

Could they still win?

Of course, there was a chance.

But the home-court momentum was in an irreversible decline.

D’Antoni called their final timeout.

On television, Larry Brown claimed Su Xi had committed a foul on the play.

But the slow-motion replay showed Su Xi’s steal was perfectly clean. He raised his hands high to halt Nash, and the moment Nash turned to protect the ball, Su Xi reached in and forcefully stripped it away.

Normally, Larry Brown would admire this kind of defense, but since it was Su Xi, he couldn’t bring himself to praise it.

He just wanted the referee to overturn the call.

Reggie Miller said, "When any game comes down to the final seconds, it becomes a superstar’s stage. The Phoenix Suns don’t have a superstar, so their defeat is inevitable."

The whistle blew.

D’Antoni had set up a series of screens, allowing Nash to break free and get the ball. Nash dribbled forward two steps and immediately pulled up for a shot.

But in the instant he released the ball, Su Xi came flying in from the side. He leaped higher than anyone expected, his long arm and huge hand intercepting the shot in mid-air. He tipped the ball, changing its trajectory, and it flew right into Crawford’s hands.

Crawford drove with the ball as Shaun Marion gave chase relentlessly. But even as Marion was pulling at him, Crawford managed to get the shot off. The referee blew the whistle and made the signal for a four-point play.

Crawford had shot from two or three meters beyond the three-point line.

But... SWISH!

Crawford was on fire.

The wild card had been unleashed in the final moments of the game.

A flash of cold steel.

The Suns’ hopes were extinguished.

Crawford made the free throw, extending the lead to 8 points.

Su Xi applied full-court pressure. Nash passed the ball to Marion, who shot from beyond the three-point line and missed. David Lee grabbed the rebound.

The Suns gave up.

David Lee handed the ball to Su Xi, who then passed it to Crawford. "Go for a logo shot."

Su Xi was letting Crawford have some fun.

In the final moments, he was treating the game like a playground.

Crawford took the ball, ever mindful of the unwritten rules. Only after the final buzzer sounded did he heave the ball from mid-court... BANG!

The ball sailed across half-court and hit the rim.

It gave Phoenix a huge scare.

Su Xi held out his hand for a high-five. "If your shot didn’t have so much spin, that would’ve been a beautiful swish."

Crawford nodded. "Yeah."

The Knicks won their 17th game of the season, which was also their 17th consecutive victory.

They remained at the top of the league standings.

The number one team in the West had been rightfully vanquished.

Even though the Suns had been full of confidence before the game, a loss was a loss.

They could say the Knicks had no core philosophy, that their run-and-gun style wasn’t orthodox, or even that the game was neck-and-neck until the very end.

But in the standings, all it meant was one more loss for them.

Su Xi shook hands with Steve Nash, who then pulled Su Xi into a brief hug. "Congratulations on the win," he said.

"Thanks," Su Xi said. "It’s a shame you ran into me at the absolute peak of your career. What I mean is, I’m taking this season’s regular-season MVP award, too."

Nash was taken aback.

He hadn’t expected Su Xi to be so direct.

A wry smile appeared on his face.

He knew that if the Knicks continued this insane run, there would be no suspense in the MVP race.

Even if the Suns’ record this season surpassed last season’s, it wouldn’t matter.

"I won’t give up easily," Nash said resolutely.

"I know. That’s why I admire you," Su Xi said, patting Nash’s shoulder.

After they parted ways, Su Xi appeared in front of the cameras of a sideline reporter. The ESPN reporter asked Su Xi how he felt about winning the game and getting a triple-double.

"I’m already numb to it. For me and the Knicks this season, triple-doubles and wins have become routine," Su Xi said calmly.

The statement was true, but it was also a major flex.

"Before the season started, many basketball experts predicted the Knicks would finish around seventh or eighth in the East. How have you managed to lead the team to the number one spot in the league? How long do you think the Knicks’ record can last? Will you break the Knicks’ franchise record for consecutive wins? Will you stay in the number one spot?"

"Of course."

Su Xi said it as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "We will definitely set a new franchise record. Otherwise, what’s the point of me coming to the Knicks? Why are we number one in the league? Obviously, it’s because we’re strong enough. As for the experts’ opinions, just listen to them for fun. If they were really that accurate, we wouldn’t even need to play the games. We could just let them run their mouths on TV for two hours, and whoever wins the argument gets the NBA championship. Wouldn’t that be better?"

Su Xi’s sarcasm was dialed up to the max.

"But Larry Brown has questioned your defensive system, arguing that a team without defense can’t go far in the playoffs. And many people feel you haven’t found a fixed tactical core yet, and that your record will eventually falter. What are your thoughts on that?"