The Best Point Guard

But these days, the league wasn’t hyping up the "Four Great Shooting Guards" as much anymore.

After losing O’Neal, Kobe had painstakingly honed his offensive skills. This season, he was showing signs of being unmatched, averaging over 35 points per game and seemingly setting new scoring records in every contest.

Tracy McGrady’s performance with the Rockets was a bit lukewarm. He was still a top-tier guard, but his popularity in China far surpassed his fame in the United States.

Although Allen Iverson was hot on Kobe’s heels on the scoring charts, he was currently embroiled in trade rumors. The rebellious, untamable spirit that had once been celebrated was now being used as a sharp point of criticism against him.

The current media darlings the league was promoting were: Kobe, Su Xi, and James.

It was almost impossible for Vince Carter to return to the center stage.

Furthermore, the Brooklyn Nets’ other two key players, Richard Jefferson and Jason Kidd, were both experiencing a resurgence this season.

This was also why some basketball experts believed the Brooklyn Nets had a chance to stop the New York Knicks from breaking the historical record.

They just didn’t dare to say it with absolute certainty.

They had been proven wrong by Su Xi far too many times.

The game officially began at 7:30 PM on the night of December 21st.

Madison Square Garden Arena was already buzzing with passion half an hour before tip-off, and the volume reached its peak when Su Xi took the court.

Chants of "MVP" were deafening, crashing down like a tidal wave.

It was a testament to Su Xi’s absolute dominance in the Big Apple City’s basketball scene.

Isaiah Thomas stood proudly on the sideline. Antonio Davis’s exposé hadn’t affected him in the slightest. In fact, upon returning to New York, he had even received widespread praise, with people commending his high moral character and for making one of his few correct decisions.

BEEP!

The whistle blew.

For this marquee matchup, the New York Knicks’ starting lineup was Anfernee Hardaway, Su Xi, Trevor Ariza, David Lee, and Eddie Curry.

This lineup arrangement caused no ripples whatsoever, neither among the New York Knicks fans nor within the team itself.

Everyone was already used to it.

The Knicks didn’t have a fixed starting lineup. There was no distinction between starters and bench players; everyone was working for the good of the team, and each had their own role.

A sense of collective purpose had been subtly ingrained in the players’ hearts.

The Brooklyn Nets, on the other hand, stuck to a fixed mindset. Their starters were: J Kidd, Carter, Jefferson, Collins, and Christie.

Eddie Curry won the tip-off against Christie. The ball went to Hardaway, who brought it across half-court.

He passed it to Su Xi.

Su Xi isolated Vince Carter on the wing for a one-on-one.

Vince Carter’s defense was decent, but nothing special.

Su Xi used his immense strength in a post-up, backing Carter down for two steps. As he pushed Carter away, he suddenly faked with his shoulders. The subtle move baited Carter, and Su Xi turned for an easy jumper... SWISH!

It was good.

Su Xi’s one-on-one skills were no longer a weakness, though they hadn’t quite become a strength yet.

But against a defender of Vince Carter’s caliber, his efficiency was decent enough.

Back on defense, J Kidd had Vince Carter go one-on-one against Su Xi.

Facing the man once known as "Half-Man, Half-Amazing," Su Xi was fully focused.

The new defensive rules implemented across the league this season had unleashed Carter’s offensive firepower. The scoring averages for all of the Four Great Shooting Guards had risen to varying degrees because the league no longer allowed defenders to hand-check.

For a scorer like Vince Carter, whose explosiveness had declined due to past injuries, this was nothing short of a godsend.

But against Su Xi’s defense, he still couldn’t get free. When he pulled up for a jumper, Su Xi lunged at him, nearly blocking the shot.

Carter had to add more lean to his fadeaway to avoid it.

CLANG!

A brick.

In just one possession, the difference in their levels was clear.

Although Vince Carter could still put up superstar numbers, he was no longer a superstar himself.

The blame for that lay with Bruce Bowen’s dirty play. If Vince Carter hadn’t been injured, with his physical gifts, he could have achieved so much more. But now, he even had to start thinking about changing his game.

Because his offense was nowhere near as polished as Kobe’s, nor did he possess Iverson’s relentless fighting spirit.

Once his offensive efficiency declined, few teams would tolerate his ball-dominant, star-centric style of play.

The game continued.

Hardaway brought the ball upcourt and ran a pick-and-roll with David Lee. As he drove inside, he quickly dished the ball to Lee.

David Lee took the jumper... SWISH! It was good.

Hardaway’s physical abilities were a far cry from his youth; he had lost his explosiveness, his speed, his vertical leap. But he hadn’t lost his court vision. His passing had become more reliable, and his sense of timing and control of the game was improving.

He had been working relentlessly to get his body back into shape.

The positive atmosphere on the Knicks filled him with passion, and he hoped to win a championship this season.

Moreover, he wanted to be able to contribute to the team.

Before tonight’s game, he had requested to play so he could match up against Jason Kidd.

He wanted to improve himself by competing against Jason Kidd.

For him, this was a fundamental change.

Because in his prime, he had actually looked down on Jason Kidd. He thought Kidd’s steady, deliberate half-court offense was as slow as a snail, a style that did nothing to showcase one’s own talent.

Back then, Hardaway was nimble and graceful, an unstoppable force who could break down any defense.

How could he possibly have respected the "honest and steady" Kidd?

But now, stripped of his former glory, he felt that as long as he could help the team, learning something from Kidd would be the best way to do it.

Su Xi and Isaiah Thomas had fully agreed to Hardaway’s request and even put him in the starting lineup.

This left Hardaway feeling flattered and overwhelmed. He hadn’t expected the team to still value him so much. For years, he’d grown numb to being called a "trash contract."

What’s more, when he took the court, he realized there were fans by the sideline cheering for him.

This moved him even more deeply.

Back on the other end of the court, he watched Kidd intently, observing how he ran the offense.

As an opponent in the past, it wasn’t that he didn’t know Kidd’s game, but he had rarely watched with the mindset of a student.

Kidd quickly passed the ball to Jefferson, who was cutting backdoor.

Jefferson drove into the paint, about to go for a layup. The sophomore Ariza, whom he had just beaten, stuck to him from behind, while Eddie Curry perfectly positioned himself to block his path.

The moment he hesitated.

He was sandwiched between the two of them.

He then realized he had been trapped.

He was surprised. ’Wasn’t Eddie Curry supposed to be a defensive mascot? How is he suddenly so alert?’

SMACK!

The sophomore slapped down and ripped the ball right out of his arms. Just as he tried to regain control, Eddie Curry bumped him, making him stumble. Ariza took advantage of the chaos to snatch the ball away.

The two of them looked like a seasoned criminal duo with a clear division of labor.

Jefferson couldn’t believe he’d been taken down like that.

He was frustrated.

On the sidelines, Brooklyn Nets head coach Frank was also frustrated.

The fans in Madison Garden Arena were thrilled, but at the same time, they were puzzled. ’What’s going on? Since when did Eddie Curry have such great defensive instincts? How is his coordination with Ariza so seamless?’

Before this, the Knicks’ defense was widely considered to be absolutely terrible.

But now?

It felt like they had improved by leaps and bounds.

Everything had changed overnight.

Thank you, Clippers.

Of course, thanks were also due to criticism and self-criticism.

Without a good atmosphere and a good ’teacher,’ it would be difficult to achieve such a shockingly fast transformation.

Ariza passed the ball to Hardaway, who brought it across half-court. Copying the previous play, he passed it back to Ariza on a backdoor cut, with Jefferson giving chase from behind.

But Eddie Curry once again moved to the perfect spot, screening Jefferson.

Ariza cut in from the baseline and finished with a reverse layup against Christie’s defense.

Same rhythm, same play.

But this time, the Knicks scored.

Jason Kidd glanced at Hardaway, puzzled.

But Hardaway just gave him a warm smile. "Thank you."

’Thank me?’

’Thank me for what?’

Jason Kidd was frustrated.

He had a strange feeling. ’How the fuck did I become his stand-in?’