The Best Point Guard

Looking across the entire league, there were not yet any head coaches making ten million a year, not even Phil Jackson or Popovich.

And so, Larry Brown arrived.

...

Su Xi had just finished a date with Scarlett Johansson and was getting ready to go to the training facility. James Dolan called, arranging for a car to pick him up and take him to his office.

Su Xi walked into James Dolan’s conference room and saw his old rival.

Larry Brown had planned on playing it cool. But when he saw James Dolan leap to his feet and rush over to greet Su Xi, he had no choice but to stand as well and offer his hand.

Times had changed.

The league today wasn’t the same league it used to be.

The most rebellious player Larry Brown had ever encountered was Allen Iverson. If Iverson said he wasn’t going to practice, he didn’t practice. If he said he wasn’t doing the dirty work, he didn’t do it.

Back then, Larry Brown was a man of principle, but he still had to swallow his pride and speak nicely to Iverson, occasionally using the stick but quickly offering the carrot. In fact, it was under his guidance that Iverson reached the peak of his career: making it to the Finals.

At the time, the strategy Larry Brown designed for Iverson was to have him play shooting guard and score to his heart’s content, while the other four players helped him on defense and did all the dirty work.

The situation was a bit like the current Cavaliers, with Mike Brown having more or less copied Larry Brown’s model.

However, James wanted more than Iverson. Iverson just wanted to score freely; he enjoyed the thrill of the kill. James wanted scoring stats, assists, rebounds, fast breaks, and a good reputation on top of it all.

This put Mike Brown’s flexible principles to the test. As a result, James’s position on the court was constantly in flux. Nominally, he was the team’s small forward, but he wouldn’t guard the opponent’s primary threat. Sometimes he’d play shooting guard, but he wouldn’t take on the toughest defensive assignments. Other times, he’d play Point Guard, but he was unwilling to bring the ball up against the most tenacious defenders.

All in all, James’s demands were quite high.

He drifted to wherever he could most easily pad his stats, a rather vampiric tendency.

After shaking hands with Su Xi, the three of them sat down. Su Xi took a seat next to James Dolan; Dolan had already set out two executive chairs.

This seating arrangement alone showed Su Xi’s current status with the Knicks, something Allen Iverson’s time in Philadelphia could never compare to.

Although Iverson was also highly favored back in his day, it was never to this extent.

"Jack, you ask the questions. I’m just here to listen." James Dolan handed the important task of the interview over to Su Xi.

Su Xi thought for a moment before saying, "Most of the players on our team lack defensive awareness, and their physical conditioning is poor. What do you think we should do about it?"

"I think the best way is through trades. At the very least, we need to trade for a defensive big man to complement you in the paint and on the perimeter. For the wings, I think Trevor Ariza is good, and Jalen Rose is at least average. As for Jamal Crawford, I actually think he should be traded for a 3&D player," Larry Brown said.

He had clearly done his homework.

These were indeed measures that could quickly improve the team’s strength, and they were highly feasible.

Just then, Larry Brown added, "It would be best to get reinforcements from Indiana. Trade for Artest or Stephen Jackson..."

Before he could finish, Su Xi waved his hand dismissively. "Then what was the point of me leaving Indiana?"

Hearing Su Xi’s response, Larry Brown got a bit stubborn himself. He said, "So do you want to win a championship, or do you want to be a superstar with explosive individual stats?"

"I want to win a championship, and I want to be the league’s dominant force with explosive stats," Su Xi told Larry Brown unequivocally.

Su Xi’s aura—ambitious, brilliant, and overwhelming—seemed to envelop Larry Brown.

Larry Brown was indeed taken aback for a moment.

After a long pause, he finally said, "You mean, you’re not touching this roster?"

"Minor adjustments. I came here to do something that breaks historical precedent."

"It’ll be very difficult for you to win a championship that way. Not for at least three years," Larry Brown said.

"I think I can."

"It’s difficult."

The two locked horns.

The atmosphere grew a little tense.

James Dolan tapped the table. He asked Su Xi, "No deal?"

Su Xi smiled and said, "That’s a question for Mr. Larry Brown."

Larry Brown stood up. He said, "If you hire me as coach, I can only be effective within a system of players I trust. With the Knicks’ current roster, I don’t believe I can implement my strategies. Even if Little Sheep Su Xi is very strong, one man’s strength cannot carry an entire team, especially a team with no collective defense. That is a fundamental law of the basketball court."

Su Xi said nothing.

Then, James Dolan stood up. He said, "In that case, we can’t continue. Thank you for coming. We will reimburse you for your round-trip flight and accommodations."

Without a shred of doubt, James Dolan sided with Su Xi.

This sent Larry Brown into a fury of humiliation. He felt that Su Xi and Dolan were insulting him.

He spat out, "You’ll regret this! You’ll never win a championship like this. Little Sheep Su Xi, you’re even more arrogant than Iverson."

With that, he stormed out.

As he left the office, he swore he would make Su Xi and Dolan regret this.

He would definitely publicize this incident.

’No respect for defense? How can you win a championship with no respect for defense? Not trading players? You’re just waiting to die. Still thinking about becoming the league’s dominant force? Dream on, kid.’

Larry Brown was certain that if he said these things, Su Xi and the Knicks would be crucified by public opinion.

’The sheer arrogance!’

Not long after leaving James Dolan’s office building, Larry Brown received a call from ESPN. They were inviting him to be a TV analyst.

He had never liked this kind of work. He had a bad temper, wasn’t witty, hated talking nonsense, and wasn’t popular with younger fans.

Most importantly, the salary ESPN was offering wasn’t even a quarter of what the Knicks had proposed.

But now, he had no other choice. He said, with almost no hesitation, "Contact my agent."

This was tantamount to agreeing to their terms.

After Larry Brown left, James Dolan didn’t ask a single basketball-related question. Instead, he started chatting with Su Xi about things that had nothing to do with basketball.

For example, a TV station had recently invited Su Xi to film a television series. James Dolan said that if Su Xi was willing, he could totally take the time to shoot it; he wouldn’t mind at all.

He also mentioned that a friend of his wanted Su Xi for an endorsement deal and that he had already made the connection.

And as Su Xi was leaving, Dolan even gave him several bottles of reserve red wine from a top French vineyard.

Dolan truly trusted Su Xi unconditionally, even when what Su Xi had said seemed to violate fundamental principles.

...

Su Xi had no idea that Larry Brown had joined ESPN, the Anti-Su Base Camp.

He was chatting cheerfully with Carlisle at Madison Square Garden Arena. Carlisle said, "After I win my third championship in Indiana, how about I come to New York and help you out?"

Su Xi laughed and said, "Of course, you’re welcome. But I think you’ll be hoisting your third championship trophy with the Knicks."

"You’re as confident as ever. But we won’t be holding back tonight. We need to return to Indiana with the best record in the East."

"That’s too bad, then."

While the two were talking, Ron Artest also ran over. "Hey, Jack, take me with you! New York is my hometown. I’d love to play in New York."

"No, Ron. You’ve already got two championship rings; you can’t have your cake and eat it too. I’m definitely not recruiting you," Su Xi told him. "I don’t want people saying I won my third championship by relying on old teammates. You know how those guys at ESPN love to run their mouths about stuff like that."

"They’re just a bunch of morons. If you were Black, I guarantee they’d already be calling you the God of Basketball and comparing you to Michael Jordan every single day. Instead of that disgusting LeBron James." Artest was as blunt as ever.

Stephen Jackson joined in, saying the same thing.

He wanted to play with Su Xi, to play with Su Xi in New York.

Looking around the entire Indiana locker room, who didn’t?

Their desire to rebuild a new Pacers team with the Knicks was incredibly strong.

Perhaps only the "Son of New York," Stephon Marbury, didn’t want to return to the Knicks.