The Best Point Guard

SWISH!

The basketball traced a beautiful arc before falling through the net.

A joy to watch.

The entire offensive sequence was smooth as silk. Both players had taken offense and defense to their absolute peak.

Powerful defense, stylish offense.

Countless fans watching on TV were cheering. This was truly the greatest offensive and defensive showdown in the league today.

Physicality, defensive intensity, and offensive skill were all pushed to the limit.

Looking across the entire league, it was impossible to find anyone else who could reach this level.

The head coaches of both teams, Phil Jackson and Isaiah Thomas, were both surprised and shocked. An endless sense of appreciation welled up inside them. They had come from that era of basketball, and they believed this was how the game was meant to be played.

Even Kobe was a little surprised. He looked at Su Xi. "Looks like you’ve been secretly watching my tapes. You’ve learned quite a few of my moves."

Su Xi smiled. "Don’t you think I use these moves with more style? That they’re more lethal when I do them?"

Kobe raised an eyebrow, retorting forcefully, "I do not."

"Even a dying duck has a hard beak."

Su Xi said, quoting a Chinese proverb.

Kobe understood him easily.

"I’ll show you what real lethality looks like."

Kobe was getting fired up too.

He had completely forgotten Phil Jackson’s instructions: ’Pretend to get into a one-on-one duel with him, get him heated, and then we’ll secretly run our plays. You’ve already proven your scoring ability, you don’t need to prove it to him again.’

At the time, Kobe had nodded repeatedly. But from the looks of it now, he was getting heated even faster than Su Xi.

Kobe took possession at half-court and began to isolate.

Kobe backed down on Su Xi to post up. Su Xi applied immense pressure, pressing against Kobe’s back. The two battled on both ends of the floor, their struggle a thing of masterful precision.

Gary Payton watched from the side. As the only Point Guard in history to ever win Defensive Player of the Year, Payton was completely blown away. He realized he was witnessing one of the greatest one-on-one offensive and defensive battles in history. Every detail, every offensive and defensive technique, every clash of basketball IQ—it was all maxed out.

Payton couldn’t even think of another guard matchup in history that could compare to this.

Kobe was focused one hundred and twenty percent. He executed a series of intricate moves and feints. If a guard specialist were standing here, they would undoubtedly be astonished by the exquisite subtlety of Kobe’s fakes.

Likewise, if a defensive expert were here, they would surely marvel at the sheer brilliance of Su Xi’s adjustments to his center of gravity, his regulation of defensive pressure, and his anticipation of offensive lanes.

In the end, Kobe used a sudden shoulder shimmy to throw Su Xi a third of a step off balance. He forced up a fadeaway jumper, and Su Xi leaped up to block it!

He was just short—by less than a centimeter—as the ball left Kobe’s fingertips.

SWISH!

It went in.

After making the shot, Kobe clenched his fist, pumped it fiercely, and even let out a roar.

To an outsider, it might seem like an overreaction to a single basket.

But to Kobe, it was nothing less than a victory in a great battle.

He had made a jumper over Su Xi’s suffocating defense.

"See that? That’s the ultimate version of offense," Kobe said to Su Xi.

Su Xi asked, "Is that the best you can do?"

Hmm?

Kobe froze. He thought for a moment. ’That really was about my best.’ But he just pursed his lips and said dismissively, "Eighty percent of my ability, at most."

Su Xi laughed. "You’re bluffing."

’Others might not know Kobe, but how could I not? My offensive game is a copy of his. The skill level Kobe just displayed was definitely over a 97. I’m just not sure if it reached 99.’

’But for Kobe to say it was only eighty percent... he’s just trying to save face.’

Kobe’s expression was calm. He said coolly, "Your move."

This time, Su Xi ran out beyond the three-point line to receive the pass. As soon as he caught the ball, he immediately faked a quick shot. The motion instantly made Kobe step forward, since Su Xi was a capable three-point shooter.

The instant Kobe’s momentum carried him forward, Su Xi exploded to the basket. He unleashed his full explosiveness and speed. Just as he had estimated, his natural physical gifts were superior to Kobe’s.

That first step he took was instantly reminiscent of Kobe’s two greatest rivals from back in the day: a fusion of Iverson’s explosive start and Tracy McGrady’s incredible stride.

It was only because no one in the league was talking about the ’best first step’ right now. Otherwise, Su Xi would definitely be on that list.

After that first step, Kobe was already a third of a step behind, even though his anticipation was accurate and his feet moved quickly to keep up.

Su Xi instantly took a second step, which was even faster than the first.

Kobe scrambled to accelerate, but just as he lunged forward, Su Xi pulled up for a sudden stop-and-pop jumper. Kobe tried desperately to contest, but he was still fighting his own body’s inertia.

He could only watch helplessly as Su Xi released the ball.

A sense of powerlessness welled up from the bottom of his heart.

He’d been scored on before, but an attack like Su Xi’s brought a much greater sense of defeat.

SWISH!

The shot was good.

Kobe stared at Su Xi.

After landing, Su Xi looked back at Kobe and asked, "What do you think? How does my mid-range offensive game compare to yours now?"

"Pretty average."

Kobe raised an eyebrow, his tone light and breezy.

But in his mind, he was already cursing up a storm: ’What the fuck kind of monster is this? When I played against McGrady, Iverson, and Carter back in the day, it was never this ridiculous.’

’This guy Su Xi has Iverson-level explosiveness, his speed is insane, his stride is comparable to McGrady’s, and now his vertical is this explosive too?’

’Most importantly, his willpower is like steel, and his technical skill has taken a quantum leap.’

’He’s practically a combination of all Four Great Shooting Guards.’

Kobe Bryant lamented inwardly.

Nearby, Gary Payton was feeling even more emotional as he watched Su Xi’s offensive display. He couldn’t help but think: ’The NBA has entered the Su Era.’

’If you could say that the Four Great Shooting Guards each found a fragment of the God of Basketball...’

’Then Su Xi has forged a complete, seamless suit of divine armor for himself—gleaming, majestic, and awe-inspiring.’

Kobe continued to take on Su Xi one-on-one at half-court. He used an extremely old-school fake to create a sliver of space and quickly got the shot off... SWISH!

It went in.

But on the other end, Su Xi was even more in his element. He caught the ball and went straight up for a pull-up jumper... SWISH!

A three-pointer.

He didn’t even use a fake.

It was pure physical talent combined with technical skill to beat the defense.

Kobe had been shot over like that by Tracy McGrady before.

But facing it from Su Xi now, he was even more frustrated.

Because McGrady was taller than him and had a longer wingspan.

Su Xi was shorter than him, although his wingspan and hand size were also astounding.

Kobe hated players with long arms and big hands the most.

The game continued.

Kobe was still going one-on-one.

But Phil Jackson felt that Kobe had gone down the wrong path.

Su Xi was the same, letting loose and attacking with all his might. Although his arsenal of mid-range moves and his attention to detail were still slightly inferior to Kobe’s, his physical attributes were a clear notch above. Furthermore, he had the ability to move without the ball and a stronger driving game.

As a result, his offensive output not only kept pace with Kobe’s but even generated a ’surplus interest’.

Originally, he had been prepared to play around with Kobe while nursing an eight-point lead.

But Kobe had played himself right into the trap.

Kobe wanted to bait Su Xi, but he was the one who ended up taking his own bait.

Even when Yao Ming was on the court, he didn’t pass the ball.

Su Xi, on the other hand, couldn’t change his fundamental nature. When a teammate had an open look, he couldn’t resist passing the ball.

The fourth quarter progressed with the two superstar guards, standing at the pinnacle of the league, locked in their epic duel.

When there were only two minutes left in the game, Kobe seemed to suddenly snap out of it. But when he glanced at the scoreboard, they were already down by 13 points.

He hurriedly tried to work with Yao Ming.

And Yao Ming did indeed show his powerful, lethal presence in the paint.

But with Su Xi continuously driving to the basket and scoring, the Knicks secured the win.

The final score was 111-102.

Su Xi scored 24 points in the final quarter.

Kobe scored 23.

Su Xi had outscored him by one point.

And he took the win.

It looked like Vanessa would have to treat them to dinner.

Kobe had lost the battle and the war.