Chapter 25: The Pariah Wants To Skip Work
Xu Ling believed that he and Acie Law shared a special bond.
In their first matchup against Texas A&M University, Xu Ling restricted Acie Law on defense, helping the team defeat the opponent and rising to fame. Not long ago, they just finished their second matchup, with Texas Tech University（TTU） winning again.
In the first game of the Big 12 League Championship concerning a March Madness berth, they met Texas A&M University once more.
“Sigh, what more can I say?” Law looked at Xu Ling with a weary face. “Our luck this year is just too terrible. Let me tell you, even if I fell into Pam Anderson’s chest, I could squeeze out her implants!”
Xu Ling’s first reaction was: “Who is Pam Anderson?”
Why not Ava Adams? Why not Lisa Ann? Of course, Xu Ling didn’t like “tech.” What he truly liked were pure natural talents like Sara Jay with no additives.
“Don’t mind it, Acie.” Xu Ling shook hands with him and said flatly, “At least you can be one of the earliest lottery picks preparing for the 2007 Draft.”
Law sneered, “I’ll pretend that’s you wishing me good luck!”
Texas A&M University could indeed curse their bad luck. Though the Big 12 League was extremely competitive this season, they were themselves a top-four team in the league, and securing a March Madness berth wasn’t difficult. With Acie Law, they had a fighting chance against most teams.
But they just happened to face the one team in the Big 12 League that perfectly countered them in the championship’s first round.
This was a game with no suspense.
Xu Ling was like a tall wall in front of Acie Law. This wall seemed like his hurdle in the NCAA, but actually foreshadowed the difficulties he might face in the NBA.
When every team he faced had one or two defensive players like Xu Ling, could he adapt?
That was the key to deciding his professional career.
And tonight, he had no opportunity.
The more games he played against Acie Law, the more proficient Xu Ling became at defending him.
Acie Law got going from outside, but that only added a bit of suspense to the game, because shooting touch is hard to maintain unchanged throughout.
Under Xu Ling’s high-pressure defense, Acie Law lost his rhythm in the second half, and Texas A&M University collapsed along with him.
At the same time, Xu Ling’s brief low post reinforcement training also yielded some results.
He still wasn’t used to the rhythm of post-up play, but he was gradually learning how to dominate mismatch players who were inferior to him in weight, strength, and explosiveness.
This was a small step for him, but a giant step toward mastering the knack of post-up play.
For outside players, the essence of post-up play is simple—punish all mismatches placed in front of you.
If you can’t do post-up play, you’ll end up like the owner of “NBA’s longest river,” making a joke in the Finals of being defended by Barea.
Tonight, Xu Ling’s low post offense was highly effective, and he also shouldered the responsibility of defending the opponent’s core, dominating both offense and defense. He finished with 23 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 blocks, helping Texas Tech University Red Raiders defeat the opponent, advancing to the next round of the championship while winning a ticket to the 2007 NCAA March Madness tournament.
“You’re kidding me?! Eli is the James Dean of basketball!”
After watching the game, Bill Simmons was excited like a child in his column. He wrote: “One year ago today? Who the hell knew who Eli was? To us, he was just one of those countless ‘what ifs’ who lift weights in some gym every summer, with a decent enough shooting form, but ultimately never make it to the NBA. You know, like your cousin who always claims he ‘used to play on the school team.’ But now? In just one short year, this guy went from some unknown corner of an international tournament to a globally spotlighted superstar!”
“That long-range three-point buzzer-beater he hit in front of Kevin Durant? My God, it was exactly like that look from James Dean in《Rebel Without a Cause》! You know, that movie didn’t just make JD immortal; it turned him into a banner of youth culture, an eternal rebel. And Eli’s shot was his ‘Rebel Without a Cause’ moment—it not only sealed the win but damn well molded him into the lawless, adrenaline-pumping Eli we know today!”
“And that’s not even the craziest part—the craziest is that he’s still improving! Can you believe it?! We can’t even predict what level this guy will evolve to by the end of this March Madness! Will he become basketball’s《2001: A Space Odyssey》? Skipping all intermediate steps, turning into a bone flying into space? Tell me!”
Texas Tech University was charging toward their twelfth league championship title in team history, and Xu Ling’s reputation was rising higher and higher.
This name had entered the offices of NBA general managers everywhere.
When Isiah Thomas heard the team’s scout rank Xu Ling alongside Oden and Durant, calling him “one of the must-not-miss rookies in the 2007 Draft Class,” Thomas—that face New Yorkers despised—showed a ghostly smile. He pointed out the window and said: “Phil, if I walked out now and announced to the citizens that we’re tanking the entire season for the lottery draft, I guarantee I’d be hanged in Times Square, because we damn well have no draft picks left!”
The Knicks’ chief scout Phil Ford（Phil Ford） twitched at the corner of his mouth, wanting to say something. But reason told him not to argue with Isiah; he wouldn’t listen to other opinions anymore, and any advice had to align with his words.
“Isiah, you’re the world’s best trader. If Eli is a must-not-miss, I believe you can find a way to get him.”
“But…” Thomas asked, “what’s the cost?”
How to put it? Whatever the cost, it wouldn’t be worse than giving a guy like Jerome James a 5-year $30 million contract, “stealing” Eddie Curry from Chicago with multiple future first-round picks, assembling a group of high-profile, flashy, uncoachable veterans, then swinging checks to hire a control freak like Larry Brown and expecting him to turn things around. It was a kind of “double negative makes positive” decision-making, because Thomas wouldn’t listen to anyone, and Brown wouldn’t accept others’ input either—so would these two similar personalities end up together?
No,《The New York Times》 called the Thomas-Brown pairing the NBA version of Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love. Two irreconcilable “toxic” forces: the male had some talent, ultimately realizing he had no value to the world beyond entertainment, so he chose to end it himself. This resolved Hollywood’s worst couple saga, leaving a legend greater in death than in life—we’re all familiar with that—while consigning the female toxic dog to the purgatory of “you killed him.” No better ending than that.
Thomas and Brown were the same. Their relationship ended quickly; in less than a year, Brown ended his Knicks tenure, took a hefty buyout fee, and to those accusing him of making the Knicks worse, said: “What were you expecting? These guys weren’t my choices.”
So Dolan had no choice but to let Thomas take the court himself, as this was the fourth head coach he’d fired in the past three years. Anyway, no matter who they hired, the outcome was always getting fired—so do it yourself. Thus, Thomas was now both the team’s general manager and head coach. For the boss’s trust, Thomas’s return was getting sued for sexually harassing female employees.
And the Knicks had their best season in five years, currently at 50% winning percentage. Dolan was “ecstatic” and gave Thomas a three-year contract extension.
Rumors say Puff Daddy single-handedly defended some famous player’s post-up play, but honestly, given Dolan’s tolerance for Thomas, even twenty years of prime wouldn’t be enough.
“I remember that Eli is Coach Knight’s player?” Thomas suddenly asked.
“Right, the kid who claimed he wanted to be the ‘college Jordan.'” Ford immediately said.
“He’s a good kid, just a bit shortsighted.” Thomas snorted lightly. “‘College basketball world’s Jordan’ is nothing—even the NBA Jordan in the 80s was just semifinal level!”
Considering their grudge, it was acceptable for Thomas to spout any “hot take” about Jordan.
“He just grabbed the window when me, Larry, and Magic were aging, winning a bit of success in the 90s—what’s so great about that?!?!”
With that, Thomas looked at Ford: “Right, Phil?”
Phil Ford, the 1978 number 2 draft pick, North Carolina’s greatest guard before Jordan, now felt like he was being eyed by a venomous snake.
“Uh-huh…”
Every time Thomas trashed Jordan, what he most wanted was agreement from others, especially from North Carolina guys.
Ford wasn’t Jordan; he wouldn’t wear North Carolina blue practice pants as underwear at 50. For him, the most important thing was keeping his job.
So even if Thomas called Jordan a “dog” who stepped in dog shit luck every day in the 90s, he’d agree.
“How’s Texas Tech University doing now?” Thomas changed the subject. “I heard they’ve been playing well lately?”
“Fantastic!” Seeing Thomas interested, Ford said, “They’ve already won their March Madness ticket and blew out their opponent yesterday; they’re one game away from lifting the Big 12 League championship trophy.”
Thomas also wanted to go see it, not to scout Xu Ling—after all, the team had no 2007 draft picks; what good was a rookie?
He was now a street rat; if he ditched the team to watch a game in Texas, what would people say?
But then again, his reputation had already hit rock bottom with no room to fall—did he still care?
Thomas decided to call his mentor.
“Coach, how have you been?”
“Not bad.” Knight seemed in high spirits. “We made it to the Big 12 finals.”
Thomas didn’t want to keep up the small talk; he knew Coach Knight wasn’t one for pleasantries, so he asked directly: “I heard Texas Tech University（TTU） has a good kid— what do you think of him?”
“No worse than you.”
“But for specifics, come see for yourself.”
Thomas chatted with his mentor a few more minutes, then hung up and told his assistant: “Book a flight to Dallas.”
“But… Isiah, our opponent tomorrow night is Dallas.”
“So what?” Thomas yelled. “You don’t think we have a shot against Dallas, do you? Listen, I’m sick! I’m going on a business trip! I have lawsuits to fight, trades to consider, a boss who trusts me to report to, and a damn ‘college Jordan’ to scout! I’m not available tomorrow night!”
This basically summed up the Knicks’ internal dynamics in the Isiah Thomas era.
You know Thomas is an idiot, but you don’t dare say he’s an idiot, because the boss thinks he’s a rare management genius. If the team has problems, it’s definitely someone else’s fault—Thomas is surely right. If you think he’s an idiot, you’re saying the boss is an idiot—do you still want your job? If yes, shut your stinking mouth and say something nice!
“Yes, BOSS!”
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