Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters-Chapter 1143 - 630 Long-standing Hatred_2
Chapter 1143 -630 Long-standing Hatred_2
They might not necessarily need Deron, but what’s important isn’t whether they need him, but to prevent the opponent from using him.
Deron chose New York over Miami.
Finally, the most valuable free agent veteran, Kyle Korver.
As a sharpshooter from the 2003 draft class, he has been in the league for fourteen years, known for his three-pointers, and Miami Heat was determined to acquire him.
At the same time, the Golden State Warriors were also actively recruiting him.
However, both Leonard and Lillard’s charisma were a few notches below Curry and James.
Furthermore, Miami’s tax system, extremely friendly to the wealthy, as well as its geographical environment as a tourist city, also played a key role.
Miami Heat signed Korver, significantly enhancing their outside shooting capability.
As for the inside, after tryouts, they opted to sign Hassan Whiteside, whom China’s second-tier league considered “lacking in ability.”
After that, something shocking happened.
In Whiteside’s debut game against the Bulls after signing with the Heat, he played for 32 minutes and recorded 14 points, 13 rebounds, and 12 blocks, setting a career record for blocks in a single game, becoming the first player in Miami Heat history to achieve at least 10 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 blocks in a game and the first player since the 1997-98 NBA season to secure such statistics.
For a time, the news headlines were dominated by the Heat, and the outside world commented that they might have assembled a super team capable of ending the Clippers’ dynasty.
“This is a team that’s armed to the teeth!” Bradford Doolittle, an NBA expert at ESPN, said, “I think the Clippers should be nervous.”
Were the Clippers really nervous?
Whiteside’s debut stats were indeed astonishing.
Thus, the Clippers’ coaching staff conducted research, and Fei also watched that game privately.
He discovered that Miami had indeed strengthened quite a bit, but not as exaggerated as the outside world claimed.
Whiteside’s stats looked like DeAndre Jordan in his prime, but Fei thought another player was more in line with his style of play—retired Marcus Camby. Similarly relying on weak-side help and leaping blocks, and with a shocking 7-foot-7 wingspan and outstanding athletic ability, they both made their blocks visually stunning, but their individual defense seemed ordinary. Against ball-handling skilled big men, they focused more on blocking shots than breaking defenses, a mindset that would tear them apart on defense as easily as a monkey.
Fei was sure that Jokić could dominate him with ease.
Also, although his defense resembled Camby, he lacked Camby’s shooting ability, and his free-throw percentage hovered around 60%.
These were all hidden concerns. For Miami Heat, who hadn’t seen a rim-protecting center in a long time, drawing Whiteside was like a gift of rain after a long drought.
After analyzing the opposition, the Clippers still needed to focus on their current challenges.
As March approached, Fei was named the Western Conference Player of the Month for February, with averages of 27 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists per game.
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This was also the next target for the Greek Freak.
He aimed to win the Western Conference Player of the Month, a recognition proving he was the best player in the division for a month.
Over the past sixteen years, Fei had won this award countless times, leading others, followed by James.
At the start of March, the Clippers faced the Trail Blazers at home.
Fei expected to see Roy at home but learned that the opponent had been injured last week.
Roy’s injuries confirmed the Supersonics’ concerns to some extent.
They believed Roy’s body could no longer withstand the intensity of NBA games.
Only a team like the Trail Blazers with nothing to lose, eyes fixated on the lottery, would give Roy a chance.
But how many more hits can a fragile body take?
That night, Fei scored 40 points and told the Trail Blazers’ coaching staff: “Say hello to Brandon for me.”
Mid-March arrived, and the Clippers were still ranked first in the league.
However, the Miami Heat had caught up with them in terms of records and only ranked second due to head-to-head results.
Soon, the second showdown between the Clippers and the Miami Heat was imminent.
Unlike the Christmas Day game, this one felt more like a preview of the Finals.
It was the second clash between the two teams since the trade deadline, continuously adjusting for the playoffs.
As the biggest rivals and fighting for position, neither team would hold back.
The game was tense from the first second, with Curry taking charge early, and James shedding his Christmas Day distractions to focus on his role.
On the Clippers side, Fei was testing his hypothesis.
He wanted to confirm if his judgment about Whiteside was correct, hence his targeted approach.
Jokić took on Whiteside one-on-one, while Fei called out plays as needed.
Then Yao also came forward to test the depth of the opposition.
Antetokounmpo was given a high degree of freedom.
The Clippers took the contest very seriously, but their seriousness lay in searching for weaknesses in their opponents, while the Heat truly wanted to win.
The team that wanted the victory more would prevail.
The situation became more intense in the third quarter; the Heat made adjustments, James played power forward to support Whiteside, Korver replaced Love, and Curry started to hit consecutive threes from the perimeter.
Just as the Clippers had anticipated, if Curry wasn’t strictly targeted with switches, double teams, and focused isolation plays, his off-game usually wouldn’t last the whole match, and all of a sudden, he could electrify and hit you with a critical blow.
With Curry’s performance from the outside complete, the Heat had established a double-digit lead, and the game entered James’s favorite realm.
