The longest river

Chapter 248 A Fake James?
Davis's targeting was not without reason.

Because both Yang Shuai and LeBron James are domestic players, and given their achievements in high school, the league and the Cavaliers' official promotions almost always link Yang Shuai and LeBron James together.

Claims of a new generation of Jordan and Pippen, a clash of GOAT and the Chosen One, etc., make it seem as if James and Yang Shuai are players of the same caliber.

But in reality, James' performance so far has fallen far short of the hype.

The only time James has played for the Cavaliers so far is in the Summer League.

整个夏季联赛期间，他打了四场比赛，场均贡献15.8分7.3篮板4.3助攻，最后一场14投2中仅得9分2板1助攻，球队战绩1胜3负。

In contrast, Kobe, also a high school student, averaged 24.5 points and 5.3 rebounds per game in the Summer League.

Moreover, since the start of the camp, almost every player has been asked questions related to James.

When performance doesn't match the publicity, yet questions keep coming in, dissatisfaction naturally sets in over time.

Of course, this is only one aspect. More importantly, Scott has not yet decided who will play point guard.

Strictly speaking, the Cavaliers' current roster doesn't have a proper point guard.

Yang Shuai's time with the Trail Blazers proved that playing point guard only made his stats look better, and the excessive physical exertion was counterproductive.

Therefore, the point guard position, or rather, the ownership of the ball, can only be decided between Davis and James.

The two players share many similarities in their technical characteristics; both possess explosive physical attributes and are versatile forwards, making competition between them inevitable.

Especially when Scott announced that his goal for the new season was to contend for the championship, Davis, who is more competitive and has a more consistent shooting ability, would naturally feel that he is the obvious choice.

His suppression of James was to be expected.

Time flew by and it was early October. The training camps of various teams came to an end one after another, and the annual media day followed.

With Yang Shuai joining the team, the Cavaliers naturally became the focus of attention.

On media day, a reporter asked head coach Scott about the Cavaliers' roster for the new season.

Who will be the Cavaliers' starting point guard next season?

"LeBron."

Scott provided the final answer.

This is truly grooming LeBron James to be like Magic Johnson.

Of course, on media day, the real focus was still on Yang Shuai.

How long will it take for the Cavaliers to join the championship contention?

Because of Yang Shuai, there are also high expectations for the Cavaliers.

"This season."

Then Yang Shuai gave the reporter the most unexpected, and of course, the answer they most wanted.

This is different from the tone Scott set within the team; this is a public statement, and it will definitely be the most explosive news of Media Day.

Indeed, when Yang Shuai's words were reported by the media, they caused a huge uproar.

A bottom-ranked team in the league + Yang Shuai = a championship contender?

This equation seems impossible to hold true, and is even somewhat absurd.

Forget about James. Hamilton, whom the Cavaliers traded away, is far more capable than rookie James right now.

Besides the shock, other teams also experienced a subtle psychological fluctuation after seeing the news.

They were all determined to win the championship during the window before the Cavaliers rose to prominence, but Yang said, "I'm not going to give it to you for a year."
This would undoubtedly make them extremely unhappy, and they would be even more eager to take down the knights.

Of course, there is still some time before the start of the regular season. After the media day, the preseason, which will last for half a month, will begin.

Because there were many new players, Scott did not play Yang Shuai in the first five of the seven preseason games, and even Ricky Davis did not get much playing time.

Clearly, this is Scott giving James time to develop.

James is, after all, a high school student, and the Summer League has shown that he still needs time to grow.

However, no one expected that his decision would put James under unprecedented pressure.

In the Cavaliers' first preseason game, he faced the Nets and finished with 8 points, 3 rebounds, and 7 assists on 4-of-12 shooting.

His passing ability is indeed good. He delivered a brilliant behind-the-back bounce pass in the game, proving that Scott made the right choice by putting him at point guard.

However, his individual offense struggled. His first shot was blocked by Jefferson, who was of similar size, resulting in an airball. His subsequent layup attempt was also blocked by Kenyon Martin.

By the third quarter, James was already being left wide open by the Nets' shots, a scene that looked just like a larger version of Draymond Green.

In the second game, the Cavaliers faced the Wizards, and Scott gave James more playing time, letting him play a full 30 minutes.

然而面对内线有姚明镇守的奇才队，詹姆斯全场比赛只出手了7次，7投3中仅得6分3助攻。

In the third game, the Cavaliers faced the 76ers.

By this time, the 76ers had already traded Mutombo, leaving them with only average interior strength, which allowed James to finally unleash his full potential.

However, the result was that although he scored in double figures for the first time, with 10 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists, he only made 4 of his 16 shots.

After the first three games, the discussion was no longer about whether James could become Yang Shuai's "Pippen," but rather directly questioned James' status as the number one draft pick.

These doubts reached their peak after Game 4 against the Lakers.

James took a total of 18 shots throughout the game, but only made 4, and failed to make any mid-range or long-range shots. It was obvious during the game that he had lost confidence in his shooting.

This kind of behavior makes one feel like a fraudster created through media marketing.

It's just that the internet wasn't as developed in this era, otherwise this kind of behavior would definitely have been met with a barrage of criticism.

Even so, the outside world is already overwhelming with doubts.

"LeBron is a bust," the Detroit News bluntly stated.

"The Cavaliers' biggest mistake was not trading away their number one draft pick, which is now worthless," the New York Times reported scathingly. "Hanson says he'll lead the Cavaliers to a championship, but LeBron is destroying that possibility," the Cleveland Plain Dealer also criticized James' performance.

Even within the Cavaliers themselves, some discordant voices began to emerge.

Ricky Davis stated directly to reporters after the game: "I don't think bringing in a high school player will change the team's fundamental nature."

Davis was already unhappy about not being the starting point guard and not getting the ball, and now that James is playing so badly, he naturally wants to kick him while he's down.

However, what was somewhat unexpected was Yang Shuai's reaction amidst the skepticism from the outside world.

He expressed his support for James in front of reporters.

“NBA games are very different from high school games. Every high school student will have an adjustment period, and I believe he will eventually adapt.”

A qualified team leader should offer encouragement rather than criticism when teammates are struggling.

Shortly after Yang Shuai's statement was reported by the media, James contacted Yang Shuai.

He looked very excited. Although Yang Shuai was just doing what a team leader should do, in his eyes, Yang Shuai's support when everyone, including his teammates, was so encouraging.

"I've said it before, believe in yourself."

Yang Shuai, however, remained calm. As a time traveler, he knew that James was not Ben Simmons.

Perhaps it was Yang Shuai's encouragement that had an effect, because James scored in double figures in the remaining three preseason games, and even scored 19 points in the last game.

After the preseason ended, TNT ranked the teams based on their strength for the new season.

First, the Pacers
With star power, roster depth, and game experience, the Pacers only need to consider ball distribution and team cohesion.

Judging from their performance in the preseason, they will be the most dominant team in the league in the new season.

Projected starting lineup: Payton, Miller, Kirilenko, Malone, O'Neal
Second, the Trail Blazers
While all eyes were on the Cavaliers and Yang Shuai, the Trail Blazers' return on that trade was underestimated.

While Richard Hamilton cannot be compared to Yang Shuai, the addition of Ben Wallace has rebuilt the team's defensive system, and their defensive pressure in the preseason was suffocating.

Expected starting lineup: Billups, Hamilton, Prince, Rasheed Wallace, Ben Wallace

Third, the Spurs
The Spurs' most crucial acquisition in the summer was the trade for Turkish forward Hedo Turkoglu from the Kings.

Because of Stojakovic's presence, Turkoglu has a hard time getting a starting opportunity with the Kings.

In addition, to fill the void left by David Robinson's retirement, they also signed Slovenian center Rasu Nesterovic.

The Spurs have built an unprecedented international team, and with the growth of Parker and Ginobili, they are making their strongest push for their first championship.

Projected starting lineup: Parker, Bowen, Turkoglu, Duncan, Nesterovic (sixth man Ginobili)
Fourth, the Lakers
Fifth, the Timberwolves

Garnett did not reach an early contract extension agreement with the Timberwolves, but instead exercised his player option for the final year, which was seen as a way of putting pressure on management.

The Timberwolves also underwent a major overhaul this summer, giving Garnett's teammates a complete upgrade.

Expected starting lineup: Sam Cassell, Latrell Sprewell, Szczerbiak, Garnett, Michael Olowokandi

Sixth, the Dallas Mavericks
The Mavericks made two key acquisitions this summer: they traded Antawn Jamison, who averaged 22 points and 7 rebounds last season, to the Warriors, and Antawn Walker, one of the "twin stars," who averaged 20 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 4.8 assists last season, to the Celtics, creating one of the most offensively potent teams in NBA history.

How to allocate ball possession for this offensive force is the challenge for "mad scientist" Don Nelson in the new season, which may very well be his swan song as the Mavericks' head coach.

If this lineup still fails to achieve success, then his experiment will end in failure.

Projected starting lineup: Nash, Finley, Antoine Walker, Jamison, Nowitzki

Seventh, the Kings
Eighth, the Cavaliers
Placing the Cavaliers ahead of the Nets is a crazy move, because it means putting a team that only won 17 games last season in second place in the East.

But it's hard to put them in a lower position because the league's best player joined the Cavaliers this summer.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, Yang Shuai will have another season averaging 35+ points per game, delivering another season of insane scoring performances. However, his teammates may struggle to provide him with sufficient support.

Ricky Davis is a player who needs a lot of touches to put up impressive numbers; the frontcourt duo of Boozer and Ilgauskas cannot protect the team's paint on the defensive end;
Most importantly, James looks far from what we expected. Optimistically, he needs at least one or two seasons to develop, and the Cavaliers obviously won't give him that much time.

When your team already has Yang Shuai, trading for the number one draft pick might be a more appropriate option.

Projected starting lineup: James, Davis, Young, Boozer, Zydrunas Ilgauskas (Sixth Man Robert Horry)

The day before the start of the regular season, the Cavaliers flew to Indianapolis for their first game of the season, an away game against the Pacers.

The two games in this year's opening games, one between the Cavaliers and the Pacers and the other between the Trail Blazers and the Lakers, are both divisional battles, but they are full of highlights.

After arriving, the Cavaliers held an open practice, and a large number of fans quickly gathered in the arena.

After training ended, Yang Shuai was immediately surrounded by a crowd, and a series of questions followed.

Are you worried about LeBron's performance?

The first question posed by the reporter was quite sharp.

"No, I'm not worried at all. He's gradually adapted to the pace of the NBA."

Yang Shuai's confidence made the reporters suspicious. Although they didn't know where Yang Shuai got his confidence from, it made them doubt James' debut.

After all, given how they played in their preseason debut, it's hard to imagine what they'll be like in the regular season.

"You said on media day that you would lead this team to contend for the championship, but TNT ranked the Cavaliers eighth. What do you think of that ranking?"

"I think they will make adjustments after tomorrow's match."

Yang Shuai spoke calmly, but all the reporters present could feel his confidence.

This also piqued the curiosity of the reporters.

If it were against any other team, even the Nets, Yang Shuai wouldn't be surprised to say that, after all, he is Yang Shuai.

However, the Pacers are far superior to the Cavaliers in both strength and experience, and no matter how strong Yang Shuai is, he can't take on five opponents at once.

But Yang Shuai's tone suggested he was determined to win, like a plate of glistening braised pork served through a transparent glass, whetting one's appetite.

(End of this chapter)