Basketball miracles

Chapter 55 [Riding the Waves of Success]

Xiao Tu's life is going smoothly, and his career is flourishing.

With a celebrity girlfriend, Xiao Tu decisively gave up extra training. It's fine for him to slowly hone his skills with the Lakers; he won't have much ball possession this season, so there's no rush.

He practices the Euro step frequently, but he has never used it in an official competition, so he hasn't had a good opportunity to showcase it.

On this day, the Lakers defeated the SuperSonics 135-103 at home.

The SuperSonics were completely overwhelmed; if the Lakers hadn't been coasting on defense, they wouldn't have even made it past halftime.

When the two teams first met, some media outlets claimed that 208cm white power forward Tom Chambers was Xiao Tu's role model. In this game, the SuperSonics coach didn't dare to let the two directly match up, and Chambers, who had just recovered from injury, came on as a substitute.

The SuperSonics tried to defend the paint with a twin-tower strategy, but their two 211cm tall white centers were stuck under the basket and couldn't get out to defend, and they were still dominated on the boards.

肖途用行动证明了谈恋爱不会影响比赛状态。他20投12中，三分球4中2，罚球8中6，砍下32分15篮板3助攻2抢断2盖帽。

The opponent's big man was huddled in the paint, so Xiao Tu didn't force his way to the basket. Instead, he repeatedly set screens to create space for Magic Johnson to break through, and he was very decisive when he received the ball in the mid-range and took jump shots.

When the highly mobile Chambers came on to defend, Xiao Tu started charging towards the basket again, squeezing past his defender to force a layup.

Xiao Tu scored 21 points in the first half with a high shooting percentage. In the second half, the SuperSonics coach dared not let his players play passively anymore, assigning Chambers to closely guard him. Xiao Tu reduced his shot attempts and only played 4 minutes in the final quarter; otherwise, he might have scored 40+ points in the game.

The matchup was similar to the last game, with Chambers completely outmatched. He couldn't shake off Xiao Tu when cutting inside, his jump shots were severely disrupted, and he couldn't grab offensive rebounds.

Chambers' stats were decent, with 22 points and 6 rebounds, most of which came when he was on the defensive against other players. He and Xiao Tu are clearly not in the same league; I'm completely impressed.

This time, Chambers couldn't stop Xiao Tu from committing a vicious foul, nor did he dare to, for fear that the opponent would commit an even more vicious foul.

Bullying the weak and fearing the strong is an old tradition among NBA players. Xiao Tu proved that if he dares to take action, his opponents will not easily provoke him.

贾巴尔19投12中，罚球10中7，得到31分6篮板3助攻。魔术师约翰逊也有14分17助攻4抢断进账。

After the game, the Lakers stars, as usual, engaged in a round of mutual praise.

Johnson scored very few points, even with a high shooting percentage, he was reluctant to take more shots. He said he enjoyed this style of play, as giving the ball to Xiao Tu and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar solved the problem, allowing him to focus more on organizing the offense.

Magic Johnson is known for his selflessness, but fans believe he wants to focus more on women. Whenever Magic makes the news, it's almost always about his personal life.

Johnson's pre-game comment, "I want a rainbow," was a coded message, implying he wanted a three-skinned battle after the game. He called it the "rainbow strategy," thinking it was cool, completely unaware of the consequences.

Xiao Tu wouldn't say anything he shouldn't, after all, even Johnson's official girlfriend, the female version of EJ, couldn't stop him from hunting for women.

Entering December, the Lakers faced a relatively easy away schedule.

In other words, when a team is strong enough, it seems easy to beat anyone. Truly strong teams never experience a situation where they "struggle to win."

The Lakers crushed the Warriors, who were at the bottom of the Western Conference, 153-111.

身高208CM，体重86公斤的大前锋米奇-约翰逊被肖途爆出了翔。他仅得到6分5篮板，末节6犯离场。

It's truly amazing that Mickey, with his skin and bones, can play in the NBA. Xiao Tu worries about him during physical contact, afraid he might accidentally break his bones. Even without contact, his thin legs look like they're about to break.

Mickey is a liability on offense, often taking wild shots with a shooting percentage of only 40%, and on defense he is weak, doesn't rebound, and doesn't box out.

With Warriors' starting power forward Whitehead sidelined due to injury, the coach had to field a substitute to match up against Xiao Tu. Even if Whitehead were able to play, he wouldn't be much better; at 208cm tall and 100kg, he's still a skinny guy.

Tall, skinny centers are very common in the NBA, some even weighing less than some of the heavier guards in the league since 2010. They don't guard closely on defense, allowing opponents to easily establish position in the low post, receive the pass, and immediately turn for a close-range shot.

The most ridiculous thing is that these guys aren't athletic at all; many of them are just floor-bound players, only their skin looks tough. Xiao Tu suspects that the role players' salaries are too low, while their other expenses are too high, leading to inadequate nutrition.

Xiao Tu delivered six powerful dunks and grabbed 10 offensive rebounds. He played 33 minutes, shooting 11-for-16 from the field and 9-for-10 from the free-throw line, totaling 31 points, 17 rebounds, 3 assists, and 4 blocks. Xiao Tu dominated the paint, and in the final quarter, the Warriors' defense became increasingly aggressive, preparing for a real battle with him. With the game already in garbage time, Riley had no choice but to substitute Xiao Tu.

If Xiao Tu had played a little longer, he could have easily put up a 30+20 stat line, but the coach didn't dare take the risk.

Xiao Tu was very unhappy about this. Scoring 30 points and 20 rebounds only earned him a silver treasure chest. He played less and only got a bronze treasure chest reward, just 3 rebounds short.

But this was the Warriors' home court, and the deafening boos from the fans made it seem like they might rush down from the stands and beat Xiao Tu at any moment. Continuing to play during garbage time would be the most foolish thing to do if he got injured.

Xiao Tu's impression of the Warriors worsened, and he began to hate Warriors fans.

What kind of taste do these people have? Their favorite small forward, Puvis Short, is just a stat padder who only knows how to shoot recklessly and doesn't cooperate with his teammates at all.

In 1978, the Warriors selected Salt with the fifth pick, missing out on Larry Bird with the sixth pick, arguably their worst draft pick in franchise history. Of course, it's also possible that Bird's story would have been the same after joining the Warriors; he lacked good teammates, the team lacked a strategy, and he was relegated to simply being a stat padder.

Next, the Lakers defeated the Clippers and Trail Blazers on the road.

Xiao Tu's stats weren't as explosive, but he still managed a double-double to help the Lakers continue their winning streak.

The Trail Blazers' second overall pick, Sam Bowie, was once again outplayed by Xiao Tu; their athleticism is simply not on the same level.

鲍维倒是能发挥点作用了，场均打30分钟，10分8.5篮板2.7助攻2.7盖帽的数据看起来还不错。

This statistic is respectable for a blue-collar player in the NBA; he's not some pushover who everyone can bully. But the Trail Blazers signed Bowie with the intention of developing him as their core center, which is destined to fall short of their goal.

During this period, Madonna's "Like a Virgin" music video was released and received a lot of positive reviews. Her album had been a hit for a month, and countless fans were waiting to see her appear on screen.

After watching the music video, many fans thought that Xiao Tu and Madonna were a perfect match, and even though there was a huge height difference, it was still very interesting to watch.

Lakers' female fans, however, thought Madonna was too ugly and completely unworthy of Xiao Tu.

The song quickly climbed to number one on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Madonna's first number-one single. It also topped the music charts in Australia and Japan, becoming a massive hit.

Madonna was so excited she couldn't sleep, so Xiao Tu practiced ball control and singles stick fighting with her in the middle of the night.

Then, Xiao Tu's popularity soared again because of this music video and an interview video with Madonna.

Madonna spoke with a blissful expression about Xiao Tu: "Why do I like him? Because he fulfills all my fantasies about a boyfriend. His appearance has made my world a wonderful place."

The reporter asked, "You haven't known each other for long, and there's an age gap between you. Do you think this will be an obstacle?"

"No, some people act like they've known each other for a long time the moment they meet. Seb is very mature, and I can't feel the age gap at all. Plus, he's very humorous and always makes me laugh."

Many Madonna fans got to know Xiao Tu, and some NBA fans also got to know Madonna. Overall, Xiao Tu benefited more.

The couple's relationship attracted a large number of casual fans. In the pre-internet era, people especially loved to gossip about celebrities.

"This handsome guy is actually an NBA star? It's a pity he's too tall, otherwise he could become a star in Hollywood with that kind of looks and presence. He's got a natural leading man face."

"Some media outlets have reported that 70% of NBA players use drugs, but I believe Shaw is definitely not among them. He looks amazing; his face is practically glowing."

"Larry Bird's league status is in jeopardy. Both are white stars, but their image and physical attributes are not on the same level."

"With such good physical abilities, why doesn't he play football and go to the NFL? Playing basketball is such a waste of his talent."

Xiao Tu and Madonna both enjoy the attention and are satisfied with the media exposure, and are ready to continue their efforts.

They're really having a blast with all the hype; they're definitely a match made in heaven.

(End of this chapter)