Where the noise did not reach

Chapter 19 Holy Infant
On January 20, 2007, long queues formed at the entrance to the United Spirit Gymnasium.

The game between Texas Tech and the University of Texas will take place here.

Moreover, both teams have rising superstars in recent years.

Xu Ling and Kevin Durant are the hottest topics in the Big 12 league.

Durant goes without saying; he is a natural talent. As Bill Simmons said, "His floor is being selected as an All-Star for several consecutive years, and his ceiling is that he may become the greatest scorer in history." If it weren't for Shaquille O'Neal's lingering influence and echoes in the league, Durant's performance in his freshman season alone would have been enough to surpass Greg Oden and become the number one draft pick.

However, now, the entire basketball world seems to have reached a silent consensus. Scouts firmly believe that the 2007 draft will recreate the legendary landscape of 1992—Oden and Durant are essentially the O'Neal and Mourning of this era.

The giant, who never fully recovered his health in college but was hailed as the "next generation Shaquille O'Neal," has almost secured the number one draft pick. This also means that no matter how amazing Durant's performance is, the highest ranking he can achieve in the draft is only second overall.

But for Durant, these external voices are insignificant.

"All I care about is basketball itself," Durant said. "Everything else is unimportant."

Such remarks would undoubtedly provoke Xu Ling, who had fought tooth and nail to rise from obscurity to a potential lottery pick.

Moreover, as a time traveler, he inherently harbored a deep-seated anti-Durant perspective.

He doesn't care about titles like "the strongest one-on-one player of the new century." Of course, you could say Durant also has his misfortunes: at an age when he still firmly believed that hard work and struggle could win everything, a predecessor took his "talent" directly to Miami and crushed his and his brother's dreams in the Finals. Ironically, after that predecessor won the championship, he was transformed overnight from a "villain" in the media's eyes into a sports hero.

The collapse of old beliefs and the darkening of his mentality seemed inevitable. As the "second person" of his era, he chose the path of imitation: if his predecessor could team up with the league's third-best player and the tenth-ranked All-Star power forward in MVP voting, then he might as well parachute into the 73-win runner-up team that had just eliminated him—as long as he ultimately won the championship, wouldn't all the controversy disappear?
Reality, however, was far more cruel. He found that the controversy not only didn't disappear, but followed him relentlessly, making him a target of ridicule wherever he went. He gradually lost control: online arguments, mocking his teammates, and eventually even awakened a talent shared with his "half-brother" Kyrie Irving—dismantling teams. He would dismantle teams wherever he went, needing no reason, just wanting to. Even when Irving seemed to have reformed in Dallas, he still wouldn't settle down. At the slightest sign of trouble, his first reaction wasn't to try and resolve the issue, but rather, "I'm done playing, you guys can fend for yourselves." It must be said that although his envisioned redemption scenario completely failed, he certainly inherited his predecessor's talent in "running away" and "choosing strong teammates."

In Xu Ling's view, Durant after leaving the Warriors was a complete snake—his character, resilience, and leadership were all utterly abysmal. But this same person, in 2007, had a different image… how to put it?

Holy Child?

That's right, it's the Holy Infant.

The media said that basketball was like oxygen to him. Despite losing his father at a young age, he did not hate his father like many black players from similar backgrounds. Instead, he regarded his missing biological father as a superhero. He chose the number 35 to commemorate his mentor who died unexpectedly. He is humble and friendly. Every time he is photographed, he is carrying a backpack with only a basketball and a Bible inside.

That evening, as soon as Xu Ling arrived at the scene, he saw a young-looking "Xiao Du" carrying that signature backpack.

Hey kid, if you're not Durant, then who are you?
That's what Xu Ling thought.

“Shouldn’t you go over and say hello?” Rodrik Craig asked him.

“No interest,” Xu Ling said expressionlessly. “I just want to beat him to a pulp.”

Craig chuckled: "If you can really do that, your draft predictions will probably skyrocket!"

“However,” he looked around and lowered his voice, “the scene today is quite unusual.”

In the past, scouts mostly kept a low profile and observed in secret, but today—the standards for scouting have been completely upgraded.

Several key figures from the team also attended in person.

Danny Ainge of the Celtics, Billy King of the 76ers, Jerry West of the Grizzlies, and Chris Mullin of the Golden State Warriors.

On the right side of the stands, Mullin was watching the two supernovas warming up with great enthusiasm, and as he watched, he began his signature (and unreliable) passionate speech:

"Kevin Durant! This kid reminds me of Larry Bird!"

The assistant coach standing nearby almost dropped the tactical board.

Like Bird? Dude, did you not wake up properly last night, or did you drink fake alcohol for breakfast this morning?

Mullin, completely oblivious to anything amiss, became even more animated as he spoke: "And look! This is a black version of Bird, complete with Garnett's physical attributes!"

If Bird heard this, he'd probably come all the way from Indiana to beat you up.

However, though he didn't say it aloud, the assistant knew in his heart that Mullin was here today for Eli Xu—because according to lottery predictions, the Warriors were more likely to select Xu Ling than Durant.

It all started with a recent trade. Since the Malice at the Palace incident two years ago, the Pacers, who once dominated the Eastern Conference, have become a mere shell of their former selves. With Reggie Miller retired and Jermaine O'Neal plagued by injuries, the team was beset by internal and external troubles, making it difficult to recover and reverse its decline.

Instead of stubbornly clinging to appearances, it's better to cut your losses in time and act decisively to get out of trouble before the value completely depreciates.

So Mullin seized the opportunity, using several "previous lottery failures" as bargaining chips to acquire Al Harrington and Stephen Jackson from the Pacers, managing to assemble a "league of losers." He secretly hoped: what if, with this haphazard arrangement, they actually developed some chemistry?

It was against this backdrop that Mullin set his sights on Eli Xu—this young man was not only physically gifted and capable of scoring, but more importantly, he played like a complete rookie, displaying composure, maturity, and few mistakes. Mullin admired this maturity beyond his years.

He had assumed that everyone present today—including himself—was there for Durant.

Until he looked up and saw Jerry West and Danny Angie sitting upright in the opposite stands.

Mullin thought to himself: They must be here to see KD too, right?

Maybe?

After warming up, Knight called Xu Ling over: "Do you remember our setup last night?"

"I remember." Xu Ling certainly remembered. Knight had spent two hours last night analyzing the video footage for this crucial battle, focusing particularly on Durant. According to Knight's "intelligence sources," Durant was physically weak, never trained his strength, and couldn't even do a standard bench press.

Since it's just an "empty shell," then we'll push his small frame to its limits.

"Just remember that." Knight's tone was serious. "Your defense will be the key to tonight's victory or defeat."

"Does that mean if we lose, I'll have to take full responsibility?" Xu Ling countered.

Is it appropriate for this old guy to put so much pressure on us right from the start?

Knight looked him straight in the eye, his words piercing: "Of course you can choose not to take full responsibility. As long as you don't consider yourself a leader, no one can force you to shoulder all of this."

After saying that, Knight looked at Xu Ling with a somewhat provocative expression.

This scene was reminiscent of when Xu Ling used reverse psychology to force Knight to admit that he was the greatest coach in history.

Faced with the old coach's counterattack of using the same tactics against him, Xu Ling smiled and said nothing more.

Then, both teams started their respective matches.

Besides Durant, the University of Texas roster also has another future NBA face – their starting point guard DJ Augustin.

Xu Ling finally got to see Durant in person up close.

This feeling is completely different from how I used to grit my teeth and type "Durmon die" in front of the screen in my previous life.

Xu Ling had anticipated that Durant might be friendly, but she didn't expect...
"Hello, it's nice to meet you," Durant said in a very friendly tone. "Jordan from TTU, I've heard about you for a long time!"

Xu Ling's inner monologue: Wait a minute! Give me back the Durant I know, the one who would break down his defense and yell at Green when he missed a crucial shot, only to be silenced by Durant's line, "We were champions before you came!"
"Likewise." Xu Ling smiled outwardly, but inwardly he was cursing wildly.

The referee tossed the ball into the air.

Xu Ling silently prayed in his heart: Jump and win, we must win this round!
Perhaps he heard Xu Ling's prayer, Daryl Dora, whose jump ball success rate was abysmal, surprisingly won the jump ball.

Xu Ling ran forward quickly.

The Longhorns had clearly studied their playing style; once they lost the jump ball, they would retreat to defense at full speed, giving them no chance to launch a fast break.

In a five-on-five situation in the frontcourt, Xu Ling ran to the outside, received the pass, turned around, and the arena erupted in noise.

"Oh my god, Eli vs. KD! It's happening so soon!"

The fans roared with excitement.

"Hit him! Hit him!!!"

Such calls will increase the pressure on players, forcing them to play one-on-one even when they are not in the right position.

Xu Ling took the ball and took a jab step to the right. Even if Durant is a genius, he has only realized a little bit of his talent on the offensive end. He still has a long way to go on the defensive end.

Xu Ling's mere feint exposed many weaknesses in him, forcing him to take a large step back.

Xu Ling took a jump shot from the spot.

Determined, resolute, and with a graceful shooting form.

what else?
Look, what a beautiful curve!
"Shh!"

Xu Ling's trash talk is usually characterized by a defensive counter-attack strategy, but today, he couldn't quite suppress the impulse in his heart.

"You score so many points per game, is it because you don't play defense at all?"

Xu's sharp tongue hooked Durant immediately. Perhaps he was born to be a debater; just think about how he later engaged in online arguments with the entire internet.

Durant froze, his face clearly saying, "You're insulting me!" "Nonsense! I never did!"

Xu Ling nodded, looking as if she had just realized something: "Oh, so it seems you're just... bad at defending."

Durant didn't know why this complete stranger, TTU Jordan, was speaking in such foul language, so he decided to retaliate with action.

However, Xu Ling did not back down. He stood near midfield, like a hunter waiting for its prey, calmly watching Durant approach step by step.

As soon as Durant crossed half-court, Xu Ling clung to him like a shadow—giving him whatever he wanted in terms of intensity, stickiness, and fighting spirit. This was precisely the type of defense Durant least wanted to face at this stage.

In just over ten seconds, under Xu Ling's relentless defense, Durant, who had not yet adapted to this pace of competition, made his first turnover of the night.

Durant immediately committed a tactical foul on Xu Ling, and the referee blew the whistle.

He raised his hand in acknowledgment, but his gaze was fixed directly on Xu Ling, all politeness gone, leaving only undisguised antagonism in his eyes.

(End of this chapter)