Where the noise did not reach

Chapter 96 is especially stronger than LeBron.

The Jazz are by no means a weak team. In fact, they have just reached their peak in the post-Karl Malone era—last season they not only became a nightmare for a generation of Rockets fans in the first round, but also fought their way to the Western Conference Finals, where they were ultimately defeated by the Spurs.

Before the season began, they were widely considered strong contenders for a top-four finish in the Western Conference. Although their record so far has fallen short of expectations, they remain a strong team with a solid playoff spot.

In their previous encounter, the Grizzlies narrowly defeated the Jazz thanks to outstanding performances from Xu Ling and Pau Gasol. However, this time, Gasol has already boarded a flight to Los Angeles, and his replacement will also be unavailable for this game. Xu Ling will have to lead the team alone against a fully-staffed Jazz.

Before the game even started, Deron Williams, who was on par with Paul, approached Xu Ling with a provocative look: "Do you still want to score 30 points tonight?"

Xu Ling looked up at Delong, his tone calm yet sharp: "Having just recovered from injury, I don't plan to set myself too high a goal. I'll just casually get 40 points and show it to my new teammates."

"Suka BuLei!"

Andrei Kirilenko, who was not far away, was immediately enraged by these words. He had missed the last match due to injury, but this time he returned as the team's defensive linchpin. Hearing the opposing star speak so arrogantly and completely disregard him, he couldn't help but blurt out a phrase from the Russian language.

With two starters leaving and new additions not yet on the active roster, the Grizzlies had to use more players who rarely get playing time in this game.

Darko Milicic made it into the starting lineup, looking quite energetic – despite the Serbian's laid-back personality, who wouldn't want a starting position given away for free? Moreover, being close to Xu Ling gives him an advantage, as he has already taken a step ahead in the battle for the starting spot thanks to their teammate relationship.

At the start of the game, Milicic and Okur jumped for the ball.

"Snapped!"

Milicic easily won the jump ball.

Kyle Lowry received the ball and launched a fast break. He came to the frontcourt and directly demonstrated the Grizzlies' point guard survival strategy: after dribbling past half-court, he would pass the ball to Xu Ling no matter what. What does that mean? It means to see if the old man wants to go one-on-one. If he doesn't want to go one-on-one, he will naturally pass the ball back.

Xu Ling first pretended to call for Milicic's screen, but the moment Milicic set up for the screen, he suddenly faked a step back and then stepped back. By now, every NBA team knows how powerful his step back is, and Jazz starting shooting guard Ronnie Brewer immediately stepped up to close the gap.

However, although Xu Ling seemed to be about to attack, his eyes were always on Milicic. Milicic understood his intention, and after setting a screen, he cut to the basket with a speed that few centers in the league could match.

Xu Ling tossed the ball into the air, and Milicic sprinted to the basket, jumped up, caught the ball, and delivered an alley-oop dunk.

Even though Milicic's talent has been largely eroded by alcohol and sex, the talent he displayed in this moment still reveals glimpses of the unicorn interior genius who outshone Carmelo Anthony in the draft years ago.

Today, it's hard to say whether he lacked willpower and couldn't withstand Larry Brown's torture, or whether Larry Brown was truly a ruthless bastard who ruined people.

Milicic has finally achieved the life he wanted: playing for a team that doesn't suppress him, with a multi-million dollar contract—enough to support him for the rest of his life. If he can also secure a starting position after Gasol's departure, that would be perfect.

Despite conceding a point, the Jazz remained composed. Deron Williams steadily dribbled up the court, where Boozer was already positioned at the top of the key. The classic Deron-Boozer pick-and-roll was executed once again—Deron used the screen to move laterally, while Boozer quickly cut to the free-throw line area.

Xu Ling immediately squeezed through the screen and tightly marked Deron Williams, almost completely blocking his shooting space. However, Deron Williams, with his experience, bounced the ball back to Boozer, who had already positioned himself.

Boozer received the ball and turned instantly. Facing Milicic who was helping to defend, he first faked a shot, then turned and jumped from the baseline to shoot – the movement was smooth and the touch was soft, and the basketball went into the net.

Seeing how this guy plays, Xu Ling understood why the Rockets always struggle against the Jazz.

The Jazz's pick-and-roll offense was a headache for Yao Ming, and the Rockets' power forward was no match for Boozer. Boozer could easily crush the Rockets' power forward and also easily dominate Yao Ming's pick-and-roll defense, thus completely tearing apart the Rockets' interior defense.

Really ruthless.

Xu Ling thought to himself that Boozer was definitely one of the two most offensively gifted power forwards he had ever seen in the West, second only to Nowitzki.

I heard this guy used to be LeBron James' teammate, but in order to escape Cleveland, he took advantage of the blind owner's kindness to trick the Cavaliers into canceling his contract and then signed a big contract with the Jazz? Xu Ling didn't know; this was just hearsay. If it was true, it proved that this person's character was indeed not very good. But then again, if he were on the Cavaliers, could he really reach his current level under Mr. James?

It's not that his playing style clashes with Mr. James's; it's just that Xu Ling has never seen a star center who isn't named Anthony Davis not decline in performance after partnering with that player. It's almost become a mystery. From Jamison to Bosh to Love, no matter how good you were before, you all become useless when you're with Mr. James. Only Davis's original talent was so outstanding that he could withstand this inexplicable and bizarre "James virus."

Xu Ling arrived at the frontcourt and had just taken his position when Lowry passed the ball to him again.

Seeing this, Kidd laughed from the sidelines, "He can't expect me to do that when I'm on the court."

Josh Howard and others all nodded in agreement. Indeed, it was obvious to anyone with eyes that there was something wrong with this. What kind of point guard dribbles the ball across half-court and feeds it to the leader without initiating a shot?
What about the dignity of a point guard?

What are the responsibilities of a point guard?

This is why Lowry is considered Xu Ling's loyal follower; every gesture he makes is an attempt to please the team's number 1.

Xu Ling never knew the meaning of politeness. He would do whatever he wanted once he got the ball. Facing Ronnie Brewer's defense, he raised his hand to let Lowry come over to set a screen for point guard. Lowry ran over with unparalleled enthusiasm and successfully switched Deron Williams to guard Xu Ling.

Just as Delong was about to do something, Xu Ling had already made his decision and jumped straight up!

The basketball arced extremely high, and Deron's interference was futile.

"Shh!"

Hollow into the network!

"Roar!" The FedExCare stadium erupted in cheers; the fans had been itching for more than ten days since Xu Ling took a break.

It was at this moment that Kidd and others on the sidelines truly realized just how terrifying Xu Ling's popularity was at home.

It's no exaggeration to say that when Xu Ling had the ball, the pressure the fans put on the away team was comparable to that of those intimidating home games.

However, these BYD fans are also very realistic; they don't give the same level of support to other Grizzlies players at all.

However, what makes the Jazz formidable is their system and discipline. They were completely unaffected by Xu Ling's shot and continued to execute their tactics meticulously.

Deron Williams ran a pick-and-roll with Boozer again, this time drawing a double team before passing to Andrei Kirilenko on the perimeter, who drained a three-pointer.

In the next offensive possession, Mehmet Okur hit another long-range shot from the top of the key.

The Jazz, with their excellent teamwork and accurate shooting, quickly established a slight lead. The Grizzlies' defense struggled to keep up with the Jazz's tight ball movement.

Without Mike Miller, the Grizzlies can't create space on the perimeter; without Pau Gasol, they lack a pillar in the paint. The Grizzlies can only rely on Xu Ling alone.

Xu Ling lived up to expectations. He first used his speed to overpower Brewer, then drove into the paint and pulled away from Okur's block with a layup. He then forced a turnover from the Jazz on the defensive end, and assisted Lowry for a layup during the fast break.

"Cheer up!" After completing the counterattack, Xu Ling clapped his hands and shouted, "Don't let our new friends on the sidelines think that only I can play on this team!"

This is most of the truth about the Grizzlies, but not all.

Xu Ling possesses a strength that supports his teammates; he is not the kind of person who completely trusts himself just because he thinks he is the only one who can turn the tide.

If he had that mindset, he could not have led Texas Tech to create the greatest Cinderella story in modern NCAA history.

He believes that every teammate has their own role to play, and if they don't perform well, it means that his strengths haven't been effectively utilized.

Xu Ling then took the initiative to defend Deron Williams. When the opponent called for a pick and roll, he decisively switched to defend Boozer.

Deron passed the ball to Boozer, who was about to make a strong attack, but Xu Ling chopped the ball away with a slash.

“！￥#@￥”

The crowd erupted in cheers as Xu Ling intercepted the out-of-control ball and passed it directly to veteran Eddie Jones, who was making a run down the court.

Jones received the ball, sprinted at full speed, and made a fast break layup, giving the Grizzlies the lead.

"Great shot, EJ!" Lowry shouted excitedly.

Jones, looking smug as he returned to defense, gave Xu Ling a thumbs-up for good defense, then, playing the role of a veteran, continued to boost the team's morale: "It's time to let these Mormon bastards know that an old dog's bite can hurt!"

The entire lineup is clearly a mix of old and young players, lacking a second strong player besides Xu Ling, but...
Kidd quickly discovered that while the lineup lacked offensive talent, it was surprisingly resilient on the defensive end.

Xu Ling, under the rigorous tutelage of Bob Knight during his college years, gradually developed into one of the most dominant perimeter defenders in the NCAA. After entering the NBA, he continued this quality, proving himself to be a reliable and intelligent defender. Veteran Eddie Jones, already a renowned defensive stalwart, may have seen his physical gifts diminish with age, but his valuable defensive experience remains invaluable. Meanwhile, while Darko Milicic and Jarrett Warrick in the paint may have limited offensive options, they are both blue-collar players with a strong defensive attitude and good positional awareness.

All of this laid the groundwork for the Grizzlies' comeback in this game.

The offense relies on Xu Ling's single-point breakthrough, while the defense involves the entire team working together and each fulfilling their role.

This style of play is certainly unorthodox, but for the Grizzlies at this point, it doesn't even allow them to field a complete second unit. Once the new players arrive, the situation will undoubtedly change dramatically.

Thinking about this, Kidd suddenly realized that the arrogant rookie on the field was not only confident to the point of narcissism, but also possessed an intelligence that was inconsistent with his age.

Moreover, it is by no means the kind of "false cleverness" that comes from being self-righteous.

This is crucial.

Just as Kidd was slightly distracted, a crisp "snap" rang out on the court, followed by gasps from the crowd—Xu Ling suddenly double-teamed Deron Williams, his aggressive pressure causing the opponent to lose the ball! He immediately grabbed the ball and sprinted forward, dribbling across half-court amidst the impatient stomping of Jazz coach Jerry Sloan. He then abruptly stopped and pulled up two steps from the three-point line, unleashing a long-range pull-up three-pointer that swished right into the net!
"Eli Xu is simply unstoppable!" ESPN's star commentator Mike Brin exclaimed rapidly.

"That's right! It's as if he's unleashing all the energy he's accumulated over the past ten days onto the Jazz!" analyst Jeff Van Gundy exclaimed. "The Jazz are down by 6 points, Coach Sloan is calling a timeout!"

Van Gundy became increasingly excited, almost standing up from the commentary booth: "Let's accept reality! Eli Xu is the best rookie since Tim Duncan! Considering his age, I think he's even more mature than TD at the same stage. As a player under 20, he has shown a level of technical skill and game control we've never seen before!"

Analyst Mark Jackson, standing nearby, couldn't help but ask, "Jeff, are you sure he's better than LeBron in 2003?"

“Don’t be ridiculous, Mark!” Van Gundy said firmly. “His rookie year performance has surpassed every rookie since the beginning of the new century—especially LeBron!”

If you think this statement is already deceiving the emperor enough, then what he didn't say next is truly audacious.

In his mind, LeBron James wasn't even the best rookie in the 2003 draft class.

(End of this chapter)