After leaving the General Manager Office, Li Chen was a little surprised to learn that Elgin Baylor had suddenly asked him to retest his physical abilities at David Stern's request.
What was that old man up to?
A moment later, Li Chen shook his head. Forget it. Why think so much? I'd better get back to training!
As Li Chen was on his way to the Training Gym, Bill Duffy called to tell him his car had arrived.
The car Bill Duffy had arranged for Li Chen was a 2002 Land Rover Range Rover.
Li Chen really liked the SUV, and Bill Duffy had also taken care of all the paperwork, including his driver's license.
After taking it for a spin, Li Chen was very pleased.
Once he'd finished testing the car, Li Chen continued training.
Meanwhile, the NBA All-Star selections had been announced while Li Chen was training. This year's All-Star roster was no different from the one in real history.
Unfortunately, Li Chen had to accept that he'd missed his chance to make the All-Star team.
Voting had closed on January 22, so even with support from fans back home, Li Chen hadn't made the team.
After afternoon practice, the players waited until Alvin Gentry had left. Then Elton Brand sidled up to Li Chen and whispered, "Chen, after the game tonight, let's go to a nightclub. Odom's paying."
Li Chen stared at him for a moment, then asked in surprise, "You guys actually want to go?"
"Huh?" Elton Brand looked taken aback, then shot back, "Why wouldn't we? He lost, didn't he?"
Li Chen was at a loss. He'd only meant to embarrass Odom, never imagining these guys would really go all out to fleece him.
"You guys go. I still have to train," Li Chen said, turning them down.
"Oh, God! Chen, you're so boring. You're going to drive yourself crazy like this." As he spoke, Brand cast a lecherous glance at Li Chen's crotch.
"Get lost." Li Chen kicked the shameless Elton Brand.
Tuesday, January 28, 2003.
The Clippers were playing the second game of a back-to-back, facing the tanking Cleveland Cavaliers on the road.
Li Chen's S-rank Skill for this game increased his clutch-shot success rate by 50%.
Right from the tip-off, the Clippers went on a 9–0 run against the Cavaliers.
After the timeout, the Cavaliers finally got on the scoreboard.
But then Li Chen buried three straight threes from the perimeter, leaving the Cavaliers stunned again.
The Cavaliers called another timeout. When play resumed, they started focusing their defense on Li Chen, determined to stop him from shooting any more threes.
With the defense zeroing in on him, Li Chen began passing the ball. His teammates came through, knocking down shot after shot. Li Chen suspected the nightclub had somehow made these animals go supernova.
At the end of the first quarter, the Clippers led the Cavaliers 25–11, a 14-point advantage.
By halftime, the Clippers were ahead 61–30, leading by 31 points.
Li Chen had already scored 30 points in the first half.
In the second half, Li Chen stopped scoring and camped under the basket to grab rebounds.
After the Functional Drink had transformed his body, Li Chen's physical prowess was terrifying. None of the Cavaliers could out-rebound him. He grabbed 15 boards in the second half alone.
In the end, the Clippers won in a blowout, 121–90.
It was worth noting that every Clipper who got on the court scored in double figures. Wang Zhizhi had 18 points, just shy of 20—a mark he owed in part to Li Chen's constant passing.
The least happy Clipper was Odom. He'd scored only two points.
He was absolutely miserable. These jerks were taking things too far. They were going to eat and drink on his dime tonight, and they couldn't even be bothered to butter him up?
Li Chen had put up impressive numbers too: 35 points, 15 assists, 16 rebounds, two steals, and three blocks.
After his outstanding performance, Li Chen was named Player of the Game again and earned the Clutch Shot skill.
The Clippers had also wrapped up their five-game road trip.
Thursday, January 30. The Clippers hosted the visiting Chicago Bulls.
Since losing Jordan, the Bulls had gone into a steep decline and were a shadow of their former selves.
The S-rank Skill Li Chen received for this game was "Flop," a skill he already had.
Li Chen was disappointed.
The game began, and neither the Clippers nor the Bulls could find their shooting touch. The Clippers led 18–16 after the first quarter.
In the second quarter, Li Chen's shot came back. He hit two Open Three-Pointers in a row, giving the Bulls a 10–0 run and forcing a timeout.
When play resumed, the Bulls focused their defense on Li Chen, but he kept forcing up threes anyway.
That was when the Flop skill came into play. Li Chen kept getting to the free-throw line, leaving everyone from the Bulls' coach to their players on the verge of a breakdown.
By the end of the second quarter, the Bulls were on the verge of getting blown out.
When the second half began, Li Chen saw Elton Brand attacking the basket with authority and was happy to feed him the ball.
And so Elton Brand blew the Bulls away in the third quarter.
Brand finished with 30 points, three assists, and five rebounds, a career high. He was ecstatic.
After the game, he couldn't stop grinning and kept insisting that Li Chen join him at a nightclub, but Li Chen politely declined.
Li Chen also had a solid triple-double: 20 points, 11 assists, 10 rebounds, and two steals.
Once again, Player of the Game went to Li Chen.
And Li Chen made another surprising discovery: his Flop skill had leveled up.
In other words, duplicate skills converted into experience points. For Li Chen, that was wonderful news.
Sunday, February 1, 8 p.m.
Staples Center.
The Phoenix Suns were on the road to face the Clippers.
Since it was the weekend, and Los Angeles was the country's second-largest metropolis after New York, the arena was packed.
In the VIP box, Donald Sterling gazed at the sea of fans, grinning from ear to ear.
He looked at Elgin Baylor, sitting beside him. He'd never imagined that the man had such a good eye—that he could unearth a rookie like this.
That wasn't even the best part. The rookie was cheap and talented. He was practically a money tree. Attendance at Clippers games had climbed by more than 50 percent, and now Sterling felt like putting Li Chen on a pedestal.
Best of all, he could keep him for free for another two years. Every time he thought about it, he felt like jumping for joy.
Although he was a racist, he loved money even more. When money was at stake, everything else could take a back seat.
He was also trying to figure out how to keep Li Chen around at the lowest possible price so he could keep making money for him.
Meanwhile, Elgin Baylor noticed that the stingy owner, Donald Sterling, seemed unusually happy today.
Testing the waters, Elgin Baylor asked, "Mr. Sterling, do you think we could increase the player budget next season? Chen's been playing so well. If we get him some help next season, we could make the Playoffs—or even win the championship."
At that, Elgin Baylor began trembling with excitement.
When Donald Sterling heard him mention raising the player budget, he was displeased. But since Elgin Baylor had made him a lot of money, he didn't blow up on the spot.
Instead, he waved a hand and said, "Well... I'll think it over carefully when I get back. All right, enough of that. Let's watch the game."
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