League First

Rivers's adjustments had not had much effect. Even though Paul deliberately slowed the pace, he still could not stop Thunder from attacking the rim and kicking the ball out in waves. The team's defensive rotations were not sharp enough.

By the end of the game, the Clippers had already been powerless to turn things around and could only swallow another defeat with regret.

Thunder crushed the Clippers 112–103 to secure a fourth straight win.

After the game, Chen Xi once again accepted an interview with reporters from China.

"Chen Xi, it's a pleasure to interview you. Is there anything you'd like to say to Chinese fans? Say hello to everyone back home on camera."

"Hello, everyone. I'm Chen Xi."

"Thunder have won again today, and you also scored a career-high 23 points once more. As a Chinese American, achieving this kind of result in the NBA is extremely rare. Do you have any secrets you can share with everyone?"

"Uh, I don't really have any secrets. Basically, you just have to maintain your passion, work hard, and finally become part of the team. I believe that many basketball players far stronger than me will emerge from our country in the future."

How could I tell you I have a system? Anyway, I'm just making things up~~

"Hmm. Then I'd like to ask whether you, as a Chinese American, would be willing to return to your motherland and dedicate yourself to the development of basketball there? If your country called you up to participate in the Olympic Games, would you come back?"

"...Well, my level probably isn't good enough yet, right? Besides, the Olympic Games just ended this year, didn't they? The next one is still a long way off. There may also be some minor issues involving nationality that need to be handled. Of course, none of those are major problems. If my country recognizes me, then I certainly couldn't refuse the opportunity to return to its embrace."

If he said too much, people would tear him apart; if he said too little, they would tear him apart too. Chen could only stammer and carefully weigh his words, dodging the question.

Of course Chen Xi was willing to switch back to Chinese nationality without a second thought, and he would undoubtedly do his duty by returning to play in the Olympic Games. What he feared was that people there would keep pushing their luck and summon him back for the World Championships and the Asian Cup as well. Did people still not understand how Yao got injured?

His injury resistance was barely 70. He had better take it easy.

Back home, Chen Xi's postgame interview was also being livestreamed on various platforms. After hearing it, the internet erupted into a chaotic argument.

"Ah!!!! Chen Xi is so handsome~~~"

"Tone it down, upstairs."

"Tch, he sounds so unwilling. If he doesn't want to come back, he doesn't have to. It's not like anyone begged him. He's making up so many excuses."

"Are you okay? When did he ever say he didn't want to come back? Don't those reasons exist? He merely brought them up. He never said they couldn't be handled."

"There it is, there it is. A devoted son has shown up, already making excuses for him."

"Unbelievable. You say a couple of honest things and suddenly you're a devoted son? You're so good at labeling people—are you a LeBron fan?"

"He's still an American. Aren't some people being a little too self-righteous? Do you really take people for idiots?"

"Tone it down, Warriors fans."

"Exactly. He's American. Who knows whether his ancestors were traitors?"

"Don't be ridiculous. His parents were American citizens. That wasn't something he could decide for himself."

"Fans of the Six-Time Runner-Up King really are something."

"What, the devoted son of a perennial second-place finisher is jumping in to bark too?"

The fact was that wherever there were idols, fan circles were bound to form; wherever there were fan circles, things were bound to descend into a filthy racket.

The video's bullet comments were like a barrel of gunpowder. They needed only the tiniest spark to explode, after which there was no stopping them.

Unable to see the bullet comments from China, Chen Xi naturally remained unaffected. After the interview, he returned to the locker room on his own and watched the players celebrate.

It was only a regular-season game, so they normally would not celebrate much. But who could blame them when it was the Clippers?

They had been holding in their anger before the game. Now that they had swept the Clippers, how could they not take the chance to gloat?

Chen Xi recorded a video of several teammates fooling around and posted it on his social media, adding the caption: "Sharing the joy of victory."

Thanks to his recent popularity and Chen's occasional outrageous remarks online, he already had more than a million followers on Instagram.

I'm a big influencer now too~~

As Chen Xi grew accustomed to his new badge, the balance of his offensive distribution also improved, and his playing time increased along with it. The coaching staff's trust in him was clearly growing deeper by the day.

The chemistry within Thunder was also becoming increasingly harmonious.

After consecutive blowout wins over Orlando Magic and Pistons, their 10–1 record at the start of the season even surpassed the Warriors and reached League First.

For a time, the whole world was in an uproar. Bandwagon fans swarmed in, and Thunder's popularity briefly caught up with that of the unstoppable Warriors and Cavaliers.

"No one could have imagined that Thunder, after losing Durant, would produce such an astonishing record at the start of the season. Even fewer could have imagined that they would seize the throne of Western Conference first, and even League First!"

"Russell Westbrook! What an astonishing player. Since the start of the season, he has averaged 28.6 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 10.4 assists per game—almost a triple-double every night! It makes us wonder: were Thunder's failures over the previous few seasons really his fault? Or did the problem lie elsewhere?"

"Staggering roster management! Coach Donovan has proven himself this season! Even with the roster's overall quality dropping sharply, he has still led the team to remarkable heights. I think he has already become one of the candidates for Best Coach this year!"

"Thunder's front office has shown vision that is practically impossible to question. Chris Chen, whom they selected with the twenty-sixth pick in the second round this year, is already averaging 19.5 points per game, standing at the very front of the 2016 rookie class! His staggering 54.6% three-point percentage is even more unbelievable! More astonishing still, his salary this season is only $550,000!"

For a time, it seemed as if the entire world was praising Thunder, as if everything Thunder did was correct. But the price of ascending to the throne of League First was entering every team's field of vision and becoming a target for opponents to study.

At the same time, the dazzling praise and lavish attention gradually began to affect the entire team. The players started to slack off, started going through the motions in practice, and began losing themselves in the sky palace woven from praise.

Head Coach Donovan calmly saw the problem, but simple reprimands had not achieved much.

That was the terrifying thing about the media. They controlled public opinion, and people would be influenced by it without realizing it, led around by the nose.

Fortunately, this situation did not last long. Thunder's "benefactor" arrived soon enough.

James Harden led the Houston Rockets and dealt the complacent Thunder a heavy blow.

At the request of our many readers, we are now launching the VIP member ad-free function

Click to view