Cleveland

Even if one of them had an off night, as long as two others played at their usual level, the Thunder could basically keep things under control. It was only against tougher opponents, like the Golden State Warriors, San Antonio Spurs, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Houston Rockets—the League's top-tier teams—that all three needed to play exceptionally well. Then anything was possible.

But life never went smoothly forever, just as no team could keep winning streaks going indefinitely.

January 25

The Thunder visited the New Orleans Pelicans.

Anthony Davis, the Number One Pick in 2012, suddenly erupted. AD, once known as the leader of the Empty Stats Club, seemed possessed by Dream that night. Everything he put up went in. He dominated Little Sabonis and Adams on offense, and blocked Westbrook and Chen Xi three times on defense. He put up a spectacular stat line of 46 points, 15 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, and 3 blocks, leading his team to victory and ending the Thunder's winning streak once again.

On November 26, after suffering a heavy defeat, the Thunder finally wrapped up their six-game road trip and returned to their home court in Oklahoma.

Though they were about to face the Mavericks on the second night of a back-to-back, playing at home was obviously much more comfortable.

The rebuilding Mavericks failed to make much of a splash and were easily beaten by the Thunder. The team's leading scorer was Harrison Barnes, who had once appeared on Presti's list of trade targets. He scored 31 points, but the Mavericks were asking too much, so GM Presti ultimately decided to pass. They actually wanted to trade Barnes for Sabonis and Chen Xi? What a joke. You'd get your rebuilding done, but what about me? Could I just stop playing?

Aside from Barnes, no one else on the team scored in double figures. All five of the Thunder starters did, so it was hard to lose.

Chen Xi had 18 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists; Butler had 16 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 assists; Westbrook had 24 points, 8 rebounds, and 9 assists; Adams had 10 points and 9 rebounds; and Little Sabonis had 12 points and 7 rebounds. Everyone got a piece of the action, and they came away with a happy win.

After beating the Mavericks, they got another two days off. Chen Xi took the time to get his condition back in order... in bed.

On January 29, the Thunder traveled to Cleveland.

"Cleveland! I'm here, damn it!!!" Chen Xi started acting like a maniac as soon as he got off the plane. He was still at the airport.

"Sure enough, Old Zhang's posters are everywhere."

He looked around as they walked. For a small city, the thing it was best known for was That Man in Blue.

LeBron James.

Three championships, three FMVPs, four MVPs, ten All-NBA First Teams, two Second Teams, five All-Defensive First Teams, one Second Team, one Scoring Champion title, and twelve All-Star appearances.

Damn!!!!

And countless other records.

After just leading the Cavaliers to the first championship in franchise history, LeBron had already earned the title of the League's undisputed top player.

In terms of accolades, he could even challenge Jordan—if he managed to win three more championships...

"Chris, are you a LeBron fan?"

"Of course! Everyone knows my favorite player is... Turtle Turtle!!!!" Chen was still showing no signs of getting over it.

"...You looked so excited. I thought you were a fan of his."

"No. You know I'm all about looks." Chen Xi suddenly turned serious as he looked at Little Sabonis.

"...Then what about Russell..."

"Turtle Turtle!! Domantas said you..." Chen was cut off with a muffled "Mmmph!"

Little Sabonis hurriedly clamped a hand over the rascal's mouth.

Chen Xi held up five fingers.

"Fifty bucks. A dollar less and I'm going to snitch on you."

"Yeah, yeah, I got it." Little Sabonis rolled his eyes at Chen. The guy was always looking to extort money whenever he got the chance.

He really was asking for it. Why had he even bothered?

"Joking aside, I wasn't entirely kidding just now. I do respect LeBron's ability, but I wouldn't say I like him. I prefer players with prettier technique."

"So not only did you say he was ugly, you're saying his moves are ugly, too..."

"Huh? I didn't! You're making that up! Don't take my words out of context! If that gets out, I'm finished."

"Fifty bucks."

"...Karma sure comes around fast."

The team chatted and laughed as they boarded the bus, bound for Cleveland's Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

The Cavaliers had a Big Three of James, Irving, and Love, and were 31–14 so far this season. As defending champions, they'd had the bad luck to run into the Cosmic Warriors. But what could they do? The Warriors had cap space, while the Cavaliers were saddled with several massive contracts. Prince of Eight Tristan Thompson was especially costly: TT was averaging 8.1 points and 9.2 rebounds, yet earning $15 million a year from the Cavaliers and tying up their cap space. Even Irving was only making $20 million this season.

Back in the arena, the game was about to begin.

Aquaman and Prince of Eight faced off for the opening tip.

The Cavaliers got possession. Irving dribbled upcourt, called for TT's screen, and quickly got past his defender. When the Thunder switched, he went one-on-one against Adams.

After several crossovers and hesitation moves that shifted Aquaman's balance, Irving burst past Adams with a lightning-fast drive. Then, with Little Sabonis rotating over to help, he took off near the baseline, glided through the air, and finished with a reverse layup.

It was a very Irving-style move. He had mastered the ball so completely that even highly difficult plays seemed to come naturally, as if he could pull them off whenever he wanted.

The Cavaliers got back on defense quickly. Seeing no good opportunity for a fast break, Westbrook chose to slow things down, bringing the ball upcourt and directing the big men's movements.

Little Sabonis stepped up to set a screen. The Cavaliers didn't switch, sending Shump to fight through it and chase Westbrook.

But Westbrook read the defense and immediately accelerated, driving straight to the basket. TT didn't even have time to turn around and help before Westbrook was already hanging from the rim.

2–2

The first attacks from both teams had each been finished off with a solo performance by their All-Star point guards.

"Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse is absolutely star-studded tonight. There are no fewer than five All-Star players on the court!" the commentator exclaimed.

"In today's League, it's becoming more and more common for superstars to team up, and the game is becoming more and more exciting to watch."

The Cavaliers attacked again. Irving called for another screen, but this time Westbrook slipped past it quickly. Seeing that there wasn't much room to drive, Irving passed the ball back to James.

LeBron caught it at the top of the key and looked at Butler in front of him. After hesitating for a moment, he went for the Bald Lion's Cold Arrow, pulling up for a three.

Bang!

The sharp clang of the rim suggested Old Zhan's shooting touch wasn't very good tonight.

Adams grabbed the rebound and fired it ahead to Butler, who was breaking upcourt. JB caught the ball and sped toward the basket, but then saw James racing back on defense and chose to slow down.