First Point in the NBA

Cleveland Cavaliers bench:

"Brothers, this is our home court! And it's our season opener. Defense is the foundation of winning, and your defense in the first quarter was way too slack. From now on, tighten up, especially lock down their Three Swordsmen!"

Mike Brown was extremely dissatisfied with the first quarter. A good start had been undone by the Washington Wizards, who not only fought back but took the lead.

Sitting on the bench, Su Yi muttered to himself: Is it really a defensive problem?

In Su Yi's view, it was LeBron James stealing the show!

Larry Hughes and Eric Snow, who had combined to open the game with a 6-0 run, took a total of just five shots between them by the end of the first quarter. Five shots!

As for who took the most—LeBron James, a full eight shots. Eight for four, one for two from three, putting up 9 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 turnovers!

On paper, those stats looked fine, but it completely broke the team's rhythm.

Su Yi couldn't understand this guy at all. They had a perfect offensive flow going, and he had to come in and mess it up. The cake on the court was only so big, yet he insisted on eating it all himself, leaving only the soup for his teammates.

Teammates who only get soup have no energy to play the game; over time, they become malnourished. That's exactly why every time a star comes to the Cleveland Cavaliers, their stats plummet.

If it were Su Yi, he would have let Larry Hughes and Eric Snow continue their own offensive rhythm. As for Su Yi himself, he would focus more on defense.

"Su, get ready!"

Coach Mike Brown began rotating the lineup, and Su Yi was part of the rotation. But Su Yi didn't react, sitting motionless.

"Su, what are you thinking about? Coach called you!"

Backup guard Damon Jones quickly reminded Su Yi.

Su Yi snapped back to attention and looked at Coach Mike Brown. "Sorry, Coach!"

"Focus. If you zone out on the court, I'll pull you right away, understand?"

Coach Mike Brown warned him.

"Yes!"

Su Yi's smile was harder to suppress than an AK. He thought he wouldn't get any playing time for who knows how long after that fight. But here it was!

After a brief rest, both teams' substitutes took the court.

"Su Yi! Su Yi, go!"

When Xu Rui saw Su Yi, wearing the No. 24 Jersey, step onto the court, he couldn't help shouting.

Xu Rui remembered asking Su Yi why he chose the No. 24 Jersey. At the time, the No. 24 Jersey was very famous because Los Angeles Lakers superstar Kobe had switched jerseys, changing from the original No. 8 Jersey to the No. 24 Jersey.

This jersey change had sparked widespread speculation among media reporters and fans.

Some said it was a symbol of surpassing Michael Jordan. Michael Jordan's jersey number was 23, and Kobe choosing 24 might have been to express his respect for Jordan and his determination to surpass him.

Others said it was a birthday coincidence. Kobe's birthday was August 24, so choosing the No. 24 Jersey also had the meaning of commemorating his birthday.

As for Su Yi, the reason he chose 24 was very simple—24 is greater than 23!

As a LeBron Hater, how could he allow LeBron James to ride above him? Of course, he would pick a number bigger than his!

The funny thing was that his choice of 24 came much earlier than Kobe's change to 24, so no one thought Su Yi did it on purpose; they all assumed it was a coincidence.

"Su!" "Su!" "Su!"...

Su Yi's classmates and schoolmates all gave him a warm cheer. Although compared to the fans of his other teammates, his fan base was insignificant, it was enough for Su Yi.

Thank you, A Rui, and everyone!

"Su, nervous? First time on the court." Damon Jones patted Su Yi on the shoulder and comforted him, "Just play like you always do! Run to the open spot, and I'll get the ball to you."

As a point guard, he loved a shooter like Su Yi the most. You could say that as long as he passed the ball over, he'd basically get an assist. In team practice, Damon Jones averaged as many as ten assists per game. At least six or seven of those came from Su Yi's shots. So for Damon Jones, Su Yi was his best teammate. Even the team's star, LeBron James, couldn't match Su Yi's place in Damon Jones's heart.

(LeBron James: ???)

(LeBron James: Fire him! Fire him! He's gotta go!)

"Thanks, Damon. I'll do my best." Su Yi smiled and replied.

Beep beep.

With the sound of the whistle, the second quarter officially began. The Cleveland Cavaliers inbounded from the backcourt, the ball went to Damon Jones, and he dribbled it past half-court.

As soon as he crossed half-court, Su Yi on the wing started moving without the ball. He first cut along the baseline into the paint, where Anderson Varejao quickly set a screen for him. Using Varejao's screen, Su Yi made a sharp ninety-degree turn, cut through the middle, and popped out to the perimeter. The defender guarding Su Yi was completely blocked by Varejao, and the other Washington Wizards players didn't rotate in time, so they could only watch helplessly as Su Yi ran out to the three-point line.

The man arrived, and the ball arrived.

Damon Jones's eyes were sharp; he delivered the pass the moment it was needed.

Damon Jones: Assist! Assist!

Su Yi caught the ball cleanly, adjusted slightly, then quickly jumped, hung in the air, kicked his legs, and released the three-pointer! The ball traced a graceful arc through the air.

Swish.

The ball nestled firmly into the hoop's embrace.

Su Yi's three-pointer was good.

It was also Su Yi's first point in the NBA.

The score became 30 to 30.

The moment Su Yi stepped onto the court, he helped the team tie the game.

"Su!" "Su!" "Su!"... In the stands, Xu Rui led the alumni in wildly cheering for Su Yi's three-pointer. At the same time, scattered applause rang out in the Quicken Loans Arena. Many of the fans in attendance watched this handsome rookie and felt he wasn't bad at all. That three-pointer had half their skill in it!

In their subconscious as fans, they were better than the players on the court—they could do it too if they were out there!

(Su Yi: What are they even saying?)

"Su, nice shot."

Damon Jones immediately ran over to high-five Su Yi in celebration. Getting an assist so easily made Damon Jones look at Su Yi more and more—he found Su Yi's features delicate and attractive, tempting and delicious!

You see, Damon Jones was a journeyman in the NBA. In just eight seasons, he had already switched between nine NBA teams. The Cleveland Cavaliers were his tenth team. So Damon Jones had encountered a lot of players, but never one like Su Yi, who gave him such "help"!

Damon Jones believed that with Su Yi's "help," his assists would look fantastic, even surpassing his career-high average of 5.8 assists per game from his time with the Milwaukee Bucks two years prior!

"Damon, it was your pass that was just right!"

Su Yi returned the favor with some mutual flattery.

Then the two quickly retreated on defense, ready for the next defensive possession.