Smack.
Tyson Chandler got to the ball first, tipping it back to his own end. The New Orleans Hornets had the first possession of the game.
Chris Paul picked up the ball and quickly dribbled across half court.
As soon as he crossed, Chris Paul passed to Devin Brown on the left wing.
The moment Devin Brown caught the ball, Su Yi rushed up and put some defensive pressure on him.
At 198 centimeters tall, weighing 101 kilograms, with a 221-centimeter wingspan, Su Yi instantly loomed in front of Devin Brown like a mountain.
Devin Brown instinctively used his body to shield the ball, then immediately passed it back to Chris Paul at the top of the arc.
As soon as Chris Paul got the ball, David West hurried out from the paint to set a screen for him.
Larry Hughes reacted quickly, immediately slipping around David West and rushing toward Chris Paul.
In just a few strides, he caught up to him.
Seeing this, Chris Paul tried to pass the ball back to David West, who was still in place after setting the screen.
The next second, Chris Paul glanced toward Peja Stojakovic on the perimeter. With a flick of his wrist, he sent the ball to Peja Stojakovic in the corner.
The ball landed securely in Peja Stojakovic's hands.
Peja Stojakovic made a slight adjustment, brought his feet together, bent his knees, then sprang into the air. At the peak of his jump, he released the ball.
It was a textbook shooting form.
The ball traced a beautiful arc through the air.
Swish.
It dropped cleanly through the hoop.
A three-pointer.
Peja Stojakovic opened the scoring for his team.
Where was the defender?
What the hell!
Su Yi couldn't help cursing inwardly.
Then he quickly looked up at the replay on the big screen.
He saw that LeBron James had actually dropped back.
Weren't Drew Gooden and Big Z already in the paint?
Why were you dropping back?
Who told you to drop back?
Su Yi was utterly speechless.
How had this guy made five All-NBA First Teams in his previous life?
No wonder people had said that almost all of his accolades were tainted.
His Rookie of the Year award was especially questionable. Carmelo Anthony had unquestionably been the best rookie of the 2003–04 season.
Carmelo Anthony averaged a scorching 21 points, 6.1 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.2 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game, leading the Denver Nuggets—who had finished last in the Western Conference the previous season with just 17 wins—to a 43–39 record and a playoff berth.
And that was in the Western Conference. The competition was fierce.
A team with a .500 record couldn't even make the playoffs in the West.
In the 2003–04 season, the ninth-place Utah Jazz went 42–40, with a 51.2% winning percentage; the tenth-place Portland Trail Blazers went 41–41, with a 50% winning percentage!
By comparison, the sixth-place Milwaukee Bucks in the East had only gone 41–41, also with a 50% winning percentage!
Sixth in the East equaled tenth in the West!
That showed just how impressive it was to lead the West's worst team to eighth place.
And what about Rookie of the Year LeBron James?
He averaged 20.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 1.6 steals, and 0.7 blocks per game, leading the Cleveland Cavaliers, who had also finished last in the East the previous season with just 17 wins, to a mere 35–47 record and a winning percentage of only 42.7%!
Their stats were about the same, and his team's record was worse, yet LeBron still managed to snatch Rookie of the Year from Carmelo Anthony.
LeBron was amazing.
It had made Carmelo Anthony furious. Even after retiring in his previous life, he still couldn't let it go!
And Rookie of the Year wasn't the only questionable accolade. His MVPs, FMVPs, and championships were all tainted.
LeBron James had won four MVPs. His first one, during his first stint in Cleveland, was understandable. His stats and his team's record spoke for themselves; giving it to him was fair enough!
But the two MVPs he won with the Miami Heat had practically been handed to him.
The Miami Heat had formed a superteam. What right did they have to compete for the award? Wasn't it only natural that they had a good record and good stats?
Just look at the Warriors dynasty in his previous life. Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant couldn't even crack the top five in MVP voting!
The funniest part was that his stats and record were both worse than his rival's that season.
Take the lockout-shortened 2011–12 season. LeBron James averaged 27.1 points, 7.9 rebounds, 6.2 assists, 1.9 steals, and 0.8 blocks per game, leading the Miami Heat to a 46–20 record.
Kevin Durant averaged 28 points, 8 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.3 steals, and 1.2 blocks per game, leading the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 47–19 record.
With their stats about even, Durant had the better record—and LeBron was playing on a superteam. What right did he have to win MVP?
The FMVPs were pretty ridiculous too. Every time LeBron James's team won the championship, he got every single vote for Finals MVP.
Wasn't that ridiculous?
If every team's star had won unanimously when their team took the title, that would have made sense.
But that wasn't what happened!
Even Leonard, who led the Toronto Raptors to the championship in 2019 in his previous life, hadn't won FMVP unanimously.
Su Yi shook his head, put it out of his mind, and refocused on the game. Then he quickly ran upcourt.
The Cleveland Cavaliers inbounded from the backcourt and passed the ball to Larry Hughes, who quickly dribbled across half court.
As soon as he crossed, Su Yi started moving.
Devin Brown stayed close behind him, glued to his side.
Seeing this, Larry Hughes made a signal. Drew Gooden quickly came out from the paint to set a screen for him.
Drew Gooden's massive frame planted itself firmly in Chris Paul's way.
A good opportunity!
Larry Hughes took advantage of the screen to shake Chris Paul and drive into the New Orleans Hornets' paint.
As he drove in, David West immediately stepped over to help.
At the same time, Peja Stojakovic abandoned LeBron James and dropped back to help defend Larry Hughes.
"Larry, the ball!"
LeBron James immediately put out his hand, calling for it.
With LeBron wide open, Larry Hughes had every reason to pass. He flicked his wrist and sent the ball to LeBron, who was completely unguarded.
LeBron James caught the ball, adjusted, then jumped and hung in the air before releasing it with a shot that was painful to watch.
Seeing LeBron shoot, Peja Stojakovic had no intention of closing out.
He'd already heard plenty about this star, whom the media hyped up far too much, and had even faced him a few times before.
It turned out the guy looked better than he played.
His scoring came almost entirely from driving to the basket. As for his outside shot, he'd hovered around 30 percent over his first three seasons.
So Peja Stojakovic was happy to let him shoot.
Clang!
Hearing the shot hit the rim, Peja Stojakovic couldn't help smiling.
Under the hoop, Tyson Chandler leaped high and grabbed the rebound.
Then he quickly passed the ball to Chris Paul.
Chris Paul pushed the ball upcourt at a blistering pace.
Seeing this, Larry Hughes rushed toward him, hoping to slow him down and give his team time to get back on defense.
But he gave Chris Paul exactly the chance he needed!
Chris Paul dribbled behind his back and blew past Larry Hughes like a gust of wind.
Then he accelerated all the way, driving through the Cleveland Cavaliers' defense as if no one were there. He leaped, gently flicked the ball with his fingertips in midair, and watched it drop cleanly through the hoop.
Chris Paul scored on the layup.
The score was 5–0!
The New Orleans Hornets had gotten off to a great start.
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