Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters

(Thanks to the reader who pointed out the error in the previous chapter.)

Kwame Brown didn't have much of a temper, in fact, it could be said he didn't have one at all.

The respect that everyone showed him originated from Jordan.

On the second day of the training camp, Jordan and Brown entered the Wilmington Branch gym like an uncle and his nephew, chatting and laughing in close camaraderie.

Today, Jordan was dressed in sports gear and looked ready to train, but the ice pack clinging to his foot was still a source of concern.

Although Jordan had started to train, the intensity wasn't high, as he had taken the doctor's advice to lower the intensity and reduce the training time, taking occasional days off.

This was something an athlete who wanted to survive the long NBA season had to do.

Jordan had once tried to combat the pain with sheer willpower, but he quickly succumbed and had no choice but to accept reality.

Today, Jordan's mentor, Dean Smith, came to the Wilmington Branch.

Only in the presence of Smith did Jordan appear like a player willing to humbly take advice.

Brown strutted around the gym; his life was like a dream come true. Only on m v|le|mp|yr

"Frye, I heard you had a beef with Christian?" Brown said like an older brother, "Don't worry, leave it to me!"

Yu Fei smiled and nodded: "Thanks."

Then Brown walked over to Ratner. Fei was too far away to hear what was said, but he saw Brown talk at length before pointing at Fei. Ratner responded with his trademark fake smile, appearing to agree with Brown's point of view.

That was it, resolved? Fei couldn't believe Ratner would just follow Brown's lead completely.

But whether Fei believed it or not was immaterial, what mattered was that Brown believed it.

Brown returned to Fei's side, "Christian told me he's willing to turn the page. Frye, out of respect for me, you should do the same."

Was there an addiction to playing the big brother?

Fei had no choice but to say, "If he turns the page, I'll turn the page."

"That's the spirit, my brother!" Brown laughed heartily.

Having Jordan on the training field wasn't good news for the other people at the camp because, apart from scrimmages, the camp was entirely open to the media at all other times.

Apart from some who were crazy for fame, a normal player wouldn't want to be distracted by other things during training.

Fortunately, the media's focus was primarily on Jordan.

The media easily noticed the ice pack on Jordan's knee. "Michael, how's your foot?"

"No problem."

Jordan only responded once about his foot injury. Other reporters asked the same question later, but he ignored them. Interestingly, the reporters on site quickly sensed that this was a topic Jordan didn't want to discuss and, as if in unspoken agreement, they moved on to other questions.

Then, a reporter from The Washington Post asked Jordan what he thought about the players' level of effort on the team.

"Effort?" Jordan expressed appreciation for the question, "Yes, I place a lot of importance on that. Besides the love for the game, the most important thing is whether one puts in the effort on the training court. There's nothing better than being the first to enter the gym and the last to leave. I've seen young players doing it, but..."

Jordan's gaze drifted towards Brown who still hadn't joined the training. They got along well; Brown was a good kid but somewhat lacked boundaries. How to put it? He didn't have enough respect for himself, much like Fei, and that was not a good sign. If he wanted to lead the team, the youngsters had to have respect for themselves. Fei neither tried to ingratiate himself with him nor deliberately distance himself; everything he did was to prove that he could hold his own in the team through his own abilities. Fine, Jordan was willing to give him a chance to prove himself, while Brown's performance so far was disappointing.

At least for now, Brown had not shown extraordinary skills but placed himself at the position of a superstar. He was not putting in the effort or making sacrifices.

Jordan didn't like that, but he did not show it.

Because he still needed to maintain his image as a mentor and leader. However, if the foolishness of the youth breached his threshold, anything could happen.

"There are also some who have not done so," Jordan said, "I believe that sooner or later they will understand that spending a great deal of time on the training court to hone their abilities will help them control the game."

Fei would wager that Jordan expended more energy handling the media than he did working out on the training court, and yet such a person could preach about effort and dedication in front of reporters? What was the world coming to?

Grand speeches were hardly Doggett's style.

But some people... Fei noticed Brown's audacity; he was getting way over his head.

Thinking that Jordan's favor could make him a big shot on the team.

Even Jordan participated in some light training, but Brown still used back spasms as an excuse to skip the second day of the training camp.

If he really was injured, he shouldn't be running around on the court, let alone inviting Jordan to a basketball duel after hardly managing to get rid of the media.

What Brown didn't know was that the Jordan caring for him at that time, teaching him about attire and nutrition, taking him out to eat, and attending events with him wasn't the same man now. The current Jordan was annoyed, and Brown's several invitations made him decide to test the young man's capabilities.

When Jordan and Brown, these two privileged players, prepared for the one-on-one, everyone gathered around.

Yu Fei heard that the duel had been Brown's insistent request of Jordan, which made him sweat for the classmate who had been very friendly to him.

If this had been a live broadcast, Yu Fei would have sent this comment: Bring the power!

At first, Jordan probably didn't intend to teach Brown a harsh lesson, as he let Brown attack first with a smile.

As Brown made a one-handed ball-handling move, Jordan even teased, "Kwame, do you know the difference between you and me when you make that move?"

Brown looked at him, puzzled.

"When I make that move, Chicago gave me 30 million US Dollars."

It was a joke, and everyone laughed, especially Tyrone Nesby SF/PF on the sidelines, who nearly cried with laughter.

Yu Fei admitted that Jordan's joke made the corners of his mouth turn up, but was it that funny?

Brown also laughed, and they had to restart the game.

Then, Brown began performing high-school-level fancy dribbling in front of Jordan.

Jordan poked at the ball half-heartedly, merely as a test, but Brown took the deceptive defense seriously, thinking he caught a major flaw and sped forward, completely unprepared for Jordan to be knocked down hard to the floor by Brown's body.

And Brown, without any regard for Jordan on the ground, charged to the basket and dunked the ball.

By the time Brown landed, he was like a victor, telling Jordan, "Michael, you haven't played in years, let me teach you a few tricks."

Yu Fei wondered if Brown could smell the blood in the air.

Jordan's brown eyes were bloodshot as he entered an uncontrollable rage, with the pain from his tendinitis still troubling him, but being angry enough could make a human ignore pain.

He stood up and roared, "If you want to teach me how to do things, I'll fucking knock the shit out of you!"

Unfortunately for Brown, his honeymoon period with Jordan was over.

From that moment on, Brown's life switched from a fairy tale back to reality, as cruel as throwing a fresh Liu Tianxian into the set of "Evil Angel."

When Brown tried to attack again, Jordan flipped him over with a foul move and gained the offensive possession.

Brown opened his mouth to call a foul, but there were no referees here.

Jordan engaged Hannibal Mode, showing no mercy to his enemy.

He scored at will in front of Brown, taunting him with every basket.

The court was filled with insulting language, some of which, if said 20 years later, would have ruined Jordan's reputation instantly.

Yu Fei watched as the color drained from Brown's face until the very last ball, when Jordan made him stumble and charged under the basket to complete a two-handed slam dunk. He then grabbed Brown by the collar and bellowed, "From today on, you'd better call me Mr. Jordan, you arrogant mutt!"

That was the moment Kwame Brown's downfall began.

Jordan had established his dominance over him.

Everyone dispersed, leaving only Brown sitting there as if he had just lived through a nightmare.

Yu Fei observed Brown, whose eyes were dull, learning a profound lesson. The NBA was ruled by Jordan and the generation influenced by him; might makes right, and that's the game's rule. The young Brown thought the world would always revolve around him, but no matter where you are, it's only when you prove your strength that the world revolves around you, as Huang Bo said, when you're successful, you find yourself surrounded by good people.

Jordan could have made Brown a leader admired by all but to be scorned as a bust also took only one duel.

This was what Yu Fei had learned from this incident.

Brown's experience reaffirmed Yu Fei's conviction that not aligning with Jordan and entrenching his status as "one of Michael's guys" like Brown did was the most correct decision he made after being drafted by the Wizards.

He was chosen by Jordan based on his ability and potential, not needing to leverage Jordan's influence to gain stature—what others give, they can also take away.

You can only rely on yourself for everything.