The Way of Basketball: Never Talk Shit to Him!

Paul Silas had made it very clear before announcing it: during the team's practice games, Su Wan was always on the same team as LeBron. Everyone knew that this was Silas training them to develop a rapport between them.

Except for McGinnis.

Right up until the starting lineup was announced, he still firmly believed he would be the starting two for the new season.

Because when Su Wan was matched against him, he didn't perform overwhelmingly better.

However, he overlooked one thing: the Cavaliers were indeed more stable than last season. But they were a team with many new players. Such a team often prioritizes the development of young players over results.

Su Wan certainly didn't outplay him.

But similarly, he couldn't outplay Su Wan either.

Their performances on the training court were tied.

And Su Wan? He was only 19 years and 121 days old.

What about him?

Born in '74, he was exactly 30 this year.

He would make a great "championship puzzle piece," but in front of the Cavaliers' management, his value was negligible compared to Su Wan's.

It was bad enough not being able to compare in value, but he also didn't have someone like Brandon Malone constantly whispering in Silas's ear, "Paul, I'll say it again, this kid can only display his talent with the ball in his hands. You must have seen his summer league highlight reel. He deserves the team running plays for him. This team now has not just one talented newcomer in LeBron James; the nephew is the same!"

"How we devise tactics for him, we can observe further, but one thing is certain, he must have enough playing time. Everyone's potential needs time to be realized."

Even Danny Ferri made a special trip to Paul Silas's office: "There's no one more suitable than him for the starting two this new season!"—Danny Ferri wanted to tell Su Wan, we can spend a season growing with LeBron James, and we can also spend a season growing with you. So even if McGinnis is more experienced, we still reserved the starting two position for you.

Su Wan had no idea there were so many undercurrents beneath his starting position. If he had known, he would surely have said, thank you, but please don't consider me like this in the future.

Because he...

Really didn't want to play with LeBron James!

After a few practice games, he had a detailed understanding of "Young James's" style of play, to put it bluntly in four words:

Hogging the ball.

Perhaps to help 18-year-old LeBron better adapt to the league, the only tactic the Cavaliers had at the time was to give the ball to LeBron and then play according to his directions.

The tactic was extremely simple: "LeBron with the ball, LeBron breakthrough, LeBron doesn't break through, LeBron passes, teammates shoot or LeBron passes and then immediately goes back to beyond the three-point line to demand the ball again, LeBron calls for a pick-and-roll or LeBron goes directly for a strong drive, over and over again."

The first three practice games were pretty much played in this style.

LeBron James, with the concentrated ball rights, played comfortably, and the results of the practice games were uniform: LeBron performed well, and the team sadly lost; LeBron performed well, and led the team to win.

With this style of play, the stage for other players to perform was really small.

And LeBron was a point guard, too.

He missed the shot, and when an inside player grabbed the rebound, he'd pass it to him first thing.

Su Wan had tried asking for it a few times. "Big Z" had snagged the rebound and occasionally tossed him a couple, but if someone else grabbed it, their first choice was definitely LeBron. Su Wan also tried asking LeBron for the ball, but all he got was to move according to LeBron's directions.

It was clear they didn't want to give him a chance to perform, so Su Wan decided not to. Anyway, he'd been playing all summer; missing a couple of practice games wouldn't make much difference.

What?

You ask if not cooperating with the team during practice games would affect team chemistry?

Ha~

With the way LeBron played, who needed chemistry!

Just quietly watch him show off, and then, when it's time for a loss, just wait for the "blame game."

No wonder they say teammates during "LeBron 1.0" were CBA.

How could it not be CBA!

Su Wan wasn't the type to sit idly by. He'd brought it up to Paul Silas, wanting to face off against LeBron James in team scrimmages. Paul Silas, either intimidated by what he perceived as Su Wan's ambition or thinking it better to avoid trouble, ultimately didn't agree and even said to him, "What you need to do now is work on building chemistry with LeBron. Aren't you two supposed to become the next Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen? Hahaha~"

Haha, my ass!

Silas's reaction confirmed one thing to Su Wan:

The guy was a steadfast "monarchist"! That is what underqualified head coaches do. They could only secure their position by pandering to the Absolute Core of the team. When the Cavaliers management felt the team's performance was lacking and decided to fire him, LeBron didn't speak up for him at all.

That's what happens when you back the wrong horse.

If the head coach route was a dead end, Su Wan had another path he could take.

His comments at the press conference caused quite a stir, especially when he said he and LeBron would become "another Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen," which sparked widespread speculation.

Barkley thought this: "I've finally seen someone with a bigger mouth than me. This rookie knows how to use hype to stay in the spotlight. He's doing exactly what fans all over the United States love, keeping himself in controversy. His rookie season will be incredibly eye-catching; I firmly believe that!"

Because that's exactly how the "Flying Pig" played.

And he knew the media environment in the United States all too well.

As expected, on the Cavaliers media day, apart from LeBron, Su Wan was the player with the most journalists around him. Even LeBron was asked by reporters for his opinion on the "next Michael Jordan and Pippen."

LeBron said confidently, "That's our goal, and I feel we're meshing well. We're sacrificing for each other, and it feels great."

While he was saying this, Su Wan quipped, "Neither Michael Jordan nor Scottie Pippen would ever be without the ball, right? Of course, it could also be an issue with my chemistry with LeBron."

Among the reporters interviewing Su Wan was Erin Andrews, who had interviewed him several times during the summer league. Thanks to her good media relationship with Su Wan, she had become ESPN's Cavaliers beat reporter for the new season.

She knew all this was closely tied to Su Wan and therefore was even more eager to establish a deeper cooperative relationship with him. Hearing Su Wan's words now, Erin sensed an opportunity.

Clearly, Su Wan was complaining about his lack of control over the ball.

If she could help Su Wan out at this moment, maybe she could gain even more trust from him.