Bird asked him, "Are you and Stephen Jackson on good terms? I’m very interested in him."

Anderson thumped his chest and said, "We’re really tight, been through the trenches together. There’s not much to do in Cleveland, so we’d often pool our money to... have some fun."

Larry Bird held up a hand, motioning for him to stop, cutting off Anderson’s detailed description. He knew Anderson was quite a character. He cut to the chase: "Tell him that if he doesn’t want to play for the Cavaliers anymore, he can come to us. We’ll give him a contract worthy of his talent."

Anderson slapped his hands together. "Damn, I shouldn’t have made such a scene. After all that fuss, the Cavaliers will never let a player go. Otherwise, wouldn’t that just confirm my accusations?"

"Just stay in touch with him. An opportunity will come up eventually. For now, you need to cooperate with Jack, do your job in the rotation, and take some of the pressure off him." Larry Bird told him, "He’s our leader now. Even Ron acknowledges it, so don’t pull any stunts. You really will get your ass kicked."

Bird was reminding the former troublemaker, Anderson.

At first, Anderson didn’t think much of it.

But when he showed up in the locker room again and went to greet Su Xi, he said, "Well, well, kid. I never thought I’d see the day..."

The words had barely left his mouth when he saw Tony Battie, who was in the seat next to Su Xi, shoot up menacingly and glare fiercely at him.

Tony Battie had a fierce look about him, a truly imposing presence. This was why, back when he and Pierce were both standing at a nightclub entrance, the attacker chose to stab Pierce 13 times in 35 seconds and didn’t dare lay a finger on Battie.

Anderson instinctively shut his mouth. The image of Tony Battie viciously stomping on Ben Wallace’s head at the Auburn Hills Palace was still vivid in his mind.

"Jack, from now on, if I do anything out of line on the court, you need to give me a heads-up," Kenny Anderson said humbly, patting Su Xi’s shoulder.

This left Reggie Miller, Little O’Neal, and the other players staring, completely dumbfounded.

’When did Kenny get so polite? What in the world happened to him in Cleveland? Is LeBron James really that much of a brutal locker-room tyrant?’

"We’ll learn from each other," Su Xi said with a smile.

The Pacers had just finished their game in Miami and, after a long flight, had arrived in Salt Lake City. Next, they were heading to Denver.

Salt Lake City was once a notoriously difficult place to play, and while it had fallen off a bit in recent years, the team had consistently held on to a playoff spot.

When Su Xi appeared on the court, he was met with a thunderous wave of boos.

The conservative Salt Lake City fans strongly disapproved of Su Xi’s love triangle, even though it had become a hot topic across America, with everyone wondering whether Scarlett or Jessica would ultimately win his heart.

This guessing game had even caught the attention of some betting sites, and talk shows were frantically using the trio as a ratings ploy.

The buzz surrounding the three of them soared to unprecedented heights.

Young people were paying even more attention to this than to the love triangle between Brad Pitt, Angelina, and Jennifer.

In a way, this national obsession, this "Real-Life Dating Game," caused the fame of all three to skyrocket. Sponsors and producers began to cash in, and their advertising fees shot through the roof.

But every gain comes with a loss.

For instance, Su Xi had now lost the adoration of Salt Lake City’s Demon Sect followers.

But then again, who cared?

In Miami, Su Xi had put up 15 points, 8 assists, 4 rebounds, 2 steals, and 1 block. Here in Salt Lake City, Coach Sloan had Arroyo and Raja Bell constantly hounding him, trying to disrupt his offensive rhythm.

Their combined defense had some effect, but it wasn’t significant.

Ever since Su Xi had upgraded his Super Strength talent to 97 against Ben Wallace, his drives from the perimeter had become virtually unstoppable. It was especially difficult to contain him with one-on-one defense.

In this game, Su Xi ran the Jazz’s star player, Kirilenko, ragged. Kirilenko was a player with an incredible ability to "fill up the stat sheet"—one of the few players in the league capable of recording a 5x5.

But Su Xi was as slippery as an eel, using his passing to manipulate Kirilenko’s defensive instincts. As a result, the Pacers’ wings exploded that night, with Artest and Miller each hitting four three-pointers.

The Jazz had lost any chance of winning before the fourth quarter even began.

After the game, Jazz legend Stockton commented, "Little Sheep Su Xi is a perfect fit for Coach Sloan’s system. He’s strong and great at attacking the rim, but he keeps a level head. His court vision and passing technique are just average, but he’s excellent at executing plays—decisive and resolute."

"That’s the kind of point guard Coach Sloan loves most."

Huh?

’Is that a compliment?’

Su Xi saw the news report from Salt Lake City while on the plane to Denver.

The Pacers had a dedicated "press officer" whose job was to collect sports news for the players. His duties were similar to those of Frank in LeBron James’s entourage.

In fact, Coach Sloan had also praised Su Xi at the post-game press conference, saying his impact went beyond the box score.

points, 15 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 steals, and 1 block.

’Are those stats bad?’

Su Xi furrowed his brow.

...

Cameron Anthony gave Su Xi a warm welcome in Denver, picking him up from the airport in an ostentatious Hummer.

They were very good friends, and to Su Xi’s surprise... McNamara was in the car too.

"This is my surprise for you," Anthony said proudly.

The three of them had been close in college. Back then, Anthony and McNamara would often get comically jealous, competing over who would get to play one-on-one against Su Xi.

Back then, they probably never dreamed that Su Xi would one day be an NBA player.