After leaving the Pistons, Rick Carlisle was enjoying a new era of success and was considered highly likely to win Coach of the Year. Now, he had become the head coach of the Eastern Conference Team.

Little O’Neal was selected as the starting power forward.

Five days after voting closed, Ron Artest was named to the All-Star reserve roster.

And with that, the full All-Star rosters were officially announced.

The Eastern Conference Team’s starting lineup was: Su Xi, Iverson, Carter, Little O’Neal, and Ben Wallace. The reserves were: Tracy McGrady, Jason Kidd, Baron Davis, Michael Redd, Paul Pierce, Ron Artest, and Kenyon Martin.

The Western Conference Team’s starting lineup was: Francis, Kobe, Garnett, Duncan, and Yao Ming. The reserves were: Ray Allen, Sam Cassell, Andre Kirilenko, Dirk Nowitzki, Peja Stojakovic, Brad Miller, and Shaquille O’Neal. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Both rosters were stacked, overflowing with talent.

Every year after the final All-Star rosters were announced, there were always plenty of star players who came forward to complain, "Why wasn’t I picked?"

Being named an All-Star is a massive honor. The difference on a player’s resume is enormous, and many players would do anything to make the team.

Making the All-Star team wasn’t just a recognition of skill and influence. It also brought tangible benefits to the players: they could command a higher salary during contract renewals and secure better endorsement deals.

With two players from China, Su Xi and Yao Ming, taking starting spots in the East and West respectively, many players took aim at them—some with passive-aggressive jabs, others with outright criticism.

Among them, Phoenix Suns forward Stoudemire was the most vehement.

"The All-Star selection has become a joke. It’s not about skill anymore. One guy gets in because of a female celebrity, the other because China has a lot of people. What right do they have to be starters? If they had any respect for the game, they’d give their spots to me."

"I was the 2002 Rookie of the Year, and my stats this year are better than both of theirs. So why didn’t I get selected?"

"I’ll prove it to the whole world at the Rookie Challenge."

Amare Stoudemire said with absolute conviction, "I’m going to focus all my energy on destroying Little Sheep Su Xi."

While others were being passive-aggressive, Stoudemire had thrown all civility out the window. By declaring he was going to teach Su Xi a lesson in the Rookie Challenge, the tension became palpable.

For this year’s Rookie Challenge, the rookie team roster was: Su Xi, James, Antonio, Wade, Bosh, Syracuse, Kaman, Josh Howard, and Haslem.

The sophomore roster was: Boozer, Deng Liwei, Ginobili, Jalric, Nene, Murray, Prince, Stoudemire, and Yao Ming.

These teams were also stacked, bursting with talent.

Interestingly, Su Xi was the only player on the rookie team to be named an All-Star, while Yao Ming was the only one from the sophomore team. This meant they both had to play two games during All-Star Weekend.

After helping the Pacers beat the Bucks at home, Su Xi boarded a flight to Los Angeles with Fraser Jones, Ron Artest, Reggie Miller, Little O’Neal, and Rick Carlisle.

This season, the Pacers had more All-Stars than ever before in franchise history, and their fans felt it was the year they were closest to their championship dream.

So, on the flight to Los Angeles, Reggie Miller kept repeating to Su Xi, "Jack, just go have fun at the All-Star Game. Even if other guys provoke you, there’s no need to get into it with them on the court. It would be terrible if you got hurt."

Miller didn’t want any unnecessary complications.

For him, this golden opportunity had been hard-won; he’d waited years for a moment like this.

As the team grew stronger and the playoffs drew nearer, Miller’s hunger for a championship reached an all-time high.

But he didn’t know that Su Xi was even more desperate for that championship.

...

Su Xi was given the cold shoulder in the locker room.

When he entered the Rookie Challenge locker room to change for a promotional photoshoot, Howard, Bosh, Syracuse, Kaman, Haslem, and James were all there. None of them spoke to Su Xi. It was as if he was invisible.

The smile on Su Xi’s face vanished. He walked over to his locker and changed into his uniform and sneakers.

A moment later, Antonio walked in.

He was a social butterfly and got along well with everyone, even Syracuse.

After saying hi to James, he walked over to Su Xi. "Hey, Jack! I never dreamed you’d become an All-Star before I did. That’s amazing, man. I’m proud of you. You’re the pride of our whole ’03 draft class."

Antonio said loudly.

But no one else responded.

Antonio glanced aside. "Hey, LeBron. We should go out tonight."

James paused for a second, then said, "Nah, Melo. I’ve got a sponsor event. You know how it is. I’m swamped during All-Star Weekend."

Just then, Mike O’Connor walked in.

He had an air of superiority, scanning the room arrogantly before walking up to Su Xi. "Boss, you need to hurry up and finish this little rookie photoshoot. We’ve still got eight commercials to shoot today, three press conferences, and two good-luck videos to record for some local L.A. businesses. Don’t waste your time here. We’re talking hundreds of thousands of USD a minute."

O’Connor’s voice wasn’t loud, but it echoed through the locker room, clear for everyone to hear.

Antonio saw James’s jaw clench and heard the sound of his teeth grinding together.