Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters

However, looking at him now, he had calmed down.

But Huai Qi felt that letting a modern Elvin Hayes calm down was not a better idea than making him emotional.

Jordan played the entire second quarter, leading the Wizards to end the first half 50-43.

Then, as expected, he started the second half.

Both Pierce and Walker were off their game, and Jordan scored 7 points in the quarter. This should have been the key period for the Wizards to take away the Celtics, but rookie Joe Johnson bravely stepped up to respond to Jordan, keeping the game suspenseful.

In the last three minutes of the third quarter, Yu Fei returned to the game.

Knowing he would only play for these three minutes, he couldn't afford to waste a second.

In the final three minutes, Yu Fei was completely ball-dominant, controlling the ball throughout, first hitting a three-pointer, then a two-pointer, but unfortunately, all the 'cakes' he fed to his teammates were spat back out.

At the end of the third quarter, Yu Fei scored 9 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 assists in 6 minutes 02 seconds, and the Wizards entered the final quarter with a 9-point lead.

In the fourth quarter, Collins indeed substituted Jordan for Yu Fei.

Yu Fei put on his warm-up suit to avoid catching cold. Explore more stories with m,v l'e-NovelBin.net

Although he only played for 6 minutes, he managed to get a decent 9+2+2 stat line, and his plus/minus value was positive. Although they were likely going to win tonight, if by chance they lost, it would be the team's loss, not his.

At the start of the final quarter, both sides struggled with their shooting, trading misses, but from the seventh minute onwards, Pierce actively took on the challenge of guarding Jordan, bringing the atmosphere of the game to a climax.

But Pierce overestimated his defense. In the face of Pierce, Jordan scored with two jump shots.

It was just that Antoine Walker's responsible solo performance came a bit unexpectedly.

It was assumed that Jordan's 10 points in the final quarter would secure the victory, but Walker's 18 points that quarter allowed the Celtics to turn defeat into victory in the last 3 minutes of the game.

Then, Pierce, who had been mostly stifled by Jordan in the second half, redeemed himself with a three-pointer that widened the lead.

Jordan, who had rested for only 6 minutes from the start of the game, began to feel fatigued.

Once the old guy got tired, he would make mistakes.

Jordan's layup missed under the basket, and although he grabbed the offensive rebound, he traveled, then on the way back, the Celtics completed a 2+1 counterattack. The Wizards were behind by 5 points.

Again, it was Jordan, facing Pierce, going strong on a fadeaway but getting blocked.

Pierce followed up with a fast-break, extending the Celtics' lead to 7 points.

This play effectively killed any suspense left in the game.

The Wizards didn't have a sharp three-point shooter, Jordan was tired, Ratner, who had the second-highest score on the team, could only play well when they had the wind at their backs, and no one else could step up.

In the final minute, the Wizards desperately launched three-pointers, but none went in.

Yu Fei silently awaited defeat. With 40 seconds to go before the game ended, Collins glanced at Yu Fei to see if he wanted to play a few more seconds, but Yu Fei, in his warm-up suit, made his attitude clear.

During the free throws, Jordan had completely relaxed, with the Wizards' loss imminent, yet he was leisurely chatting with Referee Nolan Fine, showing that they knew each other and had a good relationship. Fine even cracked a joke, letting the national audience witness an unusual scene.

Jordan, about to lose the game, actually smiled, directly reflecting his good mood.

How could his mood not be good? Although the team lost, he won his duel with Pierce. Pierce's final game-winning block could only circulate in the Boston area, but the story of Jordan thoroughly defeating Pierce in their showdown could be spread around the world.

The final score was 109 to 99, The Celtics successfully defended their home court, causing the Wizards to suffer a two-game losing streak.

Post-game Interview

"I just saw through his trick." —— Pierce on his key block against Jordan.

"Paul is strong, Paul is really strong, no matter what Michael brings to him, Paul will face it bravely. Michael might score on him, but Paul will respond, Paul will go right at him, smothering him. Once Paul gets used to his tricks, he will perform even better. I love Michael. But this is not the young Michael anymore. I don't know if Michael can accept that result. In any case, we won." —— Walker on the game and the matchup between Pierce and Jordan.

"This is the best game Michael has played so far, you know? He's going to keep getting better and better, his performance has no limits." —— Collins on Jordan's performance.

"I know you want to see Frye play longer, but he's a rookie, still learning how to play more minutes, we have a plan for him." —— Collins on Yu Fei's playing time.

"Frye, did you lose tonight?"

"You know my answer."

"You scored 9 points in 6 minutes, what do you think stopped you from playing longer?"

"I don't know, if you want me to answer that question, I'd say I have the stamina to play 40 minutes, but it's not up to me. I want to play more too, I want to help the team win, but I can't do that in just 6 minutes."

Jordan might be one of the only two people in the Wizards team who doesn't think they lost. He told the media, "I played well. I found my rhythm in the third and fourth quarters, and my legs felt a lot better." Then he talked about his defense on Pierce, "I just tried not to let him get the ball, I didn't want him to have any rhythm, and indeed he didn't keep the rhythm."

You might think Jordan was just talking about this game, but in fact, he subtly announced his own victory.

Afterward, Jordan's old friend Dick Stockton showed up, a member of the media, seasoned, serious, and amicable, hoping to get the latest scoop on and off the court from Jordan.

"I have something to show you."

Jordan reached into his locker, took out a tin from his suit pocket, opened it, and pulled out two cigars.

Stockton's face lit up. "Nice. Where did you get these?"

"Cuba."

The word seemed to hover in the air but didn't land.

Stockton chuckled: "That's why you came back, Michael. Can we do a quick interview?"

"You can ask a few questions." Jordan answered amiably.

"How are you feeling?" Stockton didn't know if he was inquiring about Jordan's current state or his joints. "How are you feeling —"

"I'm very satisfied with myself."

"Of course, I can tell. "

"In these last moments, I want to be happy, content, always."

"What about Pierce?"

"Good player, but..."

"But what?"

"How's your golf game, Dick?"