Artest saw Bill Simmons barking again and was very angry, "I really want to twist his head off!"
For the first time, Su Wan didn’t stop Artest from thinking about using violence to solve the problem. If Artest really killed Bill Simmons, he would visit him in prison and bring him a pleasant CD.
Mainly because Bill Simmons was really annoying.
He specifically wrote articles smearing Huaxia players to attract attention.
Previously, he had repeatedly claimed that Yao didn’t deserve the No.1 Pick. Now, it seemed he had set his sights on him.
"Uncle, is that feasible?" After venting his anger, Artest looked worried.
Su Wan chuckled in irritation.
"Ron, do you think the Spurs can limit me?"
Artest didn’t speak, but his evasive eyes said it all:
Yes, uncle, I think the Spurs can limit you!
It wasn’t surprising he thought this way.
The Spurs really had a way of dealing with players who were poor shooters but good at breakthroughs.
Su Wan didn’t say much, took Artest to a temporary gym, and then in front of him, made various mid-range jump shots with a high hit rate—he shot 20 times and missed only three or four. And that was without Su Wan warming up.
Artest was stunned, "When did your shooting become so accurate?"
Su Wan waved it off lightly, "For a genius like me, it’s natural!" — the zone value he had gained in the past few games had been continuously poured into his "shooting," and now his "shooting" Potential Value had reached an impressive 90.
Plus, he had been practicing mid-range shooting for a month and a half, and now his mid-range score had reached 68.
It was only two points shy of the league’s starting standard.
It wouldn’t become a trump card, but it certainly couldn’t be called his weakness anymore.
"Buddy, it looks like the Spurs are going to suffer because of you tomorrow!" Artest could already imagine Su Wan forcing Popovich to call a timeout with his mid-range game.
After speaking, he prepared to leave but was stopped by Su Wan.
"What?" Artest was confused again. Could it be that Su Wan had some new technique to show?
Su Wan said, "Don’t zone out, Rick didn’t schedule a practice today, but we can’t stop our bullfighting!"
"..." Artest suddenly really wanted to ask something, "Bro, are you a masochist?"
Every time Su Wan got battered and bruised by him, but afterward, he would still continue to seek him out for bullfighting. He admitted the training was effective, recently Su Wan’s personal ball-handling skills had been improving, but this progression seemed too excruciating, right?
If roles were reversed, he definitely couldn’t endure like Su Wan.
That was basically masochism!
Su Wan smiled slightly, "If I want to prove myself sooner, then this pain is necessary!"
The next day, before the pivotal game between the Pacers and the Spurs had even begun, the Pacers received some unexpectedly good news:
The League had issued a notice, lifting the remaining suspension games of Stephen Jackson. In the upcoming game against the Spurs, he could return to the court.
This news came as a surprise to everyone.
Rick Carlisle disclosed the inside story to everyone.
It turned out that recently, there had been a growing voice in Indiana decrying the unfair treatment of Artest. The comments made by Su Wan after the "Christmas Battle" had also sparked significant debate and influence was growing. The media supporting the Pacers was increasing, and to prevent further escalation, the League finally decided to lift the remaining suspension on Stephen Jackson.
"But unfortunately, Ron will still not return until next season," Rick Carlisle said with a tone of regret.
Artest was somewhat disheartened when he heard this news.
These days, he had also been keeping an eye on the public sentiment, seeing many Indiana fans speaking out for him. He had actually fantasized about returning this season, but in the end, no miracle occurred.
Su Wan looked at Artest’s clenched fists and patted his shoulder, "At least Stephen can return ahead of time."
This was indeed good news.
His reminder made Artest quickly stand up to congratulate Stephen Jackson, "Buddy, congratulations!"
Jackson didn’t say a word, but from his expression, it was obvious he was very happy.
This news soon spread across the League, causing discontent among the Detroit media. They believed that the League was too biased towards the Pacers. The Indiana media was not meek either and immediately hit back using Su Wan’s words:
"The instigators got off without a scratch while those in self-defense suffer severe punishment; who exactly is being favored here?"
This "war of words" deepened the enmity between the two sides.
That night, Rick Carlisle did not hesitate to put the newly reinstated Stephen Jackson into the starting lineup.
The starting lineup for the Pacers that night was: "Point Guard Tinsley, two Stephen Jackson, small forward Su Wan, power forward Jermaine O’Neal, center Fotis;"
This would likely be the final version of the Pacers’ starting lineup for the season.
The starting lineup for the Spurs that night was: "Point Guard Tony Parker, two Manu Ginobili, small forward Bruce Bowen, power forward Tim Duncan, center Rasul Nestorovic;"
In terms of lineup, the Pacers and the Spurs were quite similar.
Both point guards relied on breakthroughs to tear apart the lineup. They possessed individual offensive abilities greater than organizational abilities, not the traditional point guard. The two guards were in a state of "if anyone blocks, kill them; if the Buddha blocks, kill the Buddha." The small forwards secured their spots in the league with their defense and three-point shooting. The power forwards were the cores of both attack and defense for the teams. The centers were hefty dominators of the inside...
Of course, such similarity was not surprising, as Rick Carlisle himself was a huge admirer of Popovich. He had admitted more than once that the coach he admired the most was Popovich, from whom he had learned a lot.
Today, before the game, Popovich had again highly praised Su Wan, considering him the only choice for the Rookie of the Year in ’04: "He really is an outstanding rookie!"
This prompted Rick Carlisle to ask during the handshake, "Greg, what tactics have you prepared for Uncle?"
Popovich just smiled slightly and did not say much.
All Rick Carlisle could do before Su Wan took to the court was tell him, "Uncle, be alert for changes in their defense."
Su Wan wasn’t nervous; before the game, he had specifically studied the Spurs’ perimeter:
Tony Parker, whether in man-to-man defense or help defense, was unlikely to pose any threat to him.
Manu Ginobili was a "Fake Fall King," and as long as he was wary about his sudden steals, handling Ginobili became a matter of containing his defense, which made Ginobili a better player.
What Su Wan really needed to watch out for was...
Bruce Bowen!
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