Su Xi laughed loudly. He didn’t bother arguing a point that could never be settled with words.

The game would have to be played to find out.

Then the two went their separate ways.

Before Game 2 of the Finals, the media published a photo of Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal barbecuing together at a farm in Indiana, both of them all smiles.

Both Lakers fans and the sports media were delighted by the sight.

They all knew very well that for the Lakers to win, the OK Combination had to be in perfect harmony.

Thus, pre-game training could never compare to post-game team-building.

If the problems with the OK Combination were resolved, the Lakers’ chances of taking out the Pacers would increase dramatically.

Although the Pacers had a strong overall roster packed with elite players, they lacked a true centerpiece. Su Xi had not yet reached the level of a superstar.

The playoffs and the Finals are, without a doubt, a superstar’s stage.

This was an immutable law of the NBA.

No one had ever managed to break this ironclad rule.

Su Xi read about this ironclad rule in a sports weekly and couldn’t help but ask Artest, who was beside him, "Just because it’s always been this way, does that make it right?"

Artest was practically a simpleton. He couldn’t offer anyone any emotional support.

He scratched the back of his head and said, "I don’t know. My teacher never taught me that."

"But you’re right. I’m with you."

Artest had a blind faith in Su Xi. If someone told him Su Xi had disproven Newton’s laws, he would stand up and vehemently support it, immediately launching into a tirade: "Who the hell is Newton? How good is his defense? You think he can hang with our Jack?"

Sometimes, Su Xi almost wished Artest would go back to his old, defiant self.

Unlike now, where aside from running his mouth to the media, he spent all his free time chasing his musical dream. He’d even announced he was going to spend a million USD that summer to produce a rap album for the ages.

Su Xi expressed his respect and offered his best wishes, even saying he’d buy a copy for his collection.

That’s right, for his collection. ’There’s no way I’m ever actually going to listen to it.’

Artest’s rapping was probably ninety percent worse than Shaquille O’Neal’s free-throw shooting. For an amateur basketball player, O’Neal’s free-throw percentage was actually pretty decent. But Artest’s rapping was leagues below even a casual hobbyist.

He truly had no talent.

He just had money.

Before the start of Game 2, Artest played a battle anthem he’d written for the Finals in the locker room.

He even danced and shouted along to it himself.

He was pumped up, filled with a soaring fighting spirit.

Finally, Carlisle spoke for the whole team: "That was great. Never sing again."

Thankfully, this little pre-game interlude didn’t affect the players’ fighting spirit.

The game arrived as scheduled.

It was once again at Conseco Fieldhouse, the Pacers’ home court.

For this game, Su Xi returned to the point guard position, and Reggie Miller was back in the starting lineup. The Pacers made no other changes to their lineup.

The Lakers, on the other hand, stuck with their previous starting lineup.

Foster beat O’Neal on the opening tip-off.

Su Xi immediately pushed the ball, driving to the free-throw line and passing to Artest.

At the same time, he quickly flared back out to the perimeter, setting a cross screen with Reggie Miller. The Lakers’ perimeter defense was thrown into disarray... The ball came back to Su Xi, he took the shot... and drained the three.

It was a beautiful play on the perimeter. With Su Xi seemingly having acquired Reggie Miller’s off-ball movement and catch-and-shoot talent, he was like a tiger that had grown wings. The layers of the Pacers’ perimeter offense had become impossibly complex.

On the other end,

Gary Payton passed to Kobe. After a moment of isolation, Kobe fed the ball to the Shark, who had posted up inside.

The play was highly symbolic.

It signified that the OK connection was re-established.

However, the Pacers opted to foul.

O’Neal bulldozed Foster, turned, and was about to throw down a monster dunk when Su Xi swooped in, seemingly out of nowhere, and pulled him down, ball and all.

O’Neal wasn’t fully prepared, and besides, his explosiveness truly wasn’t what it was in his prime.

O’Neal stepped up to the free-throw line.

He missed both shots.

Back on offense, the Pacers ran the same play. This time, however, Su Xi passed the ball to Little O’Neal at the high post, then moved around the wing, again setting a cross screen with Reggie Miller.

But this time, he and Artest directly closed the door... trapping Devin George.

Reggie Miller caught the ball and released... SWISH!

Another one went in.

Who would have thought the Pacers would run an elevator doors play?

For Reggie Miller, the best active shooter in the league, making that kind of shot was as easy as breathing.

The Lakers were at a loss. Even with elite defenders like Gary Payton and Kobe Bryant, their rotations couldn’t keep up.

People couldn’t help but recall Su Xi’s scathing words for Phil Jackson after the previous game.

"Could it really be Phil Jackson’s fault?"

Kenny Smith couldn’t help but ask on the broadcast.

Phil Jackson, however, sitting on the bench, had no such doubts about himself. He even let out a casual whistle.

He loved putting on this kind of pretentious act.

It made him feel like a master strategist, controlling the battle from afar and securing victory.

But just as he finished whistling, Su Xi stole the ball from Carl Malone.

Hounded by Artest, Kobe had tried to make an outlet pass to Carl Malone.

But as soon as Malone received the ball, he decided to go one-on-one against Little O’Neal, who looked like a mere child in his eyes.

Just as he was using his bulk to muscle his way in, Su Xi shot out from the side. In a move devoid of all sportsmanship, he reached down and cleanly poked the ball away from between Malone’s legs.

Scottie Pippen was serving as a special guest commentator for TNT. Pippen had a long, mournful face, as if burdened by some deep-seated grudge. He wasn’t a particularly eloquent speaker and often stumbled over his words on television. That’s why he’d never landed a high-paying analyst job like Charles Barkley.