svetikya Chapter 26 Don't Try to Break a Rose with Thorns
Chapter 26 Don't Try to Break a Rose with Thorns
2008年12月8日，晚8:00。
Madison Square Garden, New York.
Knicks vs. Chicago Bulls.
This is a civil war in Memphis, a clash between two extreme talents.
From the start of the game, Derrick Rose demonstrated why he was the number one draft pick.
He desperately wanted to prove himself to Li Xiangbei. The man who pulled him back from the brink of defeat on the night of the NCAA finals was both his benefactor and the mountain he now had to climb.
The Bulls are on offense.
Rose has the ball at the top of the arc, facing Li Xiangbei's defense.
Without any fancy probing steps, Rose simply lowered his center of gravity and started moving instantly.
That explosive power was simply unreasonable. It was like a supercar that was originally stationary suddenly accelerating to 200 miles per hour in a second.
"Whoosh!"
Li Xiangbei only felt a gust of wind pass by him. Even with the system's enhancement to his lateral movement speed, he was still half a beat slower than Ross, who possessed such absolute talent.
Rose drove into the paint, and facing David Lee who was helping on defense, he twisted his body in mid-air like origami to avoid the block, and then used his extremely soft touch to hook the ball into the basket from the other side of the backboard.
"brush!"
2:0.
After scoring, Rose didn't silently retreat to defend as usual. He turned his head, glanced at Li Xiangbei, and his eyes flashed with a stubborn light.
"Lee," Ross's voice was low but clear, "I've become stronger too."
Li Xiangbei looked at the familiar yet unfamiliar boy in front of him.
His gaze shifted downwards, landing on Ross's knees, which were planted firmly on the floor as he landed.
That's a landing method that relies entirely on ligaments and menisci to absorb the impact. A young body might be able to withstand it, but what about later?
Li Xiangbei frowned.
"That idiot," he cursed inwardly, "does he really think his knees are made of iron?"
……
There are 5 minutes left in the third quarter.
The game had become incredibly intense. Rose was playing with a vengeance, repeatedly launching himself into the air and attacking the Knicks' paint in a near-self-destructive manner.
He was like a thorny rose blooming wildly in a storm, beautiful yet dangerous.
The Bulls launched a counterattack.
Rose receives the ball and sprints at full speed. Only the Knicks' center, Jerome James, is in his path.
Rose didn't slow down. He took off from inside the free-throw line, raised the basketball high with his right hand, and prepared to make a dunk over someone that could be selected as one of the top ten plays!
"Don't even think about it!"
A dark figure suddenly appeared from the side.
It's Li Xiangbei!
He sprinted back to defend, and jumped up the instant Rose jumped.
But he didn't try to block the shot because Rose jumped too high.
Li Xiangbei chose direct confrontation.
[Steel Body: Hardened.]
"Bang!"
The two collided violently in mid-air.
Although Ross possessed astonishing explosive power, he was still no match for Li Xiangbei, who had the system's enhancement, in a direct confrontation of core strength. He lost his balance and fell backward.
It looked like he was about to fall backwards onto the floor.
In that very instant.
Although Li Xiangbei still had a fierce expression on his face, his right hand subtly grabbed Rose's jersey and pulled it up sharply.
This dissipation of force turned what could have been a potentially injured fall into a slide where Rose landed on his bottom.
Ross sat on the floor, stunned for a moment. He felt the pull.
Li Xiangbei landed and looked down at Ross from his vantage point.
"Want to dunk over me?"
Li Xiangbei pointed to the floor.
"Don't they know whose territory this is? And..."
He bent down and said in a voice that only the two of them could hear:
"Land with your knees bent. Do you want Coach Calipari to cry for you again? If your knees are ruined, I'll have no rivals."
Ross looked at Li Xiangbei, a warm feeling welling up in his heart, but he remained stubborn.
"I'm not that fragile, Lee."
Ross got up and dusted himself off.
"Next time, I'll deduct it."
……
The final 40 seconds of the fourth quarter.
Knicks 98 : 98 Bulls
The entire audience stood up. The air seemed to freeze.
Knicks ball.
D'Antoni didn't call a timeout; he handed the stage over to Li Xiangbei.
Li Xiangbei dribbled the ball at the top of the arc, signaling for the entire court to spread out.
Standing opposite him was Derrick Rose.
This is a fateful showdown.
Looking into Ross's focused eyes, Li Xiangbei felt as if he had returned to that night a few months ago.
"Derek."
Li Xiangbei suddenly spoke while dribbling the ball.
"Do you remember those 58 seconds? I was in this spot back then."
Ross was taken aback.
In that instant, Li Xiangbei moved.
A feint to the right, followed immediately by a large step back!
He had mastered this move to perfection.
Ross reacted extremely quickly, lunging forward with all his might, his fingertips even touching Li Xiangbei's wrist.
This is already the ultimate level of defense.
But in the face of a sure win, all interference is futile.
[Guaranteed credit limit: 1/5 (activated)]
Li Xiangbei adjusted his posture in mid-air, and even though his wrist was touched, his strike remained as steady as a precision instrument.
The basketball traced a perfect arc.
Rose landed, turned around, and looked at the ball.
"Whoosh—!"
Hollow into the network!
101:98.
Only 3 seconds left.
The Bulls have run out of timeouts. Rose receives the ball on the baseline, sprints to half-court, and manages a long-range three-pointer.
"when!"
Forging iron. The red light comes on.
competition is over.
The Knicks narrowly defeated the Bulls 101-98.
Rose stood at center court, staring at the scoreboard, his eyes filled with disappointment. He had lost again. Even though he scored 30 points tonight and gave it his all, he still lost to that man.
He lowered his head and rested his hands on his knees.
Suddenly, a pair of black sneakers came into his view.
Ross looked up.
Li Xiangbei was standing barefoot in front of him, holding the "Rogue Generation" shoes that had just accompanied him through the entire battle.
"Give."
Li Xiangbei handed over the shoes, which already had his name signed on them.
"This...is for me?" Ross asked, somewhat surprised.
"Take it." Li Xiangbei smiled, the murderous aura he had on the court disappearing, replaced by the gentle warmth of an older brother.
"Derrick, don't be discouraged. You scored 30 points today, which is already at the level of a number one draft pick. You played better than me."
Li Xiangbei pointed to the thick soles of the shoes.
"These shoes are for you. They're made by Under Armour, and although they're called 'Rogue,' they're very sturdy and offer excellent protection."
Li Xiangbei patted Ross on the shoulder, his tone becoming serious.
"Take care of your knee, Derrick. The league needs that rose to bloom for a while longer. I don't want to see your name on the injury list again."
Rose took the shoes, which were still warm from his body, and hugged them tightly to his chest.
His eyes were slightly red, but he held it in.
"Thank you, Li."
Ross sniffed, looked up, and his fighting spirit rekindled in his eyes.
"But... next time, next time I'll definitely beat you."
Looking at his stubborn younger brother, Li Xiangbei couldn't help but pat his head—just like he did in college.
"You want to beat me?"
Li Xiangbei pointed to the row of reporters waiting for interviews behind him, and the fans cheering wildly in the stands.
"Get in line, Derek. The line to beat me stretches from New York to Los Angeles."
"However, if you actually do it..."
Li Xiangbei blinked.
"I'll treat you to the best pizza in all of New York. The kind without tomato sauce."
The two smiled at each other and bumped fists.
This scene was captured by a photographer on the sidelines.
That was a photo that was later treasured by countless fans:
Li Xiangbei, wearing Knicks number 8, was barefoot and had his arm around Rose, who was wearing Bulls number 1 and holding his sneakers.
Behind them, the lights of Madison Square Garden shone brightly.
The title is: "The Thorny Rose and the Gentle Tank".