NBA's King of Talking

Chapter 368 Taking Back What Belongs to Me

On March 2, the Clippers held their regular practice at their home training facility in Los Angeles.

Since joining the Clippers, Jia Fei has never missed a practice, always arriving first and leaving last. As the core player, he has set an example, which naturally motivates other players, especially the younger ones, to train even harder and not dare to complain about how tough the training is.

If anyone isn't training seriously, Beverley, like a sheepdog, will urge his teammates to train diligently.

Jia Fei is growing increasingly fond of Beverley. On the court, he's like a mad dog, doing all the dirty work. Whoever is the toughest on the opposing team, he'll go for it. No matter how famous or how much better he is than his opponent, he never flinches. Off the court, he's Jia Fei's close assistant, playing the role of a devoted follower exceptionally well.

Jia Fei used to dislike Beverley when he was with the Thunder because Beverley injured Westbrook, ultimately causing the Thunder's playoff run to fail. But since they became teammates, he has to admit he's started to like the guy. This type of player, like Draymond Green, is the kind of player teammates love and opponents hate. On the court, he's the villain, playing relentlessly on defense, trash-talking, and relentlessly battling his opponents.

On the evening of the 2nd, Jia Fei, Art Mayork, and Beverley had dinner together again. Beverley was very happy; he was finally starting to integrate into Jia Fei's circle.

After finishing their meal, Beverly wanted to pay the bill, but Jia Fei stopped her: "Come with me, I don't like others paying."

Beverley felt a warmth in his heart. Although he could afford to pay the bill, the other person earned much more than him, which showed that the other person truly respected him, rather than inviting him to dinner and expecting him to pay.

That evening, Jia Fei received a call from Kemba Walker.

"Jack, this is incredible! You've been playing absolutely amazingly well for the Clippers! If this continues, the MVP award this season might just be yours again!" Kemba Walker said with a laugh on the phone.

"It's too early to talk about that now, but if I am the MVP this season, then it's just me taking back what is rightfully mine!" Jia Fei smiled faintly, as if he were talking about something very ordinary.

"Okay, Ja, when it comes to showing off, besides Bird, you're number one. You also have the right to show off. To be honest, you can easily score 40 points in three quarters. I doubt there are many people in this league who can do that." Kemba Walker seemed quite convinced.

"I'm fine. When are you coming to Los Angeles? I'll treat you to dinner!" Jia Fei said.

"Of course you'll treat me! If you don't treat me to a trip to Los Angeles, I'm not leaving!" Kemba Walker joked.

On November 3, the Clippers will continue their home game against the Thunder.

Since Durant left, the Thunder have essentially dropped out of the championship race this season.

The outside world is also eager to see how Westbrook can lead the team without Durant.

After leaving the Thunder this summer, Durant's relationship with the team soured. He used a secondary social media account to compare his Thunder teammates to "cats and dogs," implying he didn't receive much support from the team. This angered the Thunder players. If they were truly incompetent, why were they able to take a 3-1 lead against the 73-win Warriors? Was it all Durant's doing?

The attendance at Clippers games at Staples Center is getting better and better. The Clippers are doing great! They've won three straight games, and all three have been incredibly exciting. In the last two home games, Jia Fei has delivered MVP-caliber performances. Even with Coach Doc Rivers not making any adjustments or in-game changes from the sidelines, the team's solid defensive foundation still gives them a very high floor. The team's ceiling depends on Jia Fei; currently, it seems only Jia Fei can reach it.

Practice before the match.

Jia Fei looked relaxed, exchanging pleasantries with his former teammates Westbrook and Collison. Years had passed, and a new generation had replaced the old. Of his former Thunder teammates, only Westbrook and Collison remained. Even on the coaching bench, former head coach Brooks was no longer there; the Thunder's current head coach was the renowned NCAA coach Donovan.

This match was broadcast live on Tencent, with commentators Wang Meng and guest Yang Yi providing commentary.

Since Jia Fei joined the Clippers, the team has not only had more games broadcast nationwide, but also in China, the number of their games broadcast and streamed is now comparable to that of the Warriors, Cavaliers, and Rockets.

Many familiar faces were present at Staples Center today, including heartthrob David Beckham, tough guy Sylvester Stallone and his beautiful daughters, Chinese-American superstar Daniel Wu, and renowned photographer Chen Laoshi…

In the City of Angels, celebrities are like officials in China's capital—there are just too many of them…

Many fans wearing Jia Fei's jerseys were present, including a significant number of Chinese. In the United States, Jia Fei is known as a "shining example of the Chinese community," and this is no exaggeration. From his fame to his social influence, he is a very special figure among the Chinese community in the United States.

The starting lineups for both teams have been announced. The Clippers' starting lineup consists of Jia Fei, Beverley, Wesley Johnson, Tobias Harris, and DeAndre Jordan.

The Thunder's starting lineup consists of Westbrook, Oladipo, Andre Roberson, Sabonis, and Adams.

DeAndre Jordan and Adams are preparing for the jump ball near center court; the game is about to begin.

The jump ball began, and DeAndre Jordan won the jump ball against Aquaman. Beverley dribbled the ball across half-court.

When Westbrook saw Beverley, it was like "enemies meeting with intense hatred," and he immediately went up to press and almost pushed Beverley off the court.

It has to be said that Westbrook's physical strength at the point guard position is probably only comparable to that of Deron Williams and Anthony Davis in their prime.

Beverley passed the ball to Jia Fei.

Robertson was guarding Jia Fei.

Robertson is a good defender; he's fast, has size, and is intelligent enough not to fall for feints. His weakness is his lack of physical strength, making him vulnerable to being overpowered by strong forwards.

Jia Fei used a screen to drive inside and passed to Wesley Johnson in the corner.

Wesley Johnson drove and dished to Harris, but Harris missed his jump shot!

The ball was saved, and Westbrook pushed the fast break!

Westbrook accelerated from the backcourt, trying to overtake everyone!

The Clippers' defense was very quick, but he still tried to outpace everyone!

Westbrook drove straight to the basket, but his layup attempt missed because he was too aggressive!

Jia Fei grabbed the rebound and passed it to DeAndre Jordan in the frontcourt!

DeAndre Jordan's attempt to overpower Domantas Sabonis still failed!

The Thunder got the rebound, and the ball went back to Westbrook.

Since Durant left, Westbrook's usage rate has been over 30% almost every game. When he's on the court, the ball is always in his hands. In games like this, it's very easy for the opponent to defend; they just need to defend his individual offense and drive-and-kick plays.

Jia Fei was matched up against Roberson, and he kept a very small field, basically allowing Roberson to shoot. The Thunder's lack of spacing on offense really didn't look like a modern basketball team.