Basketball Legend: When Pride Still Matters-Chapter 476 - 327: Beyond Time_2
Chapter 476: Chapter 327: Beyond Time_2
Whether the League was involved or not, they were under external pressure. With the Bucks’ victory all but secured, they wanted to interfere artificially, to prevent the Mavericks from being utterly defeated.
Just like the fans saw tonight, the Mavericks reflected on their experience from last year’s first-round match against the Rockets.
One after another, the Bucks’ players were fouled out.
Nowitzki seemed to be possessed by a golden light; nobody could touch him tonight.
The more such games there are, the more they highlight the disparity in resilience between the two teams.
During halftime, Yu Fei declared, “Let the refs blow their motherf**king whistles, we don’t need them!”
In the second half, the Bucks maintained a 5 OUT lineup throughout, keeping the suspense alive with great offense, until Nowitzki ended the Bucks’ hopes of a sweep with a controversial four-point play in the final seconds.
There were only a few Bucks fans at the venue. They had intended to keep a low profile as visitors, but with such blatantly biased officiating, they couldn’t help themselves and burst out in chants of “rigged.”
Tonight Cuban was much quieter, knowing the referees had taken care of his team.
They could have done this earlier, so why choose now?
What is the meaning of winning one game when you are down 0-3 against the Bucks?
There is meaning.
At least, the Mavericks can sell the tickets for their last home game of the season.
But was he the one who owed money for those tickets, sponsorship, and advertising fees?
Cuban thought the League’s higher-ups had ruined their season; if such officiating had been present earlier, they’d be tied 2-2 now.
Confirming this, Cuban could barely control his emotions, staring daggers at Stern’s position.
Since the champion could possibly be decided tonight, Stern needed to be present.
But Stern likely knew already that the Mavericks were likely to win.
Such obvious refereeing bias couldn’t happen without the League’s direction.
And Cuban knew, such favors would vanish in the following game.
The League simply wanted to use this game to quell their anger. They thought it would suffice, like tossing a bone to a beggar.
But it wasn’t enough, not nearly enough.
Cuban shouted towards Stern, words that ended up on the headlines of sports sections across America: “You sly bitch, your League is fake! Your referees are bastard dogs!”
The next day, Stern commented that he thought Cuban’s inflammatory outburst was “unhealthy for him and the game.”
“He’s extremely intelligent, his work must be praised, and should be praised because he has put together an outstanding team and provided a fantastic entertainment experience for his fans. But I think sometimes he loses control, which is unhealthy for him and the game,” Stern said in an interview.
Yu Fei only admitted their favorable treatment in Game 1 of the finals.
Just like the Mavericks were taken care of in Game 4.
The Mavericks’ reaction to the officiating was surprising, especially Cuban’s mentality of feeling shortchanged if not advantaged, which was a significant destabilizing factor for his team.
Yu Fei blocked out the media until Game 5 arrived, declining all interviews.
June 18, Game 5 day.
Before the game, Yu Fei gave an interview with ESPN.
The interviewer was Jim Gray, who asked Yu Fei about the various controversies since the start of the finals.
“I think the controversy mainly lies with the Dallas People; we don’t feel there’s any.”
“Do you think the officiating in the finals is rational?”
“No problem.”
“So, do you think Dallas is overreacting?”
“I’m not in a position to judge,” Yu Fei said sarcastically, “but I wouldn’t blame the shoes for problems with my foot.”
Tonight, Yu Fei stepped onto the court determined to end the game.
In terms of officiating, tonight’s referees were exceptionally normal.
But Cuban’s off-court comments had already made it impossible for the Mavericks to accept the referees’ decisions properly.
In their eyes, it seemed like the referees were out to persecute them.
Yu Fei’s favorite player was Tim Duncan, but he had to say, Duncan has his faults too, acting like an on-court Cuban, just without the foul language towards the referees.
Duncan reacted to every foul call against him as if he had been wrongly accused, wide-eyed and hands spread, accompanied by a “No way, Mr. Referee…”
And tonight, the Mavericks responded to the officiating with universal Duncanization.
This might be their reward for slashing through the Spurs in the Western Conference Finals, granted the “Tim Duncan believes he has never committed a foul in his career” buff.
Convinced they were being targeted, it became difficult for them to play their game.
Yu Fei tore through Josh Howard’s defense; the same moves, a deceptive dribble between the legs followed by a step-back jump shot, he scored over Howard four times in a single quarter.
As the second quarter began, Howard’s defense on Yu Fei grew rougher, but was not permitted by the referees.
He was called for fouls consecutively.
The entire Mavericks team erupted.
How could you give Big Fei the star treatment?
He’s just the most popular superstar active, how could he compare to our Josh Howard?
Just short of the third quarter, as Yu Fei tore apart Howard in one-on-one matchups, scoring 23 points over his head, Howard finally fouled out due to the “evil” forces at play.
“!!#￥”
Foll𝑜w current novℯls on ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm.
Amidst a chorus of boos in the American Airlines Arena in Dallas⑴, the fans truly believed Josh Howard was not fouling Yu Fei because he couldn’t defend him, but because he could.
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