Chapter 61: Good night, Cleveland!

"LeBron, the way you got shaken off your feet is going to be on the front page of tomorrow's newspapers!" Li Rui shouted at James.

Under normal circumstances, such trash talk would not affect James's mindset.

However, hearing the phrase "front page" made James particularly sensitive, and his eyebrows twitched.

Because there was a very real chance Li Rui could actually pull it off.

"Linsanity" had been way too hot lately!

And he, the King—LeBron James—was destined to be just another stepping stone for someone else's rising fame.

James knew all too well how the media operated.

Now, the pressure was on.

They had to win tonight!

"Brilliant!!" Daniel was waving his fists in celebration on the sidelines.

The Zen Master glanced up at the scoreboard, then calmly sat back down on the bench to practice his Zen, as cool as a cucumber.

It was as if the game had very little to do with him at all.

Players on the Lakers' bench were howling, with Vujacic, Turiaf, and the others hyping up the atmosphere on the sidelines.

Out on the court, the Cavaliers initiated another offense.

The Lakers opted to double-team James, with Kobe and Walton moving up together, while Li Rui stayed glued to Gibson.

Li Rui wouldn't dare give this guy any breathing room. In his memory, Gibson was the one who had put on a crazy performance in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals, a display rivalling Klay Thompson's historic Game 6s.

He absolutely could not be left open.

James drove into the paint under the pressure of two defenders, and Bynum stepped up to meet him.

James decisively kicked the ball out to Hughes in the corner.

Anticipating James's pass, Kobe sprinted over to provide help defense on Hughes.

Hughes took a pressured three-pointer.

"Clang!"

The ball heavily smashed against the rim and bounced high.

"My ball!"

Bynum fought hard to box out Zydrunas Ilgauskas.

On the other side, Li Rui leaped up and grabbed the rebound.

Rebound +1

"Good box out, man," Li Rui called out to Bynum.

How awesome would it be if he had his own personal Steven Adams to box out opponents like Westbrook did? His rebound stats would skyrocket.

Without holding onto the ball, Li Rui quickly outletted it to Kobe.

Without wasting a second, Kobe pushed the pace with a dribble drive.

The disadvantage of the Cavaliers' tall lineup was becoming apparent at this stage.

As fatigue set in, their footwork slowed down in the fourth quarter. By the time Kobe pushed the ball into the frontcourt, a three-on-three fast break situation had formed with plenty of open space.

Kobe was in the middle, Li Rui on the left, and Walton on the right.

James immediately moved to pick up Kobe in transition, restricting Kobe's speed.

Selflessly, Kobe flipped the ball over to Li Rui.

Li Rui caught it cleanly.

If it were the old Li Rui who had just time-traveled here, he wouldn't have had many options against the equally young Gibson, because his drives struggled to shake Gibson off.

But now? His penetration had improved noticeably.

Gibson remained tightly glued to Li Rui to prevent a jump shot.

Playing tight defense like this effectively took away the jumper, but it made it easy to get blown past.

Li Rui immediately exploded to his right, lowered his shoulder on the first step of his drive, and gained the advantage.

Gibson turned around to give chase.

Sensing Gibson recovering from behind, Li Rui decelerated.

"Thud!"

He initiated strong physical contact with Gibson, using the opponent's momentum to slide laterally and create separation.

Gathering the ball smoothly near the free-throw line, he rose for a fadeaway jumper.

Though somewhat difficult, the shot was already cleanly open.

When Gibson lunged back out to contest, he was a fraction of a beat too slow.

Having lost his cool after continuous physical battles with Li Rui, Gibson threw himself into an overly aggressive closeout, hacking Li Rui across his forearm. Li Rui's immediate reaction was to cry out: "Ah!!"

"Swish!"

"Beep! Beep!!"

The referee blew the whistle promptly.

The noise level inside Quicken Loans Arena plunged into utter silence.

Every Cavaliers fan could smell the impending breath of danger.

James could guard Kobe, but Gibson couldn't stop Li Rui.

Li Rui stood up and cupped his right hand around his ear, listening to the silence of the arena.

Weren't you guys acting all tough?

Boos, let's hear them!

Where were the boos?

Provoked by Li Rui's taunting gesture, the home fans erupted into renewed, deafening boos.

At this moment, Li Rui simply smiled.

Li Rui had taken many isolation shots today; subconsciously, he was using the exact method Kobe had taught him earlier to deal with Gibson.

Apply body contact, overpower him, create space, and shoot with conviction.

Kobe's judgment had been spot on: Gibson's physical strength fell short of his, and he couldn't stop him.

Sparks seemed to be flying out of Gibson's eyes.

Gibson had shot well from the perimeter today, draining three three-pointers, but he had been completely dismantled by Li Rui on the defensive end.

One could easily imagine that Mike Brown would soon label him a defensive liability.

"Li Rui makes the additional free throw!!"

"The Lakers lead by 5 points."

"107 to 102"

Over the next two possessions, James converted a driving layup, while Kobe answered with a running two-point floater, leaving the five-point margin unchanged.

Soon after, Li Rui anticipated Gibson's pass. Touching the ball just enough to alter its trajectory, he tipped it into Kobe's control, completing a steal for the Lakers.

Kobe pushed the ball up the right side at high speed.

Li Rui accelerated down the left wing.

Reaching the frontcourt, Kobe drove hard into the paint with the ball, once again drawing a double-team from Gibson and James.

At that moment, Li Rui broke free from his defender and spotted up at the left wing, calling for the ball with a wave of his hand.

Spinning halfway around, Kobe fired a jump-pass to Li Rui.

The pass was hit with a bit too much velocity.

Li Rui chased down the pass on the run and reeled it in.

Without a shred of hesitation.

His legs tensed up like coiled springs.

He sank into a deep squat.

Then he launched upward.

Following the rhythm, the ball spun in his palm as he raised it with both hands.

With his left hand as a guide, his right palm exerted force to push the ball away.

This was the signature "catch-and-shoot" of a pure marksman.

As textbook as it gets.

Many fans in the arena rose to their feet, covering their mouths and praying to God that Li Rui's shot would miss.

Unfortunately.

Li Rui believed in Buddha!

God had no jurisdiction over him.

The basketball traced a magnificent arc through the air.

"Swish!"

A dagger of a three-pointer, piercing straight through the Cavaliers' heart.

112 to 104

"Timeout!!" Mike Brown called a desperate timeout.

With only 35 seconds remaining on the clock, the Cavaliers would need to reenact the legendary T-Mac Miracle just to catch up.

After sinking the clutch three-pointer.

Li Rui once again brought his hands together in prayer by his right ear—his signature personal celebration—and jogged all the way back to the Lakers bench.

"Goodnight!"

"Cleveland!"

Following his buzzer-beating game-winner in Miami, Li Rui once again showcased his ice-water-in-his-veins composure, repeatedly sinking clutch shots down the stretch against the Cavaliers.

"Li Rui!"

"Gorgeous!"

"What a beautiful three-pointer."

"He's erupted in the closing moments."

"Goodnight, Cleveland, as Li Rui pulls off his signature celebration."

"Scoring in bunches when it matters most, Li Rui possesses an extraordinarily cold-blooded heart."

"This three-pointer displays Li Rui's elite marksmanship, the ultimate aesthetic of shooting!"

"The duel between Kobe and James has been overshadowed once again by Li Rui."

"From Kobe's joyful expression, I can tell that Kobe doesn't mind the spotlight shining entirely on Li Rui right now."

In the CCTV broadcast booth, Zhang Weiping was stuttering with excitement.

Back home, fans watching the live television broadcast were left dumbfounded.

"Holy crap, I was just complaining about the low scoring earlier, and then he goes off and pours in points in just a few minutes."

"Unreal, no room to hate, this motherfucker is genuinely unbelievable. No wonder the whole world is chasing after him now."

"Damn, a 19-year-old rookie playing alongside Kobe and making it look like *he's* the alpha dog. It's like he's playing the game with cheat codes."

"Tsk tsk, this is Linsanity for you. This must be the sixth game now? The word 'awesome' doesn't even begin to describe him."

"Just looking at this catch-and-shoot mechanics, it feels like nobody in the entire league executes it more standardly than him. Even Ray Allen wouldn't do it better."

...

Over on the sidelines, Li Rui was surrounded by his ecstatic teammates.

Kobe high-fived Li Rui, Bynum delivered a resounding smack to Li Rui's backside, and even the Zen Master stopped meditating to stand nearby, chuckling heartily.

Li Rui finally understood what the "Linsanity State" buff felt like.

It meant that when the game was on the line, his touch would be burning hot!