The No.1 Anti-Fans in Basketball
Chapter 287 - 163 【Uncle Drew】_2

Chapter 287: Chapter 163 【Uncle Drew】_2

After the content of the interview was reported, Cavaliers General Manager Grant, or rather, the Cavaliers management, became the most embarrassed existence.

Previously they had picked Hansen, only to end up with a LeBron hater; now with their pick of Irving, they’ve got a Hansen super fan!

Next time they draft, they’d probably need to do a background check first!

...

"Kyrie’s really got personality; I can’t help but like the guy," Guy said to Hansen while tying his shoelaces in the locker room before the Cavaliers’ open practice session.

"If possible, I’d only want to go against him as an opponent," Hansen laughed.

Just how much of a headache it was to have that guy as a teammate, he had already experienced during the summer training camp.

"Should we go easy on him tonight then?" Guy stood up after putting on his shoes.

"No," Hansen got up and prepared to leave, "it has nothing to do with Kyrie."

Following the continuous off-court incidents, the Grizzlies’ open practice session also attracted a large number of reporters.

However, after the session concluded, the journalists prepared to interview Hansen only to discover that he had already headed back to the locker room immediately.

Not just him, even Joerger left early; it seemed the Grizzlies weren’t too fond of the hyped-up attention.

With no choice, they could only interview Guy, who still remained on the court.

Surrounded by reporters, Guy wore a smile; he truly enjoyed being in the spotlight.

"What do you think about Grant’s comment that Irving has more potential than Han?" After asking Guy several questions, a journalist got to their most concerned topic.

"Didn’t Kyrie answer that already?" Guy was puzzled; he had just discussed this with Hansen.

"We want to know your thoughts," the journalist obviously wouldn’t say that Irving’s reply wasn’t what they were looking for.

"Let’s see... are you talking about Han, the fastest-improving player, or Han, who led his team to the Western Conference Finals last season, or maybe Han, who’s appearing on the MVP rankings this season?" Guy was never one to beat around the bush.

Potential? With the strides Hansen had made in just one year, who could compare to his potential?

"Also, who is Grant?"

When the journalists reminded him that Grant was the General Manager of the Cavaliers, Guy immediately pretended to realize, "Oh, that’s who he is, a General Manager who could give Han to us, and you actually trust his judgment, what are you thinking?"

"The trade was done by the previous General Manager Danny Ferry, Grant was just the Assistant General Manager at the time," the journalists corrected.

"Is that so, then if he had any insight, shouldn’t he have strongly advised against it?" Guy had an "I’m right, am I not?" expression.

Alright, it was clear to the journalists; this was someone more blunt than Irving.

"But this season Han is only averaging 22.8 points per game. I think Kyrie’s stats might be better in his third year," an ESPN journalist chimed in.

Guy appeared somewhat angry on hearing this.

"Do you guys at ESPN only care about stats? Basketball is a team sport!"

His response caught the journalists off guard; Guy used to care a lot about that as well!

But they were neglecting how circumstances can change a person.

Especially this season, after Randolph’s injury, Hansen didn’t increase his number of shots compared to last season despite having greater ball-handling responsibilities; rather, his assist numbers spiked.

In the end, there’s only one ball on the court; if you score more, naturally your teammates score less.

After Randolph was injured, those who increased their scoring were actually Guy and Little Gasol, so how could Guy not defend Hansen?

"If he wants to, he could drop 40 points anytime," Guy dropped a bombshell and wrapped up the interview.

That evening, the Quicken Loans Arena was packed to the rafters.

This had become the norm for Cleveland; attendance was usually not that great, but whenever Hansen returned, fans would come to watch him play in person.

This rebellious mindset fully illustrated just how much the Cavaliers’ management was disliked by the fans.

"Han, play a little more selfishly tonight," Guy approached Hansen during the warm-up.

Hansen looked puzzled.

The Cavaliers weren’t strong, and it shouldn’t be an issue to take down the Grizzlies in a normal game.

"Look at all those fans who came to support you; they only get to see you play once a season. You have to give them their money’s worth!"

Hansen was stunned for a moment; what kind of twisted logic was that.

He looked up; many in the crowd were holding signs supporting Irving. Sometimes, a player’s style can make fans overlook the record.

Of course, there were also many signs supporting him, very much like last season, giving off a vibe like the proud hometown of a child who had made a name for themselves out in the world.

Hansen nodded his head.

It wasn’t just for the sake of the fans, but his "Uncle Drew" needed the game to improve.

Playing against stronger teams required more consideration on how to win, while weaker teams provided an opportunity for practice through the game.

Guy saw this and excitedly punched Hansen in the chest.

Hansen, watching Guy’s inexplicable enthusiasm, couldn’t help but shake his head.

Sometimes he didn’t know what was going through Guy’s mind.

After the warm-up, both teams entered the opening ceremony.

When Hansen appeared, he was greeted with cheers from the Cleveland fans as usual.

To most of the players on both sides, this was the norm, but due to the nationwide broadcast, it also sparked a lot of online discussion among fans.

After all, Hansen had left for over a season, yet the fans’ enthusiasm for him showed that he had a solid fan base in Cleveland.

After the opening ceremony, the starting lineups for both teams were announced.

Grizzlies: Conley, Hansen, Guy, Faried, Little Gasol

Cavaliers: Irving, Old Parker, Omri Casspi, Jamison, Varejao

Thanks to his vigorous defense and fighting spirit, and with Johnson’s starting performance being mediocre, Faried won his first career starting opportunity.

There were three final minutes of preparation before the game officially began.

On the Cavaliers bench, the new head coach, Byron Scott, was giving a pre-game pep talk to the players.

The Lakers legend and former NBA Coach of the Year was resolutely implementing the directive from management to win tonight’s game.

Although that was difficult, he had to follow through since it came from management.

Jamison and Old Parker exchanged glances, feeling that Scott was daydreaming.

Last season, the Grizzlies had trounced the Cavaliers on their home court, and with Randolph being ejected, it was as if he wasn’t there—though Scott wasn’t around at that time either.

Plus, the Cavaliers had just gone through a three-game losing streak; asking them to beat the Grizzlies was nothing short of unreasonable.

It was like everyone was happily slacking off, and then the boss suddenly came in declaring they should push for the company’s performance, which was bound to invite resistance.

However, at this moment, one person’s expression was particularly serious.

It was none other than Irving, who had been the subject of skepticism because of his pre-game comments.

Scott’s speech was nearly finished, and he stretched out his hand.

It was a gesture signaling for a rally cry.

Irving was the first to stack his hand on top.

"We will win the game! We can do it!" he said, looking around at the others.

The players were momentarily stunned.

Irving’s pre-game remarks may have hit morale, but now he seemed to be the most confident one.

There was a clear contradiction, yet the feeling was intense.

The players gradually stacked their hands on top.

"Come on! Cavaliers!"

Just then, the whistle blew, and after the chant, the Cavaliers’ starters took to the court.

Hansen was drawn by the shout, and his gaze met Irving’s.

It was a familiar look, but somehow different.

The game tipped off, and Varejao tapped the ball back to their half, giving the Cavaliers the first offensive opportunity.

Irving dribbled the ball up, then immediately called Casspi to set a screen for him; after splitting off, he faced Hansen and gestured for an isolation play.

Cheering erupted in the arena at that moment.

Irving was well aware of the gap in strength between the two teams.

To make his teammates really believe they had a chance, they needed to play with authority right from the start.

There was no better way to make an impact than to take on Hansen head-on.