Chapter Nineteen: What Has Michael Done!

"Except for one person?"

On the Magic’s bench, as soon as Coach Vogel finished speaking, the players who had all been hanging their heads immediately looked up at their coach. In a situation where the entire team had performed poorly, if someone had still managed to stand out, that was an unspoken encouragement to every player. Almost everyone fixed their gaze on Vogel.

Except for Michael Wu.

After being blocked by his opponent, failing to keep up on defense, and then being unable to contribute offensively in the final moments, leaving his team in a four-on-five predicament, he was certain that the one player who had performed well could not possibly be him.

"Michael, lift your head."

At that moment, Frank Vogel walked directly up to Michael Wu, squatted down, and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Lift your head."

"I don’t want to see the only guy on the team who deserves praise looking like a deflated balloon."

With that, Vogel gave Wu a firm pat on the back. "Michael Wu, lift your head!"

"Yes..."

Startled by Vogel’s forceful pat, Michael Wu’s towel slipped off his head and fell to the floor. As he replied to his coach, he reached down to pick it up.

"Michael, you’re the last person on this team who should feel any guilt." Vogel stood up, glanced at Wu, then looked around at the rest of the players. "If every one of them fought as hard as you did, there’s no way the team in the lead here at home would be from Sacramento!"

"Even though Michael was only on the court for a short time, let's take a look at what he accomplished in just over a minute." While speaking, Vogel spread out the stat sheet in his hand and began to analyze Wu’s performance play by play, in order.

Wu’s first moment on the court was his effort to secure the defensive rebound—at that time, he was up against Willie Cauley-Stein, who had been dominating the Magic’s two inside enforcers!

"Michael is at least ten centimeters shorter than his opponent, but the rebound still belonged to the Orlando Magic." Vogel pointed at Ibaka and Biyombo. "You two can’t even match Michael on your own?"

After this, Vogel broke down Wu’s next highlight—a stellar defensive play that resulted in Rudy Gay’s five-second backdown violation.

"Jeff, can you tell me what’s in your head when you’re on the court? Is it that game-winner you once hit over LeBron James?" This time, Vogel aimed his criticism at Jeff Green. "Look at what Michael did—that’s what a real professional basketball player looks like!"

"He came here to play!"

After discussing Wu’s defensive decision, Vogel skipped over what was arguably Wu’s best effort on the offensive glass and pointed to the stat sheet, which recorded the possession where Rudy Gay used a screen to shake Wu and hit a mid-range jumper.

"Michael got completely caught by the screen, but what did he do? He fought his way around it." This time, Vogel addressed the entire team. "If it were any of you, I bet you’d be content to take a nap nestled in Kosta Koufos’s broad chest!"

With that, Vogel snapped the stat sheet shut and handed it to the assistant coach, who had been silently standing by. He turned to Wu, who was still looking back at him.

"So, Michael, you are the only player on this team who has earned the right to hold his head up."

"The rest of you have not!"

"Coach, I—"

"Coach Vogel, you’re absolutely right."

Michael Wu was caught off guard by Vogel’s speech. At his side, Nikola Vucevic—who had been pulled early after a poor first quarter—finally spoke up, looking directly at Wu. "Michael, you really are the best performer on the team. I’m proud of you, and ashamed of myself."

"Nikola..."

"Michael, thank you. You made me realize just how unprofessional I’ve been, and that I don’t even deserve to wear this Magic jersey." Serge Ibaka, the team’s second star, also stood up and pointed behind him to the home crowd. "I don’t deserve fans as outstanding as these!"

With Ibaka and Vucevic both voicing their feelings, the rest of the Magic players who had taken the floor also began to blame themselves. In their eyes, a fiery determination began to burn.

Coach Vogel was right to praise Wu; he had indeed been the most energetic player on the team. But Vogel had another intention too, one that everyone on the Magic understood.

If a second-round pick could play with such passion, how could all these players with multi-million-dollar contracts justify loafing around on the court, wasting their coach’s trust and playing time?

The horn sounded—the second quarter between the Magic and the Kings was about to begin. On the Kings’ side, Kosta Koufos was replaced by DeMarcus Cousins, who would now partner with Willie Cauley-Stein to form a twin towers lineup. Rudy Gay, who had led the team solo at the end of the first, was subbed out for Omri Casspi, giving him a long rest.

"It looks like Coach Dave Joerger wants to focus on the interior in this quarter, let DeMarcus take over, and secure the win," the ESPN commentator astutely analyzed.

At the same time, the Magic’s lineup took the floor. Differing from the end of the first quarter, Elfrid Payton was replaced by D.J. Augustin, and Nikola Vucevic returned, taking Serge Ibaka’s spot.

Michael Wu, meanwhile, was replaced by Aaron Gordon.

"The Magic are actually sending out two players who struggled in the first quarter. I think Michael should play even more!" The ESPN commentator sounded puzzled as the Magic’s lineup appeared on the screen. "Michael’s energy is exactly what the Magic lack right now."

However, before the commentator had even finished his sentence, the Magic players on the court made a swift rebuttal.

Aaron Gordon immediately showcased his explosive athleticism—towering over the defense and finishing two consecutive put-back dunks, stunning the crowd! Under the basket, Vucevic, who had previously been smothered by Cousins, gave everything he had. Although he still got scored on a few times defensively, back on offense, Cousins could do nothing to stop Vucevic’s mid-range jumper. The two seemed to be trading blows, neither able to get the upper hand.

With Cousins matched, the Kings’ offense faltered. Midway through the second quarter, the Magic even unleashed a 10-0 run, decisively taking the lead!

"Nice!"

Watching the Magic on the floor, so different from the listless team of the first quarter, Michael Wu—still on the bench—felt his spirits lift, waving his towel enthusiastically.

"Michael, calm down for a moment. I need to talk to you about your problems."

But just then, Coach Vogel walked over to Wu, pouring a bucket of cold water on his joy.