After a brief "health break," the Bulls were led by Kukoc in the second quarter.
Nicknamed "European Jordan" and "Balkan Magician," Kukoc stands tall at 211 cm. He is elegant and skilled at playing what fans call "fairy basketball."
Yugoslavia seems like a magical place—perhaps because the local press is so "intense"—that all Slavs are born natural masters of the game.
Whether basketball or football, the Balkan Peninsula has never lacked artists on the court.
As soon as the second quarter began, after stealing from Mark and facing Wallace's defense, Kukoc executed a highly artistic tactical layup.
Swish—!
27 to 22.
The 76ers' coaching staff began to frown again.
The bench gap between the two sides... Seems a bit too wide.
Looking at the worried coaches, Su Feng kicked Stackhouse while blowing a whistle.
"Crooked, you're too much! In the first quarter, I gave you the veterans and comforted you again. Even if you kicked me in the last game, this time... Am I not worthy of sitting next to you?"
Annoyed, Stackhouse stood up, cursing and preparing to change seats.
"If I don't deserve it, then I don't deserve it. If I can't handle it, can't I just avoid it?"
"Jerry, did you sweat a lot in the first quarter?"
As soon as Stackhouse got up and moved, Davis, the little trickster, felt his inspiration spark again.
Stackhouse: "..."
"Coach, have you forgotten my effort in the first quarter?"
"Jerry, get ready. Go in and lead the team. I'll allow you to shoot freely." Davis smiled, patting Stackhouse's shoulder.
"Huh? Okay, coach."
Stackhouse felt delighted by the coach's trust. It turned out the coach hadn't forgotten him!
Watching Stackhouse happily walk to the scorer's table, Su Feng thought that after a few more games, he could brainwash him into becoming the perfect sixth man.
Stackhouse's style doesn't quite fit the current 76ers, but coming off the bench—even with just a 40% shooting rate—he's more reliable than Mark blunders.
Although still a rookie, the 76ers face challenges. As "The.King," could Su Feng just sit back and watch?
On the court, Stackhouse's entrance confirmed Su Feng's prediction. This guy was simply a better bench leader.
The Bulls' bench, with Kukoc and Kerr, was full of defensive liabilities.
As long as Stackhouse didn't go wild with poor shots, until Jordan returned, the stage was his.
You have Chicago's pioneer Kukoc, and I have Philadelphia's admiral Stackhouse.
Why fear the old Bulls?
…
The Bulls' bench, seeing that the difference between the two teams couldn't widen, watched as the "KFC spokesperson" grew restless.
This regular season game felt as tough as the playoffs.
Phil Jackson realized he had underestimated the 76ers.
So, the Zen Master made a note in his small book.
As for calling a timeout to adjust? Forget it—that doesn't fit the Zen Master's philosophy.
The game is beautiful; why be impatient? No rush—the championship must be built slowly.
Meanwhile, Stackhouse, enjoying a strong second quarter, scored 11 points in a burst.
Before the starters returned, the score had shifted to 39–38.
Yet when Su Feng and the others came back in, Stackhouse felt something odd. Forget it—that wasn't important.
What mattered was how good it felt.
No ball-hogging point guard holding the ball too long. No fiery-eyed teammate constantly calling for screens.
Only wild, joyful shots.
Stackhouse sat down, satisfied.
And Su Feng, pulling Big Ben aside before checking in, asked: "Are you afraid of Michael Jordan?"
Ben Wallace shook his head, sensing Su Feng's deliberate pause, then said: "I'm not afraid!"
Su Feng patted Wallace's shoulder reassuringly. "When you set the pick-and-roll for me, make it solid—even if you get called for a foul."
Wallace nodded, his expression saying, "Leave it to me."
Su Feng gave him a thumbs-up: "Come on, in my mind, your pick-and-roll is stronger than even the 'Mailman' Malone's!"
It felt powerful, full of strength.
Su Feng knew that after Iverson's nearly perfect first quarter, the Bulls wouldn't foolishly let him surprise them again.
Iverson's 180 cm frame was vulnerable.
In Su Feng's view, every game against the Bulls required maximum intensity.
And today, although he didn't understand why the Bulls had Pippen guarding Iverson, AI remained the 76ers' lifeline.
With my elbow, I'll deliver the answer—relentlessly!
Su Feng blew into his clasped hands.
It was time to unleash the Answer one step further.
…
Back on the court after the timeout, Jordan once again cut past Su Feng with ease.
"Hey, kid, I gave you that ball."
After half a period of rest and adjustment, Jordan's mood had improved.
After all, he had completely outperformed Su Feng in the stats.
But Su Feng's stubborn resilience—his refusal to be beaten—made Jordan, the BOSS, feel frustrated.
This time too, Su Feng ignored Jordan's trash talk.
41 to 38.
The 76ers attacked. In the second half of the second quarter, the Bulls didn't send out Longley.
Their lineup was Rodman, Kukoc, Pippen, Jordan, and Harper.
A relentless rotation, suffocating the entire court.
This was one of Chicago's signature tactics outside of the triangle offense.
When Iverson crossed half court, the Sixers had only 16 seconds left on the shot clock.
Though his ankles were nearly breaking, Pippen's defense was still formidable.
Pippen swore to himself that next time he faced Jordan in practice, he'd never forgive him.
Seriously, wouldn't it be better to let Harper guard Iverson?
Look at Harper—he was practically loafing around like a husky.
On the court, the young AI hesitated against the Bulls' tight defense.
At this stage, "The Answer" hadn't yet been fully tuned by Coach Brown, and he had to shoulder the heavy responsibility of feeding Su Feng.
So, what was Su Feng doing at this moment?
Art—pick-and-roll!
Jordan was stunned.
This time, truly dizzy.
Because suddenly, as he followed Su Feng, a dark figure blocked his path!
Unlike Stackhouse, Big Ben's pick-and-roll was solid, tough, and unyielding.
Seeing Jordan blocked, Kukoc quickly switched to defend Su Feng.
Opportunity!
Iverson called the play for Su Feng, and Su Feng received the pass from "The Answer."
On the "Ai-Feng" line, Su Feng turned and shot immediately after catching the ball.
Kukoc raised his hands to contest, but for Su Feng—already hardened by Jordan's defense— Even with his eyes covered by Kukoc's hands, he felt as if he had space.
Swish—!
41 all!
This was Su Feng's first three-pointer of the night.
Perhaps because of the blindfold-like contest, Kukoc's defense didn't truly interfere with Su Feng's shot.
At Spectrum Arena, the chants of "losing and losing" echoed again.
Chinese fans watching on TV thought they misheard—no home crowd curses their own team, right?
Fortunately, Commentator Zhang quickly explained: "This is just a pronunciation issue. I think the 76ers fans should change it to Su Feng's nickname, 'The King.'"
"Coach Zhang said this was the first three-pointer by the young emperor Su Feng tonight. Let's see if he can use this to regain his rhythm from the first game," Sun Zhengping smiled.
But Director Zhang wasn't pleased, and quickly corrected: "Actually, Su Feng has played well today. Look at how effectively he's limited Jordan."
Sun Zhengping nodded: "Yes, let's check the stats. Jordan has made 8 of 14 shots today, shooting under 50%."
"..."
Was your math taught by a PE teacher?
Zhang Weiping shot him a look, and Sun Zhengping quickly corrected himself with a smile: "Oh, sorry, my mistake. Jordan's shooting percentage today should be under 40%."
Director Zhang looked up silently at the sky, thinking Sun Zhengping's math might be beyond saving.
…
On the court, after Su Feng stole the ball and hit a three-pointer, Jordan looked at Su Feng's excited expression…
Jordan's heart said: No, no. Can't go at him, not now. Otherwise, there will be no end to this trouble with that pesky kid.
The Bulls ran the triangle, their players set up in a 1-2-2 formation.
After a few simple passes, Jordan caught the ball, leaning on Su Feng while preparing for the defense.
On the floor, Pippen suddenly cut to the basket. Jordan passed behind his head, and Pippen easily scored.
43 to 41.
Clearly, Jordan no longer wanted to waste energy battling Su Feng directly.
In recent games, Jordan often used his offensive threat to create opportunities for teammates.
If Su Feng's taunt— "Retire, Michael"—had provoked him, Jordan might have gone into full scoring mode immediately.
But after the Zen Master's reminder, Jordan, who valued winning above all, decided to pace himself.
Why punish Su Feng publicly? From Jordan's perspective, the kid wouldn't be broken in a single game anyway.
So Jordan decided to save the beating for the next matchup. For now, he would focus on building a lead.
But this strategy… Made Su Feng unhappy!
Su Feng counted on Jordan to break the defensive bottleneck.
If Jordan conserved energy in the second quarter, Su Feng knew the third and fourth quarters would be even tougher.
No, no. The sarcasm wasn't sharp enough—BOSS was slipping away.
So, during the 76ers' next attack, Su Feng looked at Jordan while running and said: "Michael, have you given up on me?"
Jordan pretended not to hear.
Su Feng: "..."
Rogue! So shameless! How can a man be so brazen?
Beat me, then run away?
What's the difference between that and someone sneaking off after pulling up his pants?
Su Feng knew ordinary trash talk wouldn't provoke Jordan.
The biggest difference between Jordan and Kobe was that Jordan had endured the beatings of society early on—earning the nickname "old rogue."
And in terms of roguishness, Su Feng felt no one in the league matched Jordan… except himself.
Jordan recognized Su Feng's rogue streak too, so he decided not to get dragged into it.
Still, Jordan was amused by Su Feng's angry face.
"Keep talking," he thought. "I won't bother with you now, kid!"
Boom—!
Another hard pick-and-roll. Did the referee really not care?
Jordan grimaced after taking another big elbow.
On the court, under Big Ben's screen, Su Feng managed to gain half a step on the old rogue.
Iverson delivered the pass in time. Su Feng shot quickly, giving Jordan no chance to block.
Clang—!
Unfortunately, Su Feng rushed the shot, and the ball bounced off the rim.
Jordan's joy was obvious. To him, Su Feng's disappointment was just an act.
"Kid, your acting skills aren't enough!"
Rodman grabbed the rebound, and the Bulls attacked again.
Jordan initiated, and once more Pippen scored.
45 to 41.
Strangely, Jordan felt even more satisfied than if he had scored directly over Su Feng.
Finding Su Feng's weakness gave him a special kind of joy.
On the next possession, the 76ers attacked. Iverson scored, but Weatherspoon was blocked by Rodman, and the Bulls countered.
Kukoc ran the floor alone.
47 to 41.
On the sidelines, Coach Davis quickly called a timeout.
The Bulls were clearly gaining momentum.
…
What to do? Jordan had started playing rogue, stalling on the court, leaving everyone anxious.
To be beaten just to provoke a reaction—Su Feng felt like he was the first in history to try such a thing.
He knew that if he wanted to wear Jordan down, he had to push him one step further.
Then, dragged into Iverson's next possession, a chance was lost.
Give up? Impossible.
Even if there was only a one-in-ten-million chance, Su Feng believed there was no difference between rounding down and fifty-fifty.
So, after the timeout, the energized Su Feng appeared in front of Jordan again.
Jordan: "…" This guy's face is thicker than Reggie Miller's?
Jordan even began to doubt whether Su Feng was secretly one of his own fans.
On the court, the 76ers attacked.
Su Feng started running.
After taking a deep breath, Jordan chased him again. Just this time… Su Feng's position was different.
High post. Iverson read Su Feng's cut and raised four fingers.
Big Ben stepped into place to set the screen.
At Spectrum Arena, fans leaned forward from their seats.
Because this was isolation—Su Feng wanted to go one-on-one.
"Yo, check this play, it's going to be interesting," Zhang Weiping said excitedly on Dawei Zhao TV.
"Are you tired of running, kid?" Jordan teased, pressing his elbow into Su Feng.
Su Feng didn't answer.
Instead, he leaned on Jordan, then spun into a turnaround.
A picturesque move…
Jordan jumped, but his weary legs betrayed him.
Did you really think Jordan was made of iron? He gets tired too!
To avoid being blocked, Su Feng not only spun quickly but leaned back deeply.
Swish—!
47 to 43!
The shot didn't have Jordan's signature flavor, but it was still a bucket.
"Michael, I know you're not the same anymore. But a man—no, no, no. Let's keep it simple. Head-to-head!" Su Feng shouted after the ball dropped through the net.
Jordan: "…" Kid, do you even know how to spell the word "death"?