NBA's King of Talking

Chapter 336 The Eternal Idol

At the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Philadelphia, Jia Fei met his idol, Allen Iverson.

He's completely different from the young, indomitable player who single-handedly challenged the Shaq-Kobe duo back in the day. Iverson has gained some weight. He's got a bit of a belly, and his physique isn't as muscular as it was in the NBA, except for his calves, which are still quite slender.

"You're Jia Fei!" Iverson said with a broad smile. Unlike before, when he was surrounded by bodyguards, he was now all alone, looking rather pitiful.

But that's reality. Even the best of friends need to eat, and with Iverson around, there's really no food to eat. Iverson is indeed short of money right now, and his expenses are still huge. If it weren't for his lifetime contract with Reebok that allows him to receive an endorsement fee every year, he really wouldn't be much better off than those homeless people.

"Yes, I am Jia Fei. Hello Allen, this is my good brother Art!" Jia Fei respectfully shook hands with Iverson and introduced his teammate Art Mayor to him.

“I know, he’s on your team, and he’s a great rebounder!” Iverson said.

"Thank you, thank you!" Although Iverson looked like a child standing in front of these two people, his reputation preceded him. This man was truly like an idol, even if he wasn't your idol.

A close look at Jia Fei confirms that Iverson is not 1.83 meters tall! But he's not as short as rumored either, like only 1.75 meters. With shoes on, his height should be around 181 meters.

The fact that he wasn't 1.83 meters tall only makes Iverson seem even more remarkable. To be the number one draft pick with that height, to play shooting guard in a non-small-ball era, and to win MVP and scoring titles is simply absurd, almost unbelievable.

Many younger fans may not grasp the concept, but back in Iverson's era, the offensive style was still primarily based on half-court offense, and there were very few centers who could shoot three-pointers to create space. The games were filled with a lot of mid-range jump shots, the paint was crowded, and offensive space was incredibly stagnant.

In such an offensive environment, Iverson was still primarily a scorer who relied on drives and mid-range jump shots. Just imagine how difficult that would be.

Many people underestimate the concept of height difference. Imagine you're 1.7 meters tall and weigh 65 kilograms, playing guard. The opposing center is a little over 1.8 meters tall and weighs 80 kilograms. You might think you can't win rebounds against such a center and will get blocked if you drive to the basket. But imagine Allen Iverson, who was 1.8 meters tall and weighed only 75 kilograms, while the opposing center was over 210 centimeters tall and weighed over 120 kilograms. Try driving to the basket against that height and weight difference!

It's like a 1.7-meter tall player driving into the paint and facing a 2-meter tall center. A 2-meter tall center, unless he's slower than a tortoise and has some basketball skills, is practically unstoppable on a pickup court.

At this hotel, Jia Fei treated Iverson to dinner in a luxury private room.

There were only 3 people, but Jia Fei ordered a whole table of dishes.

“Jia, there are only three of us, how are we going to finish all this food?” Iverson said.

"This is my treat for my idol. It's okay if we can't finish it all!" Jia Fei said with a smile.

Iverson was pleased to hear this; he had never been a frugal person. If he had been, he wouldn't have ended up in this state, having earned over $1 million after taxes throughout his career. He was also a big spender, valuing loyalty and extravagance, squandering money like water. Now that he was broke, he realized how important financial management was, but unfortunately, it was already too late.

In the past, he wouldn't have been too surprised by Jia Fei's respect. Back then, he was arrogant and didn't even respect Jordan. But now, times have changed. He's retired and penniless. Forget about top NBA superstars, even ordinary NBA players don't really respect him anymore, and they use him as a negative example, which makes him feel very ashamed.

So Iverson was very happy at this moment. He hadn't been treated with such courtesy in a long time. You have to know that the handsome Asian guy on the other side was not an ordinary fan, but a top superstar in the league, the hottest star Jia Fei!

Having the league's hottest player as a fan is a source of pride for Iverson. For him, pride is often more important than money.

"Jay, people say you play like me, but I honestly never knew you idolized me. It's kind of embarrassing to admit, your idol has ended up like this..." Iverson took a sip of red wine, a hint of melancholy in his voice. Back in the day, when he was at his peak, he was a Philadelphia hero, the epitome of a lone wolf, a trendsetter in the league, with countless fans worldwide...

Many people cannot comprehend this immense difference because they have never reached such heights, so they cannot understand it. Iverson felt this deeply; he was truly a superstar back then, almost becoming a legendary superstar.

"The outside world isn't lying, you are my idol, my idol forever! No matter if you're still in the league now, no matter what you're like now, that will never change! This is just a small token of my appreciation, a little gift from a fan to their idol, please accept it!" Jia Fei smiled as he presented his gift.

Iverson was delighted to receive the gift and did not refuse it. He opened the gift box in front of Jia Fei.

Inside was a beautiful Rolex watch. He had seen too many fine things, and by his estimation, this watch was worth no less than 10 US dollars.

That's quite a big deal!

Iverson was delighted; the value of the gift reflected the recipient's level of respect for him. This was no joke. Given Jia Fei's wealth, if he only gave a gift worth a few hundred or a few thousand dollars, it would mean he didn't respect him enough.

"Thank you for the gift, I love it!" Iverson accepted it with a smile.

"I'm glad you like it!" Jia Fei smiled, his smile widening. What did spending a little money matter if he could complete the mission? For him, the last thing he had in abundance was US dollars…

At the dinner table, the conversation drifted to basketball. All three were NBA players, each with their own understanding and thoughts on the sport, and they had a very pleasant chat.

That evening, Jia Fei invited Iverson to a bar for drinks, and the three of them parted ways very late.

The NBA free agency period officially opened after midnight. Jia Fei and Art Mayork didn't care about any of that; they spent two days having a great time in Philadelphia.

I visited Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Mount Park, and the Rodin Museum, which counts as a sightseeing trip.

Two days later, Jia Fei and Art Mayorc flew back to Atlanta.