The trip to Texas saw the Lakers achieve three wins in three games, with the biggest highlight not being O'Neal, but the second-year rookie He Ximeng!
In the first game against the Mavericks, He Ximeng dished out 15 assists and scored 13 points, 15 assists.
In the second game against the Rockets, He Ximeng went wild, scoring 41 points!
In the third game against the Rockets, He Ximeng hit a game-tying three-pointer in regulation time!
Excellent at organizing, superb at scoring, and most importantly, a big heart!
After the three games, both the Los Angeles media and the Chinese media joined the chorus of praise for He Ximeng!
"A superstar is rising!"
"Chinese miracle sweeps through Texas!"
"Lakers' new star delivers the strongest performance in history..."
"Lakers' new star delivers another strongest performance in history..."
"Uh... the Lakers' new star seems to have delivered yet another strongest performance in history..."
While fans were still enthusiastically discussing He Ximeng's recent games, the man himself, He Ximeng, couldn't wait to return to his sweet home. Today, Kayla had prepared a romantic theme for He Ximeng: Texas cowboy style...
After the passion, He Ximeng suddenly felt that he and Kayla needed to buy a bigger house. Because with the increasing number of romantic themes, Kayla urgently needed a large house to store her clothes... Strictly speaking, it wasn't just about the clothes. Those thin outfits didn't take up much space, but the props that went with them... well, they took up quite a bit of space.
Coincidentally, He Ximeng had recently signed a new endorsement deal for a laptop, bringing in a new income of 3 million US dollars, which could be used to buy a house.
He Ximeng shared this idea with Kayla. Kayla initially felt indifferent. A small house was enough for two people to live in. But considering that she might indeed need a lot of props in the future... well, then let's buy one, but it couldn't be too far from the film academy, nor too far from Hollywood!
The former was because Kayla still had some courses to attend at school, and the latter was because Kayla had to go to Hollywood to film from time to time. Although she hadn't starred in any major female lead roles yet, it was coming soon. This was because the cooperation between Jill and Disney had reached the final stages. Once the profit-sharing terms were settled, Kayla would enter the cast of "Pirates of the Caribbean 1" as the female lead, embarking on her path to stardom in film and television...
No sooner said than done! The next day, He Ximeng drove his vintage sports car with Kayla, and centered around the film academy and Hollywood, they began their house-hunting journey!
3 million US dollars was considered a modest budget. It wasn't enough to buy a mansion near Hollywood, but it was more than enough to buy a comfortable, family-sized villa.
In the end, they fell in love with an exquisite Mediterranean-style villa on the coast of Santa Monica Bay. The land area was less than 200 square meters, with only three rooms, no swimming pool, and no private basketball court. However, it had a particularly large terrace that directly overlooked the sea, allowing them to watch the sunrise in the morning, the sunset in the evening, and the stars at night.
He Ximeng thought about facing the sea with his beloved, and spring blossoms...
Kayla thought about the sky as their blanket, the terrace as their bed, and doing some intimate things facing the sea...
While they were searching for a new home, the Lakers, playing at home, successively defeated the visiting Kings, Knicks, and Warriors.
During this time, He Ximeng also traveled east with the team for two away games, helping the Lakers extend their winning streak to 11 games!
Seeing that He Ximeng had gone on a scoring spree in his absence, Kobe, worried about being left too far behind by He Ximeng, convinced the team doctor to let him return after resting for three games, eager to play! Although his condition was not very stable, at least he didn't have to watch his teammates play on television.
Just as the Lakers were leading the entire league with their unstoppable momentum, injuries struck again. O'Neal was injured! This time it was a real injury.
It was indeed difficult for powerful centers like O'Neal to maintain full attendance. Many times, even without opponents' interference, they could injure themselves. Moreover, the league was extremely intense in terms of interior confrontation.
This was precisely why teams in the league wouldn't dare to show up without stocking up on at least two centers!
The reason Campbell hadn't been traded was that the Lakers had to guard against O'Neal's potential injuries, and there had to be someone to fill in at the center position. Especially since the rookie center Knight was traded to the Celtics for Fox this summer, Campbell's position as the backup center was actually quite secure.
With O'Neal injured, Eddie Jones initially thought his pressure would be immense! However, it wasn't.
He Ximeng and Kobe stepped up to share O'Neal's shot attempts and playing time.
In the next three games, He Ximeng scored 18 points and 12 assists, then 20 points and 11 assists, and then 19 points and 10 assists, achieving double-doubles in three consecutive games!
Kobe was not to be outdone, scoring 27 points, then 22 points, and then 25 points, scoring over twenty points in three consecutive games!
With both rookies playing at a near All-Star level, the temporary leader Eddie Jones found himself with little to do.
With He Ximeng controlling the ball and Kobe attacking the basket, Eddie Jones' role in the starting lineup gradually shifted towards that of a spot-up shooter.
Although Eddie Jones' average stats were not bad, and he managed to score 20 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists, and the team extended their 11-game winning streak to 14 games despite O'Neal's injury, Eddie Jones felt something was not quite right...
Before Eddie Jones could figure out the reason, the Lakers were scheduled to host the league's strongest opponent at home: the defending champions, the Chicago Bulls!
The Bulls had also encountered injuries recently. Their second-best player, Pippen, was out, leaving Jordan to lead the team alone!
Upon hearing that the opponent was the champion Bulls, even Kayla showed considerable interest. She asked He Ximeng to intervene and buy two reserved VIP tickets from the Lakers' club. Why two? Because Scarlett was also very interested in the Bulls. In Hollywood today, anyone interested in basketball wanted to watch the Bulls play.
Jordan's personal charisma had reached a level this season where all arenas in the league were essentially his home court. Especially with Jordan occasionally hinting at his impending retirement, it made fans of other teams worry that this would be Jordan's last dance...
For this game, the Bulls' starting lineup consisted of center Luc Longley, power forward Dennis Rodman, small forward Toni Kukoč, shooting guard Michael Jordan, and point guard Steve Harper.
The Lakers' starting lineup was center Elden Campbell, power forward Horry, small forward Derek Fox, shooting guard Eddie Jones, and point guard He Ximeng.
When the other Bulls players entered the arena, the Lakers' crowd was silent. However, when Jordan, with his charming smile, made his grand entrance, the entire stadium erupted in enthusiastic applause and cheers! Even the fans of a powerhouse team like the Lakers couldn't help but be captivated by Jordan's charisma.