NBA's King of Talking

Chapter 104 Happy Birthday!

In this game alone, the Thunder's lineup change was very effective. With increased spacing, the second unit's offensive efficiency improved significantly, while the overall height reduction didn't cause a substantial drop in defensive efficiency.

Of course, the sample size is still a bit small, but the explosiveness on the offensive end and the overall performance are indeed impressive.

In this game, the Thunder's second unit's offensive surge instantly sealed the victory, which was truly unexpected.

The second half was quickly decided, and the final quarter became garbage time.

Ultimately, the Thunder defeated the Hornets at home, achieving a three-game winning streak after a three-game losing streak, and ending all their games in February with a winning streak.

贾飞本场比赛表现非常出色，拿到7分7篮板7助攻3抢断3盖帽的全面数据。

After winning this game, the Thunder's record improved to 44 wins and 13 losses, maintaining their first place in the Western Conference.

After winning this game, Jia Fei's personal points account totaled 3318. He immediately spent 3000 points to raise his "Iverson Peak Skill Integration" from 28% to 29%!

February has arrived...

On March 2, the Thunder narrowly lost to the Nuggets on the road, failing to achieve a four-game winning streak.

March 3rd was Jia Fei's birthday, but he was playing an away game with his team. Lamb bought him a cake, and they celebrated his birthday hastily at the away game.

Jia Fei had never really grasped the concept of birthdays, not even in his past life. He didn't quite understand why girls liked celebrating birthdays so much. He also couldn't understand why they cared so much about "rituals." Did not valuing such holidays and lacking a sense of "ritual" necessarily make someone a "straight man"? Was caring about you a matter of whether you had a sense of ritual?

Besides, they have too many holidays... They celebrate traditional festivals, two major Valentine's Days (February 214th and Qixi Festival), White Valentine's Day and May 520th, two birthdays (one according to the Gregorian calendar and one according to the lunar calendar), as well as International Women's Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and most ridiculously, they even celebrate Children's Day...

He understands why many guys don't want to date anymore; it's not that they don't like girls anymore, it's just that they can't afford to...

On the evening of March 3, Jia Fei was in his hotel bed receiving many birthday wishes from his former teammates and coaches. He was in a pretty good mood, at least everyone cared about him.

Sharapova also sent him a happy birthday message, but to his surprise, she later sent another message asking, "Did you receive the items?"

"What is it?" Jia Fei asked himself. He suddenly realized that he was in Los Angeles preparing for an away game, while he lived in Oklahoma City, so of course he couldn't receive anything.

"I'm playing an away game in Los Angeles!" Jia Fei could only answer truthfully.

"Oh, look at my memory! I gave you a gift, remember to accept it when you get back!" Sharapova said.

Jia Fei was very curious about what gift Sharapova had prepared for him. He now understood why so many people enjoy receiving gifts. The appeal of a gift isn't entirely in the gift itself, but rather in the anticipation. You look forward to receiving a gift; what the gift is makes you imagine, thus generating curiosity and anticipation, stimulating the brain to release dopamine, making you feel happy.

On March 4, after defeating the Clippers on the road, Jia Fei returned to Oklahoma City with the team.

Upon arriving in Oklahoma City, Jia Fei received a package in his mailbox. Taking it inside, he cut it open with scissors and found a cardboard box inside. He then opened the box and found a jersey with a delicate card attached, on which was written something.

Jia Fei didn't look at the jersey; instead, he picked up the card and started reading. It was clear the package was from Sharapova, and he wanted to see what she had written on the card.

"Happy birthday, Jia Fei! I don't know what you like, so I'm sending you an AI jersey. Hope you like it! —Maria"

He had seen Sharapova's signature before and was familiar with her handwriting; it was indeed hers. What surprised him was that she knew AI was his idol.

AI's jersey? Jia Fei put down the card in his hand and looked at the jersey curiously. The jersey looked very retro, like it was from the 90s.

Upon seeing this jersey, Jia Fei suddenly realized that it looked like the one Allen Iverson wore during the Rising Stars Challenge!

He quickly opened his phone and searched, and sure enough, the white jersey that Allen Iverson wore when he won the MVP award at the Rookie Challenge was this one.

Could it be the one he wore?

Jia Fei searched online and found that this jersey had previously been resold online for as much as $10, and the actual item was owned by an Iverson fan in Pennsylvania. According to online information, the jersey has already been bought for a high price!

Jia Fei has confirmed that this is Iverson's original jersey. Someone of Sharapova's stature would never buy him a non-collectible jersey as a birthday gift, because it would be simply not presentable.

Jia Fei was instantly moved... The gift was valuable, but more importantly, it showed that the person genuinely cared about him! Who would know who your idol is? Who would go out of their way to find a jersey from the last century?

Keep in mind that he had just finished the Rising Stars Challenge, and the jersey she gave him was the one her idol wore when he won the MVP award at the Rising Stars Challenge. The meaning is self-evident. This wasn't a coincidence; it was a choice made after careful consideration.

"Thank you, Maria, I love your gift. Thank you so much, I'm so happy! Thank you!" Jia Fei texted Sharapova.

“I’m glad you like it (smiley face)!” Sharapova replied.

Jia Fei felt quite lucky. Even though he was still a nobody, a top tennis star cared about him so much and was willing to be his good friend. This care made him feel very warm.

After the Thunder defeated the Lakers at home on March 6, Reggie Jackson actually brought a bottle of red wine to Jia Fei's house.

"Reggie, what are you doing?" Jia Fei asked.

Reggie smiled and said, "Jay, you just had your birthday!"

"Yeah, that's right!" Jia Fei was completely baffled.

Reggie laughed, "You're already 21 years old, so you're legally allowed to drink! What do you think of this wine?"

Jia Fei finally understood why Reggie chose this time to bring the wine to his house.

"I don't know much about wine either. Is this an 82 Lafite?" Jia Fei asked with a smile.

Reggie shook his head and said, "I can't afford this stuff. This wine is pretty good though, it's one of my dad's treasured possessions, I brought it over, hahaha..."

Jia Fei didn't refuse. They had kindly invited him for drinks, so how could he refuse them? He suddenly remembered when he was still in high school, he went to an internet cafe as soon as he turned 18. This feeling of growing up was really great!