The Aftermath of a Brawl
As soon as Zhao Dong and Karl Malone were out, the refs made their call.
Malone was hit with a flagrant foul and tossed from the game.
This was probably the harshest penalty the Mailman had ever caught for one of his infamous elbows. In the past, even when he clocked a superstar, he might not have even gotten a call.
Some folks used to joke that the league gave Malone's elbows a pass, just like how they overlooked Mutombo wagging his finger after a block. Both were technically illegal moves, but the league had been letting them slide for years.
For Zhao Dong, the refs weren't holding back either—second-degree flagrant foul, straight ejection.
Meanwhile, over in Chicago, the Bulls were up on the Lakers at halftime.
After the game, Jordan was itching for updates on the Knicks vs. Jazz matchup.
"What?"
He froze when he heard Malone had elbowed Zhao Dong in the back of the head mid-dunk, leaving him motionless on the floor.
"No, no, how the hell can you do that?" Jordan muttered, shaking his head.
But when he heard that Zhao Dong rocked Malone's shit, he was completely stunned.
"Michael, our game against the Knicks should be just basketball. No extra bullshit," Pippen reminded him.
"Of course, we keep it basketball. Same as when we handled Laimbeer and his crew in Detroit," Jordan replied.
Pippen nodded, then shot a look at Rodman.
Rodman held up his hands. "Man, don't look at me. Why you looking at me? I ain't a damn mailman. At most, I just do a little dirty work, talk some trash, and bait some offensive fouls."
Jordan leaned against his locker, deep in thought. "That kid's cold as hell. Mailman's looking real bad right now."
"Yo, NBC is airing the Knicks-Jazz highlights!" a teammate called out.
Jordan and the squad turned to the TV just in time to see the clip.
As the footage rolled, they saw Malone's dirty-ass elbow to Zhao Dong's head.
Pippen scoffed. "That ain't defense. That's some bullshit. Guys like that don't deserve a ring."
"Facts." Jordan nodded.
Then the next clip played—Zhao Dong throwing hands at Malone.
The Bulls locker room erupted in cheers. Even Jordan was hyped—until Zhao Dong kicked Malone while he was down. That made Jordan shake his head.
"Damn, that dude really wanted his revenge right then and there," he muttered.
Thinking back to his past beef with Zhao Dong, Jordan felt a headache coming on. He was starting to regret how he had handled things.
In the end, without Malone, the Jazz got washed. The Knicks blew them out 108-88, securing a 20-point dub.
---
Meanwhile, Zhao Dong was just finishing up his medical checkup when Van Gundy got a call from Thibodeau.
"Jeff, I covered up Zhao's injury report. I say we put him on the injury list anyway—make it sound worse than it is. We can't let Malone slide. We gotta push the league to punish him hard." Thibodeau suggested.
"Yeah, I got you," Van Gundy agreed.
At the post-game press conference, Van Gundy went all-in on Malone, damn near tearing up.
"This is a CRIME! Karl Malone was trying to MURDER Zhao Dong! That was an attack from behind—it's basically attempted murder! If Zhao is still alive, it's because God himself was rocking that No. 46 jersey tonight!"
"NO, NO, NO! You can't say that! Zhao Dong was worse!" Jazz coach Jerry Sloan shot back.
Van Gundy stared at him in disbelief.
"Jerry, you're a veteran coach. How can you condone your player straight-up trying to kill someone?!"
He slammed the table. "Zhao lost his temper because he almost got murdered on the court. That's understandable. A judge and jury would understand that. But Malone? Nah. That was just dirty. He's a damn criminal."
Sloan opened his mouth but had nothing to say. He was never a great talker, and Van Gundy just hit him with some lawyer-level argument.
Sloan clenched his fists, thinking, "Damn it, why didn't Malone just elbow that bastard to death?"
---
Back in the hospital, Zhao Dong lay in bed, hating every second of it.
He had spent enough time stuck in hospital beds in his past life.
Then the system screen popped up.
> Mission Alert:
- You defeated Karl Malone in a non-basketball way. Sniper mission canceled.
- Stockton sniper mission incomplete. Mission canceled.
Zhao Dong cursed in his head. "Damn you, Malone. Hope you get your Viagra real soon."
He knew a suspension and a fat fine were probably coming. The team would appeal to the league, but the front office would cover the fines anyway.
Suddenly, footsteps echoed in the hallway. The door swung open, and a whole squad of Knicks players—including Oakley and Ewing—rolled in.
"Zhao, how you feelin'?" Oakley asked, grinning.
"Not great. I hate hospitals," Zhao Dong replied.
"Tough it out." Oakley chuckled.
Ewing dropped a backpack onto the bed. "We got you something."
"Huh?" Zhao Dong unzipped it.
Inside was a fat stack of Playboy mags, some handheld game consoles, and a few boxes of condoms—probably leftovers from these clowns' personal stash.
Larry Johnson smirked. "Yo, I saw a couple fine-ass nurses here. You should chat 'em up. With your looks, you got a shot."
Zhao Dong's face went dark. "Man, get the hell outta here!"
---
After the Knicks left, Chinese commentators Zhang Heli and Sun Zhenping stopped by, bringing news from back home.
Because of the time difference, China was already awake and buzzing about the brawl.
Most media outlets were tearing into Zhao Dong, saying he had embarrassed the country on the international stage.
Zhao Dong didn't give a damn. As someone who had lived through this era before, he knew how the Chinese media operated—just a bunch of bootlickers.
---
The next morning, his old teammates from the Sea Wolves came to visit, along with some ex-girlfriends and a group of Chinese exchange students.
Among them was Lin Min, the girl who looked like Akagi Haruko.
Meanwhile, in North America, the media was on fire.
"The Most Vicious Elbow in NBA History!"
The New York Sports Daily went all in, slamming Malone and the Jazz, while also ripping the league for letting this type of dirty play slide for years.
"A Killer Move Disguised as Defense!"
The New York Daily News ran with that headline, hammering home the idea that Malone's elbow wasn't just dirty—it was criminal.
Since New York was the media capital of the world, most major outlets followed their lead, turning public opinion against Malone.
Of course, Utah's local media tried to flip the script, painting Zhao Dong as the villain.
But let's be real—Utah's media had no pull. Their voices got straight-up drowned out by the national coverage.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do you want to read Advanced Chapters?
Visit this link:
Påtreon.com/Fanficlord03