warrior godfather

Chapter 250 Why Can't I? (5000 words)
After Curry made a free throw, the Warriors led by 5 points. With only 4.5 seconds left in the game, Rose received the serve and barely made a super long three-pointer under the death entanglement of Tony Allen. The Bulls gave up In spite of the competition for rebounds, the Warriors finally won this tough battle 103:98.

When the red light came on, Rose came to Curry, and the two hugged tightly. This was the first time they met again after two and a half months. In mid-August, Curry came to Chicago to find him. After that, the training camps of the teams started, and the two never met again.

"Derek, I will accept this victory." Curry laughed heartily.

Although Rose lost, he didn't have much frustration. He played in the NBA for two seasons and lost games every week. For NBA players, "winning or losing is a common matter in military affairs" is definitely a wise saying.

He looked into Curry's eyes and exclaimed:
"You guys are really strong. I can't wait to fight you again. Next time I will never lose again."

"Really? You can't win at home, and you still want to win away?" Curry shook his head with a smile.

Rose patted him on the back:

"Just wait and see, this time it's your luck!"

After shaking hands with other Warriors players one by one, he came to Zhang Yu.

"Derek, you played very well." Zhang Yu smiled and hugged Rose.

"No, Stephen played better, otherwise I wouldn't have lost the game..." Rose responded in a low voice, and the expression on his face changed slightly, revealing a faint solemnity.

He admired Zhang Yu very much. After practicing a stable open three-pointer, Rose clearly felt the improvement of his offensive environment, and this was thanks to Zhang Yu's suggestion. If it wasn't for Zhang Yu, he might be on the road to breakthrough in the end.

In Zhang Yu's previous life, Rose's three-point shooting percentage did not exceed 2018% for the first time until the 2019-35 season, and his mid-range shots became more and more accurate, rejuvenating his second spring. If he can practice shooting earlier, his achievements may still be higher.

Zhang Yu smiled and said:

"No, you and Stephen are both great, I heard him say, he fights you, it's hard to beat you, isn't it?"

Rose froze for a moment, nodded and said:
"I didn't expect him to even tell you this... Yes, in the summer, we trained together a few times, but it was useless. Basketball is not 1v1. You won't let Stephen fight me on the court."

Zhang Yu laughed

"You're right, I would never let him do this, even if he didn't tell me, I wouldn't let him hit you single... Derek, go back and watch the video carefully, focusing on the Warriors' defense against you, I think you will gain something, by the way, your shooting has improved a lot, keep it up, this will be the key to your becoming a superstar."

"Thank you..." Ross nodded subconsciously, and then asked suspiciously, "Ronan, why do you give me so many suggestions every time? We are opponents."

Zhang Yu was taken aback for a moment, as if he didn't expect Ross to ask such a question, and then smiled:
"The Warriors and the Bulls are not rivals. The last time the Warriors reached the Finals was more than 30 years ago, and the Bulls hadn't made it out of the Eastern Conference for more than 10 years. To be honest, I really hope that we can become opponents in the playoffs. That means the Warriors The reconstruction has been successful."

Zhang Yu paused, winked at Ross, and continued:

"To be honest, I'm still counting on you to continue to improve and help me get in the way of some teams in the East... You know, I'm not just a coach, I'm also an owner, and sometimes, I have to think from a higher level question."

"Oh... I remember, I will definitely practice shooting." Rose replied half-understanding, turned and walked to the player tunnel.

Looking at his leaving back, Zhang Yu still had a little smile on his face, and murmured:

"Come on, Derek, I need a stronger Rose, a stronger Bull..."

Later, Zhang Yu found Thibodeau and shook hands with him. Thibodeau forced a smile on his round face:
"Congratulations, Coach Z, the Warriors' defense is stronger than I thought. You played a great game and deserve this victory."

Zhang Yu smiled and said:

"Just call me Ronan, can I call you Tom?"

"of course."

"Tom, you really surprised me. There are fewer and fewer head coaches who advocate defense. There is no doubt that you are the best one. To be honest, I have always wanted to invite you to the Warriors as a defensive assistant. But now it seems that you have found a position that is more suitable for you." Zhang Yu said slowly.

He is not talking politely. When Zhang Yu first acquired the Warriors, he really invited Thibodeau, but Thibodeau declined.

In fact, Zhang Yu sent invitations to other famous assistant coaches in the league, but only Ron Adams accepted it.

Thibodeau obviously also remembered this incident, and said very politely:

"Thank you. If I hadn't already had the idea of ​​coaching a team at that time, I would have agreed."

"How about this," Zhang Yu suggested, "What is your mobile phone number? Let's add a contact information. If there is any defensive problem, I can ask you for advice...Of course, if it is inconvenient, forget it."

Thibodeau glanced at Zhang Yu in surprise, and then nodded again and again:

"No problem, but it's not enough to ask for advice. The Warriors' defense is very good, and Ron is also a very good defensive coach...By the way, he should have my mobile phone number, right?"

Although he and Ron Adams have no friendship, they have been in the league for many years, and both have made achievements in defense. They have dealt with each other a lot, and they still have contact information with each other.

Looking at Thibodeau who was puzzled, Zhang Yu said:
"I think this involves your privacy, it's better to ask in person, so..."

Thibodeau suddenly:
"That's right, my phone number is..."

Afterwards, the two exchanged contact information, exchanged some polite words with each other, and then separated.

At this time, the players of the two teams had already walked into the player channel one after another, and Zhang Yu also followed. Jonathan, who was waiting on the sidelines, followed quickly. He witnessed the whole process of Zhang Yu and Thibodeau's conversation, and said curiously:

"Boss, just now... why did you want Thibodeau's phone number? Didn't you say that his coaching style is very rigid and has many flaws? You don't need to ask him for advice?"

"Are you quite curious?" Zhang Yu gave him a sideways look.

Jonathan shrank his neck:

"No, I just asked casually, I was talking too much..."

Zhang Yu turned his eyes back to the front, smiled lightly and said:

"It's okay to tell you, I'm paving the way for the Eastern Conference playoffs."

"Eastern playoffs? Pave the way?" Jonathan was even more puzzled. Why did Zhang Yu say this so against harmony?
"Hehe, you will know when the time comes, it may be this year, it may be next year, the year after... In short, we need a strong bull, and Thibodeau alone is not enough. When necessary, I must help him One, for example... a small suggestion." Zhang Yu said slowly, with a smile, waved to the fans on both sides of the head, and walked into the player tunnel.

Jonathan blinked in bewilderment, still confused, but he had no time to think about it, so he quickly followed.

……

In the locker room of the home team, Rose took a shower, changed his clothes, sat on a chair, and picked up his phone.

The room was very quiet. After the loss, the Bulls players were not in the mood to chat and laugh, and packed their things with dull expressions.

Standing in the middle, Thibodeau looked left and right, felt that the atmosphere was not right, and wanted to say something, but this was not his specialty, he opened and closed his mouth a few times, and finally said dryly:
"Everyone played very well tonight and did a good job defending. It's not your fault that we lost the game. It's because I didn't arrange a proper tactic. Tomorrow, the whole team will watch the video of the game and find out the problems we have..."

But his words obviously didn't have much effect, everyone muffled a few words, and the atmosphere in the locker room was still dull.

Thibodeau sighed softly, he knew this would not work, if after losing, the whole team would be shrouded in a low pressure, the team would not go far, this kind of atmosphere is too unhealthy.

At this moment, Noah's rough voice sounded, and he said loudly:

"The coach is right. Everyone played very well. We were just unlucky. We lost a few points. We will win the next game! And the Warriors are a western team. It's okay to lose to them. We will play Magic in the next game. That's the key, our goal is not just as simple as the playoffs, cheer up and focus on our real opponents!"

"Jokin is right, don't think about today's game anymore, go back and get a good sleep, we have a tough battle to fight the day after tomorrow." Thibodeau seemed to have grasped a life-saving straw, and immediately echoed.

Everyone looked at Noah, and looked at each other a few more times, and Noah said again:
"Walk around, go back to rest, get your spirits up, and beat the Orlando people when the time comes, Howard will be handed over to me!"

"Let's go, playing with the Warriors is really tiring, they are a bunch of rabbits..." Luol Deng complained.

Gibson said with a silly smile:

"Come on, I'm dying of starvation, Jokin, how about something to eat?"

"Haha, well, it's exactly what I want..."

After Noah's gags, the dressing room gradually returned to the usual relaxed atmosphere. Everyone laughed and chatted in low voices. Only Rose remained expressionless.

Xi Bodu heaved a sigh of relief, walked up to Ross, and told him to go to the interview.

The two received a speech from the team's publicist for today's interview, which included some questions that the public relations department had preset based on today's game content, and gave standard answers for their reference.

This is the general practice of every team in the NBA. If players who only know how to play on weekdays don’t finish college or even go to college, they can say whatever they want, and the image of the player and the image of the team will be lost.

Durant is a good example. When he is interviewed by the media, his speeches are often very decent and thoughtful, but when he himself confronts fans on social media, he highlights a true temperament, which makes him a different person.

But now Durant is still a well-behaved "school bag Du". After a few years of the mobile Internet era, people will realize what kind of person Durant is.

Ross glanced down at the speech in his hand, walked into the news room, and sat down on the stage.

A group of reporters in the audience raised their hands one after another, and the PR standing in a corner clicked on the reporter of the "Chicago Tribune":
"Derek, it's a pity the Bulls lost tonight, but you guys were tenacious... What do you think of tonight's game?"

There is no nutrition in this question, but there will be no mistakes. The "Chicago Tribune" is the largest local newspaper in Chicago and has close ties with the Bulls.

After hearing this, Ross looked down at the speech on the table again:
"We showed fighting spirit and fighting spirit, everyone tried their best on both ends of the offense and defense..."

Then, after a few less nutritious questions, an ESPN reporter asked Rose:

"Derrick, you and Stephen Curry are the two most powerful new-generation point guards in the league. Between you and him, who do you think is more..."

Before he finished speaking, he was interrupted by Ross:

"Wait, what did you say?"

"I said you and Stephen are the two most powerful new-generation point guards in the league..."

"Sorry, I don't agree with what you said," Rose shook his finger, "Steph and I are not new generation point guards, we are one of the best point guards in the league!"

The reporter froze for a moment and said:

"But you haven't entered the league for a long time, and you are still in the rookie contract period. Stephen Curry has only played in the NBA for one year. With all due respect, there is still a big gap between you and the top point guards."

Ross said calmly:

"But the Bulls and Warriors are the best teams in the East and West, and we are the first in the division."

In the audience, the publicist looked at Ross anxiously. The questions asked by the reporter were written in the speech, and the answers were decent, but Ross did not follow the answers he had prepared at all.

"The temporary record doesn't mean anything, but Steve Nash has the MVP, Chris Paul has the best team, and even Stephen Curry has the best second team, and you don't have any decent honor." The reporter blurted out.

After he finished speaking, there was a silence in the news room, Ross looked at him quietly, and the others looked at Ross quietly.

After a while, when the publicist wanted to come on stage to rescue Ross, Ross suddenly smiled:

"You're right, I've thought about it too, Steve Nash and Chris Paul are the best point guards in this league..."

The publicist breathed a sigh of relief, and it appeared Rose wasn't irritated by reporters.

"...However, I am not inferior to them. This year, I will also be selected to the best team and win the MVP. This is my goal for several years." Rose said the second half of the sentence calmly.

Silence, another silence.

After a while, the ESPN reporter said in surprise:
"For a while? MVP? Are you serious?"

Ross said calmly:
"Of course, why can't I be the MVP of the league? Why can't I be the best player in the league? I don't see a reason why I can't? I work hard, I dedicate myself to the game, I started at a very young age , just sacrificed a lot for this, and I know that if I keep working hard, I will get what I want, be the MVP, be the best point guard, and that’s what I’m going to do next.”

After speaking, he looked around for a week, got up straight, and prepared to leave the news room.

Just as he walked to the door, the reporter's voice sounded behind him:

"Derek, you haven't answered me yet, who is better, you or Stephen Curry?"

He paused and turned around:

"1v1, I'm stronger, but in the game, he's stronger than me now - until I beat him, but we are the best point guard in the league, to be precise, he is the best point guard in the west , I'm the best point guard in the East."

After the words fell, he left the room, leaving only the publicist who wanted to cry without tears and the excited reporter.

……

The next day, on the plane to Milwaukee, Zhang Yu flipped through the newspaper in his hand, and let out two smug chuckles from time to time.

USA Today wrote:
"Yesterday, the Warriors narrowly defeated the Bulls in an away game. Curry scored 25 points, 8 assists, 5 rebounds and 2 steals. Luo scored 28 points, 6 assists and 6 rebounds, which is not far behind Curry. The Warriors won the final victory..."

"Thibodeau exposed his flaws in coaching an NBA team for the first time. He didn't call a timeout in time to make adjustments at the last moment, which wiped out the Bulls' 5-point advantage, and he actually replaced Korver who hit 4 three-pointers. It is unforgivable to replace Bogens, who has a bad touch, so that the Warriors can boldly attack Rose and ruin a good game..."

"On the other hand, Coach Z gave rookie Klay Thompson full trust at the last moment, and he also made a very critical three-pointer; the Warriors finally let Curry-Green play a pick-and-roll, and Green took the second step, and also received Very significant effect, reusing rookies is an important reason why the Warriors can win.

"This is the biggest difference between Thibodeau and Coach Z. Their coaching years are both short, but Thibodeau is a typical old-school coach who prefers to keep the main lineup on the field. In yesterday's game, Rose played for 40 minutes. 42 minutes, Gibson 39 minutes, Noah 38 minutes, which caused a huge burden on them, while for the Warriors, Curry, who played the longest time, only played 36 minutes. Incomparable, coach Z's trust in rookies is worth learning from Thibodeau..."

"Boss, Derek and I went out to dinner yesterday." While Zhang Yu was reading the newspaper, Curry walked up to Zhang Yu and sat down, whispering.

Zhang Yu put down the newspaper in his hand, glanced at Kuli's slightly tired expression, and smiled narrowly:
"No wonder you went back to the hotel so late yesterday... Where did you go?"

Curry shook his head quickly:

"I didn't go anywhere, I came back after dinner, and I still have a video with Ayesha..."

"Haha, Stephen, you should put marriage on the agenda." Zhang Yu laughed.

Curry smiled wryly:
"I think so too, but Ayesha has her own ideas. I don't know when I can get married. I hope it will be sooner."

"Don't worry, you and Ayesha are a destined couple." Zhang Yu said in relief, "By the way, why did you suddenly mention Derek?"

　Thanks to Yu Qingfeng and ALfrank for their rewards!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)