basketball never sleeps

Chapter 254 Will You Win? (6K)

At night, Mo Wen and Payton, escorted by bodyguards, staggered back to the hotel booked by the team.

"I thought you would go home and sleep." Seeing Mo Wen asking his assistant to get the room card, Peyton's eyes were full of admiration.

Mo Wen did not comment. Just like in other away games, he skillfully found the house number, opened the door and prepared to rest.

No one can say anything wrong when he gets together with his old teammates, but once they leave O'Neal's house, they become rivals.

Judging from actions rather than intentions, if Mo Wen continues to stay at O'Neal's house to rest, or ignores his teammates and goes home to enjoy themselves, it is hard to guarantee that his current teammates will not feel resentful.

It would definitely be more comfortable to sleep at home, but he is now the boss and leader of the team. With rights, he must also take responsibilities.

After Christmas Eve, it’s Christmas.

Lying on the bed, thinking about the past two years, many thoughts popped up in Mo Wen's mind.

Unlike his previous days with the Pistons, Detroit was at most just a station for him because of Larry Brown standing in the way, but in Miami, he had the most enjoyable time of his career so far... although his career itself had only lasted three years.

However, before he could think too much, he felt sleepy and the copy space forcibly pulled him in.

Those who don’t have sleep cannot suffer from insomnia.

But not everyone is as unfortunate as Mo Wen, especially those who are paid by the Heat——

Nicotine can make people excited, but Riley, who was just trying to sleep, had smoked several cigarettes tonight.

At least, nicotine can temporarily soothe the troubles in his heart.

"Twenty years from now, both Mo and Wade will be legends of the NBA. We feel deeply sorry for not being able to keep Mo, but we still have Wade, who has shown not only outstanding skills, but also a focus and passion that fits seamlessly with our team culture. Don't forget that we still have the best big men in the league. I believe Wade and Shaq can still lead us to the championship.

As for Mo, I wish him all the best in the future, and I believe that he will shine brightly on some stage in the future."

……

"Sam (Casar) and Peja will be perfect additions to us, plus Tim (Thomas), now I think the Heat need to raise the ticket prices again, maybe you can see a complete Heat team at this year's All-Star Game!"

……

"Because of injuries and running-in problems, we are destined to go through a difficult time, but I believe in Stan, I believe in our warriors, short-term problems are not a problem. Maybe we are destined not to be able to replicate the miracle of losing only 7 games last season, but I still believe we can go to the end."

……

"We need time, we have a lot of problems to solve, I don't have time to pay attention to other teams, okay, next question."

……

The trophy booth he left behind still had the roses that Mo Wen left behind before he left.

While at work, he would often stare at the rose.

Regret?
is it wrong?
How to do?
In front of the mirror, Riley had never seen himself so ridiculous.

wow-

The sink was filled with water. Riley took a deep breath and plunged his head into it.

Gumbling--

The feeling of suffocation and the fear of death pushed him out.

Most of those messy and ridiculous thoughts were also washed away.

Come again!

He has no regrets, he is not wrong, everything just requires waiting!
Yes, Mo Wen’s excellence far exceeded his expectations, and yes, the Heat’s dependence on Mo Wen also far exceeded his imagination.

But his judgment at that time was not wrong. Regrets cannot be undone, and now he can only move on!
Once again, he figured it out.

He has figured it out countless times during this period, but whenever he sees the Heat's struggle and Mo Wen's exaggerated performance in the distance, he will be trapped again.

Unless the Heat go all the way to the end as he wished, only this result can save him.

Otherwise, for a long time in the future, he would spend the nights in a state of regret.

In a two-story villa a few blocks away, a couple in their sixties were lying on the bed.

Listening to her husband's snoring, the woman shook him.

"Are you asleep, dear?"

The old man didn't respond, but the woman didn't give up and repeated it again.

"Um... uh-huh?"

"You stayed up late for the last two days even though the games were not very important. How can you sleep well for such an important game tomorrow?" The wife was relieved to see her husband wake up.

"Tomorrow... isn't tomorrow the last game?" Van Gundy's hoarse voice was filled with confusion.

"Oh... sorry, dear, I forgot to tell you that I have almost decided on what you mentioned earlier... Yes, it's time."

"You're not going to insist any longer?" The woman's voice trembled with a hint of joy.

"I can still hold on, but there's no need." Van Gundy rubbed the bags under his eyes that were far beyond his age.

The glory of being the coach of two consecutive championships had disappeared after more than twenty games, and he gradually realized who he was - if he resigned, the world would be a better place.

He has helped Riley through the team's most difficult time. No matter what the result of tomorrow's game is, it's time to leave.

In the past two years, his child was sick and he had no time to take care of him, and his wife was also diagnosed with depression some time ago...

Besides, based on his understanding of Riley, if he himself is not decent, Riley will probably help him to be decent.

Turning on the bedside lamp, Da Fan found the notebook on the bedside table and pulled out two plane tickets from the cover.

"Haha, I think the flight points I've accumulated over the years are enough for us to travel around the world. Mo has been inviting me to visit China before, and now I finally have the chance."

……

The Lakers have had to play games every Christmas since 1999, and after moving to the Heat, O'Neal still spends every year at this time with his old teammates and his old team to enjoy the love-hate relationship.

It can be said that Christmas in the NBA in the early 21st century consisted of five parts - Christmas tree, Santa Claus, turkey, Kobe and O'Neal.

These five parts still appeared in the public eye this year, but fortunately, the audience finally no longer had to watch the old OK battle - O'Neal's opponent this year became Mo Wen, and Kobe's opponent became James.

The first civil war after the disbandment of the Big Three, the strongest combination in NBA history, was a godsend for Stern.

The Heat were initially unwilling to clear salary space for Mo Wen, and as a result the team quickly declined after Mo Wen left. However, Mo Wen, who left alone, led a bad team to the top.

Mo Wen? AKANBA Xiao Yan!

The only thing that is not so perfect is that the male protagonist of "Return of the God of War" in this script is a Chinese.

If Mo Wen and Wade could swap their current positions... Stern couldn't help stamping his feet in excitement just thinking about it.

What a pity. What a pity.

However, thinking about Mo Wen's image, well, sometimes nationality doesn't have to be so rigidly defined.

A son-in-law is half a son. When Mo Wen becomes the governor's son-in-law, he can barely be considered one of his own.

Christmas morning.

America's children are having what may be the happiest day of their lives other than their birthdays.

The children use the fruits of consumerism bought with their parents' hard-earned money to devoutly thank Santa Claus for the gift.

Mo Wen also followed local customs and prepared a gift for each teammate. Of course, in addition to this, Mo Wen also found a shipping company in advance to send a gift to their families in Seattle.

It is actually thanks to him that his teammates are able to play in the Christmas game.

As a person who has not spent the New Year with his family for three consecutive years, he can empathize with the troubles of not being able to be with his family during this festive season.

Speaking of which, he is already considering the injury problem during the Spring Festival next year...

That is to say, he is on TV every day now, and people all over the country are watching him. If he were an ordinary young man who did not go home for the New Year for three years, the legend about his buzz cut would probably spread in his hometown.

Generally speaking, players will not be too focused on the Christmas game because they have to appease their wives and children.

But this problem is not a problem for the Supersonics with a young lineup. Since the festival cannot be saved, everyone just wants to show their faces on this stage.

"These idiots in Miami are still discussing who is stronger, the Big Three, the Big Five, or this year's Big Six. Don't they know that the Heat are still on the edge of the playoffs?"

In the away locker room, Guy was quite dissatisfied when he saw the reports in the newspaper.

"Emm, "Who is the real Heat King?" Let me see——

Although Mo has proven how talented he is in scoring and organizing since leaving the Heat, Wade is a better team player. Although his individual statistics are poor, this shows that he is more team-oriented... Damn it, these reporters still say that!"

Payton pouted and complained.

Ray Allen looked at the newspaper without saying anything, but there was a hint of dissatisfaction between his eyebrows.

In fact, looking at the recent media coverage, the Sonics players didn't say it on the surface, but they were all angry in their hearts.

Even though the SuperSonics are already the team with the best record in the league, they are still dwelling on the past events of the Heat last year and the year before.

I don't take them seriously at all!

Of course they know that the current achievements of the Supersonics are mostly due to Mo Wen, but they are also participants.

Look at the Heat now after Mo Wen left, what is the difference between them and the Supersonics last year?
Why is it that when we mention the Heat we mention the Big Three and the Big Five, and when we talk about the Supersonics we only mention Mo, and everyone else seems to be the one to be saved?

Mo Wen noticed the emotions of his teammates. He originally thought that it was Old Hill's turn to say something, but when he saw Old Hill's frowning face, he knew that he had to do it himself.

"Okay, everyone, listen to me first. Don't treat them as a team with their current performance. They had some injury problems a while ago... I'm still a little unsure about the Heat with a healthy roster."

"Wade is probably the guy in the league who knows how to defend me the best. Shaq is fatter, but he's also harder to play against. And Cassell, Peja, Finley, Tim, just think about it, they're a group of tough guys."

"They want to win, and I want to win too, so, brothers..." Mo Wen stretched out his hand in front of them and said sincerely:
"Can you help me?"

The room was quiet at first, and then a group of people surrounded Mo Wen and put their hands together.

"Will we win?" Ray Allen asked somewhat uneasily.

"We will win."

……

The Heat's old DJ did not simply call out the names of dishes for honors like the Sonics' DJ, but instead picked up the old script from last season.

"Let us welcome the man—"

"He is a magician from the East—"

"He is Ares (God of War) of the Purging Alliance—"

"He is Poseidon dancing wildly in the tsunami—"

"He is the FMVP you can always trust—"

"Welcome home--"

“More——Win——!!!” The visiting team was the last to come out, and Mo Wen heard the familiar shouts that he had not heard for a long time.

"More! More! More!"

Amid the cheers, Mo Wen could occasionally hear a few shouts of "MVP".

If Mo Wen's return happened at the beginning of the season, the attitude of Heat fans towards him would not be much better than that of Detroit fans.

But after enduring nearly two months of "torture", Heat fans miss Mo Wen so much.

Riley's big signings during the offseason almost made Heat fans deify him, but after a whole summer of hype, fans realized something was not right within three games.

The team's original smooth offense is gone, and the playing style has become uglier, which is fine, but they lost a whole year last season, and now they've exceeded the target just one month after returning!

We are used to picking and choosing among delicacies from land and sea, but now we have to look for solids in Indian porridge. Who can stand this?

The fans' enthusiasm seemed to be poured into Mo Wen, and when the Heat players came on the court, the atmosphere became noticeably cooler.

It wasn't until Wade came on the court that the fans burst into cheers of the same level again.

The two men looked at each other from across the court. Mo Wen had a warm smile on his face, killing the hearts of countless girls as usual, while Wade was assimilated by Riley's style, with his cheeks drooping and holding his breath, as if he wanted to treat this game as the finals.

The game did not start like a normal game, because before that the Heat had prepared a small ceremony for Mo Wen - awarding the championship ring.

Because of the Christmas game, Mo Wen and Payton were the last championship members to receive the ring.

Riley forced a smile and handed the ring to Mo Wen. However, Da Fan next to him showed a sincere smile and patted Mo Wen on the shoulder as usual.

Mo Wen put on the ring with ease and showed it to the fans without showing any major emotional fluctuations.

But Payton next to him couldn't help it and had sand blown into his eyes again.

After more than ten years of professional career, he finally got a usable "period".

Although he did not win the championship with the Supersonics, at this moment he was wearing a Supersonics jersey and a ring.

Isn’t this also a kind of... perfection?

"Why are you so calm? It makes me lose face!"

After dragging it out for so long, Payton originally thought that he could accept the ring as calmly as Mo Wen. However, when the ring was really in his hand, his hand was like the butcher father-in-law holding the silver in Fan Jin's story of passing the imperial examination. He wanted to go through the motions but couldn't let go.

"Sorry, I'm used to it." Mo Wen smiled embarrassedly.

Payton suddenly felt a little bored, and all his excitement was destroyed by this sentence.

"Good habit, good, good."

In front of the TV, the turkey has been served on the table and the players from both sides have walked to their seats.

Dinner is about to begin.

The big screen above the court showed the starting lineups for both teams.

Supersonics: Mo Wen, Ray Allen, Gay, Milicic, Tyson Chandler;

Heat: Cassell, Wade, Peja, Tim Thomas, O'Neal;

Before the jump ball, Mo Wen raised his eyebrows at Wade in front of him, but Wade was no longer the Wade who could still joke last night.

Mo Wen felt pressured by the Heat's lineup, but facing the Sonics' best record in the league, how could Wade not feel the pressure?

Mo Wen won the FMVP in the past two years, but now, he wants to let Mo Wen know that this is his horse!
The first shot of the game, a jump ball without any suspense.

In many previous games, the Heat's jump ball tasks were given to Tim Thomas, because O'Neal's weight no longer supported him to embarrass himself.

But today, in front of men of all ages across the country, O'Neal felt that he could lose face but could not lose his job as a center.

As soon as Mo Wen got the ball, Wade blocked him.

After repeated collisions, the two have already gained a preliminary understanding of each other's progress.

The two of them were like tangoing, testing each other synchronously, until Mo Wen suddenly made a series of low-altitude quick shots. After a brief fake move, he made a tough breakthrough.

Wade thought that Mo Wen would rely on rhythm to create space for the next move as he did before, but he didn't expect Mo Wen to become so domineering.

Seeing Mo Wen entering the mid-range, Cassell hurriedly put down his old Bucks teammate in front of him and rushed towards Mo Wen.

Wade didn't completely lose his position, but O'Neal didn't stay in a stable position under the basket.

Mo Wen pretended to shoot the ball, but before he stood up, he flicked the ball behind him with his wrist.

Before Ray Allen had time to warm up, the ball was already in his mouth.

Swah——

3: 0.

Wade looked at Ray Allen as if he was seeing himself last season.

He didn't let Mo Wen wait too long. In the next round, Cassell saw that O'Neal was being circled and couldn't find a suitable angle, so he asked Peja to play pick-and-roll to get away from Ray Allen, and then passed the ball to Wade who was confronting Mo Wen.

Seeing that his teammates had helped him create a one-on-one environment, Wade didn't hesitate. He leaned over and took a tentative step, then bent over slightly and rushed straight in, relying on his heavier weight and lower center of gravity.

Halfway through the breakthrough, Wade forced his way back, adjusted the direction of his cut, pushed his shoulder, and the ball protector gave Mo Wen a subtle push. Then, using the European step that Mo Wen had taught him, he swayed left and right to fly into the basket and made a layup.

3: 2.

Yes, the offense is even more decisive than last season.

Mo Wen's eyes lit up.

Because of Mo Wen's joining, Wade's development direction in this time and space is more inclined to be a pure scorer. Mo Wen thought that Cassell could not handle the Heat's organizational work, and Wade would go backwards after dividing his energy.

What Mo Wen didn't know was that Wade had previously thought about following Mo Wen's example and integrating and leading the team.

But, O'Neal is injured, Peja is injured, and Cassell can only play half the game every day. If he wants to organize the game, it's impossible for him to just pass the ball to Haslem, right?
He also wants to improve, but the team needs him to score more.

In the next round, Mo Wen did not look for Wade to play one-on-one, but chose to look for Tyson to set a pick-and-roll and target O'Neal.

35 years old, 300 pounds, just had toe surgery, and still insisted on staying on the court to play. If it were someone else's name, it would be an inspirational story, but he is O'Neal.

O'Neal, whose name was called yesterday by Mo Wen, had no power to change it even if he knew the future.

Wade's broader shoulders, which he trained in the summer, had a negative effect on the pick-and-roll, so Peja took turns to defend.

Gay was a little nervous when he received the ball in the corner. He did not shoot the three-pointer directly, but took a step and a half inside before making a jump shot.

O'Neal had almost given up, but he didn't expect Guy to come over and offer him warmth.

Guy was startled by the black bear's small pounce and his shot went wide, hitting the rim and out of bounds.

Turning around, Wade and Cassell passed the ball to each other, and then they cut inside without the ball, taking Mo Wen with them.

Cassell held the ball and looked for Tim Thomas on the outside for a pick-and-roll, attracting Milicic to make up the defense and pass it to Tim Thomas, who stepped back and scored a three-pointer

3: 5.

After Mo Wen left, the Heat were weakened in all aspects to varying degrees. The only thing that was not weakened but strengthened was the three-point shot.

Tim Thomas and Peja are both outliers in this era who make a living by three-pointers, while Cassell's three-pointers depend entirely on whether he is willing to practice.

Mo Wen was already the holder of the three-point king title when he was in the Heat, but his position is a point guard after all.

When wing players like Tim Thomas and Peja shoot three-pointers, it will only create more space for Wade to attract defense.

Before three-pointers reach the level of freedom like Kuznetsuo, no matter how accurate or how many shots the outside players can make to open up space, they still cannot compare to a center like Channing Frye who can shoot three-pointers. This is the value of positional comparison.

Just when everyone watching the game thought that Mo Wen was going to return a three-pointer, Mo Wen waved to Ray Allen to set an eagle screen.

Mo Wen played along the right side towards the baseline, while Tyson stood at the free throw line to screen for Ray Allen who had no ball. As Ray Allen landed in the elbow area, Mo Wen's pass was delivered to him.

A simple mid-range shot

5: 5.

After returning to the defensive end, facing Wade's aggressive attack again, Mo Wen did not indulge him anymore.

His defensive strategy has always been to attack half of the opponents with strangers and go all the way with the opponents he knows.

Feeling the familiar pain and awkwardness, Wade somehow felt at ease.

Apart from Mo Wen, there is no other defense in the league that is as good as his. Although it hurts, once you get used to it, you can feel a sense of pleasure from it.

But Wade didn't have much time to feel the situation. Although Mo Wen's defense has always been oriented towards blocking space and forcing passes, if it drags on for too long, he will switch to cutting and stealing the ball.

Seeing that the Supersonics used man-to-man defense and his teammates could not find any opportunities, Wade decided to use some unexpected tricks to break the deadlock.

Wade assumed a back-to-the-basket posture, faked a move, and then made a stiff and quick half-turn to pull up for a shot.

Mo Wen thought that his subconscious judgment was wrong, but he didn’t expect that you would actually dare to do that?

boom--

The ending was not unexpected.

In this world, Wade's mid-range and long-range shooting skills have been ruined by him.

In this Heat team, even without him, Cassell can help Wade handle mid-range and long-range shots.

Milicic grabbed the rebound and passed it to Mo Wen. The Supersonics started to move forward quickly.

A scene that made Riley and Van Gaal embarrassed appeared.

The Supersonics' front line pushed forward, and the Heat had no way to match or stop it.

Tim Thomas and Peja are both lightweight forwards, and defense is not their strong point. When O'Neal was chasing and defending, it couldn't be said that they didn't exist, but it was almost the same.

Wade can withstand Mo Wen's breakthrough and interfere with Mo Wen's shooting, but blocking Mo Wen's pass usually only happens in dreams.

Before halftime, Mo Wen spotted his teammates' positions and threw the ball into the air.

Peja looked at his younger brother from the national team who was baring his teeth and clawing at him, and felt that his efforts were a bit unnecessary.

boom--

7: 5.

"For Mo and Wade, nothing seems to have changed. They are still helping their respective teams in the ways they were once familiar with," Coach Zhang said with emotion in the broadcast room of Zhuang'er Radio and Television Station.

"Both Wade's offense and Mo Wen's organization are already top-notch in the current NBA. The winner of today's game does not lie in how much they can leverage their own advantages, but in how well they can do for each other." Sun Zhengping adjusted his glasses, and a wise light flashed in the lenses.

"If that's the case, there might be no need to play tonight's game. Mo Wen is still the NBA's scoring leader, and Wade still has to rely on Cassell for organization." Coach Zhang said with a smile.

During the Heat's round, as Big Fan was shouting on the sidelines, they remembered that there was a fat guy running back and forth on the court.

Even Tyson in his peak form couldn't stand up to old Shaq, not to mention that Tyson is just a micro tank now.

However, once O'Neal showed his presence, he was also reminding Mo Wen that he needed to strengthen his targeting...

(End of this chapter)