basketball never sleeps

Chapter 277: Collective Rollover
"The Nuggets' fighting spirit is admirable. The performance of the Golden Double Gunners is no less than last year's Moe and Werder Bremen combination. If they hadn't met the SuperSonics in the first round, they could have had a better future."

Before the third quarter was over, the commentator had already started preparing the "eulogy" for the Nuggets.

Anthony stood on the court, breathing heavily, staring at the scoreboard. He was in a state of confusion, wanting to struggle but having no direction, wanting to lie down but unwilling to do so.

He tried his best in today's game, both before and during the game, both on offense and defense.

He scored 30 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists in three quarters, and in addition he defended Mo Wen, who only scored 25 points.

If he were on another team, he might already be imagining tomorrow's news headlines.

But now, all he wants to do is reach for the fast-forward button at the bottom of the screen and fast forward to the end of the game - or to the end of the series.

Maybe New York, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami...that's where he should be.

He can lie down comfortably for a whole summer, and then come back. When his rookie contract ends and his renewal contract is executed, he will be a multi-millionaire.

Now he has four luxury cars, but no man would have too many cars; Lala (Anthony's wife) fell in love with a set of expensive jewelry last time, and he can give her a surprise when he comes back; his brother's children are of school age, and they need a better house; he can also hire and donate money to his former community, he likes the smiling faces of those children.

From an ordinary person's perspective, his future couldn't be happier.

But... he will eventually have to return to this damn court and face this damn reality.

Fake!

He was extremely grateful that the contract extension he signed with the Nuggets was a 3+1 one, otherwise he really didn't know where his future would lie.

He was very sure that the gap between him and Mo Wen was definitely smaller than the gap between the Nuggets and the Supersonics.

At least he could fight back, while the Nuggets could only endure it.

If Bosh was desperate for not making the playoffs, he was fed up with this damn first round.

Without a miracle, he will be eliminated in the first round for four consecutive years. Looking at his resume, he is better than Bosh, but there is no difference in actual feelings. He even feels that making it may be more painful than not making it.

It's like attending a banquet, but you feel full after just eating an appetizer and drinking a glass of mouthwash, and then you can only be a spectator when the main course is served.

Time came to the fourth quarter, and Melo was still burning himself out on both offense and defense. Iverson, just like he did in the 76ers, rushed into the Sonics' inside line with all his might.

But that's just the two of them.

The only ones who still have fighting spirit are the Nuggets fans who are watching the show in front of the TV and insisting on not changing the channel.

"Ray bypassed Milicic, Blake was blocked, Camby had to defend...Wow, Mo passed the ball directly to Tyson, helicopter dunk, did the Bulls management see it, this guy is much more powerful than Big Ben."

"Mo bypassed Gay's screen. The quality of this pick-and-roll didn't seem to be very good. Three Nuggets players directly double-teamed him. The defense was good, but Mo crossed directly. How did Gay stay in that position? He made a three-pointer... This rookie reminded me of Mo's shadow."

"It's time to play. Mo's signature dribble from behind the arc. Anthony was too close and was broken through. Camby, Camby made a contribution. It was not a foul. The Nuggets are in trouble. Camby committed the fifth foul. Coach Karl looked very angry, but the replay was very clear. It was indeed a solid foul."

Under Mo Wen's command, the Supersonics were like a never-stopping train, giving the Nuggets no chance to breathe.

The gap between the two sides is like Xiao Yueyue chasing Yan Zi, the distance between the two sides is getting bigger and bigger in the cruel reality.

From a competitive perspective, the frustration brought about by such a failure is too great, so the Nuggets players other than the double guns have adjusted their status to "professionaling".

Last game?

It's just a worker's job.

99:116, the Supersonics won by 17 points at home and got off to a good start.

George Karl looked quite tired in the post-game camera. Although he did not play, his heart was tortured.

In contrast, old Hill was captured in the fourth quarter interacting with female fans on the sidelines. He was enjoying his work as if he was on vacation.

Mo Wen only scored 28 points, 6 rebounds, 10 assists and 3 steals today. The reporters who came to interview him were all very sorry. They thought that if Mo Wen couldn't replicate his previous miracle of 88, he would have to get or points to liven up the atmosphere. These data were too mediocre.

"I've said that I've always been a team player. The Sonics' current success is also a team achievement. Monopolizing the ball and producing terrifying numbers is not usually an option for me. What's more important is..."

"The boss only paid me for my performance at the current level, right?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Mo Wen realized that what he said was a bit offensive to Yingte, but, who cares.

If the league does not introduce a "No News Clause 2.0" for him, his future salary will hardly surpass Harden in terms of the salary cap.

Of course, you never know. If he wins too many championships, the league might further restrict him in this regard.

When his teammates can't keep up in level, he may have a chance to show off his skills in real life and let the fans see what Super Model 2K means in reality.

In contrast to the laughter and joy on the Supersonics side was the Nuggets press conference next door.

Under the camera, the Nuggets players looked like characters in a cartoon, with no long or short lines, only short sentences.

Melo was irritated by the reporters' teasing expressions and said the most ambitious words of the audience.

"Don't get too complacent, this is only the first game, we will find a chance to defeat the Supersonics!"

……

On that day, in the Eastern Conference, the Cavaliers, led by James, unexpectedly lost to the Pacers, who were ranked eighth in the Eastern Conference.

Feeling that this might be a last-ditch effort for O'Neal in his last year with the Pacers, he performed in the top three form of the year's MVP list and dragged the game to the end on his own.

He had 6 blocks in the game, almost forcing the Cavaliers to give up the restricted area.

Before the game, Ajax told the media that they would watch his performance this year.

As a result, he made 19 of 6 shots in the first game and scored 17 points through free throws, and also joined the Mamba family.

Facing the explosive O'Neal, James's positioning was awkward as his breakthroughs were blocked and counterattacks were not easy to launch.

In addition, Carlisle also intended to let him shoot, which directly put James in the fire.

Fortunately, the teammates were strong, and Reed's three-pointer and Bibby's mid-range shot responded again and again, keeping the score close.

But after entering the final quarter, Zhan, who had only 9 points, came to his senses. If he continued to play like this, the idol drama would turn into a group drama.

So he took the initiative to take on the responsibility, and practiced mid-range shots in the highly anticipated arena amid the cheers of home fans.

Or wearing a Pacers jersey...

3 of 0 three-pointers, 5 of 2 mid-range shots.

The referee couldn't stand it anymore and gave him four free throws, which allowed him to maintain basic decency.

The two sides fought until the last round, with the Pacers leading the Cavaliers 102:101.

With the ball, James became mature again. After playing pick-and-roll with Big Z and breaking into the inside, James did not fight face to face with O'Neal, but skillfully passed the ball to Webber on the outside.

Webber made the shot, but the red light had already come on.

The referee was so annoyed that he could only show the fans James' final pass from multiple angles and cameras over and over again. "The old king is still old." The commentator on the scene pondered for a moment and gave his evaluation.

But there was still half of the sentence that he kept in his stomach: "It's just that the new king doesn't seem to have grown up yet."

Faced with the public execution-like defense, James could do nothing but spread his hands vigorously and shouted "That's a good ball" over and over again.

Fortunately, it is gratifying that A-Zhan is not the only one who has failed.

The second-placed Mavericks in the Western Conference were even worse off than the Cavaliers, as they lost to the seventh-placed Warriors in an almost clean and decisive manner.

Nowitzki was directly submerged in the Warriors' front line.

On the defensive end, Nelson did not make targeted arrangements by knowing the Mavericks' strengths as he had done in the past, but instead played his newly developed "fast and slow knife" style of basketball.

The Warriors did not give up their fast break advantage because of Yao Ming's joining. Old Nelson focused on training Yao Ming's long pass ability and let Yao Ming participate in the fast break system.

At the same time, in positional warfare, Byron Davis and Yao Ming's cooperation inside and outside was also very powerful.

Old Nelson had played basketball for half his life and had a rare success.

To defend against Yao Ming in positional warfare, one needs size and weight, and to defend against fast breaks, one needs speed. There are really few teams in the league that can combine the two.

On the other hand, the Wizards, who were expected to fail, almost turned the tables.

The Wizards were missing two of their three quick shooters, and the Heat's five stars were in full force, a rare sight, so everyone thought there would be no suspense.

Unexpectedly, the Heat ran into problems first.

Before the game, there were rumors that Riley wanted to demote Peja to the bench and the two had a big fight.

When they got to the court, all the stars performed poorly.

The best performance was still Tim Thomas, who joined the team at the beginning of the season. He made 7 of 5 three-pointers today, helping the Heat maintain their lead time and time again.

O'Neal, who was holding his breath, entered the playoffs and gave everyone a big surprise. The Wizards, who were thinking of giving up, thoroughly implemented the "Hack-a-Shaq" tactic today, allowing the Shark to vent all his brute force at the free throw line.

The wonderful performance of making 12 of 3 free throws successfully amused the Washington fans who were in a bad mood due to the absence of the main players.

Wade also felt very uncomfortable under Stevenson's defense. This Stevenson was not the "No. 1 James fan" Stephenson, but he was also a ruthless person. He once angrily hit James' neck and pulled the "emperor's crown (headband)" in a game.

Stevenson was very cunning. He kept attacking Wade's injured arm intentionally or unintentionally when defending, almost making Wade's blocking move ineffective. In the end, he only scored 22 points.

In other words, the Wizards only have one Jamison who can handle the ball, otherwise they might really fail.

Although they won the game in the end, no one in the Heat was happy.

The regular season was all about problems of running-in and injuries, but the playoff orders were more and more resolute. In the end, playing against the Wizards, who were missing two of their three musketeers, was full of ups and downs. It was really a mess.

What's even more painful is the Heat fans, whose hearts, after hanging for a year, finally died.

The Mo Wen poster that had been covered in dust for a year was brought out again, and the "Sentinel" gave a solution - there was no pressure in the game against the Supersonics anyway, so if it didn't work, they could send a special plane and wait for Mo Wen to finish the game there, and immediately bring him over to help the Heat play.

"That guy is a bastard. If my arm wasn't injured, I would beat the shit out of him." Wade complained on the phone.

"Idiot, if you have the energy to talk tough, you might as well make up your mind to get the surgery. If you can't fight, you can't fight. What's the point of pretending to be a tough guy? Do you believe that as soon as you are eliminated, others will forget about it?" Mo Wen advised sarcastically.

I have the impression that Wade was sidelined for a whole season due to injury this time, and the Heat completely became a bottom-feeder. They didn't recover until the Olympics and were almost kicked out of the Dream Team 8.

"Damn it, we just didn't play well today. Just wait, we can still make it to the finals without you. Don't let me see you absent. The Heat dynasty can't be without your participation." Wade said stubbornly.

Mo Wen was silent for a long while before he spoke: "You... are flying leaves?"

After the first day of competition, the media were so excited when they took stock of the news that there were so many news stories that they could not write them all.

Even the local media in Seattle are a little reluctant to write about the Supersonics' playoffs.

The victory process was so smooth as if they had connections. What's so good about it? We still have to rely on the outside teams to make a difference.

……

The spring rain is continuous, and the fine drizzle brings the fragrance of the earth, and the breath of life permeates the vast grassland.

But not everyone likes to sow the dark clouds of life.

Anthony was lying on the bed with a frown on his face. In his dream, he entered an escape game, and the one chasing him was not the devil, but Mo Wen.

He was running on the land of his hometown Baltimore, with Mo Wen chasing him with the ball behind him. Once he caught up with him, he would not kill him, but force him to play in the playoffs.

One after another.

It was getting harder and harder to breathe.

Until a spring thunder woke him up.

Damn, it’s okay, it’s just a nightmare.

But after a while, Anthony reacted and realized that the Nuggets still had to play three more games with the Supersonics!
Fake!

On April 4, the same story as G20 was repeated at KeyArena.

In the first quarter, the two shooters tried their best to support the team and were still able to fight against the Supersonics.

In the second quarter, the two shooters just took a short nap and the Supersonics quickly widened the gap.

When he came back in the second half, things were a little different. Melo just gave up and chose to blend in with the crowd. Together with other Nuggets players, he adjusted his goal from winning to "work." When he was substituted off the court, the camera captured his signature "sunny smile."

It can be seen that he is really happy to be able to play.

Seeing Anthony act like this, the light in Iverson's eyes quickly faded.

But he still remembered that the Nuggets spent a lot of money to get him, so the "answer" he gave was persistence.

As for George Karl, he seemed to have let it go. He didn't yell or shout. He just straightened his suit, stood calmly on the sidelines, hugged his chest, and hoped to die standing.

Old Hill did not kill all the players, but decisively sent in the substitutes to start training after the score difference widened to 20 points.

The game was smooth without any pauses, and the singing and dancing fans became the highlight of the camera.

Many celebrities have keenly sensed the opportunity to use their faces.

The added value of the Supersonics' front row tickets is extraordinary.

94: 108.

Bosh, sitting on the sidelines, looked at the scoreboard in a daze.

This playoffs is so easy.

(End of this chapter)