Slam Dunk: My Study Abroad Career in Northern Hunan

Chapter 700 Sweep!
In the Target Center Arena.

As the game between the Rockets and Timberwolves progresses, the point difference between the two teams becomes wider and wider, and the situation becomes clearer and clearer.

On the side of the court, Barkley held an ice pack in one hand and gently pressed it on his swollen ankle, silently watching the players who were fighting on the court.

It is said that it is a struggle, but in fact it can only be said to be a death struggle at best.

The point difference between the two teams has exceeded 20 points.

As for the Timberwolves, except for the interior players Garnett and Ben Wallace who have been replaced by substitutes, the main scorers such as Marbury and Wu Dao are still on the court.

Although the main scorers like Wu Dao rarely participate in the team's offense, with them on the court to protect the Timberwolves' substitute players, it is impossible for the Rockets to turn defeat into victory in the last few minutes.

Buckley's eyes did not stay on Wu Dao, the opponent who had caused him great trouble.

His eyes have been lingering on the bench players of the same team. In these players, Barkley actually saw a stronger desire to win than his Rockets starting players.

Unlike experienced players such as Olajuwon and Drexler.

The Rockets' substitute players didn't care about the 20-point difference on the scoreboard. Instead, they devoted themselves to the game and did their best to try to help the team win this game. The victory of the game.

This kind of performance of hard work, compared with the previous sleepwalking sluggish state of Olajuwon and others, seems extremely precious in Barkley's eyes.

Houston Rockets.
The team he was trying to hug didn't seem to have any expectations for the championship.

The high-paid superstars on the team seem to have lost the fearlessness they had when they were young.

Unlike the lifeless main force of the Houston Rockets, those substitutes who have no status and no high salary have more desire to compete.

The desire and persistence of the young people of the Timberwolves for victory allowed Barkley to see his former self.

A cold and tingling sensation came from the ankle. At the invitation of coach Lao Tang, the team's doctor hurried to Barkley's side and squatted down to check Barkley's injury.

The team doctor gently moved Bartley's ankle and asked in detail how Barkley was feeling. After a brief inspection, he said to the nervous coach Lao Tang next to him:

"There should be no broken bones."

"But with this degree of sprain, I'm afraid I won't be able to participate in the next game."

"If he insists on participating, it may leave Barkley with injuries that he will never recover from."

"Furthermore, with such an injury, even if he participates, he will not be able to help the team."

The words of the team doctor seemed to be the final judgment on the Houston Rockets' playoff journey.

Except for Barkley, the main players of the Houston Rockets have suffered an extremely serious decline in form.

Although the entire team still maintains a very high level of tacit understanding and performs to a certain level when playing games, such a team cannot defeat the powerful No. 1 player in the Western Conference.

"Really? Is there no way Barkley can participate in the next game?"

After hearing what the team doctor said, coach Lao Tang's expression darkened.

However, he adjusted his low mood very quickly. After muttering, he silently walked to the side of the court and looked at the game that was going on in the court.

Unlike Barkley who longs for a championship.

As a championship coach, Coach Lao Tang actually had some predictions about the playoffs as early as the beginning of the season.

Although the Rockets players all have expectations of competing for the championship, in fact, after the regular season, anyone with a discerning eye can see that the current Rockets have a very big problem. As an NBA champion coach, Coach Lao Tang Naturally, I also saw the future of the team.

Star players are declining in form, getting older, declining in physical fitness, and vulnerable to physical damage. These are all problems for the Houston Rockets.

If they were just dealing with intense games like the regular season, maybe the Rockets would be able to perform relatively well.

But in the playoffs, these old players simply have no way to bring out their best.

Win the championship?
In fact, the players themselves should know very well that there is no way a team like them can compete for the championship.

How can a tank with no fuel in the tank exert its value on the battlefield?

And now that Barkley is injured and reimbursed, it is just an early end to the players' unrealistic fantasies.

Cruel? It doesn't seem very cruel. Accident? It didn't seem too surprising.

At least coach Lao Tang and Olajuwon not far away and others did not show strong feelings of disappointment after hearing the news.

Perhaps, in the dozens of minutes of the game against the Timberwolves, these Rockets players have re-recognized their current strength.

The game came to an end soon. As the whistle sounded at the end of the game, the score of the two teams was fixed at 87:109.

The Rockets lost the first game of this series by a 22-point margin.

The cheers of Minnesota fans flooded the entire Target Center Arena. Amidst the cheers of the fans, the Timberwolves players hugged each other and celebrated the victory.

Many young people in the Timberwolves have entered the playoffs for the first time, and this game is also their first victory in the playoffs.

For these young players of the Timberwolves, this game has a different meaning.

"MVP! MVP! MVP!"

After the warm cheers, the fans, led by a certain fan, shouted out this slogan that had been accumulated in their hearts for a long time.

We in Minnesota also need our own MVP-level players!
The voices turned into unified slogans.

Amid the shouts of the fans, the entire arena shook slightly.

After Wu Dao and the team members who were close to each other hugged each other, when he was about to greet the Rockets players politely, he was attracted by the cheers of the fans and stopped in his tracks.

He had actually seen such a scene before, but he was not the protagonist of those cheers.

Today, he has become the protagonist cheering for these fans.

This feeling is so wonderful that even martial arts can't help but stop.

With his arms spread out, Budo bowed slightly to the fans around him to express his gratitude. His humble gesture also made him get more enthusiastic cheers.

"Thanks for the advice, Coach Lao Tang."

Under the leadership of Wu Dao, the Timberwolves players came to the Rockets' rest area one after another.

Wu Dao took the initiative to extend his hand to coach Lao Tang to express his gratitude. Coach Lao Tang, who lost the game, did not show any disappointment on his face. He shook Wu Dao's hand with a smile and said a few words of encouragement.

After a polite conversation with coach Lao Tang, Wu Dao also walked up to Olajuwon, Barkley and others and shook hands with the Rockets players one by one.

Different from the strength on the court, the martial arts off the court have the restraint and humility of Asians.

The feelings of the players on both sides must be different between the losing Rockets and the winning Timberwolves.

The joys and sorrows of people are not the same. After a simple exchange, the Rockets players hurriedly left the rest area and walked towards the player tunnel.

The Timberwolves players stayed on the court for a while, enjoying the joy of victory and the cheers of the fans.

After a long time, the Timberwolves players left the field under the leadership of coach Philip and headed for a break.

Post-game press conference.

In front of the national media, coach Lao Tang mentioned Barkley's injury and announced that Barkley would miss the following series between the Rockets and Timberwolves.

As soon as the news came out, the media was in an uproar.

Everyone knows what this news means for the Rockets.

The Minnesota media who got the news couldn't hold back the joy in their hearts, with bright smiles on their faces, and promptly passed the news to their colleagues.

On the other side, the Timberwolves press conference.

Coach Philip is taking martial arts and Garnett to be interviewed by media reporters.

After successfully winning the first game, the atmosphere at the Timberwolves' press conference was quite harmonious.

Coach Philip chatted and laughed with familiar reporters, looking forward to the team's next games with great enthusiasm, announcing his team's goals to the media over and over again.

While they were being interviewed by media reporters, a local Minnesota reporter revealed the news that Barkley would miss the next game.

As soon as the news came out, Coach Philip, after a brief moment of confusion, quickly put on a look of regret and sadness, and said:

"This is really sad news."

"I hope the Rockets can continue their efforts in the next games and provide wonderful games one after another for fans across the country."

"Also wishing Charles Barkley a speedy recovery."

"You know, I like Charles Barkley as a player. If there is no Charles Barkley in the playoffs, it will be a huge loss for fans across the country."

Under the influence of this news, the Timberwolves' post-game press conference also ended hastily.

After all, after learning that the opponent's main player was injured, it was hard for the Timberwolves to show too much happiness in front of the media.
On the day the game ended, the Timberwolves held a hasty celebration dinner and then sent the players home early to rest.

The playoff schedule is actually quite tight, with only one day of rest between games.

After the game ends on the 23rd, the Timberwolves will play against the Houston Rockets at home again on the 25th, the day after tomorrow.

Two consecutive home games are actually the league's preferential treatment to the top four teams in the East and West.

Don't underestimate the home field advantage. In many cases, the distribution of home and away games will have a decisive impact on the victory of the game.

As for the second home game of this series, the Timberwolves players are also full of confidence.

Of course, having confidence is one thing, and everyone in the Timberwolves will not take the Houston Rockets lightly.

Even if the Rockets' Barkley does not participate in the next series, the Timberwolves will use 100% of their strength to cope with the subsequent games.

The playoffs are different from the regular season. Every game needs to be taken seriously by the players. The consequences of failure are something that no one can afford.

September 4, evening.

The second game of the series between the Timberwolves and the Houston Rockets begins.

As Coach Lao Tang said before the media, Charles Barkley did not participate in today's game. Charles Barkley was not among the Rockets' starting players.

Barkley's absence has dealt a huge blow to the Rockets' morale, and the defeat in the previous game also cast a shadow over the Rockets players.

In the second game against the Timberwolves, there was a huge gap between the Rockets and the Timberwolves in terms of strength.

Just the first quarter.

Even before the martial arts side exerted any force, the point difference between the two sides had quickly widened to ten points.

The Rockets, who collapsed in the first quarter, seemed to have lost their desire for victory. They played more casually in the second quarter. Both offense and defense felt extremely loose.

The strength shown by the Rockets in this game is not at all the strength that a playoff team should have.

This one-sided game made the cheers of Timberwolves fans much weaker.

101: 83.

As the buzzer sounded at the end of the game, the Timberwolves defeated the Houston Rockets again with an 18-point lead.

Until the end of the game, Wu Dao didn't feel any consumption of his physical energy.

Since he entered the NBA, he has never played such an easy game. The intensity of the playoffs is even lower than that of the regular season.

Everyone can see that this rocket has completely lost its spirit.

In the third round of the series, the Timberwolves traveled to Houston to face the Rockets away from home.

Xu is the reason for playing the Timberwolves in front of his hometown fans.

In this game, the Rockets showed an extremely strong desire to win.

During the game, the Rockets players were also very active in defense, and under the referee's inclination, the Rockets players dared to make moves when defending.

Wu Dao suffered a lot of pressure on the defensive end, but his personal ability is really outstanding enough. Even under the tight defense of the Rockets, he can still complete the ball or high-post shots freely.

With his excellent shooting ability, it is difficult for Wu Dao to be blocked in a real sense.

Although the players dared to play hard on the defensive end, without Barkley, they still seemed to lack firepower on the offensive end.

The Timberwolves are a team with a balanced offense and defense. Their offense is very strong, and their defense is equally strong.

Although the Rockets played tough defense, their offense was unable to penetrate the Timberwolves' defense.

Neither Olajuwon nor Drexler can do this.

And it is a pity that the Rockets' role players were not able to stand up in this game and deal with shots in the inefficiency zone.

88: 74.

The Houston Rockets' defense is tough enough, but the Timberwolves' defense is tougher than Hughes' Rockets.

Even with the blessing of some referees, the Rockets still had no way to win over the Timberwolves.

As the buzzer sounded at the end of the game, the Timberwolves easily defeated their opponents with a 14-point lead. As the away game ended, the Timberwolves also swept the Rockets 3:0, ending this series.