Slam Dunk: My Study Abroad Career in Northern Hunan

On the stage of the finals, when the game reaches its final stage, what ultimately determines the outcome is often not the hard power of the players on both sides.

This is a crucial moment like this, and what tests the players is their ability to adjust their mentality.

For the Timberwolves, they need to be able to calm down and look at this game. Only in this way can they find a chance to win against the powerful Bulls.

For the Bulls, if they let down their guard because of the referee's favoritism and the leading score, then this victory would probably slip away.

The Bulls players are all experienced and naturally know that the referees will favor them when making penalties. When playing against the Timberwolves on the court, they will also use this to strengthen their physical confrontation and attack the basket to ensure their offensive and defensive efficiency.

But if they let their guard down, given the Timberwolves' strength, it is not impossible for them to overthrow the Bulls.

The referees will not go too far when making calls. Their ultimate goal is just to make the game more intense, favor the Bulls to a "certain extent", and help the Bulls win.

However, if the gap in hard power between the two teams is too big, or if the Bulls' own players are not competitive, they will not be able to win the final victory even with the help of the referee.

If the Bulls fail to clearly recognize this, they will not be able to shake off the shadow of failure.

Fortunately, these veterans of the Bulls naturally know exactly what they should do on the stage of the finals.

With their level of competition experience, they will never let their guard down just because of a slight lead.

Even at this point in the game, the Bulls players, apart from experiencing severe physical exhaustion, did not experience much mental ups and downs.

The reason why the Bulls were able to achieve a dynasty and dominate the league for two periods in the 90s was not only due to Michael Jordan, the "God of Basketball". The players of the entire team were also above the league's best baseline.

The rest time is very short, especially for players like them who are physically tired, those few minutes of rest time pass in the blink of an eye.

The sound of the buzzer rang out in the stadium, and the players of both teams returned to the stadium amid the cheers of the fans on the sidelines.

At the end of the game, both sides replaced their main players.

In addition to Wu Dao, Tom's team also returned to the court. Garnett was still in high spirits. Before entering the court, he pounded his chest and loudly encouraged his teammates:
"Hey guys, get excited!"

"We have to put on such a lifeless look. Even though we are behind, this point difference is nothing to us."

"Go ahead, overturn the bull, and let that arrogant Michael taste the pain of failure."

"That old guy hasn't tasted this kind of thing in many years."

Garnett's task at this time should have been done by Wu Dao, the big boss. However, compared with Wu Dao's personality and temper, Garnett's extroverted personality is more suitable for being a "twisting rope man". In terms of verbal encouragement, Wu Dao may not be better than Garnett.

What Wu Dao, the core of the team, needs to do is to keep scoring on the court and let the Timberwolves players spontaneously surround him.

The fact is just as Garnett said, Michael Jordan has basically never tasted failure since the 90s.

He "retired" after winning three consecutive championships, and won two more championships after returning to the court.

Michael Jordan has reached the peak of his career in terms of both reputation and achievements. His reputation and achievements are even on an upward trend and have not shown any signs of decline for the time being.

Those two wins for the Timberwolves were just the beginning of the Bulls' decline.

However, before the final winner was decided, no one thought that the Bulls would fall like this.

Garnett's words do have some motivational effect on the Timberwolves players. All athletes have a desire to win, and the more top players they are, the stronger this desire is.

As for the Bulls, players led by Michael Jordan also entered the court one after another. In addition to the three iron triangles of Jordan, Pippen and Rodman, center Luc Longley also returned to the court.

But their No. 1 position was not Ron Harper, but rather the "defensive sieve" Kerr.

In the final quarter of the game, the Timberwolves had the opening ball.

After the basketball was sent out from the backcourt, Marbury quickly advanced towards the Bulls' half court with the ball.

After entering the Bulls' half, Marbury's eyes fell on his opponent. The player defending him at this time was Kerr of the Bulls.

Michael Jordan defended Tom, while Pippen defended Budo. The Bulls' defense was relatively outside and the inside was a bit loose. The big center Luc Longley was not a player with strong mobility. He could not pull out and could not take care of the mid-range.

As for Rodman, dealing with a player like Garnett who has a jump shot is already a headache, and he also has to shoulder the task of assisting in defense of Wu Dao.

From a tactical perspective, Kerr's defensive loophole is the best breakthrough point.

The experienced Marbury naturally noticed this. After pretending to glance at Wudao on the side, he dribbled the ball with his right hand while revealing his intention to pass the ball.

Cole kept his center of gravity unchanged and slid half a step toward the direction of martial arts. Marbury in front of him had already started a breakthrough.

After the suspended dribble, Marbury changed direction in front of his body. As the ball landed, his right body was already leaning on Kerr. The intense physical confrontation forced the thin Kerr to retreat. Kerr, who was left with a large gap, quickly adjusted his steps and chased back towards Marbury.

At the same time, the Bulls' Luke Long also quickly moved up and walked quickly towards Marbury.

Given Marbury's physical condition, it is not easy to force a breakthrough to the basket. It is very risky and there is no need to take the risk.

Marbury approached the free throw line and took a jump shot. At the same time he shot, Kerr, who was chasing back, was a body length away from him and posed no threat at all. Although Luc Langli, who came to defend, raised his hands high, there was still a long distance between him and Marbury.

Marbury's shot was in a very high parabola, easily flying over Luke Lawley's head and heading towards the basket.

When Luke Longley returned to the basket to grab the rebound, Wu Dao and Tom had already squeezed into the Bulls' basket with Garnett and others.

Such a small area under the basket was packed with tall players from both teams.

As the game progressed to this point, the Timberwolves players, who had tried their best to control the number of fouls in the previous quarters, finally stopped suppressing themselves and released all their energy at this moment.

"Dang~~"

Marbury's shot was inaccurate, and the basketball hit the front of the basket and bounced out. As soon as the ball bounced, Wu Dao's figure soared into the air. In front of him, Pippen, who occupied a better position, was pinned down by Wu Dao and had no way to fully utilize his bounce.

"Dangdang!"

Wu Dao suddenly jumped up and grabbed the ball with one hand, and dunked it directly over Pippen's head. The huge force poured on Pippen, causing him to stagger forward when he fell back to the ground, and he took two big steps before he finally stopped.

"ohhh——"

The Timberwolves fans cheered in the stands. At the beginning of the fourth quarter, Wu Dao used his strong personal ability to boost the team's morale. The referee at the baseline held a whistle in his mouth and stared at Wu Dao on the court.

Just when I stood up to grab the ball and dunked it, the referee at the baseline really wanted to blow the whistle, wanting to call a rebound foul on Wu Dao. Everything in the game happened so fast, Wu Dao's sudden dunk over Pippen also shocked the referee on the spot, and for a moment he forgot to blow the whistle.

Once the scoreboard on the side of the court starts to tick, the referee cannot change the decision.

On the sidelines, Bulls coach Phil Jackson remained calm when he saw the Timberwolves' strong momentum. He had expected the Timberwolves to be strong, and they had already fallen into his trap.

This is why he chose Cole instead of Ron Harper, who had more advantages in both physique and defense, when the game reached such a critical moment.

Kerr deliberately left this defensive loophole for the Timberwolves.

Let Marbury score more points, so that Wu Dao's number of possessions and shots will naturally be reduced. In Phil Jackson's view, it is better to let Marbury hold the ball and attack instead of letting a player like Wu Dao hold the ball and attack.

Instead of letting Budo play smoothly, it is better to let other Timberwolves players play smoothly.

Admittedly, letting a player like Marbury play comfortably is a huge risk for the Bulls, but it is better than letting Wu Dao hold the ball and attack.
Coach Phil Jackson is very familiar with scorers of this level. When the game gets to the critical moment, such a player may create miracles. Because the Bulls also have such a player, Coach Phil Jackson is very familiar with him.

It is also because of this that he is wary of martial arts.

On the court, offense and defense alternate.

The Bulls, who got the offensive ball, quickly passed the basketball to Michael Jordan. Kerr, who passed the ball, set a screen for Michael Jordan. Michael Jordan broke through and firmly absorbed the defense of Wu Dao. After the defense came up, he quickly passed the ball to Kerr.

At this time, because Wu Dao was unable to catch up with Michael Jordan in the first time due to the pick-and-roll, Marbury, who was supposed to be on guard against Kerr, took two more steps in the direction of Jordan, which also caused Kerr to have a moment of gap.

After the basketball flew into Kerr's hands, he ignored Wu Dao who had reacted quickly and switched defense, and shot a three-pointer.

The basketball narrowly passed through Wu Dao's fingertips and fell steadily into the basket under the gaze of all the players and fans, making a crisp sound.

The basketball went into the net and warm cheers came from the stands.

The Bulls fans were beating their chests with excitement on their faces, and the Bulls substitutes in the rest area were waving towels and shouting Kerr's name.

This three-pointer was extremely crucial for the Bulls. Not only did it respond to Wu Dao's fierce dunk, but it also further widened the gap between the two teams.

The players on both sides maintained their condition well into the fourth quarter, and the battle became more and more intense.

The Timberwolves did fall into the trap that Phil had structurally set. Marbury frequently held the ball and played one-on-one. What made the Timberwolves fall deeper and deeper was that Kerr's defense was really like paper to Marbury and could not stop Marbury's thrusts at all.

And Marbury did perform well and his shooting percentage was quite good.

It is also for this reason that the Timberwolves have no intention of changing their tactics and techniques, not even Wu Dao. They want to take the ball and attack on their own because Marbury's performance is indeed good and there is no need for him to interrupt Marbury's hot hand.

But what makes Timberwolves fans increasingly desperate is that the Bulls players still maintain their excellent success rate in such a fierce competition environment.

Kerr was in explosive form, dunking three 3-pointers in a row at the beginning of the fourth quarter, and scored 9 points for the team in just a few possessions.

On the other hand, the Timberwolves, despite the continuous efforts of Marbury, Wu Dao and others, only contributed 6 points. Even though there were no mistakes in the previous rounds, the gap between the two teams was still widened.

This situation did not change in the second half of the fourth quarter.

The Bulls began to score frequently against the Timberwolves, relying on Kerr's 3-pointers and Michael Jordan's personal ability. The Timberwolves, led by scorers such as Wu Dao and Marbury, were still able to maintain a high offensive efficiency, but they were unable to narrow the gap between the two teams.

In the fight for rebounds, the Timberwolves did not have much advantage. The biased whistle of the referee was like a haze hanging over the Timberwolves players' heads that could not be dispelled at all.

This has also become a fatal shackle that restricts a number of inside players such as Garnett and Stanley Roberts.

27: 26.

Judging from the score alone, although the Timberwolves suppressed the Bulls to a certain extent, the overall scene gave people a feeling of a 3- tie. In the end, the Timberwolves still failed to recover the disadvantages accumulated in the previous quarters and failed to continue the winning streak, losing Game at the Target Center.

When the whistle at the end of the game sounded in the stadium, many fans suddenly realized that their team had lost the game.

Waves of wailing came from the stands, and then warm applause poured into the stadium.

Although they lost the game, in the eyes of Timberwolves fans, the players of their home team have demonstrated strong enough strength.

The Timberwolves died of natural causes, not due to war.

The Bulls fans who won the game were jubilant. After the game, Michael Jordan also showed a relieved smile. Although he did not let the Timberwolves overtake, Michael Jordan's nerves never relaxed.

After a quick handshake between the players of the two teams, the Timberwolves players walked into the player tunnel in a depressed mood.

The Timberwolves players who returned to the locker room were digesting the loss of this game. Wu Dao sat in his seat in silence, replaying the scene of the loss in his mind.

He thought he had done his best. At the last moment of the team, Wu Dao took over the ball, made three of three attacks, and scored 7 points with a two plus one, but this was of no help to the Timberwolves.

In the end, they still failed to get the match point.

"Martial Arts, come out for a moment."

At this moment, the door of the lounge was opened, Coach Philip walked into the lounge and waved to Wu Dao.

After hearing this, Wu Dao walked out of the lounge and came to the corridor. He noticed that next to Coach Philip, there was a bald man in a suit and tie who was looking at him with a smile on his face.

Seeing Wu Dao coming out, the bald man smiled even brighter, and quickly extended his hand to Wu Dao, while introducing himself:
"Hello, I'm a medical representative. My name is Rory Jensen."

“I have a product.”

Before the bald man could finish his words, Wu Dao shook his head in confusion:

“I don’t endorse probiotics.”

"Oh, and I don't endorse vitamins either."

Having just lost the game, Wu Dao doesn’t want to discuss business deals.

(End of this chapter)