Slam Dunk: My Study Abroad Career in Northern Hunan

During the break of the game between the Timberwolves and the Bulls, NBA general manager David Stern, who was watching the game in a box in the stadium, let out a long sigh of relief, then stood up from his seat and stretched his tired muscles.

The outcome of the game between the Bulls and the Timberwolves was somewhat beyond David Stern's expectations. He thought that after the Bulls won that away game, the players would be able to fully get into the game, shine in today's home game, and suppress the Timberwolves.

But unexpectedly, Pippen and other Bulls players held back Michael Jordan. Even with Michael's explosive performance, the team was still unable to lead the Timberwolves. This was something David Stern had not anticipated at the beginning.

In his opinion, although the Timberwolves made it to the finals, those players are still too young, and a large number of them are playing in the playoffs for the first time. Facing a dynasty team like the Bulls, they will inevitably be timid and fail to play at their best level.

Moreover, there is a lot of public opinion about the use of stimulants in martial arts, which will inevitably have some impact on the players.

In fact, the Timberwolves' morale at the start of the game was a bit low, just as David Stern expected.

However, as the game progressed, his dazzling display of martial arts actually united his teammates around him, which made the Timberwolves regain cohesion. And suppressing the Bulls in the score also restored the confidence of the young players of the Timberwolves.

The game has reached this point. If the other Bulls players continue to be in a slump and drag Jordan down, this game may be over.

From David Stern's point of view, he actually doesn't want the referee to interfere too much with the game.

Some things, if you do them too much, will be noticed by others.

As the general manager of the NBA, David Stern is under tremendous management pressure. The influence of this league is far from comparable to that of the Super Bowl.

Not to mention comparing it with other sports, even the NCAA itself is more popular than the NBA in the United States.

If it weren't for the emergence of Michael Jordan, the NBA would not even have the influence it has today.

The emergence of "God" has indeed allowed the influence of the NBA to radiate to more people to a certain extent, but correspondingly, as "God" gets older, David Stern can already foresee what kind of Waterloo the NBA will encounter after Jordan officially retires.

David Stern had been thinking about how to free the league from the influence of Michael Jordan two years ago.

He doesn't want to go through what he experienced that year again.

The way to keep the NBA running healthily for a long time is to "cultivate" more influential players. Creating stars is the way to go.

However, the replacement of the old with the new is not an easy task. If it is not handled well, or if the "new" chosen fails to meet expectations, it will be fatal to the development of the alliance.

The purpose of a business alliance is to make money.

From Russell in the "ancient" period to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, to Magic Johnson, Bird, Michael Jordan, as well as the Shark, the four great shooting guards, the Little Emperor, and so on in the post-Jordan era.

The NBA has been creating stars in every period, and every period has a leader who leads a group of outstanding players to expand the influence of the NBA.

But now, the alliance has fallen into a period of transition.

After Jordan, there has been no player of that "American Idol" level.

Although O'Neal has enough dominance, unfortunately, he is a center. His playing style is violent but not flashy enough to attract ordinary people to imitate him. His jerseys and shoes are not easy to sell and are far inferior to Jordan.

The most suitable face of the league is the second position or the third position.

The league's influence still depends on Michael Jordan.

At least until the Timberwolves showed up, David Stern had no choice.

And now?
"These young guys from the Timberwolves are really outstanding!"

"Although the yellow guy is young, he was able to bring the team to such a position after joining the Timberwolves. It's really amazing."

"He did something that Michael couldn't do before."

This box specially used for watching games is nearly 30 square meters. The fact that they can afford a box of this size in such a place where every inch of land is valuable shows the strength of the Bulls.

The front of the box was covered with one-way glass. David Stern could see the scene outside from inside the box, but there was no way for people outside to see the scene inside the box through the glass.

At this time, next to David Stern, there was a short and skinny old man sitting. The old man was deeply sunken in the sofa, holding a red wine glass in his hand, with a comfortable look on his face.

"right?"

"This young man is really outstanding. I believe that in the next 10 years, the entire NBA will be his world."

"Are you interested in taking a gamble on him?"

The old man who was watching the game in the same box with General Manager David Stern was the Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor.

In addition to being a successful businessman, Glen Taylor also served as a Minnesota city councilman. Although his assets may not be the largest among the many NBA team owners, and his power and qualifications are not the largest and deepest among all NBA team owners, Glen Taylor is definitely an outstanding businessman.

He may not know as much about things on the basketball court as those professional coaches, but when it comes to things outside the basketball court, Glen Taylor is definitely the king of knowledge.

In order to help the Timberwolves win the championship, Glen Taylor also took action personally.

It is true that the outcome of a team on the basketball court often depends on the strength of the players on both sides.

However, when the strength of the players on both sides is similar or the difference is not too big, off-field factors can also become an important factor in determining the victory.

Glen Taylor has already seen this in previous games, and he wants to do his best to remove the stumbling blocks for his players on the road to winning the championship.

Before meeting David Stern, Taylor had already carefully analyzed the other party's psychology and had a general idea of ​​what the other party was thinking.

Would David Stern be paid to help the Bulls win?
There is absolutely no need to worry about this. If David Stern is really the kind of person who does things for money, I will make those losing team owners understand what the power of capitalists is.

Glen Taylor considers things from the other party's perspective. He understands that people like David Stern will pay more attention to the development of the league.

Only in this way will the team's big bosses allow him to reach such a position.

The predecessor of NBA was the BBA, called the National Basketball Association, which was initially formed by the owners of 11 ice hockey clubs, led by Walter Brown, who founded the Boston Celtics.

For a long time, the Celtics have been the strongest among the strong, which actually has deep historical factors in it.

It is impossible for a powerful person to appear out of thin air without any reason.

Being so powerful for a short period of time, there is no way that one can be called a powerful country.

As a boss, Glen Taylor has little experience and he doesn't have many chips to impress David Stern.

But fortunately, the chips in Glen Taylor's hand are of high quality, at least in his eyes.

"outstanding?"

"Well, you are right, that young man is indeed very outstanding."

"But unfortunately, he is an Asian player."

David Stern could naturally hear the hidden meaning in Glen Taylor's words, and he also understood the other party's intention to invite him to watch the game. He admitted that the young players of the Timberwolves were very good, and if they were allowed to grow smoothly for a period of time, they might really become the top players in the league.

Even players like Budo have the chance to become true superstars.

But unfortunately, he is not satisfied with the Timberwolves' star player.

That yellow face was no match for him.

The NBA is actually a microcosm of American society. In this league, racial discrimination actually exists.

Black players have already earned their place in the NBA, but in society, white supremacy is like a nightmare that has accompanied the growth and development of society.

It is very difficult for an outsider to gain a foothold in a new environment.

The status of black players in the NBA is earned by their own hands, and is also guided by political correctness.

The elite allowed black players like Michael Jordan to become the leading figures in the league because black people had become the "face of America."

But martial arts is different.

David Stern must consider whether having an Asian player as the face of the league can help the league expand its influence and attract more people to spend money on the sport of basketball.

This series between the Timberwolves and the Bulls is no longer just a victory or defeat between players.

In fact, long before the Timberwolves came into being, David Stern had already thought about what kind of marketing would be needed after the Bulls won the final championship to be worthy of the six-crown glory of the God of Basketball.

If you are careful, you only need to observe the game between the Bulls and the Pacers to see the league's preference for the Bulls.

During those seven rounds.

In G1, the free throw ratio between the Bulls and the Pacers was 37:25. The Bulls had 12 more free throws, and the overall score was 79:85. The Bulls won. Perhaps it was because the referee was too harsh in this game, and in subsequent games, the referee was a little more restrained.

In G2, the free throw ratio was 39:32, the Bulls had seven more free throws, and the overall score was 98:104, the Bulls won; in G3, 39:34, the Bulls had five more free throws, but the Bulls lost the game by two points; in G5, 4:20, the Bulls had eight more free throws, and lost the game by two points again.

Game 5, 28:45, this time, the Pacers had 17 more free throws than the Bulls. Do you think the Pacers can win? No, the Pacers lost this game with a big score of 87:106. This is a game that can be won without the referee's effort.

G6, 89:92, the Bulls lost the game, with a free throw rate of 28:35, 7 fewer than their opponents, and were dragged into the decisive seventh game.

In the seventh game, the Bulls won the game 88:83, with a free throw rate of 41:37, four more than the opponent.

If you watch the entire round of games between the Bulls and the Pacers carefully, you can see the huge impact that the referee's decisions have on the course of the game.

Is there a big difference between the Bulls and the Pacers in the level of foul-making? I'm afraid it's not obvious. Otherwise, the Pacers wouldn't have 17 more free throws than the opponent in a single game.

But before that, the league's bias had no effect on the Timberwolves.

But today, it has become one of the biggest obstacles for the Timberwolves on their way to the championship.

“Asian players.”

Glen Taylor couldn't help but frown when he heard David Stern's words which were obviously racist. He placed the red wine glass on the coffee table. After thinking quickly, Glen Taylor said solemnly:
"What does it matter if we are yellow?"

"Wouldn't it be a good opportunity to use his influence to expand overseas markets?"

“There is a market gap there, a market gap of more than $500 billion!”

"If you can use martial arts to expand the influence of the NBA league to Asia, sir, you will become the godfather of the league, on par with Walter Brown."

"and"

"Michael is old, how many more years can he play?"

"If he retires, will the league still have the influence it has now?"

"As the general manager, should you carefully consider the future development of the league?"

"I am a pure person, at least in the sport of basketball."

"David Stern, leave the outcome of the game to the players of both teams."

At the end, Glen Taylor also revealed the real purpose of this trip.

David Stern did not respond directly to Glen Taylor. He just stood quietly by the window, looking at the court.

After a short break, players from the Timberwolves and Bulls returned to the court.

Both sides have made some substitutions.

As the basketball was sent out from the Bulls' backcourt, the second quarter officially began.

The Bulls' No. 1 player is still Ron Harper. After he dribbled the ball into the frontcourt, he quickly passed the basketball to Michael Jordan on the side.

After the basketball was shot, Ron Harper quickly moved towards the direction of martial arts, intending to provide a screen for Michael Jordan.

Ron Harper's movements were noticed by Wudao. Before the opponent's pick-and-roll came, Wudao took a step back and prepared to go around the pick-and-roll in advance.

However, Michael had no intention of using Lohaber's pick-and-roll. He simply accelerated in the opposite direction after the ball fell. His offensive choice was beyond Wudao's expectations, and the two of them quickly became aligned.

Michael Jordan's acceleration was very fast. Wu Dao, who was a little slow in reacting, followed up repeatedly but still allowed Michael Jordan to find a gap.

"Oh!"

Mike, who quickly crossed the three-point line, could only lean his body against Wu Dao's. He had no intention of slowing down. He moved to the middle distance against Wu Dao's defense, then made an abrupt stop and took a jump shot almost sticking to Wu Dao's body.

"?!"

Michael Jordan's breakthrough was so reckless that Wu Dao reacted almost subconsciously and reached out to hit the basketball in Michael's hand.

"Beep--"

Just the next second after the two people collided, the referee on the sidelines blew the whistle.

The moment Wu Dao heard the whistle, his expression turned fierce. He exerted his strength and slapped the basketball with one hand, pushing Michael Jordan down from the air.

"Bang!!!"

As Michael Jordan's body made close contact with the floor, the entire stadium fell into silence.

(End of this chapter)