NBA: I am a master dealer

Chapter 466: Win the first city!
And this time.

Major media also made predictions for each series.

The Warriors had almost no suspense against the Grizzlies, sweeping them all 4:0. Only a few famous speakers gave a 4:1 prediction.

Then in the Spurs vs. Thunder group, everyone still gave Westbrook a little face. Half of them were 4:2, half were 4:1, but there was no sweep.

The third group, the Rockets and the Clippers, was originally a close series. However, due to the Clippers being suppressed by the Lakers, their morale was completely lost, their honor was ruined, and they became the target of public criticism. Especially the blow to their confidence was really huge. , so most people still believe that the Rockets can resolve the battle in 6 games and advance to the next round.

The last group in the Western Conference, the Lakers VS the Jazz, will undoubtedly support the Lakers. It is generally predicted that the Lakers will defeat the Jazz, who have the home court advantage, 4:1, and complete the victory, even ignoring altitude sickness.

It can be seen from this how optimistic everyone is about the Lakers.

The reason is also very simple. The Lakers' performance in the second half of the schedule was really too strong. After two consecutive victories, they directly pulled the Lakers out of the quagmire of last place, and then flew to the fifth position in the Western Conference.

of course.

The combination of Xue Liancheng + George is the key to the Lakers' takeoff. With their presence, it is generally predicted that the battle will end at 4:1.

After all, Xue Liancheng has proven in the playoffs for two consecutive years that he is the face of the league that can hold up the pressure.

And in the east.

The Knicks also have an absolute advantage. James swept the Hawks last season. The Knicks are equally strong this season and are the defending champions, so a 4-0 sweep has become the mainstream voice.

In this series between the Heat and the Bucks, the Heat also have an absolute advantage in terms of paper strength, but Antetokounmpo's impact is very fierce, and the two sides are still capable of fighting. It is predicted that the Heat will win 4:2 against the Bucks. mainstream.

Celtics vs. Cavaliers, this series is very confusing. First of all, in terms of paper strength, the two sides are very close. Irving + Love have a certain degree of competitiveness, and Thomas + Horford should not be underestimated. Their lineup The depth is almost the same.

The only difference is that the Celtics' overall defense is obviously much better and their offensive system is relatively complete.

The Cavaliers are completely star singles types. Once Irving and Love are in poor condition, their game will definitely be in danger.

But on the other hand, Irving and Love are both the best in their respective positions, especially Irving's hard-hitting ability, which is very scary. As long as their status is online, the Cavaliers will be a tough nut to crack. If their status is overwhelming, then It was Celtic's turn to be dangerous.

Everything has pros and cons, but in the final analysis, the playoffs are the stage for superstars, and the quality of the Cavaliers' two stars is obviously higher than that of Thomas and Horford of the Celtics.

Thomas is too short and can be easily targeted on both offense and defense.

Horford's offensive ability is far inferior to Love's, but his defensive role is not comparable to Love's. Overall, Horford is still a little less interesting than Love.

Therefore, the predictions given by the public are basically tie-breakers. Some people are optimistic about the Celtics, but others are optimistic that the Cavaliers can defeat them.

Between the Raptors and Wizards, the latter is more optimistic. After all, Wall + Beal are really strong this season, while Lowry + DeRozan, although their statistics are not bad, are extremely unstable, especially in the playoffs. Turn off the power and transform into a garbage brother.

However, the Raptors' lineup depth and overall strength are still slightly stronger, so this series is also predicted by most media to enter a tiebreaker.

And there are still more people watching the Wizards complete the victory over the above. The reason is naturally that the last time the two sides met in the playoffs, the Wizards completed the promotion.

The regular season MVP is basically locked in Westbrook and Harden. The former has superior statistics and huge influence, while the latter is obviously more suitable for the MVP selection criteria.

The popular candidates for Defensive Player of the Year are Leonard and Gobert, basically one of them.

本赛季的最佳新秀就比较矬了，场均12.8分6.3篮板2.2助攻的萨里奇和场均10.2分4.2助攻2.8篮板的布罗格登是有竞争力的新秀球员。

As for the candidates for the best coach, Mike Brown and Rockets' D'Antoni both have opportunities.

The best sixth man is all in the Rockets, either Eric Gordon or Lou Williams.

The Most Improved Award is locked up by Antetokounmpo Antetokounmpo.

The best lineup predictions are basically the same.

In the first team, Harden and Westbrook should occupy two spots, and James and Leonard have also locked up two spots on the forward line.

What about the remaining one?

Logically speaking, it should be given to Durant, but because the impact of joining the Warriors is too bad, he may be left behind.

In fact, it would be equally bad for James to join the Knicks, but with Xue Liancheng gone, James' nominal surrender to the enemy has been reduced a lot.

In addition, James' statistics are really good and his efficiency is stable. The Knicks are not as scary as the Big Four, so he will definitely be considered for the best lineup.

Another point is that James' achievements of 4 MVPs, 2 championships and 2 FMVPs make him more popular.

Anyway, the two of them are incompatible with each other and have the same bad nature. They have been criticized from the beginning of this season to the end of the season.

And James was ridiculed as the first person who "caught the thigh but failed to hug him", and was laughed at for a whole season.

It's much easier with the second unit.

Thomas Jr., Curry, Antetokounmpo, Davis, Gobert.

Thomas is supported by the Celtics, who are third in the Eastern Conference.

Curry has the league's best record as a foundation.

Antetokounmpo is the most eye-catching person on the front line. He supports the Bucks alone and should be praised.

Davis is the No. 1 power forward. With this name and his overall data, he is indeed impeccable and should also be selected.

Gobert is the representative of defense and will definitely provide support. The most important thing is that the center is withering and Gobert has suddenly emerged, which is still very popular.

Third team Irving, Wall, George, DeRozan, DeAndre Jordan, Hayward or Love?
It's probably these few.

Bill, Lowry, Paul, Conley, Hayward and others are at a disadvantage in the fierce competition for the best team. There are opportunities, but not many.

Xue Liancheng basically missed these honors because he missed too many battles.

Otherwise, with his miraculous comeback in the second half, he has a high probability of winning the MVP. After all, it would be a miracle and shocking to be able to pull the last-place Lakers to the forefront of the Western Conference.

The most important thing is that Xue Liancheng's personal data is also very dominant. Although there are fewer rebounds, his assists are a career high and his points are also a new high.

If it weren't for the lack of games, he would have won the scoring and assist titles again. It's so scary.

With these two extra points, coupled with his solid team leadership performance, it is very convincing that he won the MVP.

pity.

There aren’t enough sessions!
Take two days off.

The playoff battle is about to begin.

However, on the first day of the game, the Lakers were not scheduled to compete, but they had already traveled to Salt Lake City to adapt to altitude sickness in advance.

After rehearsing tactics over and over again, everyone happily fell to the edge of the field to rest.

At this time, Mike Brown's voice suddenly came, "Everyone, come here."

Everyone was stunned for a moment, but still walked over.

Mike Brown said with a cold face: "I don't know if you have read too many media reports and you think you have a chance to win. I tell you now very seriously and responsibly that if you can reach the fourth position in the Western Conference, it will definitely Not a weak team.”

Hearing this, Xue Liancheng raised his eyebrows and took a deep look at Mike Brown.

In fact, he also felt that the atmosphere in the team was changing. Everyone seemed not to be interested in the Jazz, their first-round opponent, and gave people the feeling of looking down on the opponent. That's right.

It just feels like this.

You can actually feel the details. For example, when practicing tactics, everyone was not very immersed. The atmosphere of being faced with a powerful enemy did not appear to them at all.

For another example, when discussing opponents, everyone was not enthusiastic and even skipped the Jazz and talked about the Golden State Warriors.

This is outrageous.

It's very puzzling to think that they have already advanced.

This is a mental look down on his opponent. This is obviously not a good signal. He actually wants to warn his teammates.

Unexpectedly, Mike Brown also discovered this problem.

Mike Brown's voice continued: "This is Salt Lake City, the most terrifying home court in the league. We have lost to each other three times this season. They have the best frame-protecting center, Hayward, Hill, Favors, Hu Germany, Ingles is not a vegetarian, why do you think we can easily get through the first round? "

All of a sudden, everyone was silent.

Yes!

why?

The answer is actually similar to the mirror.

Because they have the best player in the league-Xue Liancheng.

They also have one of the best small forwards in the league. Their goal from the beginning was to win the championship, so they will feel that the first round is not a problem at all.

So I feel relaxed mentally.

Mike Brown: "When you don't take your opponents seriously, it's a wrong start. We must respect our opponents and use our greatest strength to beat them to death alive. This is the attitude we should have, not "Fantasy about the next round, that's not what we should be focusing on right now."

After hearing this, everyone gradually woke up and no longer felt as casual and relaxed as before.

After the lecture, everyone dispersed.

Xue Liancheng gave Mike Brown a thumbs up.

after one day.

The first game of the Lakers VS Jazz series officially begins.

The process was intense, but no matter how hard Jazz struggled, it was to no avail. The Lakers were like a giant hand, grabbing Jazz's neck and pushing him into the water so hard that Jazz didn't even have a chance to raise his head.

After receiving a stern reminder from Mike Brown, in this game, all Lakers members remained focused and fought hard while also having the determination to beat the opponent to death.

In the end, the Lakers easily defeated the Jazz 121:98 and took the lead.

Such a disparity in the score is indeed unexpected.

Xue Liancheng did not expect this result.

Because if he remembered correctly, in the historical trajectory, the Jazz and the Clippers reached the tie-break, and won the tie-break and advanced to the second round. They were very strong.

And this is not the point. The point is that Gobert was injured in less than a minute in the first game. Under this situation, the Jazz can still compete with the Clippers without falling behind. You can imagine how strong they are.

of course.

Gobert's role was extremely huge, and he helped the team win as soon as he came back in the fourth game.

It was also the reason why they won the tiebreaker.

Gobert also made his mark in this series.

In the regular season, Gobert has actually shown his top level of frame protection. The coverage area is very huge, and the defender is greatly disturbed when he breaks through.

But today, they scored 121 points. The inside line guarded by Gobert was completely lost, and there was no legendary overwhelming force at all.

The reason is also very simple.

Xue Liancheng's sudden attack was not for the purpose of ending the fight. This created an embarrassing situation where Gobert would die even if he brought him up, and would die even more if he didn't bring him up.

In addition, there is another point, that is, Gobert did not outrun Randall and Vonleh, and his speed was a bit unable to keep up.

This gives the Lakers a chance to overcome the position difference.

Especially during fast breaks, Gobert, who is not too slow, can only watch Randall rush to the frame.

The complete loss of the Jazz's defense was the main reason for their defeat.

The secondary reason is that the Jazz's offense is not good enough.

Hayward is indeed a very powerful small forward in the league, but Hayward is more of a skill player. George is very experienced in dealing with such players, and it is difficult to defend Hayward.

As the core of the offense, Hayward failed to perform at his top level, so naturally he couldn't defeat the Lakers.

As the second core of the offense, George Hill is even worse. He is not organized well, cannot score, and cannot play the core role at all.

This is also the Jazz's biggest shortcoming. A superstar without hard-hitting ability will collapse once the situation cannot be opened.

So throughout the game, the Jazz were either chasing points or on the way to chasing points.

Analyzing this result gave him a deeper understanding of the Jazz as an opponent.

At the same time, I sighed slightly in my heart. The Clippers, the city of alley-oops that had been a smash hit in history, had actually reached a fork in the road at this time of complete collapse.

Paul is no longer the omnipotent Paul.

Griffin is no longer the same Griffin who flew into the sky and escaped.

DeAndre Jordan is no longer the DeAndre Jordan who can jump and jump.

The seeds of their split may have been laid the night the Rockets lost the series with a 3-1 lead.

This season we can directly declare that we will withdraw from the championship.

So next, the Clippers may really disband early.

Because of the grievance between him and the Clippers, the reputation of the entire Clippers team was directly discredited, and people lost their hearts. Where is the morale left?

The result of the game was the same. In the first game between the Clippers and the Rockets, they also lost the game with a score of 87:118.

Everyone is like a zombie and seems to have no energy to play ball.

The whole picture can be seen from this game. The Clippers are in danger in this series.

Xue Liancheng couldn't help but feel confused: Is this a team that he broke up? If so, that's quite a sense of accomplishment.

(End of this chapter)