From sparring to superstar

Chapter 192 190. Defense is king, advanced to the second round!

Two days of rest time passed, and on April 4, the day when the Clippers played against the Mavericks at home arrived.

This morning, the league announced 3 regular season individual awards.

最快进步奖，被麦迪拿下，从上赛季场均15.4分6.3板3.3助攻1.1抢断1.9盖帽，提升到场均16.9分7.5板8.5助攻1.4抢断2盖帽，投篮命中率从45.1%提升到46.9%，三分命中率从27.7%提升至38.6%。

After receiving the outside core treatment, McGrady has improved in all aspects, and the magnitude is much higher than people's expectations last summer.

McGrady's seven-year $7 million contract was originally evaluated as the next Brian Grant, a ten-cent contract.

But now, the Magic's maximum salary contract is evaluated as a blood profit.

However, McGrady won the Most Improved Award is something that people have long expected. Compared with this, Duncan beat Nowitzki to rank fifth in the Most Improved Award, which is more topical.

Duncan suffered a devastating injury. Although the jump height and average speed were not affected much, the starting speed, bullet speed, and explosive power all declined very significantly.

可是他的表现不降反升，从上赛季场均23.2分12.4板3.2助攻2.2盖帽，提升至场均26分12.5板3.7助攻2.5盖帽，命中率从49.9%提升到50.8%。

The only downside is free throws, 59.9% of free throws, falling to the same level as the Sharks, averaging 8.5 free throws per game and only making 5.1 free throws.

Best Sixth Man, Aaron McGee of the 76ers defeated Tim Thomas of the Bucks to win the award. Aaron McGee averaged 11.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, 5 assists and 1.4 steals per game, with a stable offense and 47% shooting Rate, defensive line, and is the true playmaker of the 76ers. When he is on the court, Iverson often goes to the bottom line and the wing to play off the ball.

For the Best Rookie Award, Li Ao was elected unanimously with 115 votes.

There was no 'I thought everyone was going to vote for him, so pick one I like'.

He averaged 25.3 points per game. Although the media has begun to attack him for scoring points these days, Mike Miller, the second rookie in scoring this year, averaged 12.9 points per game, and No.3 Kenyon Martin averaged 12 points per game. The two together are not as tall as him.

Li Ao successfully became the fifth unanimous best rookie in NBA history!

...

Li Ao didn't care if the best rookie won the unanimous vote, but of course he was happier if he won the unanimous vote.

It's a pity that it doesn't seem uncommon for the unanimous best rookie to be judged by the system. After all, there are already 4 in front, and there is no achievement reward.

But it doesn't matter, taking all the Rookie of the Month awards, being elected as the Rookie of the Year, completing the task of 'Best Rookie', and getting a total of 3.2 achievement points.

Including the 20000 achievement points of the best rookie award itself, a total of 5.2 achievement points, plus the previous 13.9, finally broke through 20 again!

Don't worry about this summer!The training tasks are fully open, and train with maximum efficiency!
During an interview at noon, Li Ao replied to the reporter's question of "won the best rookie award":
"It's all thanks to my coaches and teammates, without them I would have lost at least 10 points a game.

I have Lamar, Greg, Earle, and Blevins, four point guards who pass the ball well. Jermaine and Corey, when they have a bad chance to score inside, the first thing they think of is to pass the ball Me, they trust me and always pass the ball to me, and I get so many shots.

This kind of good thing is something that other rookies can't envy.

I heard that the Warriors rejected the Grizzlies' second pick for Hughes. I am so grateful to the Warriors management. Fans in the Bay Area don't regret that I can't play in your city. Los Angeles is very close to the Bay Area, and the highway is so fast It’s developed, and it’s the same when you come here to watch the game..."

Fans saw the interview video of Spider-Man and felt that what was said earlier was right.

Even Clippers fans thought their Spider-Man rookie season was a stroke of luck.

The rest of the Clippers are like helpers specially matched for Spider-Man.

Greg Anthony, with rich experience in the game and a stable style of play, made his debut in the starting stage and can distribute the ball very well.

Odom, who can play both inside and outside, has a top-level offensive organization. He is proficient in singles scoring and off-ball support.

Boykins has a sharp counterattack. His super fast speed can always attract most of the opponent's attention in the counterattack, and he has excellent vision when moving fast, and he is also willing to pass the ball.

Blevin Knight is as good at organizing offense as Kidd and Stockton when he abuses food.

Wing pitchers, Big Q, Matt Harprin, Piakowski, can help Spider-Man show his coping ability.

Maggette, in the eyes of Los Angeles fans, is the deluxe version of Sam Clancy of the Trojans. His style of play is basically the same as that of Sam Clancy, and he is smarter and more physically fit. The key is to have 80% Free throw percentage, Artest with comparable physical fitness, free throw percentage starts with 6 words.

On the inside, Jermaine O'Neal averaged 3.9 offensive rebounds per game, allowing Spider-Man to rest assured.

With an average of 22.4 shots per game and 9.4 hits per game, Spider-Man, as a rookie, ranks third in the list of irons per game, stronger than Anthony Walker and Jamison.

Only Iverson, who averaged 14.8 irons per game, and Stackhouse, who averaged 14.4 irons per game, can beat him.

Not only is the adaptation of teammates, but also the construction of the offensive system of the Clippers coaching staff is also built around creating iron for Spiderman...creating shooting opportunities.

This is also the reason why Li Ao's performance is quite recognized, his team leadership record is praised, his leadership ability is praised...but his personal offensive ability is questioned.

Clippers fans are very satisfied with Spider-Man's acceptance speech with a clear understanding of his abilities and gratitude to his teammates.

But satisfaction is satisfaction, and the fans felt weird when they watched the first half of the interview.

Not only the Clippers fans, but also the Grizzlies, Lakers, and Warriors fans felt at ease after seeing Spider-Man's broken mouth behind him.

It's been a long time, and they are not used to it if they don't get hurt by Spiderman.

...

At 8 o'clock in the evening, the Clippers' game against the Mavericks began.

After the game started, Gentry was thankful that they were not careless after the opponent's infighting.

The opponent's starting lineup stage played harder!
The Mavericks are 'unanimous' as Juwan Howard says the team can't win without him and they're going to show the rookie!

Nowitzki, who has such a good temper, couldn't get angry. He said in an interview today: "Before he came, we were already number one in the division and second in the West."

Old Nelson did more ruthless than people imagined. He sent Juwan Howard to play for a few minutes at the end of the first quarter. After seeing the substitute make a few blind shots, he didn't give him a chance to play for 1 minute in the next three quarters.

The Mavericks are excited and want to prove that they can beat the Clippers without Juwan Howard. They played very well. Even if Juwan Howard tossed for 3 minutes in the first quarter, they still only trailed the Clippers by 19-22 by 3 point.

到了第二节，小牛队前半节打出了18比12的比分，37比34反超快船队3分。

However, the Mavericks' continuity is not enough!

On the Clippers side, when Odom was missing, the losing streak continued wave after wave. Even without Maggette, the frontline assaulter, the strength of the Clippers would plummet.

What's more, there is one less Mavericks averaging 15+ scorers per game.

This was replaced by three main substitutes, Kristen Laettner, Hubert Davis, and Calvin Booth. Before being traded away, the three averaged 22 points, 11 rebounds and 5 assists per game. .

Of course, this deal is an improvement for the Mavericks. Taking 3 small change for a star player who averages 18 points per game, regardless of salary, it must be profitable.

But Juwan Howard was abandoned, and the Mavericks' offensive continuity collapsed!
The Clippers scored 12-9 in the second half of the second quarter, tying the Mavericks 46-46 at halftime!
The Clippers seized the opportunity and scored 18-15 in the third quarter. Facing the Mavericks' weak counterattack in the final quarter, the Clippers firmly suppressed 23-20.

At 10:25 p.m., the final whistle blew.

Cheers burst from the Staples Center!
李敖拿到14分8板2助攻3抢断3盖帽、奥多姆13分7板14助攻、小奥尼尔15分15板3盖帽、马盖蒂12分、马特-哈普林11分……快船队5人得分上双，以87比81力克小牛队。

With a big score of 2 to 1, the Clippers got the match point!

...

13投4中，加上6中6的罚球才拿到14分，G3赢了，但李敖个人打得头皮发麻。

As the playoffs deepened, he felt the qualitative difference between the playoffs and the regular season.

It's really effective to defend against a word of disagreement!

The old Nelson abandoned Juwan Howard, and the Mavericks' offensive continuity has indeed plummeted, unable to explode a single quarter of 30+ as before.

But Edondo Najera, Greg Buckner, Lloyd Ott, Mark Bryant, Vernon Maxwell and other defensive players got more playing time.

Especially Vernon Maxwell, the defensive champion who made Drexler willing to give up the shooting guard position... no, it was a gangster, which caused Li Ao a headache when he attacked.

Fortunately, their defense is better!
Li Ao didn't block many shots tonight, but together with O'Neal and Matt Harprin, he locked the Mavericks' basket scoring. Of the Mavericks' 81 points, only 16 were basket scoring, accounting for less than 20%.

It sounds awesome to get the match point, but in the first round of the 5-game 3-win system, if you get the match point 2-1, you may be directly overwhelmed by the opponent's two-game winning streak.

Li Ao did not think about his opponent in the next round because of the lessons learned from a certain No. 1 player who did not want to be named in the original time and space.

He can talk nonsense, but he has always been steady in his actions.

Just like when he develops back-ups and changes to other rookies, after he has practiced back-ups for a month, he may quickly "show progress" in the game, start a wave of iron-making journey, and take the initiative to meet the rookie wall.

But he didn't dare to play hard in garbage time until he was close to a good level. He had to play back in regular time, and he also picked opponents and players.

In the next afternoon's preparation training, in 3 hours, he mentioned "be careful of being overturned" 60 times.

That is to say, he has always been very talkative, and he gave his teammates the impression that 'my boss is too cautious'. The teammates have resistance, otherwise they will be annoyed to death.

Li Ao took the trouble to think about it, and the impetuous atmosphere that appeared after the team led 2 to 1 was abruptly lost by him.

On April 4, the NBA officially announced the MVP, Best Defensive Player, and Moral Style Awards.

Iverson got 115 of the 85 first-place votes and won the regular season MVP with 34.1% of the total points. He has a big lead and scored 50% more points than Duncan.

最佳防守球员，和MVP得分制投票不同，这个是115人位投票者1人1票选出，穆托姆博拿到45票，比No.2的邓肯的21票、No.3的加内特的20票加起来都多。

Seeing the voting results, Li Ao complained crazily—is this Spider-Man the favorite?

In terms of MVP, there is no first vote, with a total score of 45 points, ranking 10th.

The number of votes this year is very concentrated. Iverson, Duncan, O'Neal, and Webber accounted for most of the votes in the 1-5 ballots, and the first ballot was concentrated on them.

There are only 12 players who get votes.

Although the number of Tucao votes does not match the title of 'Hot', it is still 6 points higher than Snake next door.

Moreover, there is a surprise-the best defensive player got 4 votes and ranked 8th!

This is considered to be among the MVP+DPOY double candidates, right?
At 8 o'clock in the evening, the Clippers ushered in Game 4 with the Mavericks at home.

The defense of the two teams has been knocked out. Neither team scored 20 points in the first quarter. The Mavericks led the Clippers by two points 16 to 14 and entered the second quarter.

Unlike the past two games, the Mavericks didn't try to play offense in the second quarter this time, and continued to slam defense.

The Clippers are good at playing defense, so they are not afraid of the opponent's adjustment. They continued to fight hard and scored 18 to 17. After halftime, they chased the score to 32 to 33, narrowing the point difference by 1 point.

At this point in the game, not to mention pitchers and pie-eaters, even Finley, Nash, Odom, Boykins, Maggette and other offensive points with the ball have poor chances to make shots.

At this time, two people are very important!

Spider-Man and Silver Horn!

The scorers of the two teams have bad shots, and the touch is also lost in mutual consumption. Since they are all strong shots, it is natural to find the one who is the best at taking the pot.

The two faced off in the playoffs for the first time, and Spider-Man won!

Li Ao made 8 of 3 shots in the third quarter, and scored 2 points with 2 of 8 free throws. He seized the opportunity to make two mid-range shots and a cutting hook when Nash and Finley switched defenses. Scored 3 goals.

Nowitzki was not so lucky. He was defended by one of Spider-Man, Zuomo, and the captain. The one who switched to defend him was one of these three. He shot decisively and without fear. But he scored 6 of 1 in a single quarter, scored a three-pointer, and made 2 of 2 free throws, only scoring 5 points.

在李敖的带领下，快船队第三节以20比16小胜小牛队，以52比49反超小牛队3分！
At the end of the quarter, the two teams continued to defend, believing that their own players could make shots, but the players on both sides were crazy...

At 10:22 p.m., the Mavericks made the last attack with only 11 seconds left. Nash missed a three-pointer under the defense of Big Q. Veteran Lloyd Ott made a rush to grab an offensive rebound and pass it to Nowitzki , But Nowitzki was caught by Matt Harperin when he received the ball, and he still missed a strong three-pointer.

O'Neal protected the defensive rebound, and the Mavericks didn't even have time for a foul, and the final whistle sounded.

末节比分15比15！小牛队未能扳平比分，快船队以67比64险胜小牛队，3比1晋级第二轮！
With 8 points in a single quarter in the third quarter, Li Ao only scored 21 points on 6 of 16 shots.

4场比赛，他拿到24分、25分、14分、16分，距离系列赛场均20分只差1分，他有些心塞。

But, win!
After the final whistle sounded, Li Ao cheered and celebrated with his teammates excitedly. The fans on the scene were even more excited. The team entered the second round for the first time in history!
On the other side, Nash, who scored 14 points tonight, and Nowitzki, who scored a game-high 17 points, leaned together. The two looked at the unreliable boss in unison.

The Silver Horn King said, "Steve, we should make a change."

Zonda nodded: "Next season, we will do it ourselves!"

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(End of this chapter)