From sparring to superstar

Chapter 304 302. He only won 7 crowns by hugging his thighs!
However, although the Magic team is strong, they are not invincible. They just couldn't beat them tonight.

He was just shocked by the changes in the Magic's playing style and temperament.

What really gives him a headache is the lack of young players in the team, including him.

When Gerald Wallace encountered the inside guarded by Duncan, the offense was basically useless, and he didn't do a good job of defending Mike Miller without the ball.

Yaric makes their triangle offense better and his defense is much better than Greg Anthony, but he lacks the ability to receive shots.

Bibby can't be asked to do much of him most of the time.

O'Neal Jr. is taking the traditional center route, improving his abilities in all aspects. It is difficult to see significant progress in a year and a half. Not only him, but also last year's No. [-] pick Gasol did not see significant improvement in his second year. It takes time to accumulate. .

Odom is sometimes ineffective...

The main reason for winning the championship last season was that the opponents in the playoffs were not that strong. The Kings did not get Bibby and could not fight a tough battle in the playoffs. The Magic only had the TT combination last season. When facing the Lakers, if it were not for their Clippers The depth of the team's lineup is far greater than that of the opponent, and their ability to withstand pressure is incredible. They may be solved by the opponent in 5 games. If they switch to another team with similar strength, they will fall behind the OK combination, which has won two consecutive championships, 1 to 3. In the 5th game Most likely you won't be able to hold on.

Fortunately, Jordan did not retire immediately after winning the championship, otherwise they would not be able to maintain the strength of a championship-level team this season.

As ESPN said, Jordan staying on the bench really gave them a buffer period for growth.

After thinking wildly all night, at dawn, he looked at the large orange-red disk rising from the sea outside the window, and his troubled mind suddenly became clear.

If your teammates are not strong enough, just wait for them to grow. If you are not strong enough, just practice!

O'Neal would have to be trapped in the playoffs for three years before he could meet his best partner.

He was already lucky. He received the help of Jordan in the second year and won the championship early.

He suddenly understood why Duncan in the original time and space had the patience to wait for Parker, Ginobili, Popovich, and Leonard to grow up.

Wearing a championship ring on your hand, don’t panic!
O'Neal had the patience to wait for Kobe to grow. He had already reached the Finals and knew what he lacked. Kobe had the talent to help him make up for his shortcomings. He only needed to wait patiently for a few years.

Li Ao was fortunate to have met the Magic's 'war machine' early, which allowed him to understand the shortcomings of his own team.

Winning the championship gave him a boost of confidence, but it also blurred his understanding of his own team.

This defeat gave him a clearer understanding of the current situation.

...

After defeating the Clippers, the Magic reached the top of the league with a record of 6 wins and 1 loss.

The 5-1 Clippers fled Orlando to Miami with their tail between their legs. On November 11, they came to the American Airlines Center to challenge the Heat.

Mourning was reimbursed again this year. His hereditary kidney disease was transferred to another kidney. With the previous treatment experience, this operation was completed very well, but this season is gone. The recovery period given by the doctor is as long as 16 months. moon.

Moreover, both of his kidneys have been replaced, and public opinion generally believes that he will never be able to return to the NBA.

Pat Riley was frustrated and thankful that Mourning was reimbursed again.

Mourning and Jordan are Pat Riley's two favorite players in his coaching career.

My love for Jordan goes without saying.

Mourning is one of the few Pat Riley players who is emotionally invested. If he were to trade for another player, he would have sold him last season and exchanged him for a junk contract.

The Nets made an offer to Mourning last season, and the bargaining chip they gave was not bad, but Pat Riley rejected it.

But he admired Mourning's bloodiness very much. Even when Mourning was out for a year and his condition plummeted after his comeback, he still worked around Mourning for a season and gave Mourning dignity and respect.

The disease relapsed after Mourning played for a year. Pat Riley was very sad, but there are a lot of talents to participate in the draft next year. Missed opportunity.

He was scolded by his boss for not playing hard against Yao Ming last season. After the Knicks selected Yao Ming, the average ticket price for the new season soared by $25, far ahead of the Angel City duo...

He has a bit of humanity, but not much.

And he refused to sell Mourning last year, saving Mourning's face, and paving the way for him to form a championship lineup in the future and when he needs a backup center, he just calls Mourning and runs back.

At 7 p.m., the Clippers' away game against the Heat begins.

The performance of the five players on the Heat's field seemed to have written on their foreheads - I'm going to screw up.

Like the Cavaliers, the Heat have made no secret of their desire to mess up.

There is a stronger point guard in Mike James, but Pat Riley is not used, so veteran Travis Best will be used as the starter. The tactics are also in a mess, and he often makes mistakes when changing situations... It is not a good fortune at all. Proper coaching operations.

前天晚上被邓肯捶了的小奥尼尔，今晚打了33分钟，狂飙25分20板1助攻2盖帽。

Li Ao took crazy shots from the wing, making 25 of 13 shots, including 2 of 1 three-pointers, plus 5 of 5 free throws, soaring 32 points.

加上毕比的11分8助攻、乔丹的13分4板2助攻……

111 to 82, the Clippers slaughtered the Heat and won the last game of 4 consecutive away games.

After the game, Pat Riley rushed onto the court and held Jordan's hand and said: "I hope you can continue to win the championship this season. Do you want to come to us to play for a year next year? I want your jersey to fly in this arena. Above, I have spotted a genius just like you..."

It's not like Jordan has never encountered a dog licker. The Knicks licked him crazily back then and applied for a "salary cap extension clause" from the league, which helped him get a terrifying salary of US$90 million in the late 3000s. At that time Many teams have entire team salaries of less than $3000 million.

But a licking dog like Youtou is the only one.

Jordan couldn't bear to refuse: "I will think about it, but I haven't decided on the future yet..."

Li Ao, who was watching from the side, shuddered when he saw this scene.

Did the fortune teller suffer from Stockholm Syndrome by Jordan in the 90s?

...

After four consecutive away games, the Clippers' record came to 4 wins and 6 loss.

After returning to Los Angeles, the Clippers had two days of rest. On the 15th, they faced the challenge of the SuperSonics at home.

After the players from the two teams entered the court, Payton looked at Jordan with jealous eyes, wishing he could change positions with the opponent. He could play as a substitute and let Jordan come here to collect statistics.

Originally, Payton did not regard himself as someone who could collect statistics. He had been working hard to lead the team to win, but the day before yesterday, on the night of the 13th, he suffered one of the most painful blows in his career, and his whole person was in bad shape.

Tonight is the second game of the Sonics' Angel City Package. They played the Lakers first the night before yesterday.

Yesterday, Kobe won the Western Conference Player of the Week for the second week because of that game.

That night, O'Neal withdrew from the game before the first quarter because of shoulder discomfort. The Sonics players cheered up and went berserk. They scored 35 to 24 in the first quarter and looked like they were going to beat the Lakers.

但后面三节，科比三分球15中11，加上首节三分3中1，单场三分球18投12中，全场拿到45分12板6助攻3抢断，率领湖人队在后三节打出了95比53的比分，湖人队以119比98反过来爆捶超音速队一顿。

Kobe made 6 of 6 three-pointers in the third quarter. Payton, who was guarding him, came to the back and saw Kobe throwing a three-pointer and didn't want to raise his hand.

has no meaning?The Black Mamba can throw the ball against a defense that sticks to his chest!
When Kobe Bryant hit 10 three-pointers, Payton had only one thought in his mind - can you play with me?

Meeting another Angel City team tonight, before the game even started, Payton had the same idea as the night before.

Any team in Angel City will do, please extend your thigh!
But compared to going to O'Neal to hint at the opponent after losing the night before yesterday, Payton did nothing before the game tonight.

There was Jordan opposite... He didn't want to work with Jordan no matter what.

Even if he wants to go, he still has to wait until Jordan retires.

And you can't express your desire to join the Clippers.

Payton has no doubt that as long as he wants to join, Jordan will definitely play one more year to disgust him.

Payton was ready to surrender to the enemy, but when the game started, he did not act as an undercover agent. Instead, he fought harder than ever.

Regardless of whether he ends up going to the Lakers or Clippers, he has to show his abilities in this arena.

The SuperSonics' strength has been greatly improved compared to last season. Payton and Brent Barry continued their peak form. Lewis and Radmanovic's offensive capabilities have been greatly improved, and they came out of the bench. The meat shield Drobiak and the rebounder Reggie Evans also performed very well this season.

The most important thing is that they finally sent away the cheater Vin Baker.

They didn't dare to give up on Vin Baker before, because Vin Baker's contract was stinky and long. It only expired in 05. He didn't give playing time, had no data, and no team wanted him, so he could only rot in their hands.

Last season, Payton fed Vin Baker hard. Vin Baker's performance improved, averaging 48 points per game with a 14% shooting rate. He finally attracted the hungry Celtics and got rid of this big contract.

Lewis took this opportunity to return to his familiar power forward position, and has greatly improved on both offense and defense.

He couldn't even defend the referee from the outside, but after switching to power forward this season, he showed excellent team defensive capabilities, assisting Payton and leading the team to start with 5 wins and 3 losses, averaging 97.5 points per game and losing points per game. 93 points, comprehensive offense and defense, this is the best start for the Sonics after the shortened season.

Tonight, the Sonics players under the leadership of Payton performed very well.

The Clippers players don't know what Payton is thinking. Seeing Payton working so hard, their feeling is - it's not like we shot 12 three-pointers in your face, what do you mean by risking your life against us? ?
You can’t beat Kobe, but you think you can beat us?
The Clippers players also played very hard.

In the first quarter, the Sonics led by 15 point, 14-1. In the second quarter, the Clippers took the lead 21-19. In the first half of the third quarter, under Payton's life-threatening offense, the Sonics scored 16-11 in the first half of the quarter. , regained a 3-point lead, but when Payton ran out of energy, the Clippers responded with a 5-20 climax in 7 and a half minutes, defeating the Sonics.

At the end of the quarter, Payton tried to counterattack, but Li Ao's two three-pointers and Bibby's two mid-range shots led to a 10-2 start, which killed the Sonics' hope of a comeback. In the last 9 minutes, the Sonics scored 20-15. , and it is difficult to save the defeat.

91 to 79, the Clippers relied on defense to defeat the Sonics, improving their record to 6 wins and 1 loss!
李敖拿到23分9板2助攻3抢断2盖帽，奥多姆17分8板4助攻、毕比8分6助攻、乔丹12分4助攻、小奥尼尔19分……

Although Payton lost, he scored 24 points and 10 assists, showing his ability.

The SuperSonics actually played very well tonight. Under the leadership of Payton, except for the collapse of more than 8 minutes from the second half of the third quarter to the beginning of the fourth quarter, the defensive continuity was very good at other times.

The reason for the loss was that Lewis, who had performed well in the previous few games, played poorly tonight. Due to the defensive battle between Li Ao, Odom and Big Q, the running catcher and pitcher almost became invisible on the offensive end. The Sonics' offense couldn't get started most of the time.After the game, Payton looked at Jordan, who was bragging and spanking with his teammates... Damn it!
How come this guy is so lucky that he still has so much thighs at almost 40 years old!

...

"Let me just say, their style of play has no continuity at all. It's just like what you said, Spider-Man... What's the name of that phrase?"

"...fishing when the lake is exhausted."

"Yes, it's just a matter of fishing, a lineup that can win many championships, is played like this..."

At 17 o'clock in the evening on the 8th, the Clippers faced the challenge of the Kings at home. After the first quarter, Jordan pulled Li Ao, who was also replaced, to laugh at the opponent.

Thinking that Jordan was in a bad mood these past two days, Li Ao could only helplessly agree.

The night before yesterday, Payton was interviewed in the locker room after losing a game. He was jealous and opened his mouth to the camera: "Jordan doesn't deserve to be called the God of Basketball. He can only win by relying on his teammates. Without those thighs, he can't win at all." To the championship..."

Li Ao heard that that night Jordan blew up the high-tech of a nightclub girl and lost a lot of money.

It was hard for Jordan to retaliate against Payton's attack.

Everything has two sides. After Jordan won his seventh championship, the media said that his goat status was unshakable. Most fans agreed with this statement, but it also ushered in the resentment of fans who didn't like Jordan.

Payton's statement attracted the echo of many fans and some media.

Now that Jordan is coming out to refute, some people will definitely say that he is angry and frustrated, and he chooses to ignore it because of his experience.

His choice was right. Payton's words only made a small splash yesterday, and no one discussed them today. It was nonsense, so why bother with it.

But Jordan's mood was still affected. He took all the heat on the Kings today and shut down Doug Christie in the first quarter.

Doug Christie is alone tonight.

5 of 4 starters were injured!He is the only one left.

The Kings actually started off very well this year, winning five games in a row like the Clippers.

But starting from the 6th game against the Mavericks, the Kings suffered consecutive injuries. Not only the starters, but also the core 8-man group, only Doug Christie, the only one who has not been injured.

Moreover, the ones who have been injured the longest and will take a long time to come back are their two core players, starting Webber and sixth man Tege Kru.

However, Adelman still has something. As far as the lineup he can field tonight, the defense still plays well, limiting the Clippers to only 93 points in the game.

It's just that the Kings only scored 82 points...

乔丹出场23分钟，10投6中，加上5中4的罚球，拿到16分3板2助攻1抢断。

李敖19分11板2助攻4抢断1盖帽、奥多姆19分、毕比16分6助攻、小奥尼尔11分10板3盖帽……快船队以93比82击败国王队，拿下3连胜！

During the game, Jordan was madly contemptuous of his opponent, but after returning to the locker room after the game, he began to sigh: "I guessed that the Kings would collapse, but I didn't expect it to come so soon!"

Li Ao echoed: "Yes, their players are still in their prime."

"You also think it's a pity that such an opponent collapsed, right?"

"Uh, no, we defeated the best of them last year. It's nothing to regret. They are no longer good. There are other opponents. Instead of focusing on the Kings, we should think more about the game against the Magic in two days. , that’s what we need to pay attention to now.”

Jordan: ()
Watching Li Ao walk towards the bathroom, Steve Kerr stepped forward and said: "Haha, Michael, you were speechless again after being refuted by Spider-Man? Didn't I tell you that you are not as good as him and you can't talk to him."

Jordan shook his head: "No, I'm not angry, I'm just emotional."

"Oh?"

"I feel the difference between me and the young people. I still miss the opponents I have defeated, and after he defeats one opponent, he is already looking at the next opponent. Isn't that what we were like back then?"

"Yeah... Haha, if you don't play next season, I will retire with you. If you continue to play, then I will play for another year."

"Watch me play another year on the bench?"

"You want to fight again?"

"Hey, get away! But when it comes to our next opponent, we must win in two days."

Steve Kerr also became serious, nodded and replied: "Yes, compared to the lame Pistons, the Nets who failed to recruit centers and cut off their back, and the Pacers who still don't know how good they are, The Magic are the most promising team to break out of the Eastern Conference again, and that guy is paralyzed, I think he will become the dominant player in the Eastern Conference. If we want a dynasty, we must overpower them..."

While Jordan was undergoing physical therapy, he and Steve Kerr analyzed the advantages and disadvantages of the game a few days ago.

Mainly due to Steve Kerr's analysis, although Jordan can hit some key points, the overall idea is relatively simple...brainless.

After analyzing it, Jordan said: "Steve, after I build a new team, will you be my head coach? Phil said that you will be a better coach than him."

Steve Kerr, who was thirsty for analysis, shook his whole body and laughed dryly: "Hahahaha, I'm still far away. After I retire, I want to be an assistant coach or a data analyst first. When I have that ability, , I will be your head coach again..."

...

Since the start of the new season, Li Ao has had a very easy time.

Although most of his opponents are strong teams in the playoffs, he has never been troubled by the difficulty of the game.

From October 10th to November 30th, it was 11 days, and only 17 games were played. Almost every game gave them enough time to prepare. They were able to start with 19 wins and 9 loss, and such a loose schedule Inseparable.

No, it's time to play the Magic. The Clippers get another two days of rest. After a day of rest on the 18th, they still have one full day of preparation time on the 19th.

The Clippers and Magic are about to face each other again, which has attracted strong attention from fans. The media is also building momentum for this game, adding "finals sequel", "finals preview" and other gimmicks.

The two teams currently rank first in the Eastern and Western Conferences, which is correct.

This is the last time the two teams meet in the regular season this season. I want to see the two teams play against each other again this season unless the two teams meet again in the finals.

At the NBA headquarters in New York, Stern watched the media add all the buffs they could to this game and was very satisfied.

He said to Stu Jackson: "Our efforts have not been in vain. This game not only attracts a lot of attention from our side, but the flower growers are also working hard to promote this game. Their domestic football market has experienced a big increase this summer. The problem is, although European football has a great influence on the flower growers, their own basketball talents are definitely more valued by them. We have grabbed a piece of the big cake of the flower growers sports market."

The more Stern talked about it, the happier he became. After more than ten years, he had been planning the flower garden sports market and finally achieved success.

He would be happier if he knew that he had to wait a few more years until the dirty things about a certain men's football team were revealed this time before he could really grab that piece of cake.

Stu Jackson echoed: "Yeah, we finally officially entered the gardener market, but I didn't expect it to be the Magic. It would be great if it was the Nets. Kidd is more topical. Fortunately, Duncan and Mike Grady is strong enough, and most fans have a strong mentality. It would be good to build them as saviors to snipe the dominance of Angel City... Should we let the referees give the Clippers more whistles when the Clippers play the Magic? Did they successfully defeat the Savior?"

Snipers and saviors are not called saviors until they have completed 'salvation'. If they have really completed sniping, then they are already rulers.

Stern shook his head: "It doesn't matter whether the Clippers win or lose. As long as the publicity is in place, even if they can't make the playoffs, fans will believe that they are championship contenders, but they are just unlucky... Of course they It would be better if they win, they can complete the title defense, and Spider-Man will completely become the favorite player of the fans of the Flower Planters. If they lose, we can also praise Duncan and McGrady. What we want is not that they only like Spider-Man, but that they like Spider-Man. More stars... By the way, have you made arrangements for the promotion of the super center showdown between Yao Ming and O'Neal?"

"It's been arranged. The media of the Flower Planter heard that we regarded the match between the two as a showdown between the super center and the future super center. They were very happy. It's just that Yao and the madman fought. I'm worried that his image in the minds of the Flower Planter fans will be affected. Influence."

"No, Yao had a good fight. Our impression of the Flower Planters is too stereotyped. I was worried at first that Yao's fight would affect his image in the minds of the Flower Planters fans, but I didn't expect that during the few days he was suspended, the Flower Planters The family's love for him has increased instead of falling. The flower grower is really interesting. The officialdom is conservative, but the people are all militants..."

Stu Jackson nodded, indicating that he remembered.

Stern sighed. His advantages are obvious. He has strong execution ability and excellent control over the league structure. He also knows how to take advantage of the current situation rather than forcing it on him when it comes to making stars. He will not create a super star that makes people laugh. "Superstar", and he wanted to spit the "super giant building plan" proposed by the bald man directly in the bald man's face.

Moreover, this assistant listens to advice, is eager to learn, and will discuss anything with colleagues instead of being arrogant and thinking that what he thinks is right.

If it weren't for the bald man's strong business ability, which was sought after by all team owners, the assistant in front of him would be his favorite successor.

If one of these two people was responsible for operating the alliance and the other was responsible for making money, it would definitely be a match made in heaven. But unfortunately, the bald man's ambition is even greater than this assistant.

...

At 11 pm on November 20, the much-anticipated showdown between the Clippers and the Magic will begin at the Staples Center.

The Clippers have 8 wins and 1 loss, ranking first in the Western Conference, averaging 103.1 points per game and conceding 92.9 points per game.

The Magic have 10 wins and 1 loss. Except for losing one game to the Pistons, they have won all other games. Their average of 97.1 points per game is not as good as the Clippers. It is even close to exceeding the league average. However, it only loses 88 points per game, the lowest in the league. .

The starting lineups of the two teams are still the same. The Magic started the game exactly the same as the previous game, but the Clippers changed.

Li Ao entered an all-out offensive mode from the beginning of the game, running wildly with Tracy McGrady, who was difficult to shake off easily, regardless of his physical strength. Bibby and O'Neal Jr. launched a pick-and-roll attack with the first goal of passing to Li Ao.

Regardless of whether Li Ao had a chance to run or not, Bibby passed the ball when Li Ao's rhythm was up. Li Ao threw the ball after receiving it, not giving McGrady a chance to breathe.

On the defensive end, Li Ao led his teammates to play life defense.

李敖半节时间咔咔乱杀拿到6分2板1助攻1抢断，带领快船队以14比11领先魔术队3分，占据主动权。

As Li Ao thought, after entering the official timeout, Rivers' face swelled to the color of pig liver, and he poured chicken soup to the players and made tactical adjustments... But what Li Ao didn't expect was that Duncan completely ignored Rivers and waited for Rivers After changing the players, Duncan gave some instructions to the players.

Rivers has become accustomed to this after playing 11 games in the new season, and now he is out of breath after seeing this scene.

After returning from the timeout, facing the trio of heroes and demons who wanted to pursue the victory, the Magic did not panic and responded, and continued to play steadily, like a machine, without any wavering.

Li Ao still made some mistakes in his judgment of Duncan.

It is true that Duncan will not directly point out that the head coach has done something wrong and ask for changes in tactics like Rondo and Garnett did. He will not say that.

He directly executed what he wanted to do, and when he no longer had expectations for Rivers' on-the-spot command, he chose to ignore it directly.

Li Ao finally understood the horror of Duncan. Thinking that this paralyzed man would have to maintain his peak with various fighting methods for more than ten years...then let's fight!The thought of having such an opponent for more than ten years in the future makes him excited!
(End of this chapter)