no shortcuts in basketball

Chapter 299 Kobe Bryant

The epidemic began to invade the league, and it was secretive at first. Some players on the team would miss games due to [injuries], and then they would return to the game in about a week.

The impact of the virus on the human body is related to physical fitness. The physical fitness of NBA players is very excellent.

However, as the epidemic spreads, more and more players are absent, and the records of many teams have begun to be affected.

It was at this time that a sensational incident attracted the attention of the outside world.

After two months of stalemate, the Cavaliers finally agreed to send Anthony Davis to the Lakers.

Let’s go back in time a little bit, to the summer of 2019.

Shortly after changing his agent to Rich Paul, Davis, who still had a two-year contract with the Cavaliers, took the initiative to apply to the management through Rich Paul, hoping to trade him to the Lakers.

Davis therefore became the first person in the NBA contract to apply for a trade and designate a next home.

However, Gilbert was not a vegetarian, and he flatly rejected Davis' request.

After all, now that Irving has left the team, if Davis also leaves, the Cavaliers will not be able to support the record or sell tickets with Love alone, so they will be forced to rebuild.

Then Davis began to learn from Carter's deeds back then and began to play in a clock-in style.

No one knows if there is an expert behind the scenes. Anyway, the situation is that the Cavaliers' record has dropped significantly, and there is also a big problem with the atmosphere within the team.

Coupled with the impact of the epidemic, Love was recruited, and the Cavaliers fell directly out of the playoffs.

With no hope of the playoffs and rebuilding becoming the only option, Gilbert finally had no choice but to admit defeat.

However, the Lakers also paid a high price to acquire Davis. Not only did they send center Okafor, who the team had worked hard to cultivate for many years, they also sent last season's second overall pick Ball, the No. 4 pick in this year's draft. Forward De'Andre Hunter, two future first-round picks, and two first-round swap rights.

It can be said that the Lakers have gambled all the talent they have accumulated in recent years and their entire future into this deal.

Of course, even so, the deal still caused a lot of controversy.

After all, the agent used this method to force the management of the two teams to completely trade. This power is beyond the understanding of many people, just like players playing forced trades in 2K.

Moreover, Davis is the strongest current No. 4 player in the league, which has also caused Paul and James to fall into a huge wave of public opinion.

"You can't play without super giant teammates, right? I remember James was not like this in the Cavaliers 1.0 period, right?"

"Brother, that was more than ten years ago. Go find a classmate from elementary school or high school and see how similar they are to what you remember?"

"Why, you are allowed to have superstar teammates like Jokic, DeRozan, and Rose, but you are only allowed to lead a group of newcomers to play?"

"Ross... By the way, you were the ones who said DeRozan had a garbage contract last season? How about swapping these superstar teammates you mentioned with Davis?"

"According to your standards, what do Rondo and DeAndre Jordan of the Lakers count? What a double standard!"

"James should stop playing basketball and become a general manager. Not being a general manager would really be a waste of his talent."

……

For the Lakers, whose record this season has still not improved, Davis's arrival is like a person suddenly having the thickest thigh. He could only kneel before, but now he stands up.

Especially after the epidemic has affected the strength of each team to a greater or lesser extent, the Lakers' record is expected to continue to rise.

Originally, the Western Conference was just a competition between the top three of the Thunder, Warriors and Mavericks, but now the Lakers have suddenly broken into this group.

Putting aside everything else, at least the random pairings in this year's Western Conference semifinals are definitely lively.

When the second hand passed the last second of 2019 and the New Year's bell rang in 2020, people gathered in churches or squares as usual to celebrate the arrival of the new year.

Especially as the epidemic becomes more and more serious, many people are making aspirations in the New Year, hoping that the epidemic will end soon.

But for basketball fans, they suffered a heavy blow at the beginning of the year.

On the first day of the new year, former league president David Stern died at the age of 79 due to a cerebral hemorrhage that failed to save him.

Stern's death sent shockwaves through the league.

Jordan, Kobe and others have successively expressed their condolences on social media.

"Without David Stern, the NBA wouldn't be what it is today. He led the league through turbulent times and grew it into an international phenomenon, creating things for many that were unimaginable in the past. Opportunity, without David, I wouldn’t be where I am today.” - Jordan;

"Under David's leadership and vision, the game has changed in so many ways. He demanded the best from everyone because he did it himself." - Kobe Bryant;

"My biggest regret is not being elected as the No. 2007 pick in . For me, taking over the No. pick from David Stern would be the coolest thing in the world." - Durant;

……

After learning the news that day, Xu Yong held his cell phone in a daze for a long time.

He also wanted to write something to mourn Stern's death, but didn't know what to write.

This is the first time since he entered the NBA that an important person around him has passed away.

Although to him, this incident should have been expected.

Looking back on the past between him and Stern, it started with the coffee shop meeting after the draft and ended with...

He has forgotten the last time he met Stern, who has basically disappeared from public view since his retirement.

He was in a daze all day, and it was only at night that he finally recovered.

Time, most of the time, is the medicine that heals pain.

He took out his cell phone and posted a status on social media.

"God wanted to watch the NBA, so David went to heaven. This is the greatest recognition."

After posting his status, Xu Yong suddenly thought of another person.

He called Kobe, just for a brief chat.

"Take care of yourself, Kobe, I'm still waiting for you to give me the award at the championship ceremony." Xu Yong reminded before hanging up the phone.

Prior to this, through his communication with Tatum, the league selected Kobe as Russell's successor, and Kobe chose to accept the position.

In the following period, Xu Yong would call Kobe every day to check on Kobe's schedule.

After a week of this, Kobe finally couldn't help but smile and said, "If you really miss me, I can come to you."

This was originally just a joke, but Xu Yong said: "Okay, my son Hao just needs a basketball enlightenment coach. If the legendary player Black Mamba is willing to be his coach, I think that will be his greatest honor."

"That's my honor, but it will take a week before I need to accompany Gigi to the Mamba training camp to participate in the game. After that, I will definitely come to Dallas."

After talking to Kobe on the phone, Xu Yong suddenly remembered a very classic American movie "Death Is Here".

Whether God feels that building a league is not enough and wants a player to play for Him, perhaps only time will tell.

When the time came on January 1, after Xu Yong and Kobe finished talking on the phone, they knew that they would take a private plane to the competition venue today.

He was a little absent-minded during the training session this day. He wanted to check his phone but hesitated.

When the training was over, he picked up his cell phone and called Kobe. He calculated the time. If Kobe didn't encounter any accidents, he should be there by now.

The phone dialed and the waiting sound came, and Xu Yong's heartbeat accelerated a little. If we really want to compare, he has much more interactions with Kobe than with Stern, from the first meeting in Olajuwon's training camp to the one-on-one in Los Angeles, and the subsequent puppy steps, etc. Wait, they are opponents on the court and friends off the court.

If Kobe really leaves, he will not only be in a daze for a day, but also lose an important part of his life as Jordan said.

In the end, no one answered the call, and Xu Yong's head was buzzing.

He tried calling again, but still no one answered.

He was starting to get a little restless.

Although he didn't want to, he still took out his phone and started refreshing the news.

"Boss, are you okay?" At this moment, Jokic saw something wrong with Xu Yong's reaction and couldn't help but come over and asked in concern.

Xu Yong raised his head and glanced at Jokic, who was startled by his look.

Because Xu Yong's eyes were red at the moment.

"It's okay." After Xu Yong said that, he picked up his phone and went to the bathroom.

After washing his face, Xu Yong took a series of deep breaths.

Having experienced countless situations on the court, he found that no moment was as stressful as this one.

He took out his phone and checked the news again, but still found nothing.

He finally put the phone away.

No news is the best news.

He returned to the locker room and started taking a shower. When he came out of the shower, he picked up his phone and saw a missed call.

When he picked it up and saw the other person's name, he felt his breath hitch.

He called while holding his breath, and after a while, the call came through.

"You called me again."

A familiar voice sounded on the other end of the phone, and Xu Yong took a long breath.

Kobe is still alive.

Kobe, he's still alive!

"Why did you answer the phone now?" Xu Yongyong couldn't help but blame him.

"It's not my problem. They said it was foggy and the plane was delayed. I was half an hour late. If it was a helicopter, I could have caught up." There was a bit of complaint in Kobe's words. After all, it was his daughter's game. .

But Xu Yong was not angry at all. Instead, a smile finally appeared on his tense face.

"We said, if you ever get tired of me, you can come see me in Dallas," he said with a smile.

"Tomorrow, I'll be here tomorrow." Kobe was helpless. He probably never thought that he would be entangled by a man to this extent in his life.

After hanging up the phone, Xu Yong first smiled, and then couldn't help laughing.

This attracted a lot of attention from others in the locker room.

Looking at his teammates, Xu Yong immediately announced the news that tomorrow he would send someone a box of the latest STX sneakers.

Don't ask, just ask and you'll be happy.

After Xu Yong's comeback, his sneakers were sold out, especially the latest models, which are now rare items.

This moment made the team's locker room burst into cheers.

The next day, Xu Yong met Kobe as scheduled in Dallas.

Although there were many complaints on the phone yesterday, when he actually saw Xu Yong, Kobe only had a smile on his face.

After all, the two of them haven't seen each other since the end of the World Cup.

"Let's go, let's have a game first?" Xu Yong asked with a smile, looking at Kobe who was already potbellied.

Kobe laughed, and the two hugged.

Then, when they returned to Xu Yong's house, they had a competition with 2K.

In the end, Kobe won the game. After retiring, he has been engaged in basketball training camps, and his understanding of the sport of basketball has become deeper and deeper.

Xu Yong suddenly felt that what was originally just a casual excuse was that Kobe might really be Michael's best mentor.

The time has come to the end of January, and the voting results for the 1 All-Star Game have been released.

There was no doubt that Xu Yong was elected the first vote winner since his comeback, and once again broke his previous personal record.

However, Jokic unfortunately lost to Davis and was not selected as an All-Star starter.

The good news is that, together with DeRozan, he was selected for the main game as a reserve All-Star in the Western Conference.

This result is also a full recognition of their outstanding performance this season.

This year's All-Star Game is in Chicago.

Although it had been a season, when Xu Yong appeared in the All-Star Game, Chicago fans still gave him a loud cheer.

Xu Yong also found a feel for the familiar venue and led Xu Yong's team to the final victory, winning his first AMVP trophy since his comeback and the fourth in his career.

It was during this MVP acceptance speech that Xu Yong announced something very important.

He will set up a special foundation to provide people with some necessary anti-epidemic supplies.

He doesn't know if the NBA will shut down as he knows it will, but he can only try to delay it.

Time flies to early March, and people continue to leave due to the epidemic, including people related to NBA players. For example, Towns has had relatives pass away one after another, which has devastated him.

The NBA was forced to consider playing games behind closed doors. This plan initially encountered opposition from some players, led by James, but eventually became a compromise.

But just before this decision was officially implemented, on March 3, it was stillborn because of a stupid move by Rudy Gobert.

No one knows the reason for Gobert's action. Maybe it was to express his disdain for the epidemic, or maybe something suddenly went wrong in his mind. After the interview, he violated the league's temporary regulations and used He touched the microphone with his hand, and that microphone was later used by many people.

And just the next day, Gobert was diagnosed, which made the NBA's prevention and control measures completely ineffective.

"Ignorance is not an obstacle to survival, arrogance is. He is a fool." Xu Yong later gave his evaluation of the Gobert incident in front of reporters.

But no matter what, the NBA has entered its sixth shutdown in history.

(End of this chapter)