Healthy basketball, starting from eating the old Lakers F4

Time flies and it is August 8th. All eight games of the regular season in the park have been played.

Because the Bulls had already secured the top spot in the Eastern Conference and made it to the playoffs, they didn't play the eight games in the rematch so seriously or so hard.

After all, a total of 14 teams from the East and West, teams five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, and eleven, are competing for eight playoff spots.

For them, they have to give their all in every one of the eight games.

The Bulls' main goal is to restore their own form and preserve the team's overall strength.

Therefore, in the eight games against those teams on the fringe of the playoffs, the Bulls, on the one hand, used the games as training and focused on preserving their strength without using any fatal attacks. On the other hand, they were also selecting their opponents for the next playoffs in advance.

In the end, the Bulls finished the eight-game rematch with a record of 5 wins and 3 losses.

With the help of the Bulls, the Magic managed to make it to this year's playoffs, but they will soon face off against the Bulls, their benefactor.

The other playoff teams in the Eastern Conference are the Bucks, Celtics, Raptors, 76ers, Heat and Pacers.

Looking at the Western Conference, there are many strong teams this year. The Rockets, Clippers, Thunder, and Warriors are all dual-core or three-star configurations.

As for the Jazz, Trail Blazers, Spurs and Suns, they rely on their newly trained star players to lead the team, so their competitiveness is much worse.

Compared to the more competitive Western Conference, the Eastern Conference is basically just the Bucks and Celtics competing with the Bulls.

Although the Raptors are the defending champions, their strength has been greatly reduced because the contract of mercenary Leonard expired and he left last summer with the FMVP trophy, which made them no longer capable of winning the championship.

Back to the topic, as the regular season officially comes to an end, the playoffs will follow.

The Bulls helped the Magic in the previous rematch, so they naturally know the level of the Magic, who are currently mainly composed of rookies.

If it weren't for the fact that most of the veterans of other Eastern Conference playoff-bound teams had been on vacation for more than three months, ruining their competitive form, the Magic would have had a hard time making the playoffs.

The Bulls selected the Magic, whose main lineup mostly has little playoff experience, in order to better win the first round of the playoffs.

At the same time, by starting with the easy and then moving on to the difficult, we will help the vast majority of players on the team better adapt to the upcoming playoffs.

At the same time, more games can also be used to help some players in the team who still have problems with their form to adjust their condition as soon as possible.

As a result, when the playoffs between the Bulls and the Magic started, some unusual scenes occurred.

In previous playoffs, most teams played with seven-man or eight-man rotations. Unless the game was decided in advance, it was rare for a team to have all 12 players on the court.

But the Bulls have been expanding their rotation lineup as much as possible since G1.

Throughout the first round of the playoffs, the Bulls fielded more than 10 players in each game, and in three games, all 12 players were on the field.

This is not because Tyronn Lue has any brilliant ideas, but he is creative, unpredictable, and adjusts the lineup before the battle.

In fact, the reason is very simple, that is, never fight a battle without preparation.
The Bulls took advantage of the least difficult first round of the playoffs to allow their substitute players to feel the atmosphere of the playoffs and adapt to the intensity of the playoffs in advance, so as to avoid players missing games due to injuries, which would have an adverse impact on the team.

The Bulls will send out all the players who can play in advance, and the substitute players will have an average playing time of five or six minutes per game.

Although such a short period of time is unlikely to provide training results, it is better than waiting until injuries actually occur and players need to be replaced before thinking about cramming at the last minute.

In order to better complete this plan and achieve the results the Bulls coaching staff wanted, the Bulls also strategically lost two games.

In these two games, the Bulls' starting players basically only played for more than 20 minutes, which was not a big consumption.

As for the rotation lineup, it does increase the risk of injuries, but as long as nothing unexpected happens, there's no problem.

After winning Game 6 of the first round, the Bulls successfully advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals as in previous years.

However, other playoff teams did not have such a smooth journey.

There were no surprises in the Eastern Conference, with the Bulls, Bucks, Celtics and Raptors advancing one after another; however, in the Western Conference, there were many situations where the weak defeated the strong.

But it is not surprising. The Trail Blazers have Lillard, who sometimes has a burst of energy in the playoffs. This year he exploded and successfully helped the Trail Blazers defeat the Thunder.

As for the Jazz, they are not as good as the Warriors in terms of configuration, but who is the leader of the Warriors? James, that's different.

Not to mention there is a Thompson.

Thompson is the league's top 3D player on the surface, but in reality he is just a nervous nut.

When he is strong, he can rival the big players of other teams, but most of the time he is just a slouch.

It is worth mentioning that Thompson has been watching Kobe play since he was a child, and he never refuses any pass from his teammates.

He dares to shoot the ball that James doesn't dare to shoot, but his shot is even worse than Kobe's.

In the past few years, the Warriors have always seemed to be doing okay in the Western Conference, but they have always fallen short in the playoffs and have not been able to solve the problem.

As a result, I can only make do with it.

The team owner doesn't understand basketball anyway, so isn't it nice to make money by selling tickets for James and Thompson?
……

On September 9, Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals between the Bulls and the Raptors officially started.

The strategy that the Bulls implemented in the first round had obviously paid off. The main players were not depleted much in the first round, and they went all out in the second round. With a sudden force, they overwhelmed the Raptors in the first quarter.

Although most of the Raptors players performed well, they were still unable to withstand the comprehensive and efficient attack of the Bulls' main players.

Even facing the Bulls' bench lineup, the Raptors' main players were powerless and failed to take the opportunity to narrow the score.

After winning two games in a row, the Bulls began to extend their rotations, allowing more substitute players to share playing time.

Perhaps the rookies in their contract year wanted to prove themselves in the playoffs. In any case, the Bulls gained a huge advantage with the third- and fourth-year rookies in the second lineup.

On September 9, after Game 8 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Bulls once again won a playoff victory by a large margin.

With victory in sight and no pressure to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals, the Bulls could only be humble and give the defending champions face.

Fortunately, losing Game 4 doesn't matter. Given the current state of the Bulls, as long as they are not too complacent and careless, there is basically no chance of them capsizing.

Not to mention the performances of Curry, Durant and Jokic.

In summarizing the game process of this year's playoffs, in basically every game, different players of the Bulls stood up and scored important goals for the team, or made correct defense at critical times to limit the opponent's scoring.

This is also because there are too many players who shine in the game, coupled with the Bulls' richest and most powerful championship team, the core trio of Durant, Curry, and Jokic.

The bookmaker that has officially partnered with the NBA this season has only offered odds of -830 for the championship.

Some people may wonder, how can there be negatives? Is it just giving money to the gambling companies? In fact, negatives mean how much you need to buy to make $100.
-
830 means spending 830 US dollars to bet on the Bulls to win the championship. Once the Bulls really win the championship, you can get 930 US dollars including principal and interest, which means you have made 100 US dollars.

In other words, the odds are about 1.12.

Judging from the odds of winning the championship in previous years, the Bulls are at an extremely low level.

So, capsizing in a ditch is not a possibility.

At least in the Eastern Conference semifinals, it is unlikely to cause too much trouble for the Bulls.

On September 9, Game 12 of the Eastern Conference semifinals between the Bulls and the Raptors kicked off.

The Bulls did not waste any more time and took an 8-point lead in the first quarter, which was further expanded to 15 points in the second quarter.

Although the Raptors players were full of fighting spirit and performed at full strength throughout the game, they were still unable to resist the Bulls' aggressive attack.

After the third quarter, the score difference had widened to 24 points. The Bulls' main players had basically completed their mission of winning the game and could clock out after three quarters.

However, in order to end the series early and eliminate the one in a million chance of an accident, Curry and Jokic still led the team to play for four or five minutes at the beginning of the fourth quarter.

It was not until the score difference widened to more than 30 points that they went off the court to rest, wiped off the sweat and put on their coats.

Sitting on the bench, I watched my substitute teammates play the game while chatting happily.

It was a game that was destined to be won, and the Bulls substitutes did not play too hard to avoid injuries due to overly intense confrontation.

In the end, when the game time returned to zero, the score on the field was fixed at 98 to 123.

The Bulls players teamed up to celebrate the team's advance to the Eastern Conference Finals again with a 25-point victory.

Based on past experience, good things happen whenever we reach the Eastern Conference Finals.

It’s a pity that we are not playing at the United Center tonight.

Because this year's playoffs will be held in the park, there will be no fans watching the games.

Bulls players such as Durant and Curry were unable to hear the fans shouting "Bulls champions" in unison after the game.

Winning the Eastern Conference semifinals and successfully reaching the Eastern Conference Finals but not receiving support from the fans more or less diluted the joy of Duane and others winning.

But now is not the time to celebrate the victory.

As soon as the game was over, Duane, Curry and others stood up from the bench, walked quickly onto the court, and chatted with the Raptors players who were about to leave.

"You guys played great tonight, and I know you would have played even better if we had given you more time to prepare.

Thank you for the hard work. This year's schedule is different from previous years and it was very difficult for everyone.

Next, you can go back and rest early!
And we will continue to fight with your wishes.

Well, take care of yourself and see you next season!"

Duane chatted with DeRozan, Lowry and other Raptors stars, and saw them off happily before returning to the locker room with other Bulls players.

The day after the Bulls advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals, the Celtics, led by the two rookies, reversed the Bucks and successfully broke through the Eastern Conference semifinals.

As soon as the Eastern Conference semifinals between the Celtics and the Bucks ended, the two rookies expressed their desire for revenge against the Bulls in post-match interviews.

"The Chicago Bulls have always been a great team, but I firmly believe we can get revenge!"

“It’s unfortunate that last year we were still young and lost to the Chicago Bulls in the first round of the playoffs.

But this year we have matured! We are always improving and always figuring out how to beat them.

Now comes the big stage, we will beat them and do something great!"

Last year, the Celtics finally rose again and had the best regular season record in the Eastern Conference.

As a result, because they were too young, the Bulls easily completed the black eight miracle in the first round of the playoffs.

To some extent, the Celtics' double rookies and last season's Celtics have also become part of the Bulls legend.

But for the Celtics' two rookies, this is an unacceptable shame.

Just like Karl Malone has always been upset about losing to Jordan, but in the eyes of others, this is the most commendable part of Karl Malone's career...

Of course, there is a big difference between losing in the finals and losing in the first round of the playoffs.

The Celtics' two rookies are determined to make progress, and they have the spirit and ambition of being born into a wealthy family. The Celtics and the Bulls currently have the same number of championships.

Therefore, the next round of the Eastern Conference Finals is very important for the Celtics' two rookies.

As for the bull, isn't it the same?
As long as they beat the Celtics and advance to the finals, the championship trophy will be almost certain to go their way.

The shortened championship does reduce the honors for individual stars.

But for the team, it doesn’t matter whether the championship is a reduced championship or not.

Anyway, replicas of the championship trophy will be displayed in the team's honor display case, and a championship flag will be raised above the team's dome, on par with past honors, with no difference.

If the Bulls can really achieve their goal of winning the championship this year, their total number of championships will officially tie with the Lakers, making them the most successful team in the league's history.

Taking into account various factors such as the team's market value, commercial value, team popularity, etc., the Bulls will undoubtedly become the top team in the NBA.

In the past, basketball stars were proud to play for a wealthy team, just like former GOAT Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Although he was the No. 1 pick of the Bucks and helped his parent team, the Bucks, win the first championship in team history, he often called himself a Lakers legend and frequently attended events hosted by the Lakers.

Duane's situation now is somewhat similar to that of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. He was born in the Lakers and helped the Lakers win the championship, but now he is a Bulls legend and the number one player in Bulls history.

However, Dunn feels that times have changed.

Duane plays for the Bulls, and the Bulls should be proud that Duane can play for the team and bring so many championships to the team.

Moreover, Duane is ambitious and capable of helping the Bulls reach the top of the league.

Since coming to the NBA, Durant has liked to be the first in everything he does.

Since his personal ability has dominated the league for many years and his personal honors have surpassed those great stars in history, now is the time to lead the team to the top!
"The team that the greatest player in NBA history plays for should be the greatest team in NBA history!" (End of this chapter)