Basketball UFO

Chapter 32 The Strongest Hornet

Before the transfer window closed, the biggest deal in the NBA was Kidd leaving the Mavericks for the Suns.

The Mavericks "3J" officially disbanded, and all three players left the Mavericks.

"The Mavericks disintegrated and their strength declined severely. In contrast, the Nets' strength has steadily improved."

"It can't be said that. Rasheed is an irrational person in the Trail Blazers, which may bring instability to the Nets. After all, Carter is only a rookie. It is really not easy to convince the veterans."

"Looking at the lineup of the Nets alone, making it to the playoffs should not be a problem. They are now in the playoff rankings and are expected to continue their momentum."

"I'm afraid that Rashid's deal will make the Nets' chemical reaction disappear."

The media felt that it should not destroy the team's chemical reaction. Sean Bradley has been able to play good data. If it continues, the Nets may become even better.

After Rashid comes, it is likely to have side effects.

Carter soon ushered in Rasheed's first game after joining, an away game against the Magic.

The Magic are plagued by injuries, and core player "Penny" Hardaway cannot play. This game is full of misfortune.

Rashid appeared on the bench. He had not practiced with the team a few times. Head coach Calipari was conservative and did not let him start.

But the game was uneventful.Carter played bravely and scored 28 points. Kendall Gill also scored 23 points to help the team win.

Rashid showed off from the bench, scoring 15 points and 9 rebounds, showing strong strength.Two of them scored, or Carter's assists.

However, the team's main power forward, Jason Williams, only scored 1 point and 6 rebounds, and was completely out of shape.Otherwise, the team can get the Magic faster.

Masenberg started this game and performed well, grabbing 8 points and 8 rebounds, which was a pleasant surprise.Originally just a member of the bench, after entering the starting lineup, it is normal for the data to rise.

"Jason, what have you been doing these days? Your feet are so soft." Carter taught Williams in the locker room after the game.

Rasheed and Sam Cassell watched, worried that Carter would punch Williams.

"I, I didn't do anything, I just drank a little too much." Williams sniffed, "I really didn't have any fun."

"The next game, if you continue to be so bad, you don't have to appear on the stage. I proposed to Mr. Calipari to leave the starting lineup." Carter felt that this guy was distracted, his head was not brought to the court, and he probably fell when he left the night game.

Kendall Gill participated in the press conference. He has played well in the last few games, and was immediately asked about Rashid, "Rashid is an important member of the team, and he will provide great help to the Nets. .”

"He is integrating into the team. Carter has already communicated with him. The problem is not big. I believe Rashid will enter the state soon."

Calipari also knew the "communication" between Carter and Rasheed, and smiled, "Rashid is a very good addition to the team. The goal of the Nets is still to enter the playoffs."

Even if the ranking has rushed to sixth in the Eastern Conference, it is better to keep a low profile and develop wretchedly.When Rashid really integrates into the team, it is the moment when the Nets really show their muscles.

They have now won 35 wins and are expected to hit 50 wins.If you get 50 victories, uh... you can still only rank in the lower half of the Eastern Conference, and the upper half has at least 54 wins.The Eastern Conference is indeed stronger this year.

Rashid has adapted to the tactical system after training in the team, and Calipari intends to make Rashid the starter in the next game.

The team's tactical system is a bit like the University of Kansas he coached. The core players break through with the ball and other players circle around.But Calipari is also improving his personal tactical system.

It is worth mentioning that, like Popovich, he also worked with Larry Brown and learned a lot.Calipari has deep attainments on the defensive end and is ready to continue to improve the offensive end. Carter provided him with the best material.

After the team participated in the press conference, they rushed to Charlotte overnight.

There is another game tomorrow, against the Charlotte Hornets back to back.

The team is running, the team management is also busy, they are negotiating with new sponsors.Toyota Motor from Japan wants to sponsor the Rutgers Athletic Center where the Nets play.

The name was changed to Toyota Center, and the naming period was 20 years. 20 years is also the maximum number of years that can be signed.

Joe Taub held back his excitement, this is a lot of money, all of which are his political achievements, "The Nets are becoming one of the most concerned teams in the league, and the asking price must not be cheap."

He holds up a finger, wanting a small target.For the team, the arena naming right is the biggest sponsorship, which is different from the TV live broadcast share, and it is the biggest advertising space for a team.

The asking price of 20 million in 1 years, the Nets feel that it is not outrageous, and even a bit cheap.The names are sold and more are wanted.In the next few years, the naming rights may exceed 2 million US dollars per year.

"We can discuss the sponsorship fee. But there is a prerequisite. Carter must endorse Toyota Motor. Can you convince him?"

What Toyota needs is for Carter to be bound to the team.The team received stadium sponsorships, and Carter also had car sponsorships and endorsements.They are willing to pay more. The Toyota team has keenly felt the influence of Carter's United States, which has risen rapidly and may become a front-end player in the NBA in the future.

When the time comes to talk about cooperation, it is estimated that there will be a lot of bleeding.

"You can definitely communicate with Carter's agent team. We believe that as long as the money is enough, he will agree." Joe Taub secretly marveled at Carter's ability to attract money, but he also heard that Porsche is communicating with Carter's team. .

Toyota's trouble is that the influence of high-end cars is insufficient. Although it occupies a lot of market share in the United States, high-end brands have never been praised.

Let Carter endorse an affordable car, and the endorsement fee will not be too high. The key is that it is not attractive to Carter. If Carter is waiting for a price, top car companies will definitely come to you.

Cars like Porsche and Ferrari are more attractive to players.Every player likes power and speed, so you can't say you like fuel-efficient cars, right?

When driving, the more fuel spray and the louder the sound, the more exciting it will be.

The Toyota team briefly showed the design photos of the arena after naming it, and also retained many elements of the Nets for the Nets' reference.

In the blink of an eye, we arrived at another arena, the crowd was bustling, and the game officially started.

beep!
The referee blew the opening whistle, and the players on both sides immediately entered the fighting state.

Rasheed Wallace and Verratti Divac jumped the ball, with a good bounce, to grab the first offensive opportunity.

Cassell controlled the basketball and slowly advanced.Boggs tried so hard to stand in front of Cassel that he almost blocked Cassel's view.

Bogues is currently the shortest player in the NBA, only 160, but he averaged 8 points and 7.2 assists per game this season. His performance is very good. He started today and is always thinking about stealing Cassel.

The other starters for the Hornets are shooting guard Tony Smith, small forward Glenn Rice and Anthony Mason at the power forward position.

Mason and Glen Rice are about the same height, but the team is currently encountering difficulties. There is no tall insider, and only Divac has a height of 216.Of course, there is also center Matt Geiger on the bench, who is 210 tall.

Glen Rice had just won the MVP from the All-Star Game and was in full swing.

Facing Carter who was holding the ball and preparing to attack, Glenn Rice casually pointed his fingers, "Vince, I will blow you up today."

Carter grabbed the ball with one hand, faced the provocative Glenn Rice, smiled, suddenly shot from outside the three-point line, and shot a direct three-pointer.

Swish!
Hit at the beginning, as stable as an old dog.

"Then you have to work hard, you can't guard against me." Carter dropped the words.

Glenn Rice couldn't stand the excitement and immediately asked for the ball, "I'm going to beat this rookie."

Like Carter, when he came to the three-point line, he raised his hand and shot, and the three-pointer was shot.But he was obviously not as good as Carter today, and he missed a hit and was grabbed by Divac for an offensive rebound.

Divac made a lot of small moves and played smartly. He quietly pushed Rasheed away and grabbed the position with a cross step.

Passed the ball to Mason, Mason used his footsteps to eat Williams and made a mid-range shot.

The Hornets are very strong. If not for injuries, their record would be higher than the Nets.Anthony Mason and Glen Rice, in particular, are both at their peak.

In the parallel world, everyone laughed at the Hornets for picking Kobe and then trading him out.In fact, Divac is an All-Star center, and it is not a loss to change to a high school student who has not yet proven himself.

Most importantly, Divac's two years with the Hornets was the era with the best record in the history of the Hornets. He played 50+ games for two consecutive years. Had such a good record.

Kendall Gill once played for the Hornets and was traded to the Nets. Today he wants to win.He quietly walked to Carter's side, "Boss, I want to blow them up."

"Okay, let you perform well today."

Glenn Rice is the main defense against Carter today, and Kendall Gill has a certain advantage in facing Tony Smith.It's just that Tony Smith's defense must be blown first. He is the main force of the Hornets on the defensive end.

Carter restrained his edge in the first quarter and let Kendall Gill play the lead, which really caught the Hornets off guard.Their defensive formation did not specifically deal with Gill.

Gill took the opportunity to make consecutive mid-range shots and dunks, scoring 8 points in a single quarter.

"In the first quarter, the Hornets obviously didn't expect the change in the Nets' style of play. Carter was passing the ball more, and Rasheed and Kendall both played good statistics."

Rashid scored 6 points and 2 rebounds.Although Carter only scored 5 points, he had 4 assists, more assists than Kassel. Kassel scored 3 points and 3 assists, and did not attack Boggs very much.

The Nets lead 27:24.

Hornets head coach Dave Cowens immediately changed his strategy and added help defense against Kendall.However, Calipari returned to the pre-match deployment.

Carter held the ball more outside the three-point line, and Cassell entered the three-point line.

Seeing the opportunity coming, Carter immediately passed the ball to Kassel.Cassel hit Bogans with his back and made an easy mid-range shot.

Bogans couldn't stop it at all, and quickly recruited his teammates to help defend. Unexpectedly, Tony Smith covered it, and Kendall Gill appeared open again.

Easy to catch the ball, Kendall continued to hit.

"Rookie, don't you dare to attack?" Glen Rice prodded Carter.

"I prefer the team to win than personal data." Carter played relaxedly today and responded to Glen Rice with a smile.

Facing the Hornets, the Nets' choice of breaking point was the point guard.Although Cassel is not fast, he has a strong body and accurate mid-range shots. Facing Bogues, who is much smaller in height, every shot is accurate.

Kendall stole the show in the first quarter.

The Hornets fell behind and decided to focus on me in the paint.Divac frequently caught the ball and used his height and footwork to eat Rasheed alive.

Rashid is still young, so he really can't deal with the old fritters.Frequently eaten by Divac alone.

By the end of the second quarter, Divac actually scored 12 points, suppressing Rasheed.

But the Nets still have a 4-point lead.Glen Rice faced Carter today and did not perform well, scoring only 9 points at halftime.

If it weren't for Anthony Mason's outstanding performance, the Nets would be even further ahead.

Walking into the locker room, Calipari encouraged the players, "Jason, do a good job of defense. Don't worry about other things, limit Mason. Bitch, you let him score 12 points, you know? In the second half, they will still beat you This point."

Anthony Mason also averages 20 points per game. It is normal for Jason Williams to be unable to limit his performance.

Returning to the court, the Hornets really strengthened their interior offense.Today I couldn't open the outside line, so I lobbed the ball into the inside line and eaten it raw.

Divac played fiercely and played lightly, which made Rashid very uncomfortable.After receiving the ball, he faced Rashid again and changed his footsteps continuously. Rashid was swayed, and then Divac deliberately leaned on his arm.

Successful layup.The referee immediately blew the whistle and Rashid hit the player for a foul.

"Hey, is this also a foul? That weakling came up to him on his own." Rashid roared at the referee.

Carter immediately came over and patted him on the shoulder to calm him down.It was too late, and the referee immediately gave a technical foul.

One penalty throw.

Let Divac make a free throw first, make an extra free throw, and score a three-pointer.Followed by another technical foul free throw.

Glen Rice executed a free throw, looked at Carter, and provoked again, "See? This is the strength of the Hornets. You are too young."

"Don't enter if you have the ability." Carter didn't want to bully him.

Bang, it really didn't go in.

Glenn Rice cursed, then forced out an ugly smile and said, thinking he was maintaining his grace, "Listen to you. We will beat the Nets head-on. You haven't seen enough..."

The score has been tied.Rashid has nothing to do with Divac.

The Hornets still focused on the inside, giving Anthony Mason a different style. Williams was easily shaken away, and Mason hit the board.

The Hornets lead.

Dave Cowens sat back in his seat and secretly breathed a sigh of relief, "I was almost scared by the Nets' three-point axe. Our comparative advantage is inside. The inside can completely crush the Nets."

What Calipari was most worried about happened. When he encountered a team with a veteran inside, he still didn't have enough personnel reserves to deal with it.

A timeout was quickly called to let the players calm down.

Rashid was still aggrieved, sitting on the stool and muttering, "That guy is a liar."

Carter rolled his eyes and said, "Use your steps to lift him to the outside. Aren't you good at mid-range shots and three-pointers?"

Rashid was beaten.

Carter reminded him to practice more straight-arm shots and three-pointers to expand the space.Divac's footwork is good, but his movement speed is also slow, making it difficult to defend outside.

(End of this chapter)