NBA: Start by torturing Jordan and add points to upgrade

If we say that in the last game against Puerto Rico, the US team was leading for most of the time, trailing for a small part of the time, and played back and forth almost the entire game and only lost in 1-2 rounds due to wrong shooting choices, then in this game against Argentina, they were completely defeated!
Trailing by 20 points in the first half, the U.S. team narrowed the gap to just 3 points in the third quarter thanks to Pierce's sudden outburst and three consecutive 3-pointers!
But at this time, the defensive problems of the US team were exposed, and Ginobili once again demonstrated his talent and ability. He made a serpentine breakthrough to the basket and scored 2+1, and then found teammates in the bottom corners on both sides twice in a row.

Nocioni and Scott Nochini at the bottom line did not disappoint. After each of them scored a 3-pointer, the difference between the two sides once again reached more than 10 points!
Next was Pierce, who hit a buzzer-beating three-pointer before the end of the third quarter, narrowing the gap to 8 points!
Both sides entered the fourth quarter!
In the decisive battle of the fourth quarter, the intensity of the US team's game was obviously increased. Even the suicidal backcourt combination of Iverson and Marbury disappeared, and was replaced by the more defensive Andre Miller and Carter in the backcourt.

But when the US team's defensive intensity suddenly increased and forced Argentina into a bit of embarrassment, it was Ginobili again!

The Pampas Eagle dances again!
He made two consecutive shots when his team was defended to the point where there were only about two seconds left on the offensive time!

The feeling of being hit by the opponent twice in a row when their defense seemed successful basically completely destroyed the confidence and fighting spirit of the American team. Their subsequent defensive intensity decreased again, and they became impatient again, wanting to solve the problem with offense.

But facing the full-fire Argentina, the US team's weakness in playing FIBA ​​games was once again revealed!
The score difference between the two sides has been hovering around 10 points, and the US team has been unable to narrow the gap.

Then, with 2 minutes and 28 seconds left in the fourth quarter, the US team relied on two consecutive slam dunks by Baron Davis to change the score to 71 to 80. If they can maintain this rhythm, they still have hope of a comeback!
But then Marbury made another mistake, and the entire US team had a painful moment of missing four consecutive shots. This wave of consecutive misses also destroyed the US team's hopes of a comeback.

In the following games, the two sides continued to fight back and forth, but the overall situation of the game did not change at all.

75: 83!

The American team eventually lost the game in a very ugly way with an 8-point disadvantage!
Throughout the game, the US team almost never took the lead and was beaten by the Argentines for almost half of the game.

Then in the final moments of the game, when the team had some chances to win, the American team lost again due to their own poor touch.

The problems of being too obsessed with shooting, lack of coordination, many mistakes on the offensive end and being too impatient were all displayed again in this game!
The American team suffered two consecutive defeats in international competitions!
After this game, no one even thought that the American team had a chance of winning the championship.

They lost so badly, it was so shameful!

How can such a bad team win the championship?
Ghost letter!

"Oh! We lost! No, we lost again!" Compared to the depressed, silent and quiet state of all the fans in the stadium, Lin Tian once again lay at the door of the player tunnel and stretched out his hand to high-five the players of the American team.

"Lin, could you please get away from me? Otherwise I'm afraid I won't be able to resist beating you up!" Miller was so angry when he saw Lin Tian's hands and his gloating look that he wanted to pin Lin Tian to the ground and beat him up to vent his anger!
"You can't beat me." Lin Tian said frivolously, "But since you guys lost like this, how can we meet again? How can we meet in the finals and compete for the championship again!"

“Ah! I understand!” Lin Tian suddenly clapped his hands and said to several American players who were lagging behind: “You did it on purpose, right? You did it on purpose! Your plan is to lose to fourth place in the group and then meet us in the quarterfinals!”

"You guys have really gone to great lengths to fight me in advance. If it were me, I would just go for it!" Lin Tian had only said half of his words when Bird behind him couldn't help it anymore. He reached out from behind and grabbed Lin Tian's neck, pulling him back.

"Please stop talking! I'm in a terrible mood right now!" Bird looked at Lin Tian unhappily and said, "Please do me a favor and don't come to watch the US team's games in the future, okay?"

"Look at the two losses, did you put some kind of curse on us?"

"If I had that ability, I would come here every day!" Lin Tian said with a wicked smile: "It's just that you are too inexperienced!"

"FUXX!" Bird cursed, "I'll lead the team in the next Olympics! I don't believe I can't beat you! Damn, I'm going to contact that bastard Colangelo right now! I want to be the head coach next time."

"Be careful or your reputation will be ruined! If you can't even get out of the group stage, you'll be the biggest joke." Lin Tian mocked Bird again, then picked up his phone and took a look: "Michael said he's in Indiana too, let's go talk?"

"No, I'm not in the mood." Bird curled his lips and said, "What time is it? I still have the mood to chat with you two! Unless he comes to Indiana next season, what is there to talk about? FUXX! George Karl, this old idiot, I knew he was such a loser, I would have competed with him at that time!"

"And Colangelo is a loser! How can he be a general manager? He can put together such a team. Why doesn't he let Batman and the Joker work together to maintain world peace?"

Seeing that Bird was full of resentment and his anger seemed like it would not subside for a while, Lin Tian did not say much to him. He waved his hand, stood up and left the Conseco Center.

Thirty minutes later, Lin Tian arrived at a very private club in Indiana and found the room number Jordan sent him.

"Now that you come to Indiana, you have to hide your head and tail and dare not show up on the street?" Lin Tianda sat directly opposite Jordan and asked: "What are you doing here? Are you here to wish me another world championship?"

"I've never met a jerk as annoying as you in my life." Jordan rolled his eyes and cursed, "Do you remember our previous bet?"

"I remember. How could I forget that!" Lin Tian nodded and said, "At that time, we said that Kwame's average stats for the new season would not exceed X. Are you going to admit defeat in front of the whole world? 5 points and 3 rebounds per game? I forgot about it. I didn't expect you to come and admit defeat! How classy!"

"Let's go, I'm going to call the Indiana Times right now and have them interview us both so we can make this bet a reality!"

"Not this!" Jordan's face turned pale.

He really had forgotten about this matter, otherwise he must have been out of his mind to give Lin Tian such an opening remark!

Jordan also cursed himself in his heart: Why did he have to start with something like this? It's his own fault!

"Not this? It's okay, it's not important. Let's settle this first, then we can talk about which one to choose. Should we eat first or accept the interview and admit defeat first? Hmm? You decide!"

"That's not why I came to you!" Jordan really wanted to stand up and leave. He was in a very good mood just now, but now it became terrible!

"Then let it become this. Now that you are here, make the best of it, understand?" Lin Tian waved his hand, indicating that it didn't matter why you came to me, but now it was for this: "Or are you going to default on your debt? Michael who can't afford to lose?"

"I can afford to lose!" Jordan cursed, and then said, "There's another bet! I won that one! How about this, we call it a tie at 1-1, and then forget about it, okay!"

"Okay, but can you beat me in a bet? How can you beat me? Even if we bet on how many sons you have, I can beat you!"

"I only have two sons, what's there to gamble on?"

"It's hard to say." Lin Tian smiled wickedly and blinked at Jordan, indicating that he understood.

"You're talking nonsense! Juanita is not that kind of person! Marcus and Jeffrey are both my children!" Jordan slammed the table and stood up. Lin Tian's joke touched his bottom line.

"I didn't say you only have one son. Maybe you have three or more?" Lin Tian said, "Think about it. Have you ever accidentally forgotten to bring an umbrella in Houston or other places? And then, somehow, you have a few more little babies who don't have the last name Jordan but have Jordan's bloodline?"

"Impossible! I keep myself clean." Jordan slammed the table again, but this time, he was obviously not confident enough. He sat on the stool angrily and looked at Lin Tian. This time he didn't dare to keep it in suspense, otherwise, who knows what other infuriating words Lin Tian could say.

"I mean, me and Pauline! I said, we are good friends, we work together seamlessly, and we don't have any secrets or hiding anything from each other!"

"Do you know how many illegitimate children he has? Do you know how many mistresses he has? You don't know! Is this considered having no secrets or concealment?" To be honest, Lin Tian had no idea who Bolin was at this moment, but he was very sure that Jordan definitely didn't know how many illegitimate children this man had!

"FUXX!" Jordan was really angry at this moment: "Can you please talk to me properly!"

“Yes, yes, yes!” Lin Tian raised his hand and said, “Tell me, what did you and this Bolin do?”

"Didn't you say before that he just wanted to take advantage of my fame and influence and have me work for him for free?" Jordan snorted and said proudly, "You're wrong! I've tested him, and we're really good friends!"

After Jordan said this, Lin Tian finally remembered who Pollin was, the owner of the Wizards!
"How did you test it?" This time it was Lin Tian's turn to be a little curious. How could this matter have a reversal?
Historically, didn't Pollin first sell shares to Jordan, then lured him to come back to create some attraction and traffic for the Washington Wizards, made a lot of money and attention, then turned his back on him, and refused to let Jordan return to the team management no matter what, and then the two parted ways?

"I told Paulin that I didn't want to play anymore. I wanted to return to management and reclaim my shares! He didn't say anything and agreed directly!" Jordan said proudly: "See! This is integrity! This is trust between partners!"

"And then? Nothing else?" Lin Tian continued to ask.

"And then? Then of course I told him that I changed my mind again, so I am willing to help him again and bring the Wizards to the playoffs, and then we can talk about other things! This is a man's promise."

"Bullshit promise." Lin Tian curled his lips and said, "Call him now and tell him that you still want to return to the management. Go through the formalities and make an official announcement immediately. See if he dares to proceed with the actual operation!"

"How can a grown man change his mind so suddenly? His attitude changes every moment." Jordan refused decisively: "If he agrees again, wouldn't that mean I'm playing a trick on him? No way! Absolutely not! I won't do that."

"You're scared!" Lin Tian picked up the wine glass and took a sip, saying, "If you're scared, forget it!"

Lin Tian knew very well how to provoke and touch Jordan's soft spot!
Lin Tian’s skill is definitely at the master level!
"Afraid? Would I be afraid?" Jordan snorted and said, "Fight me if you want!"

Jordan, who was in a state of panic, picked up the phone and was about to prove his revolutionary feelings with Bolin, but Lin Tian simply held his hand and said, "Don't worry, you need some strategy."

"Strategy? What strategy?"

"Well, you can first say that you don't want to play anymore. This time it's real. It's certain. You have no intention of returning. He will definitely agree to your request first, and then persuade you by saying that the team needs you, Kwame needs to improve, and the team can't make the playoffs without you."

"If you were normal, you would definitely agree to his request. But at this time, you should not agree to his request. You should tell him that you sprained your ankle during training and the doctor said that you would not be able to return in the new season, so you want to retire officially. He will definitely ask about the details of your injury."

"Then, you don't need me to teach you, right? Just make it sound serious, make it sound cruel, make it sound like you're paralyzed, and see how he reacts. That will make it clear, right?"

"If he knew that my injury was so serious that I couldn't play at all, he would definitely agree to my request immediately and would be willing to go through the formalities to return my previous shares to me! He might even give me a little more to thank me!"

Lin Tian looked at Jordan's decisive expression and suddenly understood why this guy failed so badly in running the team and was so bad at selecting players.

With this naive and innocent look, no, with this naive and innocent look, won't she be deceived until she has nothing left?
I never thought that Jordan has such a cute and silly side?

"I'm calling now!" Jordan took another big gulp of wine, then picked up the phone and made a call.

"Hi Abby." Jordan turned on the speakerphone and said to the other end of the phone, "There is something I want to discuss with you."

"No problem Michael, tell me, how can I help you?" Paulin's voice was indeed generous, the type that easily made people trust and like him.

"It's the same thing I talked to you about this summer. I've thought about it. I want to return to management! I hope to get my shares back."

"But haven't we already talked about this, Michael?" Paulin's tone was a little more impatient: "I thought we had reached an agreement, but of course, my friend, the same thing still applies. This team is yours, you can do whatever you want!"

"But what I mean is that I hope you can get him back on track! We haven't been to the playoffs for five years, which is a long time. If possible, I really sincerely hope that you can lead the team to the playoffs, get the young people back on track, and then return to management."

"I know, I understand what you mean." Jordan winked at Lin Tian proudly, as if to say, "You see, I said it." Then he said to Bolin, "It's just that I have thought about it carefully recently. Maybe I really can't play basketball anymore."

"What do you mean, Michael?" Paulin's tone changed. "I meant to say that I hurt my ankle during training. I went to the doctor and it was a grade 3 sprain. At my age, the doctor advised me not to play basketball anymore. They hope I can stay away from the professional league, otherwise I may have to spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair."

"I can't play professionally anymore!"

"Michael, are you serious?"

"Of course! I wouldn't joke about such a thing."

"But, doesn't a grade 6 sprain take 7-9 months to recover? You can recover and rest slowly, and then return to the team when your injury is completely healed! It's only September now, maybe you can even make it to the All-Star Game! I believe in you!"

"Polin!" No matter how dumb Jordan was, he could smell something wrong. "The doctor said that if I continue to play basketball, I will probably be in a wheelchair for the rest of my life."

"Michael! I know, I understand. I certainly won't let my best buddy risk playing in a wheelchair. I mean, maybe we can see a few more doctors? Maybe there will be a different diagnosis. Have you been to New York or Los Angeles?"

"I know a top sports medicine expert in Copenhagen. You can go see him!"

"Paulin, I just don't want to play anymore! I don't want to repeat the recovery and rehabilitation training over and over again. It's too torturous. I'm about to be 40 years old. I don't want to keep playing like this. I still want to fulfill my dream and manage a team. I will use other ways to help the team grow!"

"Michael, this is a big deal. I think we should talk about it. Where are you now? Maybe we can meet and talk about it in person? Are you in Washington?"

"What's there to talk about?" Jordan's tone became more and more impolite: "I just want to get back what I deserve. I just want you to fulfill your promise. Isn't this what we agreed on a long time ago? What's there to talk about?"

"After all, this is a matter of tens of millions! We must communicate in advance. You can't just say you don't want to play at any time, or return to management at any time! I need to adjust and prepare a lot of things! For example, our team's season tickets have been sold out! If you don't play, what should I do? What about the team?"

"The fans are here to see you. They will spend money to buy your No. 23 jersey instead of Kwame's No. 54! We need you to play, and we need you to help the team through the current difficulties in business first!"

"Bolin! That's not what we said before!"

"Michael! This is business! This is not a few drunken jokes that can be taken seriously! I think the most important thing right now is that we talk face to face, find out what's going on with your ankle, and then we can work out the next plan!"

"Michael, my man, I'm just shocked! I want you to play, I love you to play! The fans love you too, they'll come to the arena for you! Did you know that our ticket sales and prices last season were the highest since we moved to Washington?"

"Do you know how much everyone loves you? Michael, come back and come to Washington first. Let's have a good talk, and then we can decide what to do next."

Listening to Pollin's obvious excuses and perfunctory remarks, Jordan's patience was running low. He suddenly said, "See you in Washington," and hung up the phone.

Then he took the wine that Lin Tian had just poured for him, raised his head and drank it all in one gulp.

"FUXX! This old bastard! He actually tricked me!"

Jordan is not a fool. On the contrary, the reason he was able to accumulate so much wealth, to be able to thrive after retirement, and to have good relationships with everyone, and in the following decades, was not because of his dominance on the court.

He relies on his cleverness and tact in business!
Before, he was just fooled by Pauline's sweet words. After the two talked so much and finished the phone call, Jordan already knew what was going on.

I believed you, this old man is so bad!

Simply put, Jordan is now like a young piglet who has woken up from the love-brain and the pig-killing plate!

He is so smart and his brain works so quickly!

"I have to go back to Washington!" Jordan stood up decisively and said to Lin Tian: "Thank you for this time, Lin, otherwise I would have been fooled by that damn old bastard and played basketball for a year in vain!"

Look! Look!
Paulin was the best buddy 5 minutes ago, and 5 minutes later he turned into a damn old bastard.

Man!
Seeing Jordan standing up and leaving in a swift manner, apparently heading straight for the airport, Lin Tian suddenly thought of something, stood up and chased after him, saying, "Michael!"

"Lin?" Jordan turned around and looked at Lin Tian, ​​thinking that his good friend had something to tell him. After all, Jordan also admitted that his friend was indeed a little better than him in terms of intelligence!
If he could teach me some method, I would definitely be able to turn defeat into victory!
"Have you paid the bill?" Lin Tian looked at Jordan. When Jordan was most expecting him to turn into a fox, he showed his harmless side.

"FUXX! Go to hell!" Jordan raised his middle finger and turned away.

"Waiter." Lin Tian watched Jordan leave and called the waiter, "Did he pay the bill?"

"Mr. Michael has a card, and he has instructed that we can just swipe it today." The waiter showed his professional side, and faced with the two superstars, he did not show any emotion!
"Get the menu!" Lin Tian didn't say anything more. He immediately returned to the private room with peace of mind and prepared to eat something.

I've done you such a big favor, Danzi, so I'm buying two steaks and a bottle of wine from you. That's not too much, right?

I didn't even invite the entire Chinese team to come and eat together! That's pretty thoughtful.

and many more?

All the members of the Chinese team together?
why not?
I have come to Indiana, but I haven’t fulfilled my duties as a good host yet.

Come on, come on! Tonight's consumption is on Master Lin's treat!

As for Jordan, when he gets off the plane later, how will he feel when he sees Lin Tian consume 20 steaks, 30 servings of caviar, and more than 40 pieces of foie gras by himself?
This time, Mr. Lin will suffer a little loss, so that Danzi will think that he is a good-for-nothing!

At least, our entire team of about 20 people, from top to bottom, only drank one bottle of red wine because of discipline! That's quite nice, right?

What if Daba, Zhu Fangyu and Gong Xiaobin were allowed to drink as much as they wanted?

Tsk tsk tsk
This small shop might have to borrow some wine from the restaurant next door! Otherwise, there won’t be enough to drink!
One day later, the Huaxia team faced their first opponent in the second stage of the group stage.

Yugoslavia!

The history of Yugoslavia, a federal country located in the Balkans, is both magnificent and chaotic. They began to be formed after the end of World War I. Member states came and went, increased and decreased, and dispersed and gathered again.

The relationship between several countries and races also changes from being as close as brothers to being mortal enemies, then back to being as close as brothers and then becoming mortal enemies again.

The name of their country has also changed again and again.

If one were to talk about the intricate grievances and hatreds in detail, Lin Tian said that he was not at that level, his historical level was just so-so, and there was a high possibility that he would be sniped by the Heavenly Dao and disappear.

So let’s talk about basketball!
Although Yugoslavia's member states and name changed again and again, one thing never changed.

It is in this area that the top basketball players always emerge!

The people in the Balkans also have an extraordinary love for the sport of basketball!

From the earliest Sabonis to Peja, Divac, and Radmanovic who have played well in the NBA recently, to the superstars Doncic and Jokic 20 years later, they are all talented players produced in this region.

Although the current Yugoslav team can no longer recruit players from countries such as Slovenia, Serbia and Croatia, they are as strong as ever.

The leader of the team is Divac from the Kings. He has unparalleled prestige in the entire Balkan region. Even many Yugoslavs believe that if Divac becomes president, the country will not end.

Surrounding Divac are his Kings teammates, Peja Stojakovic, who just lost the finals with him, and Bodiroja, nicknamed "White Magician" and the 1998 World Championship MVP.

In addition to these three, there are several other Yugoslav players who are playing in the NBA or are about to play in the NBA!

For example, Shaq Rebraca, who played for the Pistons for a year, Radmanovic, who played for the Supersonics for a year, Marko Jaric, who was just selected by the Clippers this year, and Zach Kabakapa, who is considered by many to have a lottery stock next year.

Although these players are not NBA stars yet and have not even started playing in the NBA, there is absolutely no need to doubt their talent, strength, and the level of tacit understanding they have developed from playing together since childhood!
Not to mention the other players in the team, who are basically excellent guys who have made a name for themselves in Europe and are being sought after by various clubs. The on-paper strength of this Yugoslav team is definitely one of the strongest in this session!

Not to mention that their head coach is Pešić, who is known as the Godfather of Yugoslavia. He led the unknown and weak team Germany to win the European Championship in 92, creating one of the biggest upsets in the history of European basketball.

同时也正是在佩希奇的带领下，南斯拉夫队在96年的亚特兰大拿到亚军、97年欧锦赛冠军、98年世锦赛冠军、00年雅典八强、01年欧锦赛冠军
It can be said that except for the Olympic championship, they have won all the honors they can get. They are almost the most dominant and powerful team in the world basketball today besides the American team!
What’s more important is that the above achievements are basically achieved by the current group of players in the team!

They have been working together for many years and they have a perfect understanding!
This is also the reason why they are favored and considered the most likely to compete with the United States and China for the final championship!

Balanced, powerful, stable and full of tacit understanding!
Even some of the internal conflicts that originally existed in the team due to nationality, race and religion seem to have been resolved now.

This team is at its peak!
If you are at your peak, then practice hard!
At present, China and Yugoslavia both have 2 wins and 1 loss in the first stage. At the same time, if they can help their opponents defeat Brazil and Spain respectively, which are the first in their respective groups in the first stage, then they still have hope of getting the first place in the second stage!
And thus get a better ranking!

Especially when the American team in the next group has lost two games in a row and is almost certain to miss out on first place in the group, with a high probability of being second or even third, the first place in this group is even more valuable!
Because if things go wrong, the second or third in the group will have a high probability of facing the American team in the quarterfinals!

No matter how many games the US team loses in a row, a lean camel is still bigger than a horse. It is better to face such a team later!
Therefore, although this match has nothing to do with qualifying for the group stage based on the strength of both teams, it is a life-and-death battle in a sense.

No room for error!

Both sides will definitely try their best to play this game!

As the warm-up ended, the starting players of both teams quickly stood on the court.

The Chinese team once again brought out their strongest lineup: Lin Tian, ​​Hu Weidong, Zhu Fangyu, Dazhi, and Dayao!
The same goes for Yugoslavia, they also sent out their best troops!
The point guard is the European king Dejan Bodiroga, the shooting guard is Marko Jaric, the small forward is Peja Stojakovic, the power forward is Milan Gurovic, and the center is the team boss Divac!
The first thing that stands out about this lineup is its height and balance. No one in the team is less than 2 meters tall, and the shortest player, Jaric, is 201 centimeters tall!

The height advantage that the Chinese team used to be proud of disappeared! After all, among the five positions, only Yao Ming was taller than Divac, and the remaining four positions were completely inferior in height!

However, the Chinese team is obviously not afraid of this at all.

It’s just high!
We are fast!
Although in fact only Lin Tian is fast, this is the fastest legend for human beings!
There are different levels of speed!
"Dudu!"

The referee blew the whistle and the game began! (End of this chapter)