The Road to Stardom: Start as a Slam Dunk Master.

Chapter 333 We are the kings of this season!
As for the western side, the overall situation has now been decided.

The Spurs ranked first in the Western Conference with 56 wins and 20 losses, and the Sacramento Kings ranked second in the Western Conference with 53 wins and 23 losses. The SuperSonics and Mavericks both had 51 wins and 25 losses. They also tied at 2:2, but because of small The Bulls and Spurs both belong to the Southwest Division, and the Mavericks are only second in the division. The SuperSonics belong to the Northwest Division and are first in the division because they beat the Mavericks to third place.

In addition to the top four, the gap in wins for the lower rankings is relatively large.

第五名明尼苏达森林狼仅只有46胜30负，第六名的开拓者则是45胜31负，第八名爵士则是41胜35负。

What surprised the entire league was last season's championship team...

The Los Angeles Lakers ranked seventh in the Western Conference with only 42 wins and 34 losses.

O'Neal is obviously much lazier this season than before. Three consecutive honors have made the Sharks a bit arrogant. So far this season, he has missed a full 3 games without injuries, and is often absent from team training. On the contrary, he frequently appeared in various programs, singing, dancing, rapping... To put it simply, he was not doing his job properly.

And this is obviously something that Kobe, who has always been extremely strict with others and himself, cannot accept. It is natural for the OK team to have conflicts in the locker room.

This made the invincible OK combination that was unbeatable last season perform mediocre in the regular season this season. Fortunately, with the hard persuasion of the Lakers' top management and the temptation of four consecutive championships, at the end of this season, O'Neal After finally regaining his composure, the team won a wave of five consecutive victories, including two tough battles over the Mavericks and Pistons, which brought the Lakers back to safety from the eighth goaltender position in the Western Conference.

With the added drama of the prodigal son turning back, the return of the OK combination has reignited fans' expectations for the Lakers. Although they are only ranked seventh in the Western Conference, they are still one of the favorites to win the championship.

One is to look at the Kings, and the other is to look at the Trail Blazers and Lakers.

Since the league has just been reorganized, the order of the playoffs is no longer as uncertain as it once was.

What he is more concerned about now is Payton's recovery.

If the Trail Blazers lose the next few games in a row, they are likely to be surpassed by the Lakers, and the Sonics will have to work hard to compete for second place.

...Lin Dong basically doesn't care much about these tactical avoidance choices, and he doesn't resist them. The team has its own experts in this field, and it's up to the team to decide how to arrange them.

Bob and others have been paying close attention to the schedule and ranking changes of each team during this period.

But the problem is that now there is an obstacle like the Lakers...

Payton is absolutely essential for this Sonics to win a championship.

At this stage of the regular season, the pettiness between the teams actually starts to get around.

In the East and West, the first vs. eighth and the second vs. seventh were eliminated. In addition, the previous 3-win system was canceled in the first round of the playoffs and changed to a tie-break system. This made the schedule of the first round of the playoffs also change accordingly. As it increases, the consumption of physical strength increases.

Before the injury, Payton seemed to be able to get a double-double with ease, but the double-double in the last game seemed a bit reluctant.

The endurance of physical strength has declined to a certain extent compared with before the injury, and the explosive power has also declined. What is even more terrible is the accumulation of knee fluid.

There were four people in the room. Lin Dong and Sakuragi were sitting on the sofa on one side. Payton was lying on the bed with a few silver needles on his knees. Yohei was holding a smoker and making payton a massage. Moxibustion.

With the Lakers' current victory, even if they win all the remaining games, their ranking will hardly change. If the SuperSonics rush to get second place, they will have to face the three favorites in the first round of the playoffs. The winning team.

And if the Kings want to choose to fail in the end and fall to third or fourth place to avoid the Lakers, then the SuperSonics will have to control the wins and deliberately let one or two games out when necessary.

Therefore, choosing a suitable opponent for the first round of the playoffs is something that every team will consider.

——Mansha Peninsula, Dong Lin’s lakeside villa.

On the surface, it seems that Payton, who has returned for five games, is in pretty good shape. From 8 points and 5 assists in the first game back to 21 points and 11 assists in the last game, he returned to a double-double. ranks.

After a season, Sakuragi, Iguodala and other newcomers have already developed a lot of fighting ability, but after all, they are still newcomers. They have to rely on themselves to lead the team and lead these newcomers to compete in the playoffs. God, that's almost impossible.

This reassured Seattle fans a lot, but Lin Dong could see it.

For the current SuperSonics, if they fight in the last few games, they have every chance to rise to second place in the Western Conference. After all, the Kings still have three tough battles to fight in the remaining six games, including against the Spurs and Lakers, and the SuperSonics Thanks to the fact that almost all the strong teams’ schedules have been played in the first half of the season, the opponents in the last few games are not strong. The only tough battle is to face the Eastern Wizards. If they can fight it out, there is a high probability that they can rise to second place. Go.

The renovation of Yangping's spa shop has not been completed, and it is estimated that it will take at least two or three months to open. However, after hearing about Payton's injury, he volunteered to recommend a set of physical therapy procedures.

Moxibustion ventilation, acupuncture blood circulation.

For his knee hydrops, Western medicine could only perform surgery, but at this juncture of the playoffs, Payton obviously didn't want to lie down in the operating room, and after trying Yang Ping's method, he felt obviously better. , so I came here every day to do it during this period, but...

"I feel like nothing has improved in the past few days." Yanghei was doing moxibustion and touching Payton's knee: "Physical therapy is not as good as surgery. The results are relatively slow. It needs to be combined with rest. I recommend these last three regular season games. It's better not to play anymore, or even take a break in the first round of the playoffs. Haven't you already secured third place in the Western Conference? The first round should be to open up the sixth-place Trail Blazers. If you want to collide with the Lakers, that's it. It’s about the second round, I suggest you rest until then and then play again.”

"It's okay, we still have you!" Peyton laughed loudly and patted Yang Ping on the shoulder: "I believe in your skills!"

"This is not a problem with my skills. It took a lot of effort to stop the accumulation of water. This is the time for recovery, but if you let it not recover, it will become worse... This kind of disease is accumulated."

"There are many people in the NBA with knee hydration. It's called an occupational disease. It's not that easy to cause problems. Besides, I feel like I'm in pretty good shape recently." Payton said nonchalantly: "It's just two months for the playoffs. Waiting for the playoffs." It's over, I promise to lie here every day and let you recuperate!" "I heard that the playoffs are very intense..."

"Oh, don't worry, I'll just pay attention to my playing time in these games."

This guy refused to listen to advice. Mito Yohei was a little dumbfounded when he heard this. He looked at Lin Dong and Sakuragi on the other side: "Persuasion?"

"Old Pei..." Sakuragi did speak, but before he could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by Peyton.

"Stop, stop, stop! Shut up!" Peyton really couldn't compliment this apprentice's nickname-making skills. Of course, 'Lao Pei' was his default title. Anyway, it was better than 'She She' or 'Page'. 'Good.

"Hi, boss." Lin Dong also spoke: "Believe us, we can win these games very easily, even in the first round of the playoffs. The Blazers' lineup is not a threat to us. I also think you It's better to recover quickly first, when we play against the Lakers..."

"Hey, hey, hey, I said..." Peyton looked at Lin Dong dumbfounded: "Lin, Yangping and Sakuragi don't understand, don't you guys understand too?"

"I want to recover more than just my legs..."

"Yes, in these regular season games, even if I don't make it, nothing will happen. Even if I don't make it in the first round against the Trail Blazers, I believe Lin Dong can lead the team to win, but what happens next?"

"Let me use my previous 8 points and 5 assists to directly face the Lakers in the second round? If I can't win, I might become a burden. I need to play, I need to warm up, and I need to find the state for the playoffs! Haha , these regular season games are actually not important to the team, I know you can win, but to me, they couldn't be more important."

Lin Dong frowned: "I know, but you have the problem of water in your knees..."

"I will be careful." Payton waved his hand to interrupt Lin Dong and did not let him continue: "So, don't mention this again, it will only make me timid."

He is obviously very aware of the dangers of knee effusion to a professional player. Although it is not fatal, the risk exists at any time and may break out at any time. He has seen too much. Not to mention Jordan last season. The entire playoff schedule was canceled because of this in the first game of the playoffs.

He smiled and said slowly: "To be honest, I have been in the league for 12 years. Thanks to having a good wife and no bad habits, my financial situation is not bad. I am not short of money now and I don't have any bad habits." I hope I can put up some numbers this year to get a big contract, and I don't lack the so-called honors, but... I just want a championship."

"Before entering the league, I never lost in any high school game or college game. But after entering the league, for twelve years, every year I could only watch others pick up that thing. You know that pair What does it feel like to be a proud person?"

Payton was originally smiling, but as he spoke, the smile on his face gradually turned into calmness, and in this calmness, there was a burning desire hidden.

"When people mention Payton, they always talk about the glove and the best defensive point guard in history. They even always mention the 96 Finals and always say, 'Oh, that was an extremely classic series.' The glove He was the only player who defended Jordan to an average of less than 30 points per game in the Finals. It seemed like it gave me such an honor and created such a classic."

"But..." A stern look flashed in Peyton's eyes, and his voice gradually became louder: "Where's the classic fart? Where's the glorious fart? The most annoying thing in my fucking life is when others mention this! I lost, in In this life's closest dream and most important series, we lost!"

"What's the glory if you lose? If even being someone else's background is an honor, then this honor is too cheap!"

"Now, with Lin, Sakuragi, and this running-and-gun game that makes the entire league take notice, I feel like this year will be the closest I get to a championship."

"Don't tell me about next year. I know you will definitely be stronger next year, and the SuperSonics will have a better chance next year, but... haha, look at me now. If I can't survive this playoff, then I won't be able to survive next year. How much state can I retain? Can I still win the championship as an absolute core? I want to hold that trophy with my own hands, not rely on you guys to give me charity..."

"So, it doesn't matter if I have water in my knees. As long as I can win the championship, even if I break my leg and have to retire after this season, it doesn't matter! But if I fail in the playoffs because I'm timid, then I'm afraid I I will never get over this hurdle in my life.”

Payton said, his voice regained its calmness, and he said calmly: "So, if you guys are really good for me, then don't say anything anymore, just try your best, and let's go and win the president together." Just a championship trophy!”

The room finally became completely quiet.

Lin Dong, Sakuragi, and Yohei were all a little awe-inspiring, feeling the 34-year-old veteran's desire for the championship.

This is definitely not the level of "I will become the king of the league" in Lin Dong's imagination, or the level of "I will give you a championship ring" when Sakuragi promised Coach Anzai, but it can be felt even through his belly. The uncontrollable desire that emanated from Payton.

It felt like nothing in this world could stop this guy from climbing towards that dream trophy.

"...I'll add some wormwood." Mito Yohei was the first to break the silence in the room.

"I, I'm going back to the arena to train!" Sakuragi has always been the one who is most susceptible to incitement. At this moment, he turned around and ran out, only to hear his roar suddenly coming from the corridor: "...Down with the Lakers! Down with the Spurs !Down with the Wizards!”

The remaining three people in the room couldn't help but smile.

"This guy is already a millionaire, but he's still like this." Mito Yohei smiled and shook his head.

"What do you have to say?" Payton looked at Lin Dong triumphantly. He felt that he should have settled these three young people, so that they would not have to shout in his ears all day long.

Lin Dong smiled and pulled out a golden box from the cabinet next to him.

"Well, this is the first time I bought this thing. I originally planned to take it out to celebrate when I win the championship." Lin Dong opened the box, which was full of cigars. He smiled and handed one to Payton: "Me too. If I don’t smoke this, I don’t know much about it, so I just buy the expensive one, come here, let the champion try it in advance to see if I have been cheated.”

"King of Denmark?" Peyton's eyes suddenly lit up, and he laughed and took it: "You are really good at buying, how can this be wrong? It must be right, we will definitely be the kings this season!"

(End of this chapter)