So I am the god of basketball?

The top four teams in the West have already been decided, and in the East, the Heat and the Pacers also passed the first round very quickly. The Pistons and the Bulls won 4-3 respectively, which was not difficult.

There is still a big gap between the top and bottom teams in the East. And the teams from the first to the fourth in the East are all experienced teams. For example, the youngest Pistons have played in the playoffs three times, so they have absolutely no problem with experience.

Grant Hill also successfully reached the semi-finals, which was the first time in his career.

But it's better than he was before. He was still a first-round virgin until he left the Pistons.

Of course, this time it’s because the team has helpers like Rasheed Wallace and Alan Houston.

For players like Grant Hill, their ceiling as a leader can still be guaranteed with help.

As a result, the two matchups in the Eastern Conference semifinals have been determined: the first-placed Heat in the Eastern Conference vs. the fourth-placed Bulls in the Eastern Conference.

For Shaquille O'Neal, this is undoubtedly something that makes him excited because he can eliminate the Bulls again in the playoffs.

Although he had had similar experiences before.

However, the last time they eliminated the Bulls, Meng Lang was there. The Bulls avenged them the following year, and the only game they won was also with Meng Lang. In the playoff games without Meng Lang, they lost easily.

Therefore, the outside media believes that if the Magic want to eliminate the Bulls, it mainly depends on whether they have Meng Lang.

Now, God has given him a chance to prove that even without Meng Lang he can lead the team to eliminate the Bulls.

He believed that after this series, no one would say that he eliminated the Bulls because Meng Lang was standing next to him. As long as he was given a high-quality guard, he could eliminate Jordan of this period!

Well, he even thought about the interview after eliminating Jordan:

Michael, you are old and your time is completely over.

The young Pistons faced the old Pacers. In the eyes of the outside media, the Pacers would have the last laugh in this game. The reason is that the Pistons were at a disadvantage against the Pacers in the regular season, with a score of 3-1 in the four games.
Another point is that the Pacers are recognized by the media as the biggest favorite to reach the finals.

As for the Pistons, it was already a great achievement for them to reach the semifinals. There was no way the remaining bones were too tough to chew.

The Western Conference semifinals will be the first to start.

The Lakers waited for the Jazz at home.

It can be seen from the atmosphere before the game that the fans of the Lakers did not take the Jazz seriously at all. They really beat them too hard in the past. They really couldn't imagine how the Jazz could beat the Lakers, given the results of the previous games where they won by so many points. And they won 7 games out of 4 games.

In their opinion, the Lakers would definitely be able to beat the Jazz five games ago.

As the saying goes, "Arrogant soldiers go before a fall", but the current situation is that the Lakers' lineup does restrain the Jazz. It is like the future "Lakers" meeting the "Nuggets", and they can really restrain them any way they want.

For example, Stockton and the "Death Ray" on the outside can still recover some of the situation through offense when facing other teams' outside combinations. But when they meet Kobe and Eddie Jones, who rely on defense to gain a foothold in the team, they really have no way to deal with it.

There is no picture on the offensive end, and even less on the defensive end.

As for Russell on the wing, he was able to cause some trouble to Meng Lang through strength confrontation last season, forcing him to change his playing style.

But this season, Meng Lang's strength is completely maxed out, and he is not afraid of confrontation at all. He no longer has any advantage in defense. Meng Lang is really good at whatever he does when facing him.

The outside line was "annihilated", and the inside line was similar, with Ben Wallace and Barkley taking turns to play and consume Karl Malone. The Lakers also had such a "big meat shield" inside, resulting in them having no room to display their mobility or physical combat inside.

The Lakers suppressed the opponent almost from the beginning to the end, and finally won by 20 points.

The victory in this game also set the tone for the entire series, and the Lakers eventually eliminated the Jazz 4-0.

When the buzzer sounded at the end of the final game of the series, the stadium was silent. It wasn't because the Jazz fans left early.

But...

They all watched in silence.

They all know that being slaughtered by the Lakers and eliminated from the playoffs for two consecutive seasons means that it is time for the Jazz to "break down before building up". Even if the era of the "Utah Duo" continues, other people in the team will probably have to be replaced.

An era has ended. Even though the "Utah Twins" didn't bring the Jazz a single championship, and they didn't even make it to the finals, for Salt Lake City fans, this is the end of an era.

The Jazz fans were not wrong. When Jerry Sloan was interviewed after the game, a reporter asked, "Will the Jazz return with the current lineup next season?"

After a long silence, he gave an answer: "I don't know."

The Lakers advanced to the next round so easily, and the other matchup was easier than expected:
When the Warriors faced the SuperSonics in the regular season, they were leading by a big score of 3-1, winning more than losing. But in the playoffs, it was not the same.

Losing by 7 points in the first game was still acceptable. In the second game, they fought until the final overtime and lost by 2 points. They thought they could continue to play well at home, but what they didn't expect was that in the third game, all the Warriors players were not in good shape. The Supersonics scored 15 to 4 at the beginning and locked the victory. The Warriors eventually lost the third game of the series by a big difference of 17 points.

The score was 0-3, and they...were doomed.

So even if they won the fourth game of the series, the outside world was not optimistic. Sure enough, in the fifth game of the series, the Sonics, who returned to their home court, took out a sharp offense and simply ended the Warriors.

Chris Webber and Hardaway, who dreamed of entering the Western Conference Finals and joining Meng Lang, fell in the Western Conference Finals.

After the game, no one expected that Nelson Sr. would resign as the head coach of the Warriors. He said: "With my ability, I can no longer lead these talented guys to a higher level. They need a better head coach to coach them, not a head coach like me."

Hardaway attributed the mistake to himself. His performance in this series was indeed not very good and he was badly beaten by "The Glove" Gary Payton.

Payton said at least 100, if not 80, words of trash talk to him in this series.

So as soon as the game was over, he sent a text message to Meng Lang:

——Take good care of this guy!
The spot in the Western Conference Finals was determined, and the "defending champions" made it to the Western Conference Finals. This time, their challenger was the Supersonics.

The situation in the East is obviously much more tragic. Let's talk about the match between the Pacers and the Pistons first.

Previously, everyone was more optimistic about the Pacers because they had more experience and had seen more big games. But the Pistons were in great form in the first two games, and they shot whatever they wanted at the Pacers' home court. In the end, they even silenced the entire Pacers' home court.

Big score 2-0!

But just when the outside world began to have some confidence in the Pistons' advance to the Eastern Conference Finals, the Pistons, who returned to their home court, seemed to have lost two games in a row, and the score was back to a 2-2 tie.

The Pacers surprised everyone with their resilience.

Everyone thought that the Pistons were really doomed.

Can……

The Pistons won the decisive battle again, changing the score to 3-2.
Even after the two Western Conference matchups were decided, the Pistons in the East were still leading the Pacers by a large margin of 3-2.

The outcome of Shaquille O'Neal and the Heat, who were full of confidence before the game, was even more surprising.

In the first two games, the Bulls, like the Pistons, defeated the Heat 2-0.

After returning to Chicago, Michael Jordan said in an interview: "I will let them know what the difference is between the playoffs and the regular season!" Even though Chicago is ranked fourth in the Eastern Conference, it can still enter the Eastern Conference Finals.

This is the ruthlessness of the veterans.

Just after saying this, the Bulls lost the first game back at home, and the Heat made a comeback with Shaquille O'Neal's 38+18, changing the score to 2-1.
Shaquille O'Neal shouted after the game: "We are not eliminated that easily!"

Finally it was their turn...

In the next game after making the harsh words, the Heat lost to the Bulls 92-100, and the score was 3-1. The Bulls were just one step away from advancing.

Just when the confidence of the entire Heat team was shaken, Pat Riley said directly: "I have found a way to beat the Bulls!"

He also kept his word. In the next game, the Heat no longer made more defensive arrangements against Michael Jordan, but instead targeted McGrady.

After the first four games, McGrady averaged 4 points, 13.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game. As a first-year rookie, his performance was really good. But it was also his outstanding performance that made Pat Riley realize that he had been living too comfortably during this period.

McGrady has grown a lot since he entered the league, but he is still far from being a qualified "second in command". The Heat successfully won the game.

The overall score is also 2-3!

Both sides have reached this situation, but the process is not the same because the Heat and the Pistons feel differently.

The Heat still felt like they were "fishing in troubled waters", but the Pistons were different. They were in the lead again, which boosted their morale and they were looking forward to sending the Pacers home in the next game.

The league announced the "Best Team" of the season at this time:
"The best team: Jordan, Gary Payton, Meng Lang, Tim Duncan, Shaquille O'Neal;"

Tim Duncan, the No. 97 pick in 76, came on strong and made the All-NBA First Team in his first year as a rookie. His stats were also outstanding, and the Philadelphia ers became a playoff-level team because of his joining. Although they fell in the first round, he performed well in his first year as a rookie.

Gary Payton's appearance on the "Best First Team" has a bonus for the team's record, but if the core of a team that is ranked first in the league is neither in the discussion for the regular season MVP nor on the "Best First Team" list, then it is indeed a bit too focused on the player's personal data.

There is no need to say much about Jordan and Meng Lang. They are respectively "second in the average scoring list" and "first in the average scoring list".

Needless to say, Shaquille O'Neal had the best season of his career.

These five people are basically the five strongest people in the league at present.

Including Payton, his "trash talk" and "defense" can definitely grab a position in the "Five Greatest Players".

main……

Many "superstars" have begun to decline from their peak.

"Best Second Team: Tim Hardaway, Anfernee Hardaway, Grant Hill, Chris Webber, Alonso Mourning;"

"Best Third Team: Reggie Miller, Stockton, Scottie Pippen, Karl Malone, Mutombo;"

The decline of the older generation can also be seen from the "Best Second Team" and "Best Third Team".

The best second team is basically composed of people born in the 90s. The youngest player, Alonzo Mourning, was also a rookie born in 92.

When it came to the "Best Third Team", there were more old guys, but it was obvious that judging by the final result of this season, their end was only a matter of time.

Then there is the "best defense":
"The best defensive team: Michael Jordan, Gary Payton, Mutombo, Scottie Pippen, Ben Wallace;"

"Best Defensive Second Team: Tim Duncan, Eddie Jones, Oakley, David Robinson, Mourning;"

The Lakers, who only had one player selected for the "Best Team", had an unexpected gain in the "Best Defensive Team". Ben Wallace was selected for the "Best First Team" and Eddie Jones continued to be selected for the "Best Second Team".

In terms of performance, Eddie Jones is actually no longer able to be selected into the "Best Team" this season, but sometimes, this honor is won consecutively.

Ben Wallace being selected to the All-Defensive First Team was a surprise.

But after Barkley was injured, he did prop up the Lakers' interior defense.

Whether it is helping defense or positioning in the paint, he does a good job. It can be said that he is the core of the Lakers' current defensive system.

It's just that the Lakers' tactics have been adjusted and changed this season, so Chuck Daly has not been clear about his use. Of course, the most important thing is that Barkley is still in the team, and when he comes back, Ben Wallace needs to make room for him.

Fortunately, during Barkley's absence, Ben Wallace still showed his defensive ability and entered the defensive first team. (End of this chapter)