So I am the god of basketball?

Chapter 87 The battle for the “scoring champion” and the crazy first round of the playoffs

Early the next morning, major media reported the incident on the headlines.

Michael Jordan didn't see the familiar "Michael" and felt very unhappy. He also thought that he wanted to come back as soon as possible. He took a closer look and whispered:

"The new Chinese guy beat Malone hard and said after the game that he wanted to make an appointment with Karl Malone in the Octagon!"

Did that kid get beat up by Karl Malone?

After reading the title, Jordan's curiosity was piqued. When he finished reading all the reports, he saw Meng Lang chasing Karl Malone all the way into the away tunnel. At that time, he slapped his thigh:

Rejoice!
  happy!

He hadn't been this happy for a long time.

Even looking at Meng Lang's photos was a lot more pleasing to the eye.

Karl Malone knocked him to the ground at that time. Looking back on it after so many years, his bones still ached.

Finally, someone couldn't hold back the fire and beat this guy!
  David Robinson, who has always been a gentleman, was driving to the arena. When he heard the car radio report about this incident, he also yelled fiercely:

"Damn it, you have today too!"

When Thomas was interviewed by the media in the morning, he directly shouted to Meng Lang: "Chinese boy, I am optimistic about you! Give this old guy some color and let him know that the times have changed and this is not the time for him to show off his power with his elbow. Got it!"

At this moment, his bad impression of Meng Lang's "arrogance" disappeared.

And their attitude basically represents the views of other people in the league on this matter.

Mainly, Karl Malone is so dirty!
  If he wasn't afraid of his big elbow, he would have pressed it down and slapped his mouth wildly!
  Now someone finally did what they had always wanted to do, and Meng Lang's image in their minds instantly became friendly...

But this kid is so cruel, he even beat up Karl Malone!
  It’s just...

Some players who had had minor frictions with Meng Lang felt chills on their backs at that time.

Especially Rodman, originally he was looking forward to regaining his place in the second game, but now...

On the contrary, he wished that the day could come more slowly.

That afternoon, Meng Lang accepted an exclusive interview with TNT. This was his first interview since last night's post-game press conference.

Unlike then, this matter has become a hot topic now.

Everyone who is paying attention to this matter is looking forward to a question:
  "So, Dream, are you really going to ask your manager to prepare the Octagon? Are you sure you want to do this?"

Meng Lang nodded: "Of course, I will prepare all this. This needs to be settled. If Karl Malone thinks that I shot him behind his back and beat him up, then I can give him a chance and let everyone see what he is like." Can you save your face?"

These words once again aroused heated discussion.

Even Bill Walton couldn't help but said: "This is the first time that I don't want to know who the championship will be this season. I just want summer to come soon!"

After Meng Lang confirmed again, reporters ran to ask Karl Malone. At this time, Malone also knew that he had been put on stage and had no way to retreat: "This bitch is looking for death. I can repeat my response." , I’m waiting for this day to come, and I hope he won’t back down then!”

Under the scorn of media reporters, the popularity of this matter actually lasted throughout February and March.

Every star cannot avoid this topic when answering reporters' questions:
  "If Meng Lang and Karl Malone really make an appointment to fight in the Octagon, who do you think will win?"

Karl Malone received more votes. Oakley said this: "I know everyone hates Karl Malone, but his strength and size are there. As long as he gets a punch, the Chinese newcomer will be able to win." It’s over, of course, I have always admired Dream’s fighting spirit!”

His view is also the view of most players:
  They prefer Meng Lang to win, but from their intuitive feeling, Karl Malone has the advantage.

If it weren't for his physical condition, who would be able to spoil him?
  I've already burped him!

But whether they support Malone or Meng Lang, their enthusiasm is indeed there.

It once caused discussion among some non-NBA fans.

David Stern had a headache. He really didn't expect that the NBA would break out of the NBA in this way in the first season after Michael Jordan retired.

He always loved the popularity, but he really didn't know how to deal with it. Apart from pushing more media resources to Meng Lang, all he could do was wait and see. ——It is said that the little Jewish old man hates violence, but the problem now is that Michael Jordan’s retirement has caused the NBA ratings to drop too seriously. At this time, let’s forget about violence or not and stabilize the ratings first. talk later!

Adidas took advantage of Meng Lang's popularity and launched his first signature shoe:

Dream generation of "miracle walkers"!
  This is a pair of breakthrough sneakers, and the biggest breakthrough lies in the material of the upper.

"Miracle Walker" uses patent leather veneer, and the entire upper looks more natural and fashionable.

This is the first time a basketball shoe has used this material. Originally, this breakthrough moment would not occur until the release of the Jordan 10 next year. But this time after Meng Lang made a suggestion, Adidas designers successfully snatched up this breakthrough technology!
  The more fashionable "Miracle Walker" sold out immediately on the first day it was released. According to statistics, more than 24 pairs were sold in just 30 hours. With this momentum, there shouldn’t be much of a problem if it exceeds one million in the future.

"Man, you can earn at least three to four million just from these shoes!" Tai Lun was very excited.

What he didn't say was that Meng Lang's first pair of shoes sold so crazily, and Adidas will definitely continue to launch new signature shoes of his in the future.

Meng Lang has had many happy events, not only making money off the court, but also on the court, he won the "Rookie of the Month Award" in February and March.

Winning the "Rookie of the Month Award" in February was a bit of a fluke.

While he was suspended, Chris Webber suffered an injury and was absent until early March. He only played one game after the All-Star Game.

Such an absence rate prevents him from participating in the selection of "Rookie of the Month" in February.

With averages of 19.5 points, 4 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game, Meng Lang defeated Hardaway and won the Best of the Month.

And in March...

After experiencing the "rookie wall" in January, the recovery in February, and the suspension in late February, Meng Lang seemed to have been opened up to the second line of Ren and Du, and his shot selection on the court was more decisive and better than before.

场均可以拿到20.5分3.5篮板3助攻，投篮命中率47.8%，三分球命中率45.4%，罚球命中率90%！

There was only 1 turnover per game.

This allowed him to once again defeat Chris Webber and win the "Rookie of the Month Award" in March.

In this way, he also has two "Rookie of the Month" trophies in hand.

The outside world's call for him to become the "Rookie of the Year" suddenly became louder.

The Magic's record during this period was also very good. Meng Lang and Hardaway returned to the team one after another. They won consecutively in February until the end of the month. After losing a game in early March, they won another seven games in a row until the end of March. In late March, the whole situation started to fluctuate, with wins and losses and losses.

During this period, they won 23 of the 17 games and only lost 6.

The winning rate is as high as 74%!

You must know that the current number one in the league, their total winning rate is only 76%.
  In the entire Eastern Conference, there is no one with a total winning rate of over 70%.

During this period, Meng Lang had another obvious feeling:

He found that the people in the Alliance suddenly looked much "cuter".

In the past, he had to face big push and shove in almost every game, but now this situation has been greatly reduced. It makes him feel that he is not in the 90s, but after 04.

Including when facing the Spurs.

Ok……

Knew it!
  Deterrence by force is always the most effective method!

After beating Karl Malone, the entire league became much quieter.

Once they get out of the Octagon, he believes that these guys will be even more honest!

In early April, Shaquille O'Neal suddenly became more angry on the court, and his desire to score was much more obvious than before.

The battle between him and David Robinson for the "scoring title" is still here!

Although this time the Magic have one more player, Meng Lang, who averages nearly 20 points per game, he takes the place of Scott, who could have contributed 12.8 points this season. Coupled with the sacrifice of Nick Anderson, Sha Ke O'Neal was not affected by this. He still averaged 29.9 points per game, which was 0.6 points more than he originally scored!
  But his scoring averages with David Robinson are still very close.

David Robinson averaged 29.6 points per game, only 0.3 points behind him.

Shaquille O'Neal has been the "scoring champion" for most of the season, and he really doesn't want to miss out on this "scoring champion" at the last moment.

Meng Lang was familiar with the original plot, so he kept reminding O'Neal to score more points, consciously or unconsciously, because he knew how crazy David Robinson would be for this "scoring champion" in the end.

It's not that he hopes Shaquille O'Neal will win the "scoring title" so much. His relationship with the "Shark" is not as close as Hardaway's. But compared to David Robinson, he still hopes that Shaquille O'Neal will win the "scoring title."

The fact that David Robinson scored points in the last game for the "scoring champion" is indeed a disgrace.

If this happened 30 years later, you would have stolen all the balls used in the game that night.

He has been creating a sense of crisis that David Robinson is likely to score points. At first, the "Shark" did not believe that David Robinson, a humble gentleman, would do such a thing, but after hearing such words too many times, Shaquille O'Neal was on the court. The offensive enthusiasm is obviously stronger.

4月份初的4场比赛，魔术队3胜1负，沙克-奥尼尔每场比赛都能贡献35分。

Such a strong performance seemed to stimulate David Robinson, who was already lagging behind. In the last two games, he averaged 40 points per game.

At first, Shaquille O'Neal didn't believe that his grandson would score more points. After seeing his data in these two games, his filter for "The Admiral" was shattered on the floor, and the locker room yelled "This weakling" ,unacceptable!"

Meng Lang couldn't help but complain in his heart:
  One is a "small-minded" and the other is a "softie". Don't blame either of you two!
  On April 4, the NBA made concessions for the NCAA Finals, and Meng Lang went specially to watch the game.

After Hill and Ray Allen led Duke to win the ACC championship, they went all the way to the finals.

As long as he wins this championship, Hill will become the only player in NCAA history to win four championships in four years.

Let alone "Duke's No. [-]", it's not an exaggeration to say he is "NCAA's No. [-]".

Unfortunately, judging from the lineup, Duke, which is full of talent, had a good start, leading 17-10, but was eventually reversed by the University of Arkansas 69-63.

Hill entered the NCAA Finals for the fourth time in his college career. This time, he could only watch his opponent win the championship trophy.

The University of Arkansas' championship once again proved the charm of the NCAA's "March Madness".

Compared with Duke, which has two "lottery area" rookies as the core of the team, the University of Arkansas does not have a "lottery area" player, not even a first-round prospect. But now they are the ones holding the championship trophy!

This is a big scene for little people.

Hill didn't feel too sorry. After all, the most important "three consecutive championships" had been achieved.

You will lose anyway!
  "The rest is up to you!" Hill hugged Ray Allen after the game.

Just like Meng Lang hugged him last year.

This summer, as a senior, he will participate in the 94 draft.

Meng Lang chatted with him for a long time after the game and focused on one thing: "Man, carefully consider every decision you make. It will have far-reaching implications, including your basketball shoes!"

Later, Hill was seriously injured, and many media believed that it was caused by Fila's unprofessionalism.

They are not a manufacturer that specializes in basketball shoes.

Meng Lang didn't know if there were any factors in this regard, but as Hill's good friend, he had to remind Hill.

In addition, if you look closely at Hill's career, he played for the Pistons for 6 years. He never played less than 50 games in a season, and played more than 70 games in 5 seasons. The only time he was seriously injured was that he was absent. The rate is also 50 games, and the number of games played next season is also 74 games.

And when he arrived with the Magic, in 6 years, his attendance rate was more than 50 games in only 2 seasons, and he suffered 2 season-ending injuries.

But after leaving the Magic, he played for the Suns for 5 seasons until the last season. As his age increased, he suffered serious injuries again and did not play 1 games. He had 50 of the other 4 seasons. Appeared in 3 games.

It can be said that the "miracle doctor" of the Suns is great, but can it also be said that Orlando is a bit ruined?
  You know, Hardaway later said personally that during the recovery stage after he received minimally invasive treatment, he always felt uncomfortable in his knee, but the Magic team doctor believed it was due to his psychological effects. The entire Orlando media also believed that he was faking his injury and wanted to make money while lying down.

This kind of unprofessionalism ruined Hardaway and also ruined Hill...

By avoiding these two factors, Meng Lang doesn't know whether these two "Jordan successors" can play longer and be healthier for the time being, but he needs to plan carefully for his two good friends.

Hardaway's path has continued, and Meng Lang cannot change the entire framework for the time being, but Hill, he can start to intervene from now on.

Hill said he would seriously consider Meng Lang's suggestion.

In fact, Meng Lang's rookie season has been extremely successful so far.

Hill, who also debuted with huge traffic, would have no problem following his lead.

I'm afraid Hill's parents would agree with this.

Of course, there is no need to learn from Meng Lang's flamboyant image.

On December 4, the flames of war in the NBA reignited.

Shaquille O'Neal scored 44 points in the Magic's penultimate game of the regular season, opening the total scoring gap between himself and David Robinson to 85 points.

This season O'Neal has played the same number of games as David Robinson, so as long as he scores more points in total, then the "scoring champion" will definitely be his.

As a result, in the Spurs' penultimate game, David Robinson started the battle for the "scoring king" early, scoring 71 points in a single game, becoming the fourth highest scorer in the NBA after Chamberlain, Elgin Baylor and David Thompson. A player who scored 70 points in a single game.

The gap between him and Shaquille O'Neal is only 14 points.

Shaquille O'Neal was so angry when he saw the news the next day that the flesh on his face shook.

Even though he had "clearly seen" David Robinson's character two days ago, he never expected that this guy could be so "crazy".

"I look forward to the next fight with this coward. I will definitely let him know my attitude towards this matter!"

The name "softie" came out of Shaquille O'Neal's mouth and followed David Robinson for his whole life.

Shaquille O'Neal is lucky. Even if he was angry, he could only watch David Robinson steal his "scoring title", but this time, he still has a chance to make amends.

In the last game of the Magic's regular season, Shaquille O'Neal did it without any shame and scored 51 points in a single game that he had been dreaming about before. Although the Magic lost, the point difference between him and Robinson widened again. It opened to 65 minutes!
  Returning to the locker room after the game, he immediately thanked Meng Lang and Hardaway: "We will be the best brothers for life!"

He was really touched that Meng Lang and Hardaway could cooperate with him to "earn" points during the recent period.

Hardaway waved his hand and said it was a trivial matter!
  As for Meng Lang...

He really wants to say:
  I hope you won’t forget what you said today!
  If they are really good brothers for life, then even if Michael Jordan comes back, they can win at least 90 championships in the remaining days of the 3s!
  65 points is a gap that is definitely promising to overtake, especially in the last game, David Robinson just scored 71 points.

But the biggest problem is this:
  David Robinson regarded the last game as a decisive battle. His physical fitness was seriously exhausted in that game. He had to grit his teeth and persevere even if he scored 65 or [-] points in this game, let alone a [-]-point deficit now.

In the end, in the Spurs' last game of the season, David Robinson was on the court for 40 minutes, and his legs began to falter, but he still only scored 40 points.      25 points short......

Converted to each game, it is less than 0.5 points...

But these 25 points are fatal.

In the end, Shaquille O'Neal won the "scoring title" this season with an average of 30.9 points per game.

Having accomplished this achievement in the second season of his career, the future of "Shark" is even brighter in the eyes of the media.

As the Spurs played their last regular season game, the 93-94 NBA regular season officially came to an end.

The Magic's final record was 55 wins and 27 losses, ranking second in the Eastern Conference behind the 57-win Hawks, beating the 54-win New York Knicks and the 52-win Chicago Bulls.

This is the first time that the city of Orlando has made it to the playoffs, and it is also the first time that it has won 50 plus games at the end of the regular season, ranking so high.

At this time, before the start of the season, all the people who said that Webb should not be traded for Hardaway, and that two first-round picks and a second-round pick should not be traded for Meng Lang, including the "Orlando Sentinel" who had been the most popular before At this moment, he also closed his mouth obediently.

The right to speak always belongs to the winner.

On April 4, the first day after the NBA regular season ended, the NBA officially announced the "Rookie of the Year" for this season.

This award was initially monopolized by Chris Webber, but as time came to the end of the season, the voices supporting Meng Lang became much louder.

final result:

Meng Lang and Chris Webber won the "Best Rookie Award" at the same time.

This is the first time this has happened since 1970-1971 when Dave Cowens and Geoff Petrie jointly won the Rookie of the Year Award.

Mainly and indeed difficult to evaluate:

As one of the "three cores" of the Magic, Meng Lang played in 78 games, averaging 19.5 points, 3 rebounds, 3.25 assists and 1.75 steals per game. He averaged 46.3% shooting from the field, 42.3% from three-point range and 90% from free throws per game. With a shooting rate of 198%, he made [-] three-pointers this season, leading the league. He is the league's "three-point king" and has also been selected as an All-Star starter;

Chris Webber played 76 games, averaging 17.5 points, 9.1 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.2 steals and 2.2 blocks, shooting 55.2% from the field and 53.2% from the free throw line. Under his leadership, the Warriors ranked sixth in the Western Conference;
  It can be said that they are equally matched.

Orlando selected the "Rookie of the Year" for the second consecutive year, and the atmosphere in the entire city was particularly enthusiastic.

The reporter asked Meng Lang to rate his performance in his rookie season.

Meng Lang thought for a while and gave himself 100 points.

This answer surprised the reporter a little, but not that much. Meng Lang, no matter how outrageous his answer was, was not outrageous, but he still said with a questioning tone: "It seems that you are very satisfied with your performance in your rookie season?"

Meng Lang nodded: "I always strive to do my best. If I can't give 100 points to myself, how can others give me full marks? The regular season has passed, and I don't have to be picky about my past self. Four!"

The reporter then asked Meng Lang about his outlook for the playoffs.

He looked forward to Meng Lang's confident speech, and Meng Lang did not disappoint him: "We are second in the Eastern Conference, so we have to reach the Eastern Conference finals to be worthy of our efforts throughout the season."

"So do you know what the outside world thinks of the Magic?"

"do not know!"

In fact, Meng Lang understood it very well. He also had the habit of reading newspapers every day.

None of the three core players have playoff experience. On the other hand, the Nets, who have made it to the playoffs for the third consecutive year, have a "first round" record. But having experience is definitely better than having no experience.

With only 5 games played in the first round, the probability of overturning is high. In addition to the "black eight" that has not happened yet, in the past first round of the NBA playoffs, there have been many times where "the bottom beats the top".

A team like the Magic, which is composed of a pure rookie core, fits the image of an "experience baby" very well.

The playoffs start on the 18th, and many media are now saying that the Nets will achieve their biggest breakthrough in the playoffs this year.

"Even if I know their views, it will not affect me. Many times in the past, it has been proven that their views are wrong. Righteousness is always in the hands of a few people!"

They said that two first-round picks plus a second-round pick for Meng Lang were too much, and Meng Lang won the "Best Rookie";
  They said Payton could guard Meng Lang, who scored 52 points in a single game;
  Now they say that the Nets can "defeat the top", so shouldn't the Nets be the one to worry about?

But this time, the outside world seems to have guessed it right. The first game of the playoffs between the Magic and the Nets will be played at home in Orlando.

Even though the entire arena was filled with Orlando fans, and even though the atmosphere at home was quite good, the start of this game made the scene a bit dull.

Shaquille O'Neal, Meng Lang and Hardaway tasted what is called "the taste of the playoffs."

The intensity of this confrontation is simply...

Meng Lang always felt that he had adapted to the legendary 90s, but now it seems that his adaptation has just begun.

Rougher actions and larger penalties made the whole scene look extremely heated.

The subsequent impact of Meng Lang's violent beating of Karl Malone seemed to disappear all of a sudden.

One by one, they regained their ferocious looks, with faces written all over:
  Come on, fuck me, fuck me if you can!

As long as you make a move, the referee can eject you.

I am alone, and if I replace you with a core player who averages 19.5 points per game, it will definitely not be a loss - Meng Lang's average of 19.5 points per game can probably be ranked around 24th in the league. There is only one player on the Nets who averages higher points per game than Meng Lang, and that is their absolute core, Coleman, the 90 No. [-] pick who is "the only one to dunk against a Shark."

The entire Nets team is holding back their energy and wants to achieve the biggest breakthrough in the past three years by stepping on the Magic.

only……

At 5 minutes and 34 seconds of the first quarter, Meng Lang hit a three-pointer over Anderson to announce that he had finished adapting.

At 7 minutes and 34 seconds, Shaquille O'Neal was sandwiched between two people to grab the rebound, then twisted his body and smashed the ball into the basket, successfully igniting the fire.

Soon, Hardaway followed suit and used a "no-look pass" to assist Meng Lang in scoring on an air cut, bringing his talent to the playoffs.

The Magic fell into the pattern they were accustomed to, and before the first quarter was over, they successfully overtook the score.

The Nets never took the lead again.

Even though the Magic's three "rookie cores" struggled in the middle, the Nets only closed the score to 3 points and were quickly pulled away.

At the end of the game, the Magic managed to adapt to the intensity of the playoffs and defeated the Nets 99-90, a 9-point difference.

Won the first victory of the series.

Shaquille O'Neal scored 26 points and 16 rebounds in the first playoff game of his career; Hardaway scored 15 points, 8 rebounds and 9 assists in the first playoff game of his career, a "quasi-triple double". ; Meng Lang's debut performance was 23 points, a lot of points, but his shooting rate was a bit poor, barely reaching 40%! The intensity of the playoffs had a great impact on his shooting.

After the game, Chuck Daly was interviewed: "The Nets missed the game they were most hopeful of winning. They have no chance!"

This game scared many Orlando people into cold sweats, but he was still very confident.

This is trust in Shaquille O'Neal, Meng Lang and Hardaway.

And these three young leaders of the Magic have proven that they are worthy of this trust.

In the next two games, even if they moved to New Jersey for the third game, they were not greatly affected. They won two games very smoothly with 104-94 and 100-89 respectively.

It played the suppressive power that No. 2 in the Eastern Conference should have against No. [-] in the Eastern Conference.

They swept their opponents 3-0 and entered the second round of the playoffs.

"Scoring King" Shaquille O'Neal averaged 26.3 points, 15.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 3 blocks in three games. In the second game of the series, during the game, he received a pass from Hardaway and dunked Coleman. , avenging the "one stone with one stone" that he was dunked on during the regular season last season.

In fact, O'Neal was almost dunked by Jordan in his rookie season, but he always paid attention to this and directly "crash" Jordan.

This is his tough attitude towards those who want to dunk him.

Coleman was too aggressive that time, and he didn't expect that he would dunk against Coleman, so he didn't have time to make a move.

Coleman's physical fitness is evident. He was very likely to become the next "Karl Malone" or "Barkley", but his undisciplined life style made him waste his talents every day.

Hardaway averaged 16.3 points, 5 rebounds and 7.3 assists per game, maintaining the same level as during the regular season.

Meng Lang averaged 20.3 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists per game, which was similar to the regular season, but his shooting percentage dropped a bit. However, in the third game of the series, his shooting percentage once exceeded 50%, and he finally hit 45%. rate, it seems that he has found a way to shoot more stably in stronger confrontations.

The Magic were one of the teams least expected to advance to the next round before the game, but as Meng Lang said, they once again proved that what the outside world said was wrong.

During this period, the league announced the "Best Sixth Man" award, which belongs to Dell Curry.

With an average of 16.3 points per game, he won the "Best Sixth Man" trophy for the first time in his career. If history does not change, this will be the last time he wins this award.

But even if he doesn't win this award many times, there is no problem in treating Dell Curry as Lou Williams or Crawford at this time.

He is a player more suitable for playing as a substitute than as a starter. His average of 16.3 points per game is also a new high in his career.

In the next few days, the results of the first round of the playoffs will be announced...

In the East, the New York Knicks eliminated the Cavaliers 3-0 and advanced to the semifinals. The opponent they will face in the semifinals is the Magic, who entered the second round earlier than them.

This result is what Shaquille O'Neal wanted.

After confirming the 3-0 elimination of the Nets, when reporters asked O'Neal which team he would rather face in the next round, Shaquille O'Neal answered without hesitation: "The New York Knicks!"

According to the cautious Shaq's own statistics, Ewing stole his "Best of the Month" award from him at least twice.

Ok……

Ewing has only won the "Best of the Month" twice this season, and Shaquille O'Neal thinks they were all stolen from him.

Defeating the New York Knicks head-on will be the most favorable proof of his point of view.

The Bulls and Pacers were locked in a tough battle. They tied 2-2 in the first four games.

The Chicagoans relied on Kukoc's buzzer beater to tenaciously equalize the score again.

But at the last moment of the game, Phil Jackson chose to let Kukoc take the last shot, angering Pippen, who refused to play at the last moment. This caused huge controversy after the game.

Especially Kukoc's buzzer-beating shot proved that Phil Jackson's arrangement was right.

Pippen was obviously under tremendous psychological pressure, which can be seen from his silence during the press conference after the game.

Early the next morning, many media criticized him for being selfish, and Pippen chose to apologize. Not only did this fail to quell these criticisms, but instead the mocking voices came up even more fiercely.

"Scottie Pippen, you'll never be the next Michael Jordan!" was the headline in the Chicago Times, and it was as damaging to Pippen as a slap in the face.

This impact was fatal. In the crucial Game 5 of the series, Pippen performed abnormally. The Pacers suppressed the entire game 97-89 and had the last laugh, advancing to the second round to meet the Hawks.

The Bulls were eliminated in the first round, and Chicagoans' yearning for Michael Jordan reached its peak.

They never expected that without Jordan, they would not even be able to advance past the first round.

It’s not just Chicagoans who are feeling the pain, it’s also Seattleites.

The Sonics have the best regular season record, with 63 wins and 19 losses, and are the only team in the league to win more than 60 games this year.

Before the start of the playoffs, all experts had always believed that the Sonics would advance to the next round without a doubt, and that the Nuggets had no chance.

The result can be...

The Sonics won the first two games of the series easily, but starting from the third game against Denver, things started to change.

Denver took advantage of the "no-fly zone" composed of Mutombo and Rafonso Ellis to firmly block the Sonics' Achilles' heel.

Mutombo, in particular, contributed 8/6/8 blocks in the next three games.

In the final fifth game, he grabbed the rebound that sealed the victory and lay on the ground with a bright smile.

The "Black Eight Miracle" that had never happened in the history of NBA playoffs occurred in the first year after Michael Jordan retired!
  Gary Payton sat in the post-game press conference, unable to hide his frustration. The last time he showed such an expression was the first game he met Meng Lang.

After that game, his "heart was broken" and he forced himself to be more diligent.

After this game, his "Tao heart" was broken again.

The good news is, he has a summer to heal.

When Olajuwon and Houston as a whole learned the news, they were overjoyed. They were defeated by the Sonics last year, and in recent games against them, they have won more and lost less.

What this team, which relies entirely on "Big Dream" alone, is most afraid of is this kind of "more blossoming" opponent.

Unexpectedly, the Nuggets actually helped them kill their biggest enemy in the first round.

finals……

Here I am!

The league officially announced the list of the best team of the season at this time.

The five players on the best team are: Stockton, Sprewell, Pippen, Karl Malone and Olajuwon;

Jordan's retirement coupled with Portland's ranking in seventh place in the Western Conference this season.

Position [-] suddenly seemed empty.

The second-year "Madman" has become the league's No. 21 "shooting guard" by averaging 4.9 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.2 assists and [-] steals per game.

There’s not much to say about the other few people selected for the “First Team”, they all have good reasons.

The "Best Second Team" is Shaquille O'Neal, Charles Barkley, Shawn Kemp, Meng Lang, and Kevin Johnson;
  Shaquille O'Neal was originally selected to the third team this season. The main reason was that he lost to David Robinson in the "scoring king" PK. This time he has the "scoring king", plus the Magic is second in the Eastern Conference. ranking, which allowed him to successfully squeeze out David Robinson.

Meng Lang's personal performance, as well as the total three-pointers made and the Magic's record, and of course his popularity, allowed him to successfully squeeze out "The Rock" Richmond and become the "Best Second Team" member.

The Orlando media mentioned one thing: "This is another defender since Michael Jordan who was selected to the best second team in his rookie season!"

The final results of the "Best Three Teams" are:
  David Robinson, Coleman, Wilkins, Gary Payton and Anfernee Hardaway;
  For the first time in the history of the Magic, three people were selected to the "All-NBA Team" at the same time. Although no one became the "All-NBA First Team", two "Second Teams" and one "Third Team" were enough to be called a good harvest.

Anyway, except for the Magic, other teams only selected two players in the end.

The Jazz look even better, as both of their players were selected to the "First Team."

(End of this chapter)