Legendary star

Chapter 24 The Opponent of Life (1)

On December 1999, 12, the Spurs will face one of the most important opponents of the season, the Toronto Raptors. The Raptors are a new army in the NBA. Both are the biggest favorites for the No. 5 pick, but after the team selected Vince Carter last year, everything changed. Carter, who was in the rookie game last year, almost brought the team into the playoffs. In his junior year, Carter played an All-Star stat of 25+5+4, and Tracy McGrady, another swingman of the team, has also made great progress. The Raptors are currently 11 wins and 5 losses. record, temporarily ranked second in the Eastern Conference, and the Spurs also ranked second in the Western Conference with a record of 15 wins and 3 losses. Then they will overwhelm the Lakers in terms of record and reach the top of the league, and if the Raptors can beat the Spurs, they will also become the top of the Eastern Conference, so this game is a crucial game for both teams.

When the entire Spurs team walked into the Raptors' home court and the visiting team's locker room at the Air Canada Center Stadium, the whole team still seemed very relaxed. Only Duncan had a face paralyzed for thousands of years, and Meng Xu was a little nervous. Nervous, or excited, because Meng Xu can't wait to go to the field to compete.

"I think everyone understands the importance of this game. In order to be able to kick the damn Los Angeles off our heads, I also hope that you can play [-] points." The head coach of the Spurs is also in the locker room Li sat up for the pre-match mobilization.

"The starting players of the Toronto Raptors and San Antonio have entered the field to warm up. The most watched game of this round is about to begin. It can be seen that Tim Duncan and Vince Carter are in good condition. I hope the two teams can be worthy. Expensive ticket money today," the narrator Michaels also jokingly said, the home stadium of the Toronto Raptors, as a stadium that can accommodate 19800 people, rarely can be full, but the ticket price for this game has increased , and the increase is as high as 50%. Even so, it is hard to find a ticket. Under the leadership of Vince Carter this season, the Raptors not only played a pleasing game, but the team's results are also very good. Transformed into a powerhouse in the East, with excellent results and beautiful play, so this year's Raptors' ticket sales are also extremely hot.

"The Spurs are the best defensive team this season, conceding only 81 points per game, while the Raptors are one of the best offensive teams this season, currently averaging 101 points per game, ranking fifth in the league. This game is also a duel of spear and shield." Another commentator on the field said.

"Yes, the Spurs this season is simply shocking. David Robinson is one year older, and his statistics have also declined sharply, but he can still make enough contributions to the Spurs on the defensive end. This year, Tim In Duncan's third season, this season's Tim Duncan also played MVP-level data. As of this game, he averaged 3 points, 25 rebounds, 13.5 assists, and 3.7 blocks per game. This season's MVP selection, I will vote for Duncan first. What is even more shocking is that the Chinese who was selected by the Spurs this season with the 2.9th overall pick can contribute an astonishing 29 steals and 15 in 3.7 minutes per game. blocks, ranking first in the league in steals, leading No.1.2 Allen Iverson by a full steal. He is likely to become the third single season in the league after Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen A perimeter player who has completed 2+ steals and 1+ blocks."

"Oh, El, it can be seen that you admire this Chinese kid from the Spurs very much. You have praised him more than once on live TV. I think the audience friends in front of the TV are a little tired of listening to it."

"Yes, I admire him very much. If his offensive ability can be better, he will be a very great player, a player who can change the NBA pattern."

"Okay, El, put away your compliments. Although that Chinese kid is very good at defense and handsome, that's not why you like him so much."

"Oh, Mike, you always don't believe me." Michaels shrugged helplessly: "Okay, the game is about to start, let's watch the game first."

"In this game, the Raptors also made a lot of changes. Vince Carter appeared at the shooting guard position, and the team's sixth man, Tracy McGrady, started for the first time this season. , Tracy's performance this season is very good. He can contribute 25 points and 16 rebounds in 6 minutes of playing time. Dee Brown is still the starting point guard, and the team's two insiders are Charles Oakley and Antonio Davis. These two players are undersized but have a good mid-range shot. Players, the Raptors' tactics in this game are very clear, and they still have to focus on the outside. The starting lineup of the Spurs has basically not changed. It is still center David Robinson, power forward Tim Duncan, and small forward Chucky Brown. Guard Mario Eli, point guard Avery Johnson."

When the warm-up of the two teams was over and they were about to jump the ball, Michaels also said the starting lineups of the two teams again. The Spurs' lineup tactics did not change much, while the Raptors made a lot of changes. , the team's main center, Kevin Willis, sat on the bench in this game. Antonio Davis replaced him. He is a player who is only a small forward but often appears in the center position. His The height and strength are not outstanding, but they have good mobility and excellent shooting ability, and the team's sixth man Tracy McGrady also started in place of Doug Christie.Such an arrangement basically means that Raptors head coach Butch Carter will give up the competition with the Spurs for the interior in this game.

"The game has officially started." After Michaels introduced the starting lineups of both sides, another commentator also announced that the game has officially started.

There is no suspense about the jump ball in this game. Although David Robinson is 36 years old, facing a player who is 10 centimeters shorter than himself, plus David Robinson's 10 years of jump ball experience, It also easily defeated Antonio Davis and won the first wave of possession for the Spurs.

(End of this chapter)