The Legend of the Hungry Wolf in Basketball

Chapter 205 [Victory requires the whole, the champion needs teammates]

The Rockets have won two consecutive home games and lead 2-0 on aggregate.

It is difficult for the Magic to play against a team that has lost too many times before, and the Rockets have the psychological advantage.Competition experience sometimes plays a role, but both sides entered the finals for the first time after 14 years, and neither has the advantage of experience, so the overall strength plays a decisive role.

On June 6, Barklick summed up the reasons for the Magic's defeat in the first two games of the finals-the substitute was too poor!
The starting player Magic had a slight advantage. Lewis and Turkoglu showed their prowess in the second game, leading by 12 points in the first half, but they were reversed in the second half.Howard and Lewis went off the court, and the substitutes DeAndre Jordan and Tony Batty were unqualified, and the inside line was completely blown by the combination of Rockets Krstic and Garlandry.

Kostic is a typical European center forward, with exquisite skills, excellent mid-range shooting, good assist ability, and considerable low post singles ability.On the defensive end, he is limited by his physical fitness and his performance is average, but he is good at playing with his brain, and he is still passable.If it wasn't for Yao Ming, he could have played as the starting center in other teams, averaging 18 points and [-] rebounds in [-] minutes per game.This statistic is very inconspicuous, but it is more than enough to deal with the first-year rookie Jordan.

Scola returned to the starting lineup for the second game.Landry is more suitable for coming off the bench. He can also bully the slow-moving Tony Batty with his explosive power.

In addition, Alston, who was supposed to transfer to the Magic, stayed in the Rockets, which is the key to the victory. He returned to the starting lineup and let Brooks, who was a bit rough in passing Yao Ming, grab points from the bench. Veteran Anthony Johnson couldn't keep up with Brooks' speed. Miserably blown up.

Nelson didn't have a suitable substitute, and he couldn't stand against Brooks and Alstom alone.It was an accident that he was selected as an All-Star this season. He is actually a role player, not much better than Brooks.

On June 6, at home in Orlando, the Magic finally showed their morale, winning two games in a row and tying the total score to 10-2.

The Magic also has its own characteristics. It is a team with strong defense and a strong inside line. These are two characteristics that the Rockets are afraid of, which determines that the Magic is not completely inferior in terms of combat power.In these two games, the Magic accelerated their offensive and defensive transitions, grabbing backboards and launching a fast break just like the Clippers played against the Lakers.This is the tactic that Yao Ming fears the most. If he does not return to defense in time, the low-post defense will not be able to play a role, and he will run back and forth.

In the fourth game, Howard made 18 of 16 free throws, and the Magic bloodbathed the Rockets with 17 points. The Magic gradually regained their status, and the Rockets fell into inexplicable panic. At this time, people felt that the Magic had hope of winning.

In the fifth battle of Tianwang Mountain, the scene 14 years ago seemed to be repeated.

In Game 1995 of the 75.5 Finals, Magic pitcher Nick Anderson missed all four free throws, allowing Olajuwon and his partners to win the championship for the second consecutive year.For the Magic, it only took one free throw to win the first game, but Anderson, who made [-]% of his free throws this season, and Anderson, who can theoretically score at least three of four free throws, didn't even make a free throw!Then Kenny Smith's desperate three-pointer and the morale comparison between the two sides in overtime made the Houstonians have the last laugh.

In the game on June 6, the two sides remained deadlocked until the last minute, and the Magic still led by one point. At the critical moment, Howard made 15 of 1 shots.The Rockets first made a low-post fantasy layup to overtake the score, and then Artest made a desperate three-pointer.

After winning the battle of Tianwangshan, the morale of the Rockets team was greatly boosted. They returned to Houston and did not give the Magic another chance. They won the sixth game 105 to 91 cleanly.As a result, they won the championship with a total score of 4 to 2.

In this series, the Magic's five starting players averaged more than 40 minutes per game. By the sixth game, their physical strength was already at a disadvantage.

霍华德场均42分钟，得到21分11.5篮板1.7助攻1.5抢断3盖帽，投篮命中率57%。

Yao Ming averaged 33 minutes per game, 17.5 points, 8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 blocks, shooting only 46% from the field, 4 fouls and 3 turnovers.Too many fouls are the reason why he can't stay on the court for too much time.

Comparing the core data of the two teams, Yao Ming lost. He is indeed not a great leader who can both attack and defend.Throughout his career, Yao Ming’s field goal percentage, free throw percentage, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocked shots in the playoffs were all lower than his performance in the regular season. Even the Chinese media admitted that the Rockets mainly won on the bench. depth.

The depth of the Magic bench is poor. Lewis, who averaged 17 points and 5 rebounds in the series and shot 43% from the field, is the culprit. He is the worst Mr. Billionaire.

Yao Ming's data is not very beautiful, but the overall MVP trophy is awarded to the winner.The scoring data of the Rockets' players is very average. Yao Ming's scoring, rebounding, and blocks are all the first in the Rockets.

The ESPN commentator is Van Gundy and Joan Barry, who have friendship with Yao Ming and think that Yao Ming deserves the MVP.

But TN*T's Barkley is Yao Hei, his commentary style has always been biased, and he expressed serious dissatisfaction with the selection of MVP. "Yao Ming is too soft, he doesn't take many shots, and he has less playing time among the starters. He has to learn to yell at his teammates, direct them to pass the ball to him, and stand up and score at critical moments. Artest He played tougher in the final, just look at Turkoglu's depressed expression."

What Barkley said makes sense. Artest averaged 42 minutes per game, 16.7 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals. His shooting percentage was only 40%. The efficiency is not high, but he did defend Turkoglu very hard. , the Turks dropped to 13 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists.

Artest came to the Rockets in his first year. Although he brought iron and blood to the team, people would not say that he is the leader of the Rockets. The MVP selection should consider the player's status in the team, not just the role of a series. In 2005, Duncan robbed Ginobili of an MVP.The Spurs were able to defeat the Pistons because of Ginobili's breakthrough. Duncan couldn't get too much money under the defense of the Twin Towers, but there is no doubt that Duncan is the boss and the spiritual leader of the Spurs, so he can win the award.

Yao Ming finally has personal honor, and there are tears in his laughter, and sweetness in his bitterness.Facing the interviewing reporters, he said excitedly: "I would like to thank the coach and my teammates. This is a great moment. It may be the happiest day in my life. The happiest day. I have never had such It feels like, now I'm speechless."

All the Rockets players and coaching staff are very happy, Toyota Center has become a sea of ​​joy, but the real "unspeakable" person is Dikembe Mutombo who joined the Clippers. As soon as the finals ended, he gave Ye Feng an international call. Long-distance, shouted on the phone: "Boy, you owe me a championship ring! You have to win it back for me next season!"

Ye Feng: "..."

On June 6th, Ye Feng and Ariel returned to Los Angeles after their European tour.Next, they will discuss with Thibodeau about the trade and the draft.The annual draft is about to start again.

The lottery has already ended, the Warriors failed to draw the top three, and finally ranked seventh.The No. 7 pick was won by the Memphis Grizzlies, the Eagles were lucky enough to get the No. [-] pick, and the Thunder got the No. [-] pick. The Kings, with the worst record in the league, still let Chris Webber, the bad guy, to draw the lottery, ranking fourth just like in history.

The seventh pick is not high enough, and it is enough for the Clippers to select a good player.At present, the Clippers have a lot of insiders, and this pick must be a guard.It is difficult for rookie point guards to control the rhythm, so the Clippers need a veteran who can control the rhythm, otherwise next season, they are likely to fall in the same place.

On the 19th, Ye Feng, Ariel and the coaching staff held a meeting in the manager's office to discuss matters related to the transaction.

Thibodeau said: "We already have a candidate in the free market this year, Jason Kidd. He is now a completely free agent. The Mavericks will definitely give him a big contract. If the contract used to dig him is too big, considering his age , It’s too risky. I’m only going to give him a contract similar to that of the Mavericks. The trading market is about to open, we must prepare as soon as possible, Ye, you have a good relationship with him, you can call him directly to explore Whether his tone of voice can succeed depends on you."

There is no need to say more about how awesome Kidd is. He is one of Thibodeau's favorite players. He plays steadily, can fast break, and can also land. He has been in the league's best defensive team for many years and has rich experience.The shooting percentage is not high, but the three-pointers can be kept at about 40%, and the shots are mainly from the outside, which will not take up the right to shoot.To say that a veteran is selected as a point guard, Kidd is indeed more suitable than Nash.If Kidd comes, the Clippers don't have to think about chasing Nash next year.

Last season, Kidd's data was 9.0 points, 5.2 rebounds and 8.7 assists. With his help, the Mavericks won 50 wins and ranked seventh in the West, but they were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.Age is Kidd's main enemy. As he grows older, his physical strength and speed are not as good as they were then, but the rationality and accuracy of distributing the ball remains the same.What's more, through hard training, his shooting ability has also improved significantly, and he has experience in the finals, he will bring great help to the team on both ends of the offense and defense.As a top organizer, he can make other players on the team have a qualitative leap.
Of course Ye Feng agrees to such a deal, very much.As long as Kidd is willing to come, the Clippers' No. 1 position will become a strong point, and the young guards can learn from Kidd to organize.

On July 7, with the opening of the free agent market, many teams will be able to start contacting and negotiating with free agents. Kidd will undoubtedly be one of the goals of many managers who need to strengthen the team.It is expected that several teams including the Trail Blazers, Celtics, Knicks, Cavaliers, and Lakers will chase Kidd in the summer.The biggest advantage of the Clippers is that they have enough salary space and the lineup is also attractive.

Obviously they can't meet each other, but Ye Feng called Kidd as a friend, and the alliance can't stop it.

(End of this chapter)