basketball pope

Chapter 362 [Who is the hero]

Star Weekend events are hot in Atlanta.

The Rookie Challenge went 132-112 without defense, and the sophomore won.Yao Ming played soy sauce and scored 4 points and 3 rebounds.

Warriors point guard Arenas scored 30 points to earn the MVP.As a second-year rookie, the Warriors without cap space certainly can't re-sign Arenas, who was a big fish in free agency this summer.

The Associated Press published a review entitled "Yao's Rookie Tournament is Struggle", thinking that Yao Ming was too nervous, and he didn't seem to want to shoot. He only had one dunk and one mid-range shot.

The next day, Star Weekend debuted the New Project Skills Challenge, with Nets' Kidd coming out on top.

The King's Stojakovic successfully defended his title in the three-point contest, "tying" Larry Bird's record.

The Warriors' Jason Richardson also successfully defended the dunk championship, with four deductions and three perfect points.His finishing touches are so intricate that they create a classic.He first tossed the ball from the bottom line, waited for the ball to rebound, then caught the ball with both hands in the air, gliding to the crotch near the basket to change hands, and then a backhand dunk was successful.

This buckle ranks first in NBA history, and even Carter may not be able to do it.

The Wizards' Stoudamire participated in the slam dunk contest, but as an insider, he was not good at making moves, but it was useless to jump high, and he was eliminated early without any accident.

When Jordan appeared in the All-Star game, the fans on the scene gave the most enthusiastic cheers, and the camera kept following him, which was a tribute to the king.

In this game, Jordan can break the All-Star Game scoring record held by "Skyhook" Abdul-Jabbar as long as he scores 10 more points.Before the game, his teammates expressed their willingness to help him get this honor and become the star game scoring champion.

However, after listening to Yang Rui's suggestion, Jordan focused on passing the ball in the opening game, actively cooperated with his teammates to send assists, and rebounded hard on the defensive end.

Jordan's pass-based approach was surprising and caught the West off guard.He played 7 minutes without scoring in the first quarter, only made one shot, missed his iconic fallback jumper, sent four assists and grabbed four rebounds.The Eastern Conference led 32-18 in the first quarter.

At 5 minutes and 34 seconds in the second quarter, Jordan played again, grabbed two rebounds immediately, and assisted teammate Stoudamire to score an alley-oop dunk.

With 2 minutes and 52 seconds left, Kidd launched a fast-break pass in the backcourt. Jordan finally scored the fourth shot. A change of direction passed Dirk Nowitzki and scored a pull-up jumper.

Jordan scored 2 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists at halftime. He was not in a hurry. He only needed 8 more points to break the record.

At halftime, singer Mariah Carey sang "hero" wearing Jordan's No. 23 jersey for the Bulls, and Jordan's highlights of the game were played on the big screen.The fans gave warm applause, and Jordan, who was sitting off the court, seemed to have tears in his eyes.

When Jordan took center stage, everyone stood and cheered.

Jordan thanked the fans and said choked: "Thank you to my family (in the process of divorce), thank you to my fans (almost voted into the starting lineup), you support me to play basketball all the time. Now, I hand this torch to The current player, just like I took his torch from the predecessor 'Magic' (the AIDS torch is not easy to take). Thank you for your support, I love you, I love basketball."

Jordan walked off the court and gave each player a high five in turn. This is a sign and a symbol. The love and ideals about basketball are passed down from generation to generation.

TV commentator Mike Breen called the word "hero" the best summary and commemoration of Jordan.

Stana, who was watching TV with Yang Rui, sighed: "How glorious, if only someone could sing when you retire. Songs suitable for Jordan are heroes. I don't know what is suitable for you?"

Stana is not a person with strong vanity, and was infected by the atmosphere of the star game. Jordan's fame cannot be exchanged for money.

"It is impossible for a coach to retire with this kind of treatment." Yang Rui said lazily: "Actually, 'gambler' is the best summary of Jordan. Now this guy often pulls players in the team to play poker, regardless of the opponent's salary. No matter how much, he wants to win the other party's money. Fortunately, he loses a lot."

"No one is perfect, you can't say that about the greatest player, can you?"

"He won a lot of money from me at poker."

The materialistic Taurus Stana immediately changed her tune. "Let him die."

Yang Rui said with a smile: "Anyway, I don't think the song "Hero" is suitable for him. If we can reach the Eastern Conference finals or even compete for the championship in the playoffs, I will suggest to the management to put another song on the court. It's good that a man sings it."

In the second half, Jordan played again. He quickly scored double-digit rebounds and sent two assists again. However, it was very difficult to score. Payton scored two points with only a fallback jumper.

In the game, Jordan was also blocked by Kobe Bryant and Marion. The two were as defensive as they were playing in the playoffs, and the fans booed everywhere.

Although Jordan didn't score many points, his Eastern Conference teammates played very well, leading by 11 points into the final quarter.

Jordan took a 4-minute break to play and gradually found his touch.On the first shot, he went in with a textbook fallback jumper against Bryant.

After 1 minute, Jordan caught the ball at 60 degrees on the right side and swayed, passing O'Neal and scoring a layup.

With 3 minutes and 24 seconds left, Kidd assisted and Jordan made a steady two-pointer near the left baseline, successfully setting a new record.

In the next round, Jordan dribbled the ball near the free throw arc and made a sudden pull-up jumper that was blocked by Kobe.

At the last moment, the players handed the ball to Jordan to play, but unfortunately he missed two consecutive shots.The West took the opportunity to seize the opportunity, and Nash and Stojakovic tied the score with two three-pointers.

Jordan's final buzzer-beating fadeaway ran out of time, but the ball didn't go to the rim as one had hoped.

In overtime, Jordan took a break for a while to play. The score between the two teams was always anxious. Jordan grabbed two rebounds and sent an assist.

In the last 10.8 seconds, the two sides were tied, and Jordan had the last chance to attack. This time he singled Marion in the left bottom corner with a precise fallback jumper and a perfect hollow into the net, helping the East team 137-135 Two points ahead.

There were 4 seconds left in the western offense, which was similar to Yang Rui's previous life. The ball was handed over to Kobe, who quickly advanced to the frontcourt and grabbed a three-pointer at 45 degrees on the right.

The difference is that O'Neal Jr., who fouled Kobe Bryant at the beginning, is now in the West, with Kobe Bryant. Brand's defense only raised his arms and interfered slightly without jumping.

Brand's ball intelligence is very high. Everyone knows that Kobe Bryant's three-pointers depend on convulsions, and only people like O'Neal who like to block shots will choose to take off with all their strength.

Kobe made a hurried shot, the ball went too far, the referee blew the whistle, and the game was over.

The fans cheered together, and David Stern also showed a relieved smile. Today went well, and the plot developed according to his ideas.

Jordan scored a triple-double of 14 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists, and successfully won the All-Star Game MVP. This star weekend ended successfully.

(End of this chapter)