NBA opening draw to twilight Shaquille O'Neal

Chapter 567 Can it bring back a miracle?

王泽林上场33分钟，第四节只打了半节，全场下来22投14中，罚球8中6，拿下34分16板3助攻3盖帽2失误4犯规。

Rose's efficiency in this game was also very high. He hit 24 goals in 14 shots, made 3 of 3 free throws and scored a season-high 31 points, plus 5 assists, 3 rebounds and 1 steal.Considering that he is an outsider and can have such a high efficiency, it can be seen how hot he is in tonight.

But the Bulls still lost to the Trail Blazers!
这场打完，能被人们铭记于心的，只有拿到34分16板三助攻三盖帽的王泽林，力压拿到31分5助攻3板1抢断的罗斯！
Winner takes all has always been the only rule in the basketball world!
……

……

The previous theory is the theory. When the Trail Blazers defeated the Bulls and continued to maintain an undefeated record this season, it once again shocked the media's attention.

Before the season, the media was generally not very optimistic about the Trail Blazers' title defense this season. Taking the championship experience as an example, although it ranked first in the major media lists, it was not much higher than the Cavaliers behind it.

You know, they are the defending champions!
The Cavaliers are a team that has never won a championship in the history of the team. The reason why the probability of winning the championship can be ranked so high by the major authoritative media lists without a game is that James is the biggest reason besides the gathering of the Big Three.

But now, they have raised the Blazers' chances of winning the championship one after another, and the increase is not small. Even ESPN, which is the most demanding for the Trail Blazers, has raised it to 52%, breaking through 5% for the first time, which is 40 percentage points higher than the previous 8%.

At the same time, fortunately, the Cavaliers and Thunder behind the Trail Blazers have changed their chances of winning the championship. The Cavaliers dropped to 37%, while the Thunder rose to 29%.

In this regard, ESPN's official explanation is:

The Trail Blazers are creating a new history that belongs to themselves as well as the entire NBA. Every subsequent victory will push this record forward. The Trail Blazers at this stage are worthy of awe by all teams;

The Cavaliers lineup still has a lot of flaws, and the Big Three still need a certain period of running-in period, but overall, they are still one of the strong contenders for the championship in the new season;

Although the current record of the Thunder team was mediocre due to lack of personnel at the beginning of the game, with the successive comebacks of KD and Russell, we can clearly feel that the Thunder team still has the hope of hitting the championship!

12 month 13 day.

Waking up early in the morning, the Trail Blazers immediately boarded a chartered flight to Indiana.

Today, their opponent is the Pacers, and it is also the last stop of this wave of 5 consecutive away games.

To be honest, tonight's game is destined to be difficult, not because of how strong the Pacers are, but because this is a back-to-back battle after consecutive away games...

During the pre-match training, a piece of bad news came. Batum's knee was found to be problematic and he will be recuperating for two weeks.

Everything came so unexpectedly, and another main player was injured and fell down, which made the Trail Blazers decline again.

Hey!
This damn injury!

Batum's injury made Coach Terry sound the alarm in an instant, quickly stopped the pre-match training that was already of average intensity, and then held an emergency meeting.

At the meeting, Coach Terry glanced at everyone and went straight to the point: "Boys, our winning streak is long enough, so, I think...it's time to end it."

As soon as these words came out, everyone's expressions changed.

They understood the original intention of Coach Terry's words. The degree of victory at the beginning of the season exceeded the expectations of the outside media and fans, and also exceeded the expectations set by the Trail Blazers at the beginning of the season.

Everything feels like a dream right now, which always makes people feel unreal.But this happens to be true, which makes people feel more cherished and unwilling to let go.

There was a long silence in the meeting room, and Coach Terry continued: "I understand how cruel and ruthless it is to bury this great honor with my own hands, and my heart is also bleeding. But please also remember that our biggest goal this season is to defend the title. Now it is just the regular season. We don't need to spend too much time and energy on the process. This has seriously affected the fruitful stage of the playoffs.

Next, the team can no longer be injured, you guys, can you understand what I mean? "

The last sentence made the atmosphere of the scene more solemn, so that no one dared to continue the conversation.

There was another long period of silence. This time the reasoning coach looked at Wang Zelin who was sitting on the left, got up and walked over, put one hand on Wang Zelin's shoulder, stared at him, and said:

"Wang, team leader, tell me what you think!"

Wang Zelin nodded, and as he got up together, everyone's eyes turned on him. Facing the surrounding eyes, he showed a confident smile familiar to all his teammates.

"Coach, I know what you are worried about, but I'm sorry, I can't agree to your request this time. Tonight, I will continue to play!"

He didn't say why he had to play, but both coach Terry and his teammates understood his choice.

"..." Now it was Coach Terry's turn to be silent, but unexpectedly, he didn't try to persuade him anymore, but forced a smile with difficulty, "I still don't understand you, kid? It's not easy for you and Damien to give up tonight's game."

"coach……"

"coach!"

The voices of Wang Zelin and Lillard sounded at the same time.

"Well, you must protect yourself."

Coach Terry interrupted the words of the two, and then made arrangements for tonight's game.

First of all, it is Wang Zelin and Lillard who continue to start tonight.

After some consideration, the coaching staff made a choice to let Connet Lee, Will Barton, and Jokic take the second, third, and fourth positions respectively.

After the meeting, the news of Batum's injury spread quickly, and everyone outside began to pay attention to this game that was originally considered to be without suspense.

With three main players missing, it is entirely possible for the Pacers to win the Trail Blazers in an upset.

The Pacers are arguably the happiest, and the more the Blazers get weaker, the better their chances of ending the Blazers' winning streak.

That is unprecedented, and there is a high probability that there will be no one to start the 23-game winning streak!

Roy Hibbert is also very excited. He has never won against the Blazers since he met No. 36. After the Blazers won the championship last year, he has been envious of the opponent's ability to stay in that environment. This summer, the introduction of Morrow and Carter has greatly increased the thickness of the bench, and the defense is expected.

On the other hand, the Pacers, who once dominated the league's starting five, the core figure Paul George suffered a calf fracture in the summer, and the return date is uncertain;

The starting point guard, George Hill, has been playing intermittently due to injury and will not be able to play tonight.

Lance Stephenson was directly traded by the management;

Right now, David West and himself are the only ones left to keep warm. Since the Pacers' record in the new season has been all the way to the bottom of the Eastern Conference, the two have been scolded all the time.

Now that the Blazers have injured three people, Roy Hibbert and David West actually have an urge to look up to the sky and laugh.

Jealousy separates hostage walls...

In the evening, the Pacers at home ushered in the Blazers.

Before this battle, the Pacers had a record of 7 wins and 16 losses, firmly at the bottom of the Eastern Conference, basically hopeless for the playoffs, and their opponent was the Trail Blazers, who had 23 wins in 23 games and were hard to find.

When the live shots were shown to the players of both sides, they discovered a very strange scene.The Pacers team, which is at the bottom of the Eastern Conference, is all smiling. On the other hand, the Trail Blazers team, which is the best record in the league, has an extremely dignified expression on their faces.

In front of the Pacers bench.

Hibbert looked at the back of No. 36 on the opposite side with disdain: Huh, you can enjoy yourself before the game starts, and see if I don't beat you to pieces later.

Hibbert was instantly excited when he thought that after defeating the Pacers tonight, he would most likely bear the title of "Wang Zelin Terminator" on his head.

Sadly, it turns out that in Hibbert's subconscious mind, he no longer regards himself as a player of the same level as Wang Zelin.

"Brothers, blast the opponent!"

The walkers roared with joy.

The generals of the pioneers on the opposite side have always been on the sidelines, standing still and watching this scene.

"Hey, Wang and the others... Are they ready to give up on themselves?"

A Blazers fan who arrived at the scene said unwillingly.

"Actually, we can't blame them, this wave of injuries is too ruthless!"

Another fan next to him, also wearing Wang Zelin's jersey, shook his head and sighed.

"Ugh……"

The two looked at each other, saw each other's sorrow, and sighed at the same time.

Then again, in fact, the Trail Blazers' 23-game winning streak at the start is amazing enough, not to mention that they are already ranked third in the NBA's history of the best winning streak in a single season, which is better than the Lakers' 33-game winning streak and the Heat's 27-game winning streak.
As we all know, no matter how strong the team is, the players need to go through a period of re-running at the beginning of the new season. Only in this way can the team's problems be discovered as soon as possible and then improved.

But the Trail Blazers...

It can only be said that the surprises that Wang Zelin and the others brought to the world in the new season are so great that they are now facing a backlash, leading to a wave of injuries relentlessly.

Before the game, the two sides announced the starting lineup.

Pacers: CJ Watson, Rodney Stuckey, Solomon Hill, David West, Roy Hibbert
Trail Blazers: Lillard, Connet Lee, Will Barton, Jokic, Wang Zelin.

The match was broadcast live on TNT, at which point Kenny Smith turned his head and asked, "Charles, who do you think is more likely to win tonight?"

"Haha!" Barkley laughed, and then said: "I support the Trail Blazers with both hands and feet to win!"

"Oh, did you just connect to the Internet? Didn't you hear the news that Nicolas Batum was injured before the game?"

Kenny Smith looked surprised.

"Huh!" Barkley squinted proudly at Smith, and said again: "Kenny, although I have always envied the two championship rings in your hand, but with all due respect, it is difficult to understand what kind of terrifying energy is in the body of an MVP who is in his prime when he has reached the height of his player career!"

"king?"

Kenny Smith looked suspiciously at No. 36 of the Trail Blazers on the field.

"That's right!" Barkley nodded with great certainty,

"So what if LaMarcus is injured? So what if Matthews is injured? So what if Batum is injured?

For an MVP player, unless he completely loses his ability to fight, as long as he is given a stage, he can bring back a miracle to all those who support him! "

"A miracle?"

Kenneth Smith originally didn't report anything to the Blazers to win tonight, but when he finished listening to Barkley's words, his expression was instantly moved, and his original firm attitude began to waver a little.

For some reason, Kenneth Smith's mind suddenly flashed the figure of "Big Dream" Olajuwon who led the Mosaic team to win the championship in the 93-94 season.

If it is said that MVP needs to have a clear definition, then in Kenny Smith’s heart, there will always be only one MVP candidate, and that person is not the "God of Basketball" Michael Jordan, but the "big dream" Olajuwon of the 93-94 season.

Barkley said that he didn't understand the terrifying energy contained in the MVP body. This sentence is actually wrong, because he has seen the real MVP a long time ago.The reason why he didn't refute it was just because in his subconscious mind, the Wang Zelin in front of him would never be as good as the former team member Dameng.

Give you a stage, can it really bring back a miracle?

Not only Kenny Smith in the commentary booth, but also the fans who heard the two talking in front of the TV, could not help but consciously focus on No. 36 on the field, and the same question appeared in their minds.

(End of this chapter)