basketball boulder

Chapter 443 Christmas Battle
In the NBA, we play giant stars.

The game between the Celtics and the Grizzlies perfectly illustrates this point.

In the last quarter, it was almost Li Lei vs. Pierce + Ray Allen.

Until the last 41 seconds, 99:100, the Grizzlies led by 1 point.

The Grizzlies still hold the ball.

But in the next second, Rondo steals Lowry again.

Lowry's head was hot, and he wanted to make up for his mistake, but sent a foul.

Shhh!
Amidst the overwhelming boos, Rondo walked to the free throw line, fell into the basket twice in the first free throw, and made a steady hit in the second free throw.

101: 100.

"What a Rondo, he has a big heart, and he is relentless at critical moments."

The Grizzlies attack.

Li Lei took the helm himself.

Pierce was swayed away by Li Lei's continuous turns, but at this moment, Perkins rushed over just right.

But Li Lei was very calm and put the ball straight to the basket.

Milicic dunks the ball.

boom!
101: 102.

The Grizzlies lead.

With only 11 seconds left, the Celtics have the final offensive round.

Pierce played a mid-range post-up single, and turned over a jumper after shaking his shoulders continuously.

Li Lei jumped up and interfered enough.

Bang!

Did not enter.

beep...

At the same time, the whistle for the end of the game sounded.

Relying on Milicic's final quasi-lore, the Grizzlies beat the Celtics 102 to 101.

李磊砍下前场最高的39分8篮板6助攻4抢断2盖帽。

Milicic contributed 21 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists and 5 blocks, which is an absolute star data.

On the contrary, Perkins, who dissed Milicic before the game, only had 6 points, 7 rebounds and 2 blocks, and was completely blown away by Milicic.

During the handshake ceremony after the game, Perkins kept his face livid, not daring to look directly at Milicic.

But this guy didn't leave directly, but chose to shake hands with Milicic, which is considered a tough guy.

Li Lei also hugged Pierce and Ray Allen respectively.

Don't look at Li Lei and Pierce talking trash all the time, they were close to a fight, as if they were life and death enemies.

But after the game, the two can sit together and chat.

"Good job today, congratulations, you won!"

Pierce hugged Li Lei and said.

Li Lei also patted Pierce on the back: "You also played tough tonight, but you just lacked some luck."

The relationship between Li Lei and Pierce is not good, but they both admire each other's strength and appreciate each other's tough guy style, so they can talk together.

Pierce finally told Li Lei quietly: "Next time you come to Boston, I will take you to the best nightclub."

Li Lei glanced at Pierce and jumped away.

Pierce asked in surprise, "What's wrong?"

Li Lei looked at Pierce and said, "The one that costs 11 dollars? I can't afford it."

Pierce: "..."

bitch!

Afterwards, Li Lei and Ray Allen embraced.

"congratulations!"

Ray Allen's words are much less than Pierce's.

But Ray Allen and Li Lei have more topics to talk about.

They are two of the best shooters in the NBA today. Both are good at running off the ball and have something in common.

The two also exchanged mobile phone numbers and made an appointment to discuss archery together.

Afterwards, Li Lei specifically found Rondo.

"Good job Rajon, keep at it and you'll make it."

Rondo was a little excited to be praised by Li Lei.

But soon, this guy vowed: "Next time, we will defeat you!"

Li Lei rolled his eyes: "..."

Another aggressive rooster, like Paul from the Hornets.

……

time flies.

In a blink of an eye, it was Christmas.

On Christmas Day last season, the Grizzlies didn't play.

But no such luck this year.

The league helped the Grizzlies arrange an opponent, an opponent who had just fought.

Los Angeles Lakers!

This is the third time in Li Lei's five-year career that he will play Christmas.

And it is worth mentioning that Li Lei's opponents in the three Christmas games are the Los Angeles Lakers.

In 04 and 05, Li Lei was still on the Miami Heat. In order to make full use of the infighting between O'Neal and Kobe, the league has always arranged for the Heat to play against the Lakers.

But this year, O'Neal left the Heat, and his performance got worse and worse. The league simply found another opponent for the Lakers.

They finally selected the Memphis Grizzlies.

Last season, Kobe and Li Lei started to compete for the scoring title, which was discussed by fans for a whole season.

In the summer, Kobe and Li Lei ate and lived together and learned from each other, which became a good talk among fans.

Now fans generally believe that Kobe is the No.1 of the Mesozoic generation of active NBA players, while Li Lei is the No.1 of the new generation. They are the two most popular superstars in the league.

Arranging them to fight will naturally attract countless eyes.

So the league played the "24vs15" gimmick early.

Unexpectedly, in the previous game, the Lakers and the Grizzlies had a big fight.

The conflict is naturally not a good thing, but now it seems that because of that conflict, the Christmas game between the Lakers and the Grizzlies can attract more attention.

Because everyone wants to know what will happen in the second game between the Lakers and the Grizzlies after a big fight.

……

Before heading to Los Angeles, Li Lei even got a call from David Stern.

"This is a Christmas game, and fans all over the world will watch it. I don't want what happened last time to happen again."

Stern warned seriously.

Li Lei was silent for a while, then slowly said: "President, do you think I am someone who likes to cause trouble? The only thing I can promise you is that as long as Garnett does not cause trouble, I will never take the initiative to cause trouble. But if that guy Keep looking, and this time I'll let him lie down and leave the arena."

Li Lei's voice was not loud, but he said every word with great firmness.

There was a long silence on the other end of the phone.

Stern was a little surprised. In the past, Li Lei had always respected him and satisfied his request unconditionally.

But this time, Li Lei expressed his opinion forcefully.

Stern was somewhat uncomfortable.

But after thinking about it, for the sake of the family, if it were me, I should have given the same answer.

Li Lei is a very easy person to get along with, but the premise is not to touch his bottom line, otherwise you will meet a Li Lei who makes you regret it.

Sure enough, people with skills have tempers!
But compared to Jordan, Li Lei is considered good.

Thinking of this, Stern let out a long breath, and then said slowly: "Don't worry, he doesn't dare!"

Stern said domineeringly.

Garnett is a giant, but as long as Stern wants to, he can hold Garnett in the water.

This is Stern's dominance.

Therefore, many people call Stern the dictator of the NBA. He has the prestige and ability that other presidents do not have.

On the other end of the phone, Li Lei suddenly changed his face: "Boss, are you coming to Los Angeles on Christmas Eve? My parents have prepared some special Chinese snacks for you, and I will bring them to you when the time comes."

Stern: "..."

Ha ha!

Just now he called him the president coldly, but now he licks his face and calls him the boss, a shameless thing, a chameleon.

However, Stern also enjoys this respect. After all, other superstars in the league don't talk to him like this. They like to fight against him like they are like [-].

Think about it, Li Lei is better.

"I'll be in Los Angeles. Say hello to your parents for me."

Stern hung up the phone after speaking.

Next, he will give Garnett a vaccination.

Speaking of which, Garnett had a hard time.

There is nothing wrong with talking trash, but there is no bottom line for attacking the opponent's family.

A large number of stars in the league have expressed dissatisfaction with this, including James, Durant, Iverson, Carter, O'Neal, Wade...

Especially James.

This time, James' attitude was particularly firm and he stood up to support Li Lei.

Then this group of stars led a large number of fans to criticize Garnett on social media.

Garnett's social media was quickly occupied, bombarded relentlessly, and finally forced to turn off the message function.

In recent days, Garnett left Los Angeles to play away games, and was sprayed everywhere he went.

Even at the Staples Center, some fans expressed dissatisfaction with Garnett.

It can be seen that the three views of the vast majority of fans are still okay, and they know right from wrong.

So during this period, in order to avoid being scolded, Garnett left after playing, did not accept any interviews, and tried to avoid appearing in any news.

……

Until a week before this Christmas battle, Garnett actually accepted TNT's invitation to participate in a live talk show.

At the beginning of the show, Garnett once again expressed his apology to Li Lei and Li Lei's family, and even bowed, looking very sincere.

"I am very sorry for the trouble I have caused to Stone and his family. I am also very sorry for the bad influence I have caused on the fans. Friends in front of the TV audience, please remember my painful lesson. Basketball is important , but life is bigger than basketball, and family is the most important part of life, so family is bigger than basketball..."

For the first half of the show, Garnett apologized sincerely.

But in the second half, when the host asked: Will this matter affect the Christmas battle?

Garnett replied decisively without hesitation: "Of course not!"

"Basketball is my job and my dream. I will go all out. No matter what happens, I will go all out to chase the victory!"

The host asked again: So what about Stone?

Garnett thought for a while: "Stone is a powerful player, he can do incredible things. Although I have deep apologies to him, when we meet next time, I will put aside all distractions and do everything What I can do is to win him. This is respect for the fans and respect for Stone!"

Moderator: Then, who do you think will be the winner of the Christmas game between the Lakers and the Grizzlies?
Garnett blurted out: Lakers!
……

In front of the TV, Carlisle and Coach Van Gundy Jr. smiled wryly: "We're in big trouble!"

Li Lei nodded.

This is Garnett!

Although he is a bit rotten, his attitude towards the game is absolutely unquestionable.

Some fans may think that after what happened before, Garnett will not be able to get tough when he meets Li Lei.

But on the contrary, because of the previous incident, Garnett will be tougher, go all out, and desperately defeat Li Lei.

Garnett, who is going all out, and Kobe, who is at his peak...

Just thinking about it made Li Lei feel a little trembling.

What a terrible opponent!

But in the deepest part of his heart, Li Lei was a little excited.

Come on, let me take on the challenge.

I want to see who can win in the end.

……

After the show was broadcast, fans' perception of Garnett has improved.

First of all, Garnett's apology is very sincere.

Secondly, Garnett's attitude towards the game is worthy of recognition.

Fans can rest assured that the Grizzlies and Lakers will definitely bring you a wonderful game.

In the week between the broadcast of the show and the Christmas game, the Lakers played three more games.

Garnett further sacrificed his data to assist Kobe and help other teammates.

Under such circumstances, the Lakers played better and better.

In the first game, the Lakers defeated the youth Hornets led by Paul and Yi Jianlian at halftime.

In the second game, the Lakers and the defending champion 76ers fought for four quarters. At the last moment, Kobe's quasi-lore and Garnett's key block defeated the 76ers.

In the third game, the Lakers even defeated the Cavaliers led by James.

三场比赛，加内特场均只拿了17.3分9.6篮板2.7助攻0.7抢断1.7盖帽。

But anyone who has watched the game knows that Garnett has a strong sense of presence, and he is more desperate on the defensive end than in the past, building a great wall of steel for the Lakers.

This also sparked discussions among fans.

"What's wrong with Garnett? Willing to assist Kobe, just don't want his own data?"

"I understand. When Garnett first came to the Lakers, he was willing to sacrifice, but he was a little uncomfortable after all. Now, he only cares about victory and doesn't care about statistics at all."

"Garnett with this mentality is simply incomprehensible! Support, defense, dirty work, tiring work...all covered!"

"Look at the current Lakers. They are simply invincible. Who else can beat them?"

……

Before coming to Los Angeles, the entire Grizzlies watched the tapes of the three games played by the Lakers, and all of them looked serious.

Just watching the video, they felt the progress of the Lakers.

Garnett's sacrifice allowed the Lakers to integrate quickly.

Kobe and Garnett are getting better and better.

And they also traded a defensive third position, Trevor Ariza, which made the Lakers lineup more perfect and powerful...

"We're in big trouble!"

Coach Carlisle said so for the second time.

……

Before Christmas, Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley gave the team a gift, custom-made high-end suits.

As the boss of the team, Li Lei naturally had to express himself. He held a party at his apartment in Memphis to connect with his teammates.

After that, the Grizzlies officially went to Los Angeles to challenge the invincible Lakers in the eyes of fans.

This time, General Manager Jerry West led the team himself.

(End of this chapter)