God's hand behind the scenes

Chapter 420

The seven-game streak is just an episode of the regular season for the Pistons, and they still have more games to play.Under the guidance of Brown and Chang Wei, this grassroots team gradually completed its transformation and became a top defensive team that everyone feared in the league. No team dared to say that they would be able to win win the next game.

However, this year's Christmas game does not have the Pistons' share. The three games arranged by the league are 76ers VS Spurs, Lakers VS Kings and Raptors VS Nets. The Pistons became the only team in the Eastern Conference that did not participate in the Christmas game.Of course, there is also a team in the top four in the Western Conference that shares their pity, that is Cuban's Dallas Mavericks, but compared to the dull game style of the Pistons, the Mavericks with the troika of Nowitzki, Nash and Finley as the core Undoubtedly much better.

For not being able to participate in the Christmas game, the entire Pistons team did not feel any regrets. They have always been a low-key team with almost no sense of presence, and it is difficult for neutral fans to pursue a style of defense and physical confrontation. Like it, not being arranged by the league to participate in the Christmas game is almost predictable.You must know that the Pistons have not had many national live broadcasts this season, at least not worthy of their second place in the Eastern Conference. This is also the adverse effect of their style of play.

But no one complained about not being able to show their faces in front of the national audience. The Christmas game is just a regular season with a little special in the final analysis. If you win, it will not add two victories to you, and if you lose, it will not equal two losses. In this case, what is the difference between it and the ordinary regular season?Pistons players are more concerned about whether they can continue to maintain the second position in the Eastern Conference.

However, sometimes luck can't stop it. The 76ers lost to the more seasoned Spurs at home without any accident. The lead over the Pistons is only one game left. The latter only needs to work harder. After a while, there is every hope that they will surpass their opponents and become the number one in the Eastern Conference.Of course, this game made fans across the country know a No. 1 with fluttering hair and a weird style of play. Ginobili scored 20 points and 18 assists as a substitute. His European step layup caught Dalembert I did my best.

Among all the insiders who followed this game, only Chang Wei knew what kind of height this Argentine young man would grow to.He will be an important guarantee for the Spurs' enduring, the super sixth man in the GDP combination, the spiritual leader and benchmark of all Argentine players, and he will also get a famous nickname-Demon Sword!

After the Christmas game, the 2003 Atlanta All-Stars began to enter the voting stage. This is another project that seems to have nothing to do with the Pistons.In a sense, the All-Star is an exhibition game that gathers many top stars in the league. The more famous you are, the more gorgeous your style of play, and the more fans you support, the easier it is to be selected.The Pistons' players basically have no advantage in this regard, and they have already regarded the All-Star Weekend as an extra holiday.

However, after the results of the first round of voting came out, the entire league took a deep breath. They even thought that there was something wrong with the official statistics, because the first center in the Eastern Conference was the Pistons' starting center Ben Hua. Lace!
More importantly, his lead is very clear.What?You say this is because there are no outstanding centers in the East?In addition to the West, Daben’s votes in the first round are second only to Yao Ming with all the Chinese standing behind him, and Shaquille O’Neal, the current No. [-] center in the league. Moreover, he and O’Neal’s votes are quite close, only a few thousand votes behind their opponents.

When a local reporter in Detroit called Da Ben's cell phone, he thought someone was joking with him, but after the league announced the results of the first round of voting, Ben was stunned.In fact, not only him, but the entire Pistons team felt incredible. When will their completely unfancy style of play be able to attract fans?Although only Daben is on the list, he represents the entire Pistons team, and even means the fans' recognition of the overall style of the Pistons!

Chang Wei didn't feel anything special, but Brown was moved to tears.In fact, when he left the 76ers and chose to coach the Pistons, many people questioned his level, especially when he turned the Pistons into a purely defensive team, such doubts reached their peak.Sometimes Brown doubts himself. He doesn't know whether the path he insists on is correct. Is it really necessary to turn the Pistons into an offensive team like he did in Philadelphia?

But now that Big Ben occupies the first position in the Eastern Conference center in the first round of the All-Star voting, he can fight back against others with his head held high. Although it is rare to rely on defense to build a team, it does not mean that it cannot be successful.Judging from the current lead, Big Ben's selection to the Eastern Conference All-Star starting lineup this year is basically a certainty, which also gives Brown more confidence.

What makes Brown excited is that in the second round of the All-Star voting, there is still no other Eastern center that can catch up with Big Ben's votes, and the gap between him and No.2 Ilgauskas is getting bigger and bigger. bigger.Such a situation naturally caused a burst of exclamation from the media. They did not expect that Daben could continue to occupy the first place in the Eastern Conference center, but most of their writing focused on the current situation where the west is strong and the east is weak. Like Big Ben as a pure defensive player?

For their reports, Brown scoffed, in his view, Big Ben's selection represents the victory of defensive basketball.Seeing his radiant face every day, Chang Wei was a little dumbfounded. In fact, only a purely defensive center like Da Ben could be useful in this era. Ten years later, it would be difficult for the same type of players to make a living in the league. .

But ten years is still a long time away, so it's better to focus on the present.Putting aside the viewing point of view, Daben is actually well-deserved to be selected as an All-Star. His strength in protecting the frame is not comparable to that of other centers in the league. At the same time, he is also the core of the Pistons' defensive system. The ability is average, but the defense is absolutely no problem.

As Chang Wei expected, Daben was not squeezed out by other centers until the final voting results were released, and he also became the starting center in the Eastern Conference in the 2003 All-Star Game.Such a result made many people in the circle sigh with emotion. They all thought that this year's All-Stars were quite weird. A blue-collar player was mixed into the main game, which is known for its flamboyance and entertainment. Is there anything more weird than this?
(End of this chapter)