basketball kingdom

Chapter 518 Interview
ESPN's video processor edited and shaped the promotional video of the Western Conference Finals and posted it on the website platform to create momentum for the upcoming game.

Xu Tian had too many highlight moments in the first round and semi-final series, accounting for more than half of the time.

Xu Tian didn't have the habit of contacting the media. Naturally, he didn't know that the outside world had already praised him as the number one star in the playoffs this season. He was still buried in the training hall and continued to improve.He knows what he wants most, and he never wavers.

Due to Xu Tian's explosive performance in the first two rounds, he attracted more reporters than ever before to come to Oakland for interviews.This unexpected situation made the Lakers players quite uncomfortable.

Xu Tian was in a calm state of mind and was not affected by external factors to a very low degree.He knows that while gaining wealth and fame, these often follow and must be accepted, so he can maintain a stable mind.

Boss Jin entrusted the business to his wife, Anne King, and flew to Auckland.He loves the Lakers very much, and he doesn't want to miss another trip to the Western Conference Finals after six years.

The Warriors don't have many tactics to hide, and open the training hall so that media reporters can interview the players.

Steve Kerr was the first person to be interviewed. He talked about some of his views on the Lakers and also explained the adjustments he might make.He believes that Xu Tian is already a superstar and may adopt a different strategy from the Rockets and Spurs.

Curry is the head star of the Warriors, so naturally he was also asked about his judgment on this round of the series.He answered very cautiously, saying that both sides are on the same level, and anyone can win this round of the series.

Mike Breen, Stan Van Gundy and Mark Jackson also flew from San Antonio to Oakland. The three talked a lot during the trip, and most of them thought that this round of the series might be a long-lost offensive battle.After all, Xu Tian has basically no way to limit, and the Warriors do not have a top perimeter defensive gate, which makes it unrealistic for them to imagine defense like the Rockets and Spurs.

Magic Johnson was not keen on the position of president of basketball operations, handed over the job to Pelinka, and came to Oakland to support the team.

ESPN has communicated with the team for a long time, and got a short opportunity to interview Xu Tian, ​​and the special commentator McGrady conducted a private interview with Xu Tian.

McGrady was wearing a black suit. He high-fived Xu Tian first, then pulled two chairs over and sat face to face for the interview process.

Xu Tian was very relaxed and his expression was calm.

McGrady took out a piece of folded A4 paper with many prepared questions written on it, and said with a smile, "Xu, where do we start?"

Xu Tian said: "You can start anywhere, I may have some time."

"Let's start with last summer!"

"No problem." Xu Tian didn't expect McGrady to start asking from here, but he still expressed his support.

"I have read your story. You are not part of the system, so there was no obstacle when you came to the United States. How did you feel when you came to the United States alone?"

Xu Tian looked at the floor, recalled the scene of last summer, and said: "I was a little confused at the time, and I also had a lot of doubts. At that time, I was very rebellious and didn't want to stick to the rules, but I didn't have the strength to match it. In short, it was very contradictory. When the media smeared me, I felt that my dream of playing in the NBA might be shattered, but I should thank Yao Ming. It was through his performance that people all over the world saw that people of yellow race can also play in the NBA. Perhaps because of this, I was selected by the Rockets. "

McGrady said: "In this case, why don't you want to stay in the Rockets, but are sent to the Lakers because of infighting?"

"I have been a core player in the team since I was a child. In the Rockets, James Harden controlled the ball. It was difficult for me to get enough opportunities. Although I can also play off the ball, it is not for others to be the second master. .” Xu Tian did not shy away from expressing his thoughts at the time.

"Aren't you afraid that all teams are afraid to recruit you? If that's the case, you may lose your chance to play in the NBA."

Xu Tian said: "At that time, the Rockets' locker room was already in chaos. Even if I continued to stay, there would be no good results. Therefore, Moreken traded me out, which was a good result for both parties."

McGrady knew Xu Tian's thoughts for a long time, but he wanted to ask again in front of the camera, and then asked: "Xu, you won the regular season MVP in your rookie season, which is a great achievement. What do you think of this honor?"

"This honor just gives me the capital to fight back when I face doubts. When they say, 'Hey, man! I said that Xu is not a superstar.', I can say loudly that I am the MVP. Other than that , doesn’t seem to have too much feeling.”

"When do you think it will make you really excited?"

"I think it may be a championship, or it may be a step further, because I have never reached it, so I am not sure if I will feel satisfied by then."

"No." A smile appeared on McGrady's face.

Xu Tian was a little puzzled: "Why?"

"Because you're in the same category as Kobe, you're so obsessed with winning and greatness. I think the kind of comment that would make you happy would be, 'Look, he's got the physicality right there, he couldn't have done better'. "

"You mean, when I look back at my career and have no regrets, I might be truly happy?"

McGrady nodded, but didn't speak, because he didn't know whether Xu Tian would have regrets in his career.After a while, he continued to ask: "You probably haven't seen the outside world's evaluation of your playoffs. They said that you are a big-time star no less than Michael Jordan. What do you think of this evaluation?"

"Maybe it's to thank them for their recognition of me. To be honest, I never thought they would judge me like this."

McGrady smiled and said, "Maybe it's because your performance in the playoffs was too strong. They thought you had reached your limit in the regular season, but you seem to have soared again."

"I just play on the court and try my best to help the team win. As for whether my level has improved, I don't know." Xu Tian really didn't have a very intuitive feeling.

McGrady said: "As a bystander, I can tell you very clearly that you have entered the next level, and you are far stronger than the beginning of the regular season."

Xu Tian didn't know how to define strength, so he didn't answer.

McGrady's next question was much easier, and the two chatted about their prospects for the Western Conference Finals.

When the camera lens was closed, McGrady said: "You are taller than the Splash Brothers. Use your height advantage to defeat them." After speaking, he stretched out his right hand.

Xu Tian and Mai Di high-fived, ending this impromptu interview.

(End of this chapter)