Junior Basketball says

Chapter 233
After finishing the Rookie Challenge, Xu Hao and Love did not rush back to Minnesota to prepare for the next regular season, but stayed in Arlington to watch the second day's All-Star Game.However, this game almost became a show for several high-ranked rookies of the golden generation in 2003. James, Wade, Bosh and Anthony split into two sides to fight with all their strength, and no one wanted to lose the game.

It's a pity that Anthony is still alone. He is the only one of these players who plays for the Western Conference team, which means that he will directly face the other three top stars of the same session.Xu Hao, who was sitting on the sidelines watching the game, couldn't help but think of Milicic, who is second only to James among the players in this draft, but now he can only watch other players play in front of the TV.

最终安东尼还是双拳难敌四手，虽然他在28分钟的出场时间里就22投13中砍下全队最高的27分，同时还抢下了10个篮板，但西部这边只有诺维茨基同样得到20+。而东部那边的三位03届球星全部砍下20+，波什得到23分、10个篮板，詹姆斯砍下25分、5个篮板和6次助攻的全面数据，韦德更是砍下全场最高的28分，同时还送出了11次助攻。

Under the leadership of the three of them, the Eastern Conference narrowly won 141 to 139. Wade, who was crowned the team's scoring and assists champion at the same time, won the All-Star Game MVP, which was the first time in his career.When Wade held up the trophy high, others applauded him sincerely. It is very respectable that the earliest star of the 03 generation who won the championship still maintained a very high standard after a serious injury.If it were someone else, they might have been gradually sinking in the midst of injuries, let alone become a star among stars.

The end of the All-Star Game means that the entire All-Star Weekend has come to an end, and the short vacation of most players has also come to an end, and they have to focus on the regular season again.In fact, the All-Star Weekend of each season is an obvious demarcation point. Many teams will slowly start to exert their strength after the All-Star Game, aiming for a place in the playoffs or striving for a better position.Of course, those bad teams will also make persistent efforts, but they are just working hard for a lower ranking.

At this time, the Timberwolves exposed the weaknesses of the young team, and their performance was still not stable enough.Moreover, the season has entered the second half, and the physical and mental fatigue has greatly affected the players' competitive state. They have also lost several games that logically should not be lost.Fortunately, the direct competitors are still very strong, and several other teams with similar rankings are also ups and downs. This allows the Timberwolves to still hover between eighth and ninth. This performance is already very good.

In fact, even if the Timberwolves cannot make the playoffs this season, their performance has exceeded expectations. It can be said that their reconstruction has achieved initial success.But in the eyes of the Timberwolves players, failing to make it to the playoffs is a disgrace. As long as there is still a glimmer of hope, they will have to put in [-]% of their efforts, even if it is only a round of playoffs, that is acceptable. .

But whether the Timberwolves can make the playoffs, they have nothing to say, which depends to a certain extent on the performance of other teams.This is the tragedy of weak teams. If they are strong enough to secure the top three positions in the Western Conference, then the performance of competitors will hardly affect their ranking.For the Timberwolves, it is enough to play the game well and reduce unnecessary mistakes, and leave the rest to fate!

This mentality has also affected McHale. He no longer insists on large-scale substitutions in every game as he did at the beginning of the season. Nine players in each game is the limit.Of course, this will put more pressure on the main players, because as the playing time increases, their fatigue will also increase day by day, but the team's performance can remain stable and will not become fluctuating.

Xu Hao and Love are still the players McHale relies on the most, and Xu Hao has more playing time. Who makes him an outside player?The melee combat of big players in the interior is very exhausting. Except for the metamorphosis like Chamberlain, it is difficult for other interior players to play for more than 40 minutes in the game. They need to go off the court to rest in order to accumulate energy.

Xu Hao doesn't mind playing for such a long time, since his physical fitness is already very good anyway.After more than half a season, he has adapted to the intensity of NBA games. Although he will encounter targeted defenses in every game, it doesn't matter much.

However, in order to protect other players, McHale also tried to arrange players to rest in less important games, which is what every head coach would do under normal circumstances.But Xu Hao tactfully refused the rotation. He urgently needs to gain experience from more games so as to grow faster. The only thing he needs to fear is not having so much playing time.

Although the Timberwolves team is working hard, it is undeniable that their strength is still far behind those mature teams, and their stability is far worse. This keeps them on the edge of the playoffs, and they are a little careless. It may fall outside the top eight.McHale is also very helpless. Under such circumstances, the pressure on the players is great, and I don't know if they can hold on.

Soon McHale's worries became a reality. In early April, the Timberwolves suffered a three-game losing streak and fell to tenth in the Western Conference.But this is largely because their schedule is too bad. Three consecutive away games against the Eagles and Celtics who are third and fourth in the East, plus the Mavericks who are the No. [-] in the West, a three-game losing streak is also very normal thing.

Perhaps it was woken up by the losing streak. The Timberwolves returned home and ended the losing streak against the Grizzlies. Then they defeated the Nuggets and raised the ranking to ninth place, just one distance away from the eighth Trail Blazers. There is a gap of 1 win.What's interesting is that the last regular season game the league arranged for the Timberwolves was against the Trail Blazers, which was a game worth one win.

If they enter the last game with such a gap, then whoever wins will get the last ticket.The two sides played against each other twice in the regular season before, and the Timberwolves and the Trail Blazers each won one game. As long as the Timberwolves beat the Trail Blazers in this game, they will be able to tie the record, and then rely on the advantage of the two sides to enter the Western Conference playoffs. ranks of the team.

But before that, they must win other games. Even if they lose one game, the initiative will be handed over to the opponent. By then, the outcome of the last game may not be meaningful.

(End of this chapter)