The older superstars of the NBA

In the Timberwolves training hall, team general manager Sam Mitchell invited Zhao Feiyang and coach Thibodeau together.The two sat down in the corner of the stands, a long distance apart from each other, and Mitchell stood in front of them and acted as a peacemaker to help the two communicate.

In fact, the reason why they met in the training hall was not because Mitchell was not sincere enough, but because the two people did not intend to meet at all.

Zhao Feiyang was ignored by Thibodeau when he took the initiative to show his kindness, which naturally made him feel unhappy in his heart.After all, he is a star in the league. Both Coach Thomas and Mr. Philips gave him face at the beginning and would never do such a thing to make things difficult for him.

Now Thibodeau, who has just arrived, wants to beat himself up and establish his authority. Zhao Feiyang is not stupid, how could he let him do this?

So what if the other party is a famous coach?In this matter, let alone Thibodeau, it would be the same even if Phil Jackson came.

the other side.

For Coach Thibodeau, Zhao Feiyang is not his direct descendant, nor is he the kind of player he likes.Now that he has come to coach the Timberwolves, in order to consolidate his authority and build his own team, it is necessary to use Zhao Fei to establish his authority.

To take a step back, even if Zhao Fei is not used to establish his authority, the coaching power of the team must be in his own hands.This is something Coach Thibodeau will never compromise on.

As he said before, he will never be Byron Scott next to Kobe.The latter once showed excessive kneeling and licking of Kobe when he was coaching the Lakers. He seemed to be the team's head coach, but in fact he was more like Kobe's follower. Even so, he still couldn't escape being fired by the team in the end.

"Listen, Tom, Zhao, I know there are misunderstandings between you. But now we can try to solve these problems... As far as I know, there is no grudge between you, so I hope you can be well Let’s talk…”

"One of you is a superstar in the league, and the other is a famous coach in the league. Such a combination should be able to exert greater power, instead of being questioned by the outside world like it is now..."

Mitchell said.

Zhao Feiyang is not hard-hearted about this. He may not care about Thibodeau, but he cannot care about the team's record.

The career of a player is much shorter than that of a head coach. Even if Thibodeau chooses to fail in the end, it will not have much impact on him, but for himself, this season is equivalent to wasting.

This is not what Zhao Feiyang wants to see.

"I have no prejudice against coach Tom, I just hope to have enough playing time. I am the core of the team, and such a request is normal! I respect him, but I also hope that he will at least have a minimum of respect for me... ....”

Zhao Feiyang spoke first.

After he finished speaking, Thibodeau on the side also spoke, "I don't disrespect you, but my players must listen to my instructions. If you think you can do whatever you want because you are a star, then I'm sorry... ... This is something I cannot tolerate as a head coach..."

Both sides have their own reasons, making the situation once again deadlocked.

Fortunately, Mitchell also discovered the problem and hurriedly spoke to continue persuading, "Very good. At least you are willing to speak, which shows that you are not opposed to such communication."

"Tom, I know you want to control the team, and that's no problem... I've known Zhao for so long, and he has never been the kind of arrogant guy. Zhao also respected Coach Thomas very much when he was here, so I hope you can trust him..."

"Even if you don't believe it now, you should at least believe me. We have known each other for such a long time. Would I deceive you about such a thing?"

These words made Coach Thibodeau a little moved.

"Zhao, you are the core of the team. We are very happy to have you lead us to win the championship. Although you delayed some time in China, we did not blame you. On the contrary, many people hope that you will continue to lead the team Fighting for the championship..."

"Even if it's for the team, how about putting aside other thoughts and focusing on helping the team win the game? I promise you, you will definitely have enough playing time..."

Mitchell's earnest words made the two people who knew him unable to bear to argue any further.

Although neither of them made a clear statement, under such persuasion, the two actually finally acquiesced to Mitchell's words. At least, the two of them could temporarily put aside their dissatisfaction with each other and seek opportunities for cooperation.

After this conversation, the conflict between Zhao Feiyang and head coach Thibodeau finally came to an end.

At least, on the surface, the two of them no longer ignored each other as before.

Soon, another game arrived.

This time the Minnesota Timberwolves traveled to Los Angeles to challenge the Lakers.

The Lakers' performance in recent seasons has been too poor. The team's record has repeatedly been at the bottom, and there have been many rumors of discord within the team.

Before Kobe retired, there were widespread rumors that he was at odds with his coach and was dissatisfied with a certain player.After he retired, the media began to write about the discord between certain two players on the team, and the discord between the team's head coach and certain players.

In short, this kind of news has never stopped, and it has also made the Lakers in the post-Kobe era completely in a state of chaos.

This is especially true this season. The Lakers have been losing since the beginning of the season and basically haven't won many decent games.

Therefore, for the Timberwolves, it is not a problem to win such a Lakers team. It can even be said that there is basically no suspense in such a game.

Staples Center Arena.

Before the game officially started, players from both teams gathered in their respective locker rooms.For the Timberwolves, the team's head coach Thibodeau also began to lay out the team's tactics.

Because of the last communication, Thibodeau did not exclude Zhao Feiyang from the list this time.

"Derek plays the one position, Zhao goes to the two position... Andrew takes the third position!"

"Positions [-] and [-] will still be handed over to Serge and Dwight as usual... Do you hear me clearly?"

Zhao Feiyang actually has some doubts about the team's arrangement.

The Lakers' current record is terrible and the team's performance is not good. There is no need to use the starting lineup to play against such a weak team. Frankly speaking, the substitute lineup can be used to beat them and train the substitute players at the same time.

Using the entire main lineup in this kind of game is simply killing a chicken with a sledgehammer!

This is also what Zhao Feiyang was dissatisfied with Thibodeau before!

Who doesn’t know the command of “only using the main force”?Even if the fledgling Tyronn Lue comes over, he will still be able to do it.Don't say it's him, just find any coach.But the problem is that the physical fitness of the main players is not unlimited, and there is a risk of injury if they play for too long.

Even a less famous coach like Coach Thomas will still consider the players when selecting players and try to avoid injuries to the players as much as possible.

But Thibodeau is not like this, he will not consider these issues!Anyway, as the head coach, he only needs to stand on the sidelines and watch the show with his hands on his hips. He can only shout a few words to express his meaning. He does not need to run and jump on the court to fight against those strong guys.

Furthermore, the Timberwolves already need a stronger bench in their lineup so that they can perform stronger and more sustainably in the playoffs.

Now that we have the opportunity not to train substitute players during the regular season, what should we do in the playoffs?

Dissatisfaction was dissatisfaction, and questioning was questioning. Considering that he had just reconciled with Coach Thibodeau, Zhao Feiyang remained silent and just hid his thoughts in his heart.

Soon, the game started.

The starting lineups of both sides debut.

The arrangement of the Lakers is not as good as that of the Timberwolves. Their lineup is not deep enough, and the players who come up are young people such as D'Angelo Russell and Jordan Clarkson.

Snapped.

The referee threw the ball up, and Howard jumped high again and took the lead in taking the basketball into his own hands.

The ball came to the Timberwolves. Zhao Feiyang, who got the basketball, handed the ball to Rose, who held the ball and pushed towards the half court.

Rose holds the ball.

Others hurried to the half court to wait.

Fans as far away as Minneapolis are also watching this game at home. Timberwolves fans are also looking forward to such a strong lineup on the field.

Especially when Rose and Zhao Feiyang are on the court at the same time, they want to see what kind of sparks these two top guards in the league can create!