Legend of Tomorrow

On media day, the new veterans attracted even more attention from reporters.

Boozer, Mo Williams, Carter and others all praised Guo Xu. Whether they can win the championship at the end of their careers is a major attraction. I hope Guo Xu is as strong as in the past.

Because Nurkic was named by Guo Xu as the core, many reporters interviewed him.

The one who was left out in the cold today was second-year rookie Jordan Clarkson. Reporters all felt that his statistics last season were good. Being selected for the Rookie of the Year team proved nothing. The Lakers couldn't win at all.

I can keep quiet about this kind of thing, Clarkson said in an interview. I'm going to make noise on the court. That's my plan.

After January of last season, Clarkson, as a rookie, averaged 15.8 points per game in 38 starts and could serve as point guard. For the new season, he said he just wants to help the team win more games.

The reporter said that Guo Xu's arrival may reduce his ball rights and prevent him from performing as well as last season.

Clarkson said: I am here to train hard and help the team win. There is no other purpose. I will still be the same person, a blue-collar player.

In fact, Clarkson never considered himself a blue-collar person in his heart. He was an ambitious person, but he was just low-key.

He was one of the few Lakers players with a strong fighting spirit last season. He is good at breakthroughs and mid-range shots. He is suitable for individual singles and his goal is to become the team's best sixth man.

After Deron Williams and Bosh were injured last season, Clarkson was the second person on the Lakers who dared to take action after Nick Young. How could he be willing to be a blue-collar player?

He plans to go to the arena early tomorrow morning to practice shooting and prove his strength against Guo Xu. He believes that he has a high probability of facing off against Guo Xu in tomorrow's public training session. Mo Williams is old and the Lakers need him to serve as a backup point guard.

Most players are newbies and are not afraid of tigers, even second-round rookies are no exception. Clarkson had the idea of ​​Jason Guo is 34 years old, how good can he be? He believed that his body had an advantage. .

As a result, after the open competition began, Clarkson was tortured miserably by Guo Xu and was completely suppressed.

After Guo Xu developed a habit of dueling with Wang Jun on Earth 6, he had a clear advantage in strength against Clarkson, who was 196cm tall and weighed 84kg. Clarkson was completely unable to break through when he was stuck close to him, and his performance mainly relied on breaking through the frame, and his shooting percentage when turning around was not high.

On two occasions, Clarkson chose to force a turn and break through;

Guo Xu directly cut the ball away to counterattack. Many of Clarkson's change of direction fake moves were imitated after watching Guo Xu play. How could he use these techniques to deal with the faster and more explosive main player, how could it have good results?

Guo Xu held the ball in a one-on-one challenge, but Clarkson had no choice but to go too far forward and was passed directly. Guo Xu pushed him hard and relied on his explosive strength. After being hit, he stumbled a bit as a big man, and was thrown away if he was a little slower.

If Clarkson stands deeper, Guo Xu can hit a three-pointer from a distance.

A compromise in his position still doesn't work. Guo Xu beckons for a pick-and-roll, but it won't work if he goes around the screen a little slower. It's easier for Guo Xu to pass the big man when he's out of position.

Now Guo Xu's rhythm of playing has been integrated into his bones. He trained in the King's training and competition on Earth 6.

Because the Kings are all small forwards at the 4th position, their ability to defend pick-and-rolls is better than that of the Lakers. The Lakers' pick-and-roll defense has weaknesses at first glance. Power forward Boozer is slow, and Harrell is inexperienced and is easily passed by. Only Horford can make do. He is more suitable for small ball tactics to play center and open up space.

The center who does the best job of guarding pick-and-rolls is Sacre. He also tried his best during training and his attitude was perfect.

Tyronn Lue immediately said that in the new season, Sacre will be the cornerstone of the Lakers' inside line, responsible for passing water and throwing towels on the sidelines. There is no way, his offense is so poor that he is only suitable for playing on the sidelines.

With a height of 213cm and a weight of 122kg, Thackeray can occasionally play for a few minutes to defend against strong men.

In a parallel world, everyone else is a highlight reel of wonderful goals. During Thackeray's four-year NBA career, the fans turned out to be a towel-waving highlight reel, and it was very exciting, accompanied by all kinds of awkward dances.

Later, Thackeray joined the Japanese League and became a killer on the basketball court and a super defensive player. He also participated in the slam dunk contest with an extremely ordinary bounce, and received applause from the audience, fully proving what it means to be Groot when a tree moves, and Saji when a person moves.

Veteran Vince Carter also received warm applause from the fans. He was in excellent condition and healthy. He performed two alley-oop dunks, one of which was a two-handed alley-oop back dunk.

Carter will be 39 years old in January next year. He still has incredible physical fitness, and his performance from beyond the three-point line is also good. Guo Xu attracted double teams and then split the ball. He made three three-pointers.

Another surprise is Devin Booker, the No. 12 pick in the first round. He catches open three-pointers very accurately and made 5 of 8 shots in the training game.

Booker is a promising rookie who is only 19 years old this year. He played one season for the University of Kentucky, averaging 21.5 minutes per game, scoring 10 points, shooting 47% from the field, and 41.1% from the three-point range. He was elected the Southeastern Conference Sixth Man of the Year, and was selected to the Southeastern Conference All-SEC second team and All-SEC selections. Best rookie lineup.

Then he participated in the NBA draft, and it was unexpected that he entered the lottery because his college statistics were not good. If Guo Xu hadn't suggested recruiting someone, the Lakers wouldn't have selected him with the 12th overall pick.

Now that the Lakers are in trouble internally and externally, the management no longer cares about risking a first-round pick. If Jim Buss is ousted by Jenny, Kupchak will have to follow suit.

Booker's performance in the first training made them all relieved. They chose a three-point shooter among the 12 players and felt that it was worth it.

Guo Xu believes that Booker's hit rate will be higher if he mainly plays without the ball and runs to catch the ball. His lower shooting percentage after joining the Suns is related to the different responsibilities he bears. He has to be responsible for holding the ball and attacking, and he is the team's leading scorer. He is the target of strict defense and always takes shots against people.

Playing next to Guo Xu, Booker will get some easy shooting opportunities.

Seth Curry also performed well, hitting 4 three-pointers. All his skills were average, except for the three-pointers. The team needs to strengthen their outside shooting. When the opponent sends two guards to play small ball, Curry can come up and play.

Both Curry brothers have inherited the soft shooting touch of their father Dell Curry, and he can make a difference.

The most eye-catching performance inside is Harrell. The defensive intensity in the training games is not high, and he performs dunks with his head flat against the frame time and time again.

In fact, Horford played better, but he was not popular and his style of play was too low-key. He was a mid-range shot behind the screen, mainly supporting the pass. He quietly scored 15 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists, and also made a three-pointer without even a dunk.

Mo Williams, Josh Richardson, and Bonner are average offensively and defensively and can shoot three-pointers.

When not facing Guo Xu, Clarkson can also play in singles with the ball.

The Lakers' first training session after the rebuild was pretty good, and the veterans were able to use their experience to control the rhythm, play tactics, and not mess around.

The worst performers were Boozer and Robertson. Boozer was too slow and had a black hole in defense. His mid-range shots were not accurate today. Robertson can only defend, and his offense relies entirely on picking up misses at the basket, and his open jump shots are not accurate.

After watching the training, the Lakers fans present had more confidence in the team. Their only concern was Guo Xu's physical fitness. Guo Xu didn't dunk in the entire training match. He just kept playing on the floor. His physical fitness seemed to have declined.