Legend of Tomorrow

On December 25, the league arranged three Christmas games, two in the Eastern Conference and one in the Western Conference.

The Christmas game has always been a performance stage for stars, and only teams or players highly promoted by the league are eligible to participate. The least popular among them is the Celtics. They participated because of the team's wealthy gimmick. Stern has always hoped that the Green Army will rise again, but unfortunately the twin stars of Walker and Pierce are not up to expectations.

The Wizards led by Michael Jordan did not participate in the Christmas Day game. Jordan's popularity this season is so low that even if he calls for retirement, fans can't feel much affection.

In the summer, the Wizards introduced two generals, Stackhouse and Larry Hughes, as well as outstanding veterans. The media speculated for a while, but the Wizards' record was still very poor, ranking outside the playoffs.

In the selection of Eastern Conference defenders, Jordan currently ranks fourth behind McGrady, Kidd, and Iverson. In all positions, even Pistons blue-collar Ben Wallace is more popular than Jordan.

In the first two games in the Eastern Conference, the Nets defeated the Celtics 117-81. Kidd led six players in the team to score in double figures. Wang Zhizhi of the Green Army came off the bench for 11 minutes and scored 6 points and 1 rebound.

The Magic defeated the Pistons 104-99. McGrady scored 46 points, 6 rebounds and 1 assist, stealing the show.

Subsequently, the Lakers VS Suns game started at the Staples Center.

Guo Xu was the first to play for the Suns. Before the game, Lakers owner Jerry Buss presented Guo Xu with last season's championship ring. The two hugged and the fans cheered together.

Guo Xu played against his old club for the first time. Los Angeles fans were not disgusted, but they just missed him a little. Many people felt that if Guo Xu hadn't been there in the previous two years, the Lakers might not have been able to win three consecutive championships.

This is the most stunted game today. It was David Stern's suggestion. The president felt that the Kings failed to cause much trouble to the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals last season, and the stars were still prone to injuries. It was better to switch to a civil war between the Lakers' Big Three .

The president's crow's mouth skills are profound. Not long after Kings point guard Bibby returned, Webb was injured again. Injuries have prevented Webber from reaching the top of the NBA. If we only look at the data, he can compete for the regular season MVP for several seasons. If we look at the attendance rate, it will be over.

This game is broadcast live on multiple TV stations, including ESPN, CCTV5, TNT, etc.

TNT radio's ratings have increased a lot this season. They found retired stars Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley to partner as commentators. The effect was unexpectedly good. Their talk show style was deeply loved by the audience.

sometimes,

They also do skits.

Before Yao Ming played for the Rockets for the first time against the Lakers, Barkley made a bet with Smith that if Yao Ming could score 19 points in a game, he would kiss Smith's butt. As a result, Yao Ming quickly made Barkley's dream come true. , scored 20 points on 9-of-9 shooting in O'Neal's absence.

Smith then found a donkey to replace him, and a sign hung around the donkey's neck that read Kenny. Barkley is a man of integrity, and he actually kissed the donkey’s butt in the live broadcast room.

Before the game started, Big Mouth Barkley commented on Guo Xu.

Now there are a lot of people on the Internet discussing Jason Guo's historical status. Oh my God, this kid is only 21 years old. He recently led the Suns to 6 consecutive victories, but I want to say this is only the regular season, and his basketball career has just begun. Start. This is so exciting. Only someone like me who has retired for several years can be called history.

Smith smiled: If he leads the Suns to win the championship, he will surpass you. You have only played in the finals once with the Suns.

I hope he can lead the Suns to win the championship. He is a great player and his nickname is much cooler than mine. Barkley touched his big belly and wondered if he would have had a baby if he had eaten less. A better career?

Smith said: I think the Lakers will definitely strive to win today. Old Buss and Kupchak also hope that the home team will win. If the OK team loses to Jason, the fans will definitely be more dissatisfied with the management's decision not to keep Jason.

At this time, Old Buss didn't regret it so much. Guo Xu's commercial value was high, and Kobe was not bad either. He felt that Guo Xu might not be able to do better than Kobe when leading the Lakers when faced with injuries.

Head coach Phil Jackson has been depressed for a long time. He can't continue to pretend to be 13 quietly on the sidelines. He and Kobe have difficulty communicating. Without Guo Xu to be the peacemaker in the locker room, the OK team also has conflicts.

These things gave Jackson a headache, and now he can no longer trade Kobe. Kidd and Guo Xu, whom he valued, both led the team to good results and are definitely not for sale to the team.

After the warm-up, the two sides came out, and the Suns used small-ball tactics again. The five players were Guo Xu, Joe Johnson, Kirisek, Marion, and Stoudemire.

Lakers five: Fisher, Kobe, Fox, Samaki Walker, O'Neal.

Looking at the lineup, everyone felt that O'Neal was about to break out. Stoudemire had lost weight for two full rounds and it was impossible to carry people in the low post. The Lakers' defensive end also has to withstand a major test. They can't guard Guo Xu, and Fisher will definitely not be able to do it one-on-one.

O'Neal won the jump ball and the game was on.

Kobe caught the ball on the right side and faced Joe Johnson. The Suns were man-to-man defense and did not adopt a zone defense as usual. The Lakers had many people who could shoot three-pointers.

As soon as he saw Guo Xu, Kobe became selfless and lobbed a low ball to O'Neal from the right.

Kobe will pay attention to the news at home. Many basketball experts believe that Kobe and O'Neal's cooperation is the only way out for the Lakers. They say that it is easier to win if he plays like Guo Xu.

Kobe occasionally listens to some opinions. This season, he has taken more three-pointers and his shooting percentage is not bad at 38%, which is a career high. People say that Guo Xu's offensive efficiency is high, and Kobe wants to prove that he can also shoot three-pointers.

After receiving the ball, O'Neal pushed Stoudemire and turned around in the middle. He bent his knees, lowered his center of gravity, raised the ball with both hands, and feinted. Stoudemire was shaken up.

O'Neal took a step forward and knocked away Stoudemire. He made a one-handed shot from close range and caused a foul. Stoudemire lost his center of gravity and sat on the ground.

Compared with O'Neal, Stoudemire is too thin, and their strength is not at the same level.

The referee whistled 2+1, and O'Neal also made the extra free throw. He was in good condition today, 0-3.

At this time, a funny tidbit appeared on the court. When O'Neal made a free throw, Guo Xu stepped forward and gave him a high-five, which received warm applause from the home fans.

Barkley smiled: Jason is completely different from other players when they play against their old club. Everyone else is holding back their energy and performing well. He just came back to play.

Smith smiled and said: He came home to visit relatives. Los Angeles fans all like him. It's a pity that the Lakers really can't renew his contract. If they give him another maximum salary contract, the team's annual salary will be more than 70 million.

Barkley was stunned for a moment and smiled: More than 70 million doesn't seem to be very high. The Knicks are almost 100 million. Of course, the rules mean that the contract cannot be renewed. There is no way.

The Suns attacked, and Stoudemire went to the three-point line to cover Fisher. Guo Xu moved sideways to the right and made a sudden jumper for a three-pointer, but O'Neal did not switch out.

Fisher was also slow to pursue the defense. Guo Xu shot easily and the ball went hollow into the net! 3 to 3.

When facing other teams, O'Neal hates guarding pick-and-rolls. When facing Guo Xu, he doesn't even switch defenses and only focuses on the center. He developed bad habits in the past two years and often got off work in three quarters. How could he be active on defense?

Faced with this defensive intensity, Guo Xu is destined to explode.