The Road to Stardom: Start as a Slam Dunk Master

Chapter 480 The old enemy goes to war

——Kobe! Kobe! Kobe!

——Yao! Yao! Yao! Yao!

——Lakers! Lakers! Lakers!

——OH! Oh! Oh! Oh!

The scene echoed with deafening cheers, but there was no lengthy introduction. Not only did the SuperSonics not be introduced, even the Lakers' own players did not make any pre-game introductions.

More than 20 people from the two teams just walked out of the player tunnel calmly at the same time.

But in this cold atmosphere of chilling the old enemy, the overwhelming enthusiasm of the fans at the scene was far better than those introductory words that were too pretentious to adjust the atmosphere, and instantly set the already extremely popular Staples Center on fire!

The Staples Center Arena has had an unwritten new rule since the OK team lost to the Sonics in the playoffs in the 2002-03 season, that is, there will be no foreplay when playing against the Sonics at home. …

This was the "special treatment" given to the SuperSonics by Lakers officials and the local Los Angeles media at the time.

They didn't prepare foreplay but prepared a grand celebration ceremony every time. They only brought it out after winning against the Sonics. As for when to cancel this 'special treatment', Lakers owner Jenny Buss said that' After defeating the Sonics in the playoff series and getting revenge.'

At that time, the Lakers thought that they could do it in the second year. It was not only a gimmick for local fans, but also a burst of stimulants and motivation for the team. However, they did not expect that this slogan would last for three years.

What's even more unexpected is that this "no introduction" style that is unique to the SuperSonics and Lakers when they play at home at the Staples Center has created an unparalleled murderous atmosphere in this arena.

Whether they are fans at the scene or fans sitting in front of the TV, they all know the grudges between the two teams very well, and they can also feel the chilling atmosphere at this moment, which makes everyone unable to help but follow. The blood is boiling!

No beeps, no nonsense. Even the Sonics, who are always known for their harmonious and cheerful team atmosphere, are always silenced by the chilling atmosphere every time they come to Staples Arena.

The two sides entered midfield, and no one on either side said a word. Only Lin Dong and Kobe took a step forward.

The two were already old rivals, and they smiled slightly as they looked at each other.

Kobe has said things like 'I will beat you today' and 'We must be winners today' too many times, but his record of 5 wins and 22 losses really makes his words seem a bit nutritious.

So, thousands of words turned into just two words.

He hid his former edge, smiled and stretched out his hand: "Welcome!"

Seems...very confident.

Is it because of the lineup? Because there are special tactics? Or is it because of yourself?

Lin Dong also smiled and stretched out his hand: "Thank you!"

The two big hands held each other tightly and then separated.

beep!

The referee blew a very knowledgeable whistle, the substitute players from both sides returned to the bench, and the game was about to begin!

Lakers starting lineup: Point guard No. 17 Steve Nash, shooting guard No. 8 Kobe Bryant, small forward No. 1 Doug Christie, power forward No. 7 Lamar Odom, center No. 11 Yao Ming .

SuperSonics starting lineup: Point guard No. 20 Gary Payton, shooting guard No. 11 Kaede Rukawa, small forward No. 23 Lin Dong, forward No. 9 Andre Iguodala, and center No. 7 Tyson Chandler.

The SuperSonics did not announce in advance that Sakuragi Hanamichi was going to be with Haruko at home to give birth to her baby. After all, it happened suddenly. Therefore, except for some local fans in Seattle, most media only found out this morning. After all, the news came too suddenly. .

Although there were some sporadic reports today, the entire national public opinion is still mainly focused on the Lakers. In addition, the topic has not yet fermented, so most fans at the scene only noticed at this time that they were not included in the SuperSonics lineup. The existence of super insider Sakuragi Hanamichi has replaced a Japanese who had been sitting on the bench before and could not even play in the main rotation.

——The red-haired monster didn’t come today?

——Absolutely a big event! I didn’t see it on the bench either!

——Isn’t that red-haired guy the core defensive core of the Sonics? Are you going to give it up directly?

Most of the fans at the scene were surprised and happy. After all, the desire for the Lakers to defeat the SuperSonics has long been the obsession of many people. Today, the Lakers' lineup is unprecedentedly perfect, and if Sakuragi Hanamichi is not there, then today is simply stable!

Of course, there are also a few who are dissatisfied.

——Fake, are the SuperSonics cheating? You know you can't beat them, and you know our Lakers lineup is strong enough this year, so why don't you just hide your weakness?

——Co-author: If they lose, is it because the main force didn’t come? But if they are lucky enough to win, they can beat us even if they lack a main force?

——There’s no point in winning like this! Supersonic did it on purpose!

——Don’t be like this. Wouldn’t it be more beneficial to us to be a soft persimmon?

——Hey brother, can you be a little ambitious? We are strong enough this season and don’t need to be weak! If you want to destroy it, you have to destroy the strongest supersonic to enjoy it! Otherwise, you won’t even have to brag about it!

——That is, wasn’t the Bobcat before the 11th? Not only is he a second-round pick, but I heard he is also a piece of trash who doesn’t even want a scumbag team like the Bobcats and will terminate his contract directly. Is he worthy of playing against us? Who are you looking down on?

——Hahaha, roll over to No. 11! You are a ball!

The scene was buzzing with noise and uproar, and no matter whether it was gloating or cursing, the spearhead was undoubtedly directed at one person - Rukawa Kaede.

People usually pick the weak ones when they want to pick persimmons... The American people are actually the same.

After being in the NBA for so long, this is the first time that Rukawa Kaede has felt the concentrated attention from the scene on the court, and it was even in the most lively away game in the league...

My heart couldn't help but beat up, as if I suddenly felt the uneasiness and nervousness when I just joined the Bobcats and stepped into the first game on the NBA court.

Perform well, don't be nervous! You are no longer a novice, calm down quickly! Take a deep breath!

He took two deep breaths, but he still couldn't suppress the feeling of scalp numbness, lack of oxygen, and shortness of breath.

In fact, he had already started to be nervous in the locker room, and Lin Dong, Iguodala, Payton and others had also encouraged him and done psychological preparation.

But some problems can't be solved directly by others giving you some encouragement.

More than a year of persistence and benching made him too eager to play and perform, but things in this world are often counterproductive. The more he wants to perform well, the more nervous and stiff he becomes.

And his deep breathing performance has obviously caught the attention of his opponent.

Nash has been observing Rukawa Kaede's expression.

As one of the representatives of playing with his brain in this league, Nash's strengths are not only his organizational skills, ball control and passing skills, but his control of human nature has long been perfect.

After all, it is the biggest opponent this season. Everyone in the Supersonics has been analyzed by the Lakers as a case.

The 197-centimeter guy in front of him can only be regarded as a second-rate shooter. His open three-pointer is quite accurate. This season's three-pointer hit rate is as high as 62.6%, but that is only because he did not experience high-intensity defense in garbage time, and he played less time and shot less, which is not enough to be a key reference data.

At the same time, his defensive ability is also a weak point, and even a loophole in the Sonics' defense, so he has not been reused by the team.

Now that the Sonics' main defensive gate is absent, is McMillan going to use his outside three-pointers to play against the Lakers? As for using him to defend himself, does he think that he only passes the ball and does not attack most of the time?

Anyway, it is impossible for other people to block his passes, and in the absence of Sakuragi, the Sonics cannot choose to double-team and play rotation defense against the ball holder, so they simply give up on defending themselves?

The Sonics' tactics are really laid out on the table without any concealment, but...

Nash's mouth corners slightly raised a little arc.

To hit the snake, you have to hit it at its seven inches. Seizing the opponent's weakness is always the only way to win, so let's take this uneasy guy as the first move!

Beep!

While the two were thinking about it, the referee had already blew the whistle to start the game.

The basketball was thrown high into the air, and Chandler and Yao Ming jumped up almost at the same time.

Just looking at the height of Yao Ming's jump, even Lin Dong couldn't help but squint his eyes slightly.

I haven't noticed yet... Yao Ming lost weight? His jumping ability seems to be much better than last season!

Yao Ming at this time really looks different from the 135 kg figure in last season, and even more different from the figure that kept gaining weight in another world.

Since losing to the Supersonics in the Western Conference Finals last season, Zen Master Phil Jackson has made new adjustments for Yao Ming.

The most fatal factor of the Lakers' loss in the Western Conference Finals at that time was Yao Ming's physical strength problem. Therefore, strengthening physical training during this offseason is certainly an indispensable part. Another more direct way to match it is the ultimate training goal set by Zen Master for Yao Ming: lose weight to 130 kg, but improve the bench press performance by 10-20 kg, and require him to be fixed and maintained!

The weight gain of Yao Ming in another world is because the Rockets gave him an auxiliary position, hoping that Yao Ming would become a giant under the basket to compete with heavy centers like O'Neal, and fight a positional war.

But now the rise of the Supersonics has already significantly increased the number of outside shots in the league in the past few seasons. The traditional positional warfare has lost its former absolute advantage under the high-tempo running and gunning impact.

Especially when a multifunctional inside player like Sakuragi Hanamichi began to become a new symbol of the league's inside line, and as long as he was paired with a blue-collar center like Chandler, he could immediately become the representative of the league's most efficient inside defense, and obviously restrained the traditional heavy inside tank, it really brought a huge impact to all teams, and many old concepts are changing with each passing day.

Secondly, Van Gundy made Yao Ming gain weight in another world because McGrady's leadership ability was not enough, and the handling of key balls was often unsatisfactory, which forced Van Gundy to cultivate Yao Ming as the most stable tactical core under the basket in order to execute some key ball handling.

But does the Lakers need it? Don't expect Kobe to pass the key ball too much.

More importantly, the Lakers' biggest rival is the Supersonics, not the Cavaliers. If Yao Ming continues to gain weight to defeat the Supersonics, he will only become a target for Sakuragi Hanamichi to drag down, which will also greatly shorten Yao Ming's career life...

Many reasons and considerations have led to the new Yao Ming.

At 226 centimeters and 132 kilograms in weight, Dayao looks strong and not bloated at all. Compared with the slight fatness in the playoffs last season, Dayao's figure at this time undoubtedly looks more well-proportioned. Much more.

And this also released Dayao's other ability - bouncing!

There is a height difference of 10 centimeters between Chandler and Yao, and a wingspan difference of 4 centimeters. There is a full 11 centimeters difference in standing height. Fortunately, with their bounce, they could barely compete with Yao Ming in the jump ball last season. Fight, but this time...

Tyson Chandler had just taken off when he felt that Yao Ming in front of him was jumping up like a rocket. They both took off at the same time, but when Yao Ming reached the highest point, he was a whole hand higher than him!

And if you look at the camera, in the same vertical take-off, the height of Yao Ming's feet off the ground is slightly higher than that of Chandler!

Snapped!

Yao Ming's big hand hooked the ball hanging in the air without any suspense, and then he made a hard move in the direction of Odom behind him.

Opposing Odom is Iguodala, who is 198 centimeters tall and 208 centimeters tall. The height difference of 10 centimeters and the weight difference of 10 kilograms make Iguodala look significantly smaller in front of Odom. Odom didn't even have to jump for such a ball. Iguodala held the ball firmly behind him.

The Lakers' ball!

It is normal to lose to Yao Ming on the jump ball.

Iguodala's eyes instantly became focused at this time.

I was just temporarily pulled up to defend position 4...

198 cm and 94 kg, compared to 208 cm and 104 kg, with a height difference of 10 cm and a weight difference of 10 kg, it is simply impossible to defend the opponent from the front, and you can only rely on entanglement!

The fact that he almost made the defensive second team last season is not just a boast. If he really goes to the low post, Iguodala may not have a way to deal with Odom, but in this backcourt position, death is entangled, it is like a gibbon. The wingspan is still enough to create a big ball-handling threat for Odom.

But Odom did not choose to dribble, but immediately gave the ball to Nash.

Fast break?

Nash's offensive rhythm is so exciting.

The Sonics retreated quickly, but Nash did not run. He chose to control the ball steadily and cross the line. This was to determine the success rate first.

At this time, players from both sides are in position.

In the paint area under the basket, Yao Ming faced off against Chandler. Compared to Hanamichi Sakuragi, Chandler's individual defense ability was obviously worse than just one and a half points. At this time, Yao held him firmly, rebounding and catching the ball. Bit... When Sakuragi Hanamichi was here, Dayao could only choose one, but now, he wants them all!

Odom, who chose to sink quickly after the ball was distributed, sank to the inside penalty area. His 10-centimeter height advantage made Iguodala look like a three-year-old baby in front of him.

The 2V2 inside is like two giant men ravaging two delicate and weak women. Even a person who doesn't understand football can feel the Lakers' huge advantage under the basket.

In addition, Payton is eyeing Doug Christie. One was drafted in 90 and the other was drafted in 92. Veterans of the same size and age are entangled together, and they are both good at defense. For a while, it is hard to tell whether they are strong or weak. .

Lin Dong was led by Kobe to the left baseline as the Lakers attacked the weak side.

A fairly obvious stripping tactic, if Sakuragi Hanamichi is on the court, this tactic is almost useless, because the SuperSonics' rotating defense allows Sakuragi and Lin Dong to switch defenses at any time.

But now that Sakuragi is gone, Lin Dong has almost no other choice but to follow him.

After all, with Kobe's offensive ability and big heart, no one in the current Sonics except Lin Dong can put any restrictions on him.

The confrontation between the two aces is the biggest highlight of this game and is also the key to determining the outcome of the game.

As for the ball holding point...