Bishop of the Devil

And what makes Stern even more speechless now is that Richard has the absolute advantage in the exchange of insults between the two sides.

Originally, Stern was thinking that with the qualifications of the Zen Master Jackson, if Richard went to troll Jackson, it would be an act of seeking death...

But now it seems that Richard is not dead and is still alive and well.

Not only is he alive and well, his opponent, Zen Master Jackson, is now angry to death.

Kobe directly missed two days of team training...

If it were anyone else, Master Zen would have made this player pack up and get out of here immediately!

But Kobe? ! But he must never do this!

Although he didn't get along with Kobe for a long time, he knew Kobe's temperament quite well...

If Jordan doesn't participate in the training camp, what will the Zen Master say? Certainly not……

Let alone Jordan, even if Rodman or Pippen didn't participate in the training camp, he wouldn't say anything.

In Jackson's view, Kobe's temperament is even more paranoid than Jordan's.

There is no doubt that if he shows even the slightest dissatisfaction with Kobe, Kobe may completely break up with him!

Who is Kobe? !

The youngest regular season MVP in NBA history and the second youngest Finals MVP, will he take into account the feelings of Jackson Jackson? Totally impossible!

Now Kobe is already so "crazy" that there is no limit to it...

Zen Master understands the importance of Kobe Bryant to this Lakers!

With Kobe, as long as the Trail Blazers' shark-cutting tactics fail to work, the Lakers will really have the strength to go head-to-head with the Trail Blazers!

Without considering the shark-cutting tactics, both sides played normally. Jackson feels that the Lakers have about a 60% chance of winning against the Trail Blazers!

Once the Lakers perform slightly better than normal, the Blazers will have absolutely no chance of winning!

No one knows where Zen Master’s self-confidence came from!

…

What made Stern even more dumbfounded was that a week later, during the game between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Rockets, the two sides had a solid fight.

Or to be precise, the Philadelphia Twins gave Pippen a good beating...

What made countless fans dumbfounded was that after the conflict, no one from the Rockets came to help Pippen, allowing Pippen to be choked and then hit with an uppercut by Iverson, leaving him bruised and swollen.

The Philadelphia 76ers currently rank second in the Eastern Conference, second only to the Pacers, who are first in the Eastern Conference.

Right now, the Philadelphia Twins are already pivotal stars in the league.

Kobe is currently considered the number one shooting guard in the league, but Iverson is not an exaggeration at all when he says he is the number one defender in the Eastern Conference.

As for Dazhi, anyone with a discerning eye can see that the alliance takes good care of him...

So even if Pippen was beaten, the Philadelphia Twins were not severely punished. They were both suspended for two games.

Pippen is so heartbroken...

The first is the disheartening attitude of the alliance. He is a six-time champion, but the alliance is not helping him at all!

He was beaten up by those two devilish boys, and the league only punished him with a mere two-game suspension!

The second is the disappointing attitude of Rockets teammates...

Olajuwon was not present, Barkley and Francis were present, but they were just watching the fun.

But there's nothing he can do about it. He signed a very lucrative contract with the Rockets, so he can't make no money at all...

…

In the blink of an eye, time has entered the end of March.

What everyone didn't expect was that in this year's NCAA National Championship, Purdue University, which had won five consecutive championships, ended up in the quarterfinals!

This made countless fans collapse. They originally thought that Purdue University could break UCLA's record, but now it seems that there is no chance!

When Richard received the news, he also sighed.

There is really no other way. Purdue University has had bad luck in the past two years...

A total of ten players entered the NBA in two years, but the participating lineups in these two Golden Arches All-Star Games were very shabby...

At least in Richard's opinion, it was quite shabby. In the end, it only added three slightly reliable players to Purdue University.

Prince, Mike Miller and Jason Richardson.

Even though these three people are reliable, their strength is actually far inferior to that of their seniors. The three of them joined forces and stopped in the top eight. This result was actually predicted by Richard.

And Richard feels that if Purdue University wants to win the championship next season, it will actually be difficult, because this year's Golden Arches All-Star roster has been released, and Richard only found two outstanding players.

One is Elvis Presley Gerald Wallace…

The other one is Zach Randolph…

Among them, Randolph is a high school student in Indiana. He has a high probability of choosing Purdue University. As for Elvis, he is not sure.

If Elvis Presley joins, then when Mike Miller enters the NBA next year, Purdue University's strength will be improved and it will have a chance to compete for the championship!

But if Elvis Presley does not join, Purdue University's strength will be limited. If you are lucky, you may win the championship, but if you are unlucky, you may stop in the top eight like this year!

Richard was quite helpless...

He has a feeling that the number of NBA stars is like Wang Erxiao celebrating the New Year, and it is getting worse every year...

In fact, Richard's feeling is not wrong at all. In the coming years, that is, the 2003 class will produce a lot of stars.

But if you calculate carefully, the number of stars in 2003 is actually not as many as in 1996, 1998 and 1999.

That means higher quality.

…

As the number of stars produced decreases in the future, it will actually be difficult for Richard to build a terrifying lineup like the Trail Blazers.

…

The March schedule is completely over, and the Trail Blazers' current record is still ranked second in the Western Conference, not surpassing the Lakers.

The main reason is that Richard has been looking for opportunities to train new players. In many games, he would rather lose the game and let the new players play for a while.

Winning or losing regular season games is no longer Richard's main consideration right now.

What he is considering is how to further improve the team's overall strength before the playoffs begin.

In February and March, Richard also thought about starting a new round of god-making missions, but the result was that he failed to trigger it.

The main reason is that the remaining newcomers are still a little weak. It is quite difficult for three people to score 20 points at the same time.

Under such circumstances, Richard did not force it.

…

By the time the regular season ends in April, the playoffs that fans have been waiting for have finally arrived.

After a whole season, the Trail Blazers' lineup this season has given fans countless surprises, but there are also some disappointments...

For example, Tracy McGrady, whom Richard traded from the Raptors, will definitely perform better this season than he did with the Raptors last season.

But the problem is that countless fans originally thought that Richard brought in McGrady because he wanted to let McGrady take over from Kobe...

As a result, after one season, McGrady averaged 14.2 points, 4.9 rebounds and 5.7 assists per game. Although it is quite good, it is definitely unrealistic to say that this data can take over from Kobe Bryant.

On the contrary, it was Ginobili who made the fans very precise. The South American newcomer Richard picked up in the second round has performed far better than his draft pick this season!

This is definitely a huge surprise, because purely based on on-court performance, it is not too much to say that Ginobili is the white version of Kobe...

As for Artest, although the statistics this season are not very impressive, averaging only 6 points and 3 rebounds per game, the key is that this guy is tough defensively, averaging 1.5 steals and 1.2 blocks per game.

He has almost completely replaced Bowen's role in the team last season. As long as the opponent has a sharp-edged player in the backcourt, Richard will definitely put Artest on the court.

Even because Artest is rough enough and strong enough, he is even more effective than Bowen when defending certain young defenders.

As for Nowitzki and Harrington, they are almost the biggest surprises for the Trail Blazers this season.

Nowitzki averaged 20 points per game this season and has grown into the Trail Blazers' second leading scorer.

The number one scorer is naturally Xiao Ou, who averaged 23 points and 11 rebounds per game this season!

As for Harrington, he averaged 16.7 points and 8.2 rebounds per game this season, which is quite gorgeous!

The entire Trail Blazers have seven players scoring in double figures!

Ou, Dirk Nowitzki, Robinson, Harrington, Tracy McGrady, Ginobili and Mobley.

Many fans looked at the Blazers' technical statistics after the end of the season and were confused...

Good guys, how come so many players in the Trail Blazers average double figures in points per game? ! A total of seven people!

Two of them averaged 20+ points per game...

It seems that the combined scoring average of these seven people far exceeds the Trail Blazers' scoring average this season!

This thing is really weird...

In fact, if fans think about it carefully, they can figure out the reason.

The main reason is that Richard has adopted rotation tactics aggressively this season, and many players are often placed on the rotation list.

For example, Xiao Ou has only played 59 games this season...

In games where he does not appear, other players will naturally be able to score more points, and O'Neill's scoring average will not be affected.

Even Nowitzki, who has gradually stabilized this season, was rested by Richard for more than ten games.

…

Except for these seven people who scored in double figures, the remaining two players, Ben and Artest, focused all their energy on the defensive end. Neither of them scored in double figures.

Artest averaged six points per game, and Ben's situation was even worse. He averaged only 4.6 points per game...

Everyone knows that Ben is good at free throws now. It must be because no one is using shark-cutting tactics against him. In addition, Ben rarely takes any shots and has no ability to cause fouls, so his average points per game are naturally very low.

But no one cares about how many points they scored in the big game...

There are still three people left who have not scored in double figures, namely Kirilenko, Lewis and senior Curry.

The old Curry has almost completely entered retirement mode. He usually appears at the team's training ground, giving pointers to the newcomers' three-point shooting. He rarely plays in games. He has only played a total of 20 games this season, averaging Appearance time is less than ten minutes.

For this situation, Old Curry is quite acceptable...

He also knows very well that the current Trail Blazers are full of talent, and there is really no need for a veteran with no potential like himself to compete for the debut time of the newcomers.

As for Kirilenko, he is not a player who is good at offense. Although Richard has vigorously trained him this season, he still averages only 8 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal and 1 block per game.

The performance is actually pretty good, but it certainly can’t be considered the top statistic…

As for Lewis, he is still like air and has no sense of existence.

Now that Richard has made up his mind to start training Lewis next season, let this kid endure some loneliness first.

…

The regular season is completely over, and the playoff lineup is released.

Fortunately for the Western Conference, apart from the fact that the Trail Blazers did not take the top spot on the record list, which is quite unexpected, the records of other teams can generally be guessed before the start of this season.

With the addition of Kobe Bryant, the Lakers are now very strong. They have a super record of 69 wins and 13 losses this season, almost reaching 70 wins!

Among them is a 19-game winning streak. If they hadn't encountered the Spurs and been tricked by the shark-cutting tactics, the Lakers would have had a chance to win 20 consecutive games this season!

Although the 20-game winning streak is far less than the Blazers' undefeated record last season, it is still an incredible achievement.

With the addition of Kobe Bryant, O'Neal's early statistics were quite impressive. However, after the Christmas game, each team resumed their shark-killing tactics.

Judging from the situation of the league, it is estimated that restrictions on cutting sharks will begin. Under such circumstances, the head coaches of each team also want to jump on the trend and take action on O'Neal.

This directly caused O'Neal's data to drop a lot...

By the end of the season, O'Neal was still averaging about 27 points and 13 rebounds per game, which was slightly lower than at the beginning of the season.

But even so, O'Neal's statistics are the most amazing in the entire league.

In fact, compared with Kobe's average of about 30+5+5 per game, O'Neal's 27+13 is not worse than Kobe's.

Richard feels that Kobe's desire to win the regular season MVP this year is definitely high. If nothing else happens, O'Neal may get the regular season MVP this year.

The main reason is that Kobe already won the MVP last season. Unless he has a huge breakthrough this season, the reporters who vote will still be more inclined to vote for the MVP to other players.

O'Neal is fully qualified to compete with Kobe for MVP!

Historically, it is not common for regular season MVPs to win consecutive MVP awards. In the entire history of the NBA, there are only a handful of players who have won consecutive MVP awards.

Russell, Chamberlain, Bird, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Moses Malone, Magic, Joe, LeBron James, Curry, Nash and Deng...

This is Richard's memory of all the MVP situations that have occurred in the NBA's decades of history.

Among them, Russell, Chamberlain and Big Bird are the most powerful. All three of them are regular season MVPs three times in a row!

In the entire history of the NBA, these three are the only three players to have won three consecutive regular season MVP awards.

Others can have two bankers in a row at most...

The key is that the regular season MVP cannot be shared by two people. It is not as entertaining as the All-Star MVP, and two people can win the MVP together.

Otherwise, it is actually possible for Kobe and O'Neal to share the MVP this year.

…

As for the Trail Blazers, who are second in the Western Conference, they will definitely not be able to get the regular season MVP this year. First, their record is not as good as the Lakers. Second, O'Neal, who has the best statistics in the team, averages 23+11 per game, which is far inferior to Kobe and O'Neal... …

So no matter what, this regular season MVP is unlikely to fall into the hands of the Trail Blazers.

Since there was no chance at all, Richard simply stopped thinking about it.

In fact, not only the regular season MVP, but many of the honors won by the Trail Blazers last season are out of reach this year.

Apart from anything else, Richard will definitely not get the best head coach this year.

The main reason is that the Trail Blazers have definitely declined this season compared to last season. With a record of 59 wins and 23 losses, there is still a big gap between them and the Lakers.

Of course, Zen Master Jackson will definitely not get this award.

Not only Zen Master, but also well-known coaches in the West, such as Popovich and Sloan, will definitely not be able to get it.

Most likely to be acquired by an Eastern Conference coach...

What Richard didn't expect was that the Jazz, possibly stimulated by Richard, showed off like crazy after the All-Star Game, and finally rushed to third place in the Western Conference.

They won 55 games this season.

As for the Spurs, they have 53 wins, ranking fourth in the Western Conference...

The Spurs rested David Robinson for many games this season, resulting in their regular season record not being outstanding.

But even so, no one dares to underestimate the Spurs!

As for the bottom half of the Western Conference playoff teams, they are the Suns, Timberwolves, SuperSonics and Kings.

After Danny Ainge was fired, the Suns' record soared again, and new head coach Scott Skiles still has two tricks up his sleeve.

Coincidentally, this Skiles can actually be regarded as a fellow countryman of Richard...

In his first game against the Trail Blazers after taking office, he and Richard renewed their friendship. He is from Indiana and is naturally no stranger to Purdue University.

What's more embarrassing is that he actually came out of Purdue's rival team, Michigan State University.

However, these two people did not mention this matter when chatting...

As for the Timberwolves, no one is surprised that they made the playoffs this season. The Timberwolves have gradually gained momentum. After several waves of trade operations, their lineup has become quite reasonable.

Maybe if these players are allowed to grow for another year or two, their young team will rise like the Trail Blazers!

Well, rising like the Trail Blazers is unlikely...

The SuperSonics have always been a strong old team in the Western Conference. Although they have fallen into decline now, the skinny camel is bigger than a horse, and there is also a super star in the team such as Glove. It is not surprising that they have made the playoffs.

Under the leadership of Adelman, the Kings finally got a taste of the playoffs...

…

Overall, there is nothing unexpected about the Western Conference's record, and it is generally within the fans' predictions.

On the contrary, the record rankings in the Eastern Conference are a bit weird...

The Pacers ranked first in the Eastern Conference with 56 wins, the Philadelphia 76ers ranked second in the Eastern Conference with 53 wins, the Celtics ranked third in the Eastern Conference with 52 wins, and the Heat ranked fourth in the Eastern Conference with 51 wins!

The Green Kai team suddenly broke out from the crowd, shocking countless people!

The key point is that they are not fighting out step by step, but suddenly their results are overwhelming.

Originally, Green Kai was always among the bottom three in the Eastern Conference, but suddenly its record surged to the top three in the Eastern Conference. Such an improvement in record is absolutely terrifying!

There is no doubt that Pitino is still very likely to win the best coach this year!

…

In the original transaction between Green Kai and Eagle, many people thought that Green Kai suffered a huge loss!

But now they can't say this. The effect of this deal is so good that it explodes. Green Kai immediately takes off!

The four teams in the lower half of the Eastern Conference are the Bulls, Hornets, Raptors and Bucks!

The Bulls are another team with a soaring record!

They had the last record in the league last season, but after introducing Rasheed and Brand this season, they directly returned to the Eastern Conference playoffs.

As for the Raptors, they are even more shocking!

This team, which has just joined the league, has reached the playoffs for the first time in team history...

Relying on the outstanding performance of Carter and Wu Sheng Jackson, this team is still quite competitive at the moment.

The only shortcoming is inside. They lack decent inside players, which restricts the possibility of their record going further!

…

The Grizzlies were so angry that they agreed to be a loser together, but the Raptors actually sneaked into the playoffs.

The Grizzlies can only be said to be unlucky this season. Raheem was injured for one-third of the schedule, making it extremely difficult for them to play.

If Raheem hadn't been injured, I'm afraid the Grizzlies would have had a chance to reach the Western Conference playoffs this season.

…

The Trail Blazers will start their first-round playoff schedule on the evening of April 17.

The opponent is the seventh-place SuperSonics in the Western Conference.

After playing against the Sonics, if nothing else happens, the Trail Blazers will face their old enemy, the Jazz, in the second round.

Then meet the Spurs or Lakers in the Western Conference Finals!

As long as we can win the Western Conference Finals, the championship will be guaranteed...

…

At seven o'clock in the evening on May 17, the home team's locker room in the Rose Garden.

In front of Richard stood a nervous Maddie...

There was still an hour before the start of the game, and McGrady was suddenly called over by Richard.

Maddie is very nervous now and doesn't know what Richard wants to say to her...

"Young man, how is your stay with the Trail Blazers this season?" Richard asked with a smile.

Maddie was startled, what the hell kind of problem was this?

"Pretty good..." Maddie replied with a smile.

It's really good for him to stay in the Trail Blazers. The atmosphere in the Trail Blazers' locker room is good, and he has gotten more playing opportunities than he did in the Raptors, so he will definitely not be unhappy here.

But what he wants is definitely more than that. What he wants is to become the core player of the Trail Blazers' backcourt.

But now, although he is still the starter, in terms of core, he feels that Ginobili on the bench is more like the core of the Trail Blazers' backcourt.

…

McGrady doesn't know how he feels now. He still likes the Trail Blazers, but when it comes to working hard for the Trail Blazers, that's not the case.