NBA Opening Draw To Twilight Shaquille O’Neal

[NBA draws O'Neal in his twilight years at the start][]

The Trail Blazers finally defeated the Warriors, and the showdown between the two teams with the best final records this season finally came to fruition.

However, the Warriors fans at Oracle Arena obviously would not like this result. Watching the Trail Blazers players win the Western Conference Championship trophy at their home court, they felt aggrieved and disappointed.

If you think about it from another person's perspective, isn't this a face-to-face NTR?

Last summer, Durant suddenly announced that he would opt out of his contract to join the Warriors, which made the Warriors' already strong strength take another step forward.

It is no exaggeration to say that the Warriors this season are the most luxurious team in the league, bar none!

I still remember that at the beginning of the season, Warriors fans were immersed in the management's dream operation during the offseason. They actually got Durant. This was really dreamy and a bit unrealistic.

However, sweet dreams will eventually wake up one day!

Durant's arrival did not help the Warriors overthrow the Trail Blazers' dominance, and the five-small system of death that Cole believed in as truth did not allow the Warriors to reach the top.

Durant once again lost to Wang Zelin, and the Warriors' small lineup lost to the Trail Blazers' three-high lineup.

After waking up from the dream, only the cruel reality greeted them.

No matter who wins the championship this year, it has nothing to do with the Golden State Warriors. They have become the number one loser in the 2016~2017 season!

The Trail Blazers won what is known as the greatest Western Conference Finals in history and took away all the honors, while the Warriors, with the most luxurious paper lineup in the league, lost to the same opponent for three consecutive years.

The above are all the self-pity of Warriors fans.

For Wang Zelin, the Western Conference finals are a thing of the past, and they are just the final battle. Next, it is time to turn his attention to the Eastern Conference.

Next, he needs to pay attention to another opponent-the Chicago Bulls!

As the media speculated in the interview just now, of the two teams in the Eastern Conference Finals, he is indeed more optimistic about the Chicago Bulls.

On the one hand, he believes that the Bulls' lineup is more reasonable, and the core players are relatively mature. Wade's sword is still young, and Rose has not suffered injuries and withered early like in history, and still has the strength of an All-Star point guard.

As for Anthony Davis, he has emerged from his cocoon and become one of the few active superstars. His personal immediate combat ability has ranked among the top five in the league.

For now, in terms of both offensive and defensive performance, there are only four players who can surpass David in overall strength: Wang Zelin, James, Curry, and Durant.

The other three players who can be called superstars this season, Harden, Leonard, and Westbrook, are only as good as Davis in terms of overall strength at best, and cannot surpass them.

On the other hand, Thomas was injured as early as March this year against the Timberwolves, and he missed two games at that time. In Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, the final game of the series between the Celtics and Pacers, Thomas' right hip injury further aggravated, but he still chose to endure the injury.

In other words, Thomas' current strength is affected by injuries and cannot be called a complete player.

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[NBA draws O'Neal in his twilight years at the start][]

This season, due to his short height and unresolved output on the offensive end, many fans have seen the shadow of Allen Iverson in Thomas Jr., and it is not an exaggeration to call him a phenomenal star in the 2016~2017 season.

On the court, Thomas's playing style is also like a tenacious and unyielding fighter. The more he looks at it, the more he looks like the answer back then.

Just for playing injured for the Green Army, Thomas can be called a respectable leader.

But what he did, of course, came at a price.

Historically, Thomas Jr. chose to persevere through the injuries because of his first two consecutive hip injuries. As a result, he suffered a hip injury in the second game of the Eastern Conference Finals and was directly reimbursed for the season.

The hip injury in the Eastern Conference Finals also became a turning point in his career. In the 16-17 season, he shocked all basketball fans with his "strongest 175 on the floor", and then gradually became a league bum.

Wang Zelin doesn't know if Thomas' hip injury will suddenly worsen as it did in history after returning to the Eastern Conference Finals, leading to season reimbursement.

However, compared with the Chicago Bulls, whose overall strength has reappeared, the core framework is reasonable, and the desire to survive is strong, the Boston Celtics led by Thomas Jr., who is suffering from injuries, is obviously weaker.

Don't look at the fact that the Celtics currently have many players whose names fans will shout out in the future, such as CJ McCollum, Brandon Ingram, Al Horford, etc.

But the Celtics' current tactical system is indeed fixed. They are built around Thomas. The stronger Thomas is, the stronger the Celtics will be.

On the contrary, when Thomas's strength declines, the Celtics' strength will also decline.

Once Thomas is reimbursed for the season, the Celtics will basically have half a foot in the coffin.

This is the reason why the Celtics in the Eastern Conference finals of the 17-year playoffs in history were eventually swept 4-1 by the Cavaliers led by James.

This is also the reason why Wang Zelin is not optimistic about the Celtics.

When Wang Zelin shouted, "Chicago Bulls, don't let me down!", the world's attention gradually shifted to the Eastern Conference Finals next door.

The Trail Blazers took a special flight back to Portland the next day.

Because they have home court advantage against all teams, they can recharge their batteries in Portland and wait for their final opponent in the Finals.

And they still have a happy worry, that is, their Western Conference finals have finished, and the Eastern Conference Finals next door has just started. Even if the Bulls/Celtics can cleanly defeat their opponents and end the series within four or five games, the Blazers will have to rest for at least a week.

If it reaches tiebreaker 6 or even tiebreak 7, they will have more rest time, which may be as long as half a month.

There is too much time to recuperate, and Coach Terry is really worried about whether the Trail Blazers players can still maintain a strong desire to win in the finals.

After all, there is inertia in human bones!

Of course, if these words reach the ears of the Bulls or Celtics players, they will most likely complain that the Trail Blazers are too Versailles.

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[NBA draws O'Neal in his twilight years at the start][]

…

Finally, the time came to May 23, and the first stop of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Bulls and Celtics kicked off in Chicago.

The much-anticipated Eastern Conference Finals has finally begun!

Sitting at home, the Bulls were determined to win, and they showed momentum from the beginning. At the end of the half, they led the Celtics by 11 points.

The Celtics are already weaker than the Bulls, and as they are on the road, it is clear that the referee's decision favors the Bulls.

The Chicago Bulls are, after all, the team that the basketball **** Cheng plays for. From Jordan's second retirement in 1998 and the dissolution of the Bulls dynasty to now, this may be the first time in nearly 20 years that the Bulls have been so close to the finals!

Whether the Bulls can return to the finals has become a hot topic recently.

The Bulls seem to be deliberately catering to this topic. During tonight's players' entrance ceremony, as Joe's exclusive bgmSirus (Chinese translation: Sirius) resounded throughout the United Center, some old Bulls fans at the scene suddenly burst into tears.

At that moment, every Bulls player on the court listened to the familiar music and looked at the six championship flags hanging on the dome, and seemed to feel a fire burning in their hearts.

They are bound to win the first game of the Eastern Conference Finals!

With such firm belief, the Bulls launched a wave of flow in the third quarter and launched a 16:4 offensive, directly killing the game.

In the end, the Bulls defeated the Celtics 120:96 at home and successfully got off to a good start!

In the first game of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Bulls beat their opponents by 24 points, which became the headline news reported by major media outlets the next day.

The aftermath of the first battle also erupted among the fan base.

Everyone thought that the Bulls had a high probability of winning the first game with the support of their home court, but they never expected that the Bulls could win so easily.

It's as if the Celtics and Bulls are not the same team.

It was not until the end of G2 of the Eastern Conference Finals two days later that the Bulls once again defeated the Celtics at home 131-105. The statement that the Celtics were inferior to the Bulls was recognized by more and more people.

There is no way, there is really a clear gap in the performance of the two teams on the court.

Three days later, the battle took place at the North Shore Garden Arena in Boston.

At this time, the Celtics are already trailing the Bulls 0-2. If they don't want to follow in the footsteps of the Warriors, they must show their true skills tonight and show respect to their hometown folks.

Before the game, most of the media changed their negative view of the first two games. They also believed that the Celtics were a strong team in the Eastern Conference Finals after all, and they had to regain some face after returning home.

It can't be possible. This year's two major conference finals in the Eastern and Western Conferences both had a historically embarrassing situation of 4-0 sweeps.

After the game started, the first half was just as fans and media expected. The Celtics returned to the North Shore Garden and instantly regained their confidence. It rained three points from the beginning.

After the first quarter, the Celtics led the Bulls by 16 points.

In the second quarter, the Bulls had a slight advantage in the substitute lineup, but the Celtics' role players were also very tenacious and held on to the score.

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[NBA draws O'Neal in his twilight years at the start][]

At halftime, 62:51, the Celtics still led the Bulls by double digits.

However, something unexpected happened. Entering the second half, not long after the two sides changed sides and fought again, something unexpected happened on the court.

Thomas fell heavily to the floor after pulling the lever to the limit and scoring the ball during a layup.

Before the Green Army fans in North Shore Garden had time to rejoice, Thomas's life-long painful cry instantly attracted everyone's attention.

When everyone looked under the Bulls basket, they found Thomas lying on the floor with a painful expression and did not stand up for a long time.

"Oops!"

At this time, Celtics coach Brad Stevens felt his heart stop for a moment, and then he seemed to think of something bad, and his expression instantly became frightened.

"Don't, don't get hurt!!"

Seeing Thomas being carried back to the locker room on a stretcher, the hearts of countless Green Army fans suddenly lifted up, and they silently prayed for Thomas.

But there is a saying that goes well, the more fearful a person is, the more likely they will come.

But when Thomas came out of the locker room and had to miss the next game due to a hip injury, the North Shore Garden exploded.

In the crucial third game of the Eastern Conference Finals, when the Celtics were about to tie the Cavaliers with two games, Isaiah Thomas, the soul of the team this season, suddenly retired for the season...

At this time, both fans and players of the Celtics were completely dumbfounded.

Then, the same thought flashed through their minds:

The Celtics are finished!

…

Portland.

In Wang Zelin's private manor, a large number of people gathered around him to watch tonight's G3 game in the Eastern Conference Finals.

"Don't look anymore, the Celtics are finished!"

After the news of Thomas' season reimbursement was announced, Wang Zelin immediately shook his head and sighed.

"Oh, I thought the Celtics would play a few more games with the Bulls? But this happened..."

At the end of the sentence, Lillard lost his voice.

Thomas Jr. has played a season comparable to that of a superstar under the Green Army's system this season. Everyone is playing point guard, and there is a vague feeling of sympathy between Lillard and Thomas Jr..

If Wang Zelin is optimistic about the Bulls because he hopes to play against Davis in the Finals, then Lillard is more optimistic about the Celtics because he is very much looking forward to playing against Thomas in the Finals.

But now it seems that his expectations are about to be dashed.

"Want to play against Derrick Rose? It seems good!"

Looking at the Bulls No. 1 on TV, Lillard narrowed his eyes slightly and clenched his right fist secretly.

…

…

When the Celtics officially announced the news that their star Thomas Jr. would be out for the season, everyone understood one thing: If nothing unexpected happens, the Eastern team that will advance to the Eastern Athletics Finals this year will be the Chicago Bulls!

That being said, when the Bulls actually defeated the Celtics and advanced to the finals, the fans couldn't help but exclaimed "Fuck!"

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[NBA draws O'Neal in his twilight years at the start][]

Mainly because the way the Bulls advanced was too brutal~www.wuxiaspot.com~In the third game, after Thomas retired due to injury, the Bulls took the opportunity to launch a major counterattack, and finally achieved a super reversal from being 22 points behind.

Anthony Davis became the number one contributor to the reversal. He took advantage of the Celtics' morale in the second half and bombarded them wildly in two quarters, scoring 31 points, 11 rebounds and 3 blocks, leading the team to complete the reversal at 115:110.

By Game 4, the Bulls didn't even leave the Celtics with a chance to fantasize.

There was a 15:0 offensive frenzy at the beginning, nakedly displaying the ambition of a 4-0 sweep.

At the end of the first half, the score between the two sides has reached 75:42, and the Bulls' lead has reached an exaggerated 33 points!

What is the concept of leading the opponent by 33 points at halftime in the Eastern Conference finals of the playoffs?

Even killing a chicken is not that simple!

But the Bulls did just that. They ended the game directly in just two quarters.

In the end, the Bulls defeated the Celtics with a score of 131:85 on the road, a full 46 points!

If the Bulls head coach hadn't decided to let the Celtics go in the final quarter, the opponent would have been the biggest team in NBA history, and there's no telling when they would have become more powerful.

Otherwise, the Bulls are fully capable of extending their lead to some mysterious number.

In the end, as Wang Zelin expected, the team that advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals was the Bulls.

At this point, the two sides of the 2016~2017 season finals have been officially determined, Portland Trail Blazers VS Chicago Bulls.

(End of chapter)