The Pope of Basketball Community

Before the start of the game, players from both sides waited in the locker room of the arena early.

Michael Jordan danced rope for a while, resting on a stool.

In a basketball game, the strength of a player often depends on the state before the game. Depending on the state, the performance of the player's own strength will definitely be different. If the adjustment is appropriate, the strength of the player may be 120%. Jordan is a person who is particularly good at adjusting himself.

"Zen Master" Jackson stood beside Jordan and whispered, "I haven't seen you adjust in this way for a long time."

Jordan kept his face straight: "We must not lose this time, otherwise the record gap will widen."

After a pause, he stood up and clapped his hands, and said loudly to his teammates: "Pay attention to the running position and make an empty cut inside. If the opportunity is good, I will pass the ball."

After the Bulls won two championships, Jordan has changed. Although he is still the strongest star in the eyes of many people, he himself is aware of the decline in strength.

In the past, Jordan would say: "There is no letter I (I) in the word TEAM, but there is I (I) in the word WIN."

Now, he knows that he cannot do without the cooperation of good teammates and cannot leave the team.

Jordan's biggest weapon is no longer his body and technology, but his tenacious will. His desire to win surpassed everyone else. In Game 5 of the finals last season, he had a fever and dehydration, but he still scored 38 points to lead the team to victory, and finally got off the field with Pippen's support.

This season, Jordan also relied on his will to win. He tried his best on both ends of the offense and defense, not like a veteran at all.

In the locker room of the home team, Ewing looked equally serious.

In the past years, Ewing has been overshadowed by Jordan's edge. He only made it to the Finals once when Jordan retired for the first time. Jordan is his biggest enemy.

The teammates didn't communicate much, and I was afraid that if they smiled at this time, the coach would think it was not serious enough, and the atmosphere in the locker room was like a prison.

It was Yang Rui and Van Gundy who broke the silence. The two had different tactics. Yang Rui suggested double-teaming Jordan, and Van Gundy planned to defend alone. The reason was to train for the playoffs.

"We lost by double-teaming Jordan on the field. He will pass the ball and drive the whole team to open up, not just play by himself." Van Gundy said seriously.

Yang Rui shook his head. He also had an opinion on defense: "Pippen can still double-team when he comes back in the playoffs. My suggestion is that, except for Kerr playing, he can double-team Jordan and let others shoot. The reason is very simple. Kerr can't make it, the Bulls don't have a three-pointer from the corner, can't they rely on rotation?"

Van Gundy said angrily: "If you can't vote, how did he win five championships?"

"Overall defense, do you think the Bulls have scored in double figures? Rodman, Harper, Langley, etc., why don't you let them shoot?"

"..." The above data is used as an example, and Van Gundy can't refute it.

The statistics given by the scouts clearly stated that only three Bulls scored in double figures last season, except for Jordan and Pippen, and the other was Kukoc. This year Pippen didn't play and was in double figures with three players. Langley averaged 12.2 points per game.

Yang Rui said sternly: "The whole world knows that the Bulls now have Jordan as a super scoring point. If he can pass the ball to drive the team, the average assists per game this year will be less than 5?"

Van Gundy was silent for a while, but he was still persuaded by Yang Rui. He realized that he had made a fool of himself.

Let Jordan score a high score in Madison Square Garden, even if he wins, the limelight will be taken away by his opponent; on the contrary, if Jordan is turned into a blacksmith and others are allowed to score, if the Bulls win... It seems that there is no such possibility at all.

The reason why Jordan is considered the strongest is because he is the key to winning, not because of his beautiful statistics. As the saying goes, capture the thief first and capture the king. Yang Rui's method not only guards against Jordan, but also affects the morale of the bulls.

Players from both sides played, and "Voice of the New York Knicks" Marv Albert and partner Marty Glickman explained on the spot.

When introducing the lineup, Albert was optimistic about the Knicks. "Johnson came back, the strength of the Knicks has greatly increased, Ewing had a rest before, and the state has remained very good."

Glickman mentioned Yang Rui. "The Knicks reused young assistant coaches. Everyone felt that it was too risky in the summer. After the preseason, many experts believed that it was impossible for the young Van Gundy and the younger Jerry Young to lead the team to achieve good results. Now they prove everyone All wrong. The Knicks are perfectly capable of threatening the Bulls' supremacy."

Albert said with a smile: "Ewing's performance was very brave, not only shooting accurately, but also assisting a lot. He may win the first regular season MVP of his career."

Glickman said: "The Bulls have no super scorers except Jordan. The second scoring point is Kukoc, who will serve as the starting small forward this season. Harper has transformed into a pure defensive player after arriving in the Bulls. His offensive ability is not as good as before. Langley and Rodman are both blue-collar workers, and today the Bulls want to beat the Knicks, mainly depends on Jordan's performance."

Starting the game, the Knicks five: Ward, Houston, Bowen, Johnson, Ewing.

Bulls Five: Hubble, Jordan, Kukoc, Rodman, Langley.

Ewing won with a jump ball, the Knicks went first, and the outside formation opened up.

Ewing gave Houston an off-ball screen from the side and helped him get rid of Jordan. Houston received the ball and Langley defended it.

When the two sides competed on the field, the Bulls had already seen the Knicks' off-ball screens, and they had to switch defenses quickly. Houston took the ball for a while, changed direction and went to the right to pass Langley, and made a sudden stop at a high position.

Jordan chased up from the side, Houston missed the shot, jumped up and passed the ball lightly to Ewing, who was making an air cut on the left, and the "gorilla" strode into the basket, attracting Rodman to defend and did not shoot. The ball was assigned to Johnson at 60 degrees on the right.

Johnson didn't waste the opportunity and hit an open three-pointer, 3-0.

Once Rodman retreats to the basket, he has to rely on Kukoc and Langley to defend the weak side. It is impossible for Langley's speed to rotate in place.

When the first team has Jordan and Pippen, it is impossible to sign a super center, so the Bulls will start with Langley. He can't run or jump at all, and his only role on the defensive end is as a meat shield.

The Bulls attacked, and the formation was also stretched. Harper dribbled the ball across half court and passed it to Kukoc in the middle and ran to the bottom corner.

Bowen was excited. This was the second time he was in charge of defending Jordan. He couldn't defend him on the court, but he was very happy to be able to match up. This is the trust given by the coaching staff.

Jordan broke through with the ball and failed to pass Bowen in one step, and leaned back at 45 degrees. Ward came up to double-team, went down three-way and emptied Hubble.

Jordan has been in the league for many years, and his golf quotient is extraordinary. He immediately thought of what might happen after passing the ball. He pulled the ball to avoid the steal, turned around in the middle and made a jumper with a fadeaway. .

He feels good on the first ball, his posture is unforgettable, and he scores the ball with an elegant fadeaway jumper. 3 to 2.

Yang Rui couldn't help but want to applaud on the sidelines. Jordan is the only one in the league who can have such strength at the age of 35.

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