The rest is just noise

Which university is best for Yao Yueban to go to?

Louis thought of Wake Forest University almost instantly.

Duncan is about to graduate, and Wake Forest University needs to find his successor. Moreover, they have previous experience in training Chinese players.

Yu Tiancan, the first All-Star player from China in NBA history, graduated from Wake Forest University.

Moreover, Yu Tiancan and Yao Yueban are both 2.2 meters tall...

Considering several aspects such as experience, practicality and the ability to develop players, Louis feels that Wake Forest University is a good place to go.

The main thing is that Louis is very familiar with the coaching staff of Wake Forest University. When choosing a school for your child, you first look at the relationship, the second is the school spirit, and the third is the history. I won’t talk about the relationship, everyone knows it. School spirit is very important.

The atmosphere of the school determines whether players can adapt quickly. In terms of history, it does not mean what glorious history the school has, but what kind of players they have trained in history.

From this point of view, UCLA seems to be good. They have trained two super centers in Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Walton in history. However, to be fair, even if these two go to other schools, wouldn't they be able to play well?

Well, even if UCLA is really good at coaching, it is all due to John Wooden.

In the post-Wooden era, the greatest player to come out of UCLA is Benjamin Wilson, followed by Reggie Miller, and third by Kiki Vandeweghe.

History is important, but history must be combined with the current status quo. UCLA has long been no longer a team good at cultivating super centers.

Louis believes that there is a better place for Yao Yueban, because there are so many NCAA schools, there are always schools and coaching teams that are more suitable for Yao Yueban.

But the most important thing is that Louis is not familiar with the UCLA coaching staff.

In fact, Duke and Georgetown can also be considered, but Louis doesn't like the dogmatism of Duke players, and John Thompson is considered mediocre by Louis. After much thought, Wake Forest University is suitable for Yao Yueban.

A traditional center that needs careful training.

Of course, with Yao Yueban's potential and understanding, no matter which university he goes to, his future achievements will not be low. It just depends on which university is more suitable.

Louis recommended Wake Forest University. As for the subsequent decision, it depends on the choice of China NBA Academy and Yao Yueban and his family.

The next day, the Lakers returned to Los Angeles holding the Western Conference Championship Cup.

Outside the Los Angeles airport, a large number of enthusiastic fans held up signs that read "SksBoston."

The fans' hatred for Green Kai is evident.

Outsiders like Louis and Wilson don't have that deep feeling. Isn't it just playing the Celtics in the finals? What's the point? It's not the Celtics dynasty back then.

However, although the Celtics are no longer the dynasty they once were, there is still a man who makes Lakers fans suffer from PTSD.

That was Ralph Sampson, who beat Lakers fans and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar into amnesia in the Finals.

Before the 1985 Finals, Bird got into a fight for a friend in a bar and injured his finger, causing a sharp decline in his performance. It was the closest to victory among the four duels between the Lakers and Celtics in the 1980s.

.

After his first five games, the Lakers led 3-2. In the sixth game, Sampson descended from heaven and defeated Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on both offense and defense, officially establishing his status as the number one center in the 1980s and 1990s.

Now, both Bird and Thomas have retired, and the tragic star is no longer a superstar after his comeback, but the 36-year-old Sampson is still one of the best centers in the world.

How could this not frighten Lakers fans?

In the afternoon, Louis and the coaching staff held a preview meeting for the finals.

The Lakers met the Celtics twice in the regular season and achieved one win and one loss.

Those two games gave the Lakers some confidence.

In terms of lineup, the Lakers are obviously stronger than the Celtics.

The Lakers have the depth to run a ten-man rotation in the Finals, while the Celtics may shorten the rotation to seven.

This is a big advantage.

The Celtics' absolute advantage lies in the inside, and Sampson and Malone's high-low coordination is almost unsolvable.

Although the Lakers defeated the Celtics in the regular season, even in that game, they were unable to crack the opponent's high-low post system.

They also play high and low inside. The biggest difference between Green Kai and the Lakers is that they clearly understand that Sampson is the core and Malone is the end point. However, the Lakers do not have this kind of emphasis on the high and low inside. Garnett and Barkley are in and out of the system.

free.

There is no distinction between these two different styles.

The Celtics rely more on stars, and the Lakers rely more on the whole team.

However, if the same system were used to compete in a series, Louis believes that the Lakers will win.

Because of Sampson's age, the Celtics, like the Trail Blazers, will have a hard time playing the game if their core doesn't perform.

And this is the biggest advantage of the Lakers.

In regular play, the absolute core tactical position of Wilson is the same as that of shooters like Liu Yuqing. In the high and low post play, in addition to the inside, the other peripheral players are supporting roles. The roll call system and the dynamic attack from the outside are the only way.

It is a style of play with Wilson and other wings as the core.

Not to mention, they also have the "Beautiful Basketball" guarantee.

This is the Lakers' advantage in tactical reserves.

Finally, there is the age structure of the core members. Malone, Sampson, and Barkley are in the same age group, while Wilson has just turned 30, and his physical condition, skills, experience, and mentality are all at their peak.

Superstars in their prime, both in terms of stability on the court and the upper limit of their competitive ability, are far superior to older superstars.

This is the advantage of core players.

The Lakers have these three major advantages: lineup, tactics, and core. Louis really feels that they can't lose.

However, some people on the coaching staff are worried about the Celtics' two-headed monster inside.

For example, Nelson, although he thinks the Lakers have a great advantage,...

"If we can't crack the Celtics' inside high and low posts, there will be many uncontrollable accidents in the game."

Louie wanted to brainstorm: "Do you have any comments?"

Rick Carlisle made a point: "When we played against the Celtics before, we didn't have Dennis. If we had Dennis, we would have had more changes on the defensive end."

Although the Lakers failed to crack the Celtics' high and low post tactics in the two regular season games, the Lakers are still different now than they were then.

Louis believes that Rodman will play some role in the Finals, but it will certainly not be decisive.

Because Rodman is no longer in his prime.

Although Rodman in his previous life said that he could defeat Malone every minute, in fact, he could not defeat Malone.

At most, he only made Malone uncomfortable to a certain extent. It is undoubtedly a naive idea to expect Rodman to be a surprise player to break the Celtics' two giants inside.

But this is indeed a solution.

The most surprising thing is that interior coach Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who rarely speaks in coaching staff meetings, made a bold suggestion: "Maybe we can let Ben Wallace deal with Karl Malone."

Due to height restrictions, Ben has always been inconspicuous in the Lakers.

As a rookie, it's not time for him to show his strength yet, so Louis uses him less.

In a preview meeting like this where the opponent is discussed, if the opponent's inside line is strong, almost no assistant will mention the big money.

Even Kareem Abdul-Jabbar usually doesn't have a good attitude towards Ben. Who told him that he is only 2 meters tall and insists on being 2.08 meters tall and playing the center position?

This is simply a shame for the center!

Now he actually suggested that this disgraceful center who usually looks down on him should carry Malone?

Louis looked at Jabbar suspiciously: "Are you sure?"

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar acted as if it had nothing to do with him: "I'm just making suggestions. You can make your own judgment on the specifics. I think that kid's defense is quite up to par."

Louis wants to hear about it

opinions of others.

Nelson said pessimistically: "No, the height and tonnage are asymmetrical, Karl Malone will eat him."

Carlisle and Budenholzer agreed with Nelson.

On the other hand, Bird's view is closer to that of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: "You can give it a try. Kevin usually has to practice low-post singles and he will always have Big Ben as a sparring partner."

"In a one-on-one confrontation without interference from others, Kevin's success rate in low-post singles against Ben is no more than 50%." Bird said carefully, "Although Ben is short, he is strong and has very good core strength.

His defensive habits are impeccable and he is the best low post defender I have ever seen."

For a kite man like Garnett, it's no big deal to defend him in the low post until his shooting rate is only 50%...but doesn't Malone also like to fly kites inside?

Maybe?

Louis had an idea in mind and said to Nelson: "In this afternoon's match, let Ben and Rick arrange more back-up hits for Jasmine."

"We need at least three quality intra-squad games to test Ben's low-post defense. We will know if he can do it."