The Way of the Center

The next day An Jie headed for the training ground very early, as usual, he must be the first one to come again. But today when he opened the door of the locker room, there were already several people changing clothes inside.

"My God, did I come late?" An Jie pretended to look at his watch, Durant and Westbrook rarely came so early.

As the two worst performers in yesterday's game, Durant and Westbrook were also the most guilty in their hearts. No matter how much reluctance they have in their hearts, that guilt will also drive them to get up early and participate in training early.

"Good night, you didn't come, you are the third place today!" Westbrook patted An Jie's shoulder and started training by himself.

Gradually, there were more and more people on the training ground, and most of them came earlier than usual. Before the prescribed training time started, all members of the Thunder team had arrived.

And everyone is also very conscious, those who should practice more, and those who should "pay off their debts" should pay off their debts. After what happened yesterday, almost everyone believed that Van Gundy would definitely rest for a while today. After all, no one would joke about their health. Didn't former Rockets coach Tomjanovich voluntarily give up his job as a head coach because of physical reasons?

But when the familiar voice sounded on the training ground, everyone looked towards the door in surprise.

"Good morning, gentlemen!" Van Gundy greeted the players energetically. It's hard to imagine that this bald man almost went into shock because of high blood pressure yesterday.

The training ground suddenly fell silent, only Van Gundy's footsteps could be heard.

"What are you looking at me for? Keep practicing!" Van Gundy's voice amplified a little, and the players started to move immediately. They were afraid that Van Gundy's blood pressure would rise if he became angry.

Alton, Van Gundy's assistant, also had to sigh secretly in his heart. He had never seen someone who was so obsessed and devoted to work like Van Gundy. In front of Van Gundy, no one was qualified to be labeled a workaholic.

Van Gundy is actually very tired, but once he thinks of the powerful Lakers, once he thinks of the Western Conference semifinals, he can't allow himself to rest for even a minute. He's not Phil Jackson, he's leading a group of elites who don't need to worry about it anymore. Van Gundy was just leading a group of fledgling kids, a group of kids who needed guidance all the time. How their careers will develop in the future, this first stroke of Van Gundy's painting is particularly important.

He didn't like rookies before because it was really troublesome to lead rookies. Compared with a piece of blank paper, which coach doesn't like finished products that can be used directly. But after two years with the Thunder, Van Gundy's concept has undergone a huge change. Even though it was very hard work, but seeing the Thunder Three Young Masters grow up step by step,

Van Gundy was also very pleased.

...................................

After a devastating defeat, the media in Los Angeles was overjoyed, feeling as if they were happier than the Lakers themselves. Don't think this is just a game between the Thunder and the Lakers. In fact, the Oklahoma media and the Los Angeles media are also secretly competing.

When the Lakers lost, the Oklahoma City papers would write off the defending champions. Now, Los Angeles newspapers finally got a chance to vent their anger.

The next game will be the fifth time the two sides have met. With three games remaining, the Lakers have two home games and the Thunder have only one. The optimism of Los Angeles fans and the media is not blind.

All indications are that the Lakers have a greater advantage. And after the explosion of the Lakers Twin Towers in the last game, people are also full of hope for the two elders, one black and one white.

Kobe himself is enough for the Thunder to have a good drink. Now that the Lakers twin towers are awake again, what will the Thunder do to win.

"Win the match point battle!" With such an advantage, newspapers in Los Angeles published such headlines the day before the game. Before the game started, these reporters acted as if the Lakers had already held the match point.

"Don't forget how the Thunder team lost!? I don't want you to make the same mistake!" Outside the Lakers are already being praised to the sky, but Zen Master himself is constantly weakening the spirit of the players.

The reason why the Thunder team lost so badly in the last game was because of their arrogance, which Zen master is not clear about. He didn't want his Purple and Gold Army to lose the game for such a ridiculous reason. They were a championship team, not a youth team!

"Don't worry, we know what to do after playing. Andrew, don't be careless tomorrow." Bryant is very relieved of Gasol, but Bynum, he must remind one more.

"I will not underestimate the enemy, I will only go all out and try to tear that damned guy to pieces!" If you want to ask the Lakers who hates Anjie the most, Bynum will definitely be the first to stand up. The grievances between him and Anjie are not just about the victory in the Western Conference semifinals. Even if the two met on the road, they would definitely talk trash to each other.

Maybe Bynum doesn't dare to do anything to an old ball ruffian like KD, but Anjie, he is not afraid!

"Well, we have already practiced what we need to train. Let's have a good rest tonight and don't go to nightclubs. Tomorrow, we must be full of energy to win the match point!" In the locker room of the Lakers, when Kobe When talking, no one dares to interrupt. This is why many superstars are reluctant to come to Los Angeles, because of Kobe.

He is too strong, too stubborn. A guy who can squeeze O'Neal away at a young age is hard to shake. If you want Kobe's reign with the Lakers to end, maybe you really have to wait until the day he retires.

"Okay, what Bryant said is right, everyone has a good rest tonight. Let's leave it at that today, come back at noon tomorrow, and prepare for the challenge!" Zen Master waved his hand, ending the Lakers' one-day training. Although it is a home game, although it is the defending champion, although the Thunder lost in the last game. But Zen Master still had some doubts in his heart.

The current Thunder can really replace the core at any time during the game. Replacing the core does not mean that a person who takes more shots is called a core. Once the core is replaced, many supporting tactics will also change accordingly. But as long as Van Gundy wants to, the Thunder can really do it.

Durant, Westbrook and Anjie have all had the experience of being the core, and the most important thing is that these three guys also have the ability to be the core. The players have long memorized the play style of these three people as the core, so it seems that it is not difficult to change the core during the game. Zen Master is afraid of this. If he changes his defensive strategy too frequently, it will definitely be the Lakers themselves who will mess up in the end.

Of course, the Thunder team also has risks. This group of young people is too inexperienced, and they may not be able to adapt to the change of tactics. But this is the playoffs, even if it is a gamble, it is worth a try!

The Zen master shook his head, it was useless for him to think about it now. The head coach's job is to lose more than half of it when the game starts. On-the-spot scheduling is also Zen master's forte.

"You worry too much about Phil, you worry too much..." The Zen master kept talking to himself to relieve the pressure in his heart. Even if the Thunder were eliminated, they had earned enough fame. They are good enough to get to this point. But the Lakers cannot be eliminated. Any result other than the championship is called a failure for the Lakers!

In terms of pressure, the pressure of Zen Master must be much greater than that of Van Gundy.

No matter who it is, the second day of the game will not be easy. The Lakers have already shocked the outside world by just keeping the total score flat.

And the young Thunder will never know what satisfaction is. At first they just wanted to enter the playoffs, but now that they have reached the Western Conference semifinals, they still want to go to the next level.

These two teams, which seem to have a huge gap, are playing inextricably.

...................................

"Let's welcome, Kobe~~~~Bryant!"

"boom!"

The player introduction ceremony of the Lakers was very grand, and the coordination of the flames and lights on the scene was perfect. This is the penultimate home of the Lakers, and everyone hopes that the Lakers can get the match point before going to Oklahoma.

All the players of the Lakers stood on both sides, forming a corridor. Kobe is naturally the one who is qualified to walk through this "corridor". He high-fives his teammates on both sides one by one, and finally waves to the fans in the audience.

When An Jie was still in China, his dream was to watch a game with Kobe at Staples. Even if he was beaten to death, he would never have imagined that in a few years, he would be able to stand at Staples and compete with Kobe in the same arena, and it would be a life-and-death playoffs.

But now, An Jie has long been accustomed to all this. The shouts of the fans, the appearance of superstars, and the noise of more than 20,000 people. All this could no longer shake An Jie's heart.

He just looked at Kobe calmly, and calmly faced those fans who adored Kobe crazily. Faced with anything now, An Jie can remain calm and calm as water. The baptism of two years of professional basketball career has given him too many unforgettable experiences.

But there was only one thing that could stir up the fire in An Jie's heart. That's fighting, that's the process of going on the field to win!

In the last game, he didn't ignite such passion. Perhaps after dominating the game in the previous game, An Jie thought he was strong enough that even the Lakers' twin towers could not cause him trouble. But today, he knew that he was just a rookie, and what he was facing was the man who was worshiped as a god, and the inside combination that had won the highest honor!

An Jie just watched all this calmly, watching the Lakers players put on a big show before the opening game.

Now you can pay back whatever you want, and when you get on the stage, it will make you look bad right away!

Jeff Van Gundy has been the head coach for 15 years. He even stood on the stage of the finals once, and he won the title of the best coach of the season not long ago.

Such a guy is still working desperately for his work. As a rookie, he has no reason to underestimate the enemy and be proud.

Standing on the middle circle, Anjie didn't provoke Bynum today, he even had a deadpan expression.

He just wanted to wait quietly, waiting for the referee to throw the ball, waiting for the moment when the game started.

At that moment, he will be really excited about everything on the scene!

The contest between the Lakers and the Thunder in Game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinals begins now!