When Liu Mang arrived at the restaurant, his teammates had already arrived, but most of them still looked like they were still awake.

However, there were two people who looked very sober, but with sadness written all over their faces.

These two people are the team's first and second point guards Dean Grove and Jacqui Vaughn.

"Nazir, what happened to the two of them?" Liu Mang asked while picking up vegetables and oil-free fried eggs from the buffet.

"Tonight they are going to face off against Payton. Most of the team's guards are similar to them when they meet Payton." Muhammad responded.

Payton.

Gary Payton!

Depend on!

Only then did Liu Mang remember that today's opponent was the Sonics! The Sonics with the trash-talking king Gary Payton!

Gary Payton is not only a great trash talker, he is also super strong. As of last season, he has been selected to the All-Defensive First Team for eight consecutive seasons, and has been selected to the All-Defensive Second Team or above for eight consecutive years! He also won the

He has been the best defensive player! And he has been ranked second in the mvp rankings!

Payton, who is 33 years old this year, is still strong, averaging 22 points, 4 rebounds and 8 assists in the first 6 games. He is extremely strong.

This is not something that Francis and his ilk can compare to! Even speaking of it, Iverson is not as scary as Payton!

Francis has already tortured the Hawks' defense line to death. Iverson has beaten the Hawks to death just because he is strong on the offensive end. Come on Payton...

At this time, Liu Mang saw Coach Kruger coming for lunch, and immediately put down the plate in his hand and ran over.

"Coach! Coach!"

Liu Mang showed that he was faster than when he triggered the pick-and-roll master and the bench gangster, which shocked Coach Kruger!

"What's wrong Ace?" Coach Kruger asked strangely.

"Coach, I have decided that I will switch to shooting guard! Scoring is what I want to pursue!" Liu Mang said solemnly.

The restaurant was so big, and Liu Mang's voice was not quiet, everyone heard it.

Teammates were very confused at first, how good it would be to play a point guard! Especially a point guard who can fire unlimitedly, Liu Mang is the only one on the Hawks.

But thinking about today's opponent, everyone realized that this rookie was as shameless as people said!

The two point guards Dean Grove and Jacqui Vaughn even directly criticized each other. Is there such an operation?

Coach Kruger was also confused at the beginning, why did he suddenly need to play shooting guard? What is the difference between playing shooting guard and point guard according to Liu Mang's style of play? Why not just hold the ball?

However, as the sound of the players spitting their food came, Coach Kruger suddenly came to his senses and was as speechless as possible.

Coach Kruger helplessly held his forehead and replied: "Okay, when you partner with Emmanuel or Jason, they play point guard and you play shooting guard, the tactics remain the same."

Oh yeah! Liu Mang didn't expect the coach to be so easy to talk to...wait a minute, Qiaodou Sack, Shen Gang Mani, Waite, Gaster...it seems like...it doesn't make any difference whether you change positions or not!

…

…

Think about how great it will be for the league to be united in the future! Most teams don’t even have a decent star. When a strong team beats a weak team, the substitute of the strong team can look like a superstar. How can it be like now, who are competing for the No. 1 pick?

The team also has stars like Francis of the Rockets, Jaylen Rose of the Bulls, Nick Van Exel of the Nuggets, and Juwan Howard.

Seeing the muscular Payton, Liu Mang really wanted to go up and say to him: Brother, you'd better go to the Lakers to hug your thigh this year, otherwise you won't be able to lift your thigh in two years, and you have to go to the Heat to drink water in 2006.

Machine is on.

After the game started, Liu Mang continued to play as a substitute without any suspense. Even though he was the point guard with the best performance and statistics on the team, he was still a substitute.

Both Coach Kruger and Liu Mang are firm on this point!

Watching the court, Liu Mang could not stop talking. He abused the Hawks point guard on the offensive end and Payton, who was so confused by guarding Jason Terry on the defensive end. Liu Mang truly saw that he was a superstar on both ends of the floor.

Even though Payton is 33 years old, he is still on the tail end of his prime. There is no problem being selected for the All-NBA Team and the All-Defensive First Team this year.

Supersonic speed is really strong!

Except for the 1998-99 season, when their super power forward Vin Baker turned fat and became a pig due to excessive drinking due to the lockout, which resulted in the shortened season that year, they did not make the playoffs. In other times, they were strong teams in the Western Conference playoffs, and in 1995

-Reached the finals in the 1996 season.

Although the SuperSonics are no longer as strong as the strongest team in the Western Conference before the shutdown, they are still a strong team. Don't look at the fact that the Hawks are currently ranked first in the league. They have no advantage against the SuperSonics. Instead, they are defeated by the SuperSonics.

The offense cost everything.

Brent Barry, who can fly even if he is white, Vladimir Radmanovic, the future ski man of the Lakers, and Rashard Lewis, the future millionaire player of the Magic.

Three tall shooters with a three-point shooting percentage of over 40% almost overwhelmed the Hawks.

However, the SuperSonics do not have the strength to defeat the Eagles at once.

Teams such as the Hawks and SuperSonics are not weak and have some strengths, but they are not the strongest teams. It is very embarrassing and feels like they are beating everyone 50-50.

The SuperSonics are extremely accurate on the outside, and the Hawks have a huge advantage inside. Vin Baker was an All-NBA super power forward back then, but a lockout destroyed him. Now he just relies on his fat body to squeeze in and rub off.

A two-point hook shot would be a disaster on the defensive and rebounding ends. Not to mention Rashard Lewis, who has no other strengths except shooting. I don’t know how the Sonics drafted Durant during the 2006-07 season.

After averaging 22 points and 5 rebounds per game this season, he defrauded the Magic into a 100 million yuan contract. I can only say that the Magic's management is always so worthy of praise.

The Hawks have three strong players in the frontcourt: Ratliff, Muhammad, and Raheem. Raheem is also a super forward swingman who averages 23 points and 10 rebounds per game, destroying the SuperSonics inside.

So even though the SuperSonics were surprisingly accurate from outside today, they were still unable to open up the score from the start. At the eighth minute of the first quarter, the Eagles called a timeout, and the Sonics only led the Eagles by 4 points, 21-17.

For Liu Mang, this is the last thing he wants to see. He is so anxious! In other words, those players who entered the NBA in the 1980s and 1990s will never take a break!

Even though Gary Payton is 33 years old this year, his playing time per game this season has reached a career high! He averaged 43 minutes per game. Last season, when he was 32 years old, he averaged 42 minutes per game. Even after the game this year,

By reducing some playing time in the middle and later stages, it is estimated that the average playing time will continue to break the 40-minute mark.

"Ace, go up and shoot! Open up the space and give Sharif a better chance to score inside! Jason, you cover for Ace and take away the defense with your offensive threat..." Coach Kruger spat.

fly.

Liu Mang was very upset. Sure enough, the team would struggle in such an anxious game, so even the SuperSonics would probably struggle too!
Chapter completed!